March 2007 Archives

Paralyzed from the waist down, Alvin Malave recently learned the hard way that mass transit isn't always accessible to the disabled, contrary to public policy or federal law.

Headed to Philadelphia for a wheelchair basketball tournament, the West Hills resident planned to ride the super-convenient FlyAway bus from Van Nuys to Los Angeles International Airport.

The first bus wasn't equipped with a wheelchair lift, so Malave figured he'd just wait for the next one. The second bus came, and that one also didn't have a lift.

Finally, nearly an hour later, a bus arrived that could accommodate his wheelchair and transport him to LAX.

After the tournament in Philly - his team lost, by the way - Malave waited outside the LAX terminal for a FlyAway bus to take him back to Van Nuys. Sure enough, the bus that arrived lacked a wheelchair lift.

Dreading another hourlong wait, Malave instead hoisted himself out of his chair and dragged himself up the steep steps of the bus and into a seat.

"When I go out, I don't expect everything to be all disabled-accessible," said Malave, who was paralyzed five years ago when he was hit by a stolen pickup truck. "I know I will encounter obstacles, and I don't even think about it. I just do what I have to do to get here or there."

But Malave's family members weren't as sanguine. And when they called with his story, it ignited a firestorm in our newsroom about injustice. I contacted officials at Coach America, the bus company that contracts with the city; at LAX and at the Federal Transit Administration.

Everyone I talked with was enraged. Everyone but Malave himself.

Growing up with a sister who became blind, disabled and disfigured during surgery to remove a brain tumor when she was 9, I learned quickly that life isn't always fair. I understood his family's anger. But I was also proud of Malave and his unbelievably positive attitude toward the hurdles he faces.

A student at California State University, Northridge, he said he just wants to live independently. And if the world won't change for him, he'll change for the world.

"I feel like I have no limitations. I want to enjoy life," he said. "I don't see the boundaries that this disability has brought me."

There are 54 million Americans living with disabilities. For years, many were expected simply to stay home and collect benefits from the government.

That attitude is changing with the younger generation of disabled who are now working, traveling and contributing to their communities, said Nancy Starnes, vice president of the National Organization On Disability, based in Washington, D.C.

"The expectations for being active were certainly much more diminished then than they are for younger people today," Starnes said.

But Starnes said that, as a result, there are more disabled relying on public transit agencies to get around. And with that comes an increased demand on these services to accommodate disabled passengers.

It also means a heightened scrutiny when services fall short, as they did at Van Nuys FlyAway.

Coach America General Manager Dave Dwight apologized for Malave's experience, saying, "There is no excuse for even one thing going wrong."

There's supposed to be a wheelchair lift on each FlyAway bus, Dwight said, but a service implemented last year to shuttle passengers between Union Station and LAX created a shortage of wheelchair-accessible buses. He hopes the problem will be resolved soon.

And even though Coach America contracts with the city's airports agency, it operates without federal money and does not have FTA oversight to make sure it complies with the Americans with Disabilities Act.

Meanwhile, it's not going to hold back Malave, who learned his upbeat outlook on life after joining a wheelchair basketball team.

Playing the sport means falling out of the wheelchair and struggling at times to move. Through this, he says he has learned not to let barriers on the court or in life get in his way.

"We just deal," Malave said of his team. "We don't allow the other factors to bother us."

Do you have questions about your local transit system? What are your experiences with transportation? Send your thoughts to me at sue.doylel@dailynews.com or call me at (818) 713-3746.

My head is still spinning from the phone calls, letters and e-mails from readers bristling about troubles with the MTA bus system.

You related tales of rudeness, inconsiderate Los Angeles motorists and the stress of traveling some of the nation's most congested streets.

And those were just the comments from bus drivers.

After reading my last column about Metropolitan Transportation Authority bus drivers who deliberately start routes late, rush past their stops to gain extra time and sleep during their breaks, one bus driver left four voice mails offering his take.

He said the MTA does not give drivers enough time to make it through their routes, and when traffic clogs or cars crash along the way there's even less time for them to catch their breath and recover from the stress. So some drivers create their own breaks.

"Sometimes we do things we shouldn't do because we're trying to make it work for us," he said.

Another called with tales of passengers spitting, punching and making faces at drivers. If he defended himself, he's sure that would be the end of his job.

No one ever said driving a bus was easy, especially in Los Angeles where people can get a little nuts when anything interferes with their commutes.

Riding the bus isn't always a breeze either and many called and wrote about their own public transportation war stories.

With disabling leg problems, 58-year-old Larry Moore of Glendale relies on his walker to get around. The MTA reserves seats in front of the bus for seniors and handicapped riders such as Moore.

But more often than not, Moore said, able-bodied passengers grab those seats, leaving him to hobble down the narrow aisle in search of another seat.

"Some of the bus drivers will tell people to get out of those seats. Sometimes the riders will laugh at you," Moore said. "If they don't move, the drivers say there's nothing they can do about it."

What on earth is the matter with these people? Commuting in Los Angeles is tough enough.

In fact, Los Angeles residents spent about 623,796,000 hours stuck in traffic in 2003, costing about $10.7 billion in gas and lost time, according to the Texas Transportation Institute.

Moore said getting around can create such frustrations that sometimes it's not worth even leaving the house.

Even with all completely functional limbs, I don't want to leave my place on some days and deal with the commute.

Although there are times when the sun is shining and the Beatles are playing on the radio that there's no finer place to be cruising around than in Southern California.

But driving behind cell-phone talkers who hold up lanes of traffic while lost in the never-never land of their conversations drives me completely berserk. At those moments I visualize sticking a filthy plunger to their car windows and flinging them off the roads. All with one hand.

Harsh? I can't help myself. Like I said, this is Los Angeles and we generally don't like anything that messes with the ride.

So what drives you crazy about your commute? Whether it's by bus, bike, train or car, there's bound to be a thing or two that sends you over the edge. Tell us what should be done about it.