‘Letter of misconduct’ sent to disruptive transit rider

By June Watanabe

POSTED: 01:30 a.m. HST, May 24, 2012

~~<p>Question: I was riding the Handi-Van on March 30 when it stopped to pick up a passenger who made the driver wait longer than the allowable five minutes. The man had told the reservations clerk he wanted to be taken to Waipio Costco, but when we got there, he refused to get off and insisted the driver take him to the airport. The driver called the dispatcher. Two police officers came and tried to cajole the man out. In the end, they refused to remove him. It was upsetting for everyone. I ended up getting home two hours later than usual. There apparently are no policies to protect other passengers or drivers. Can something be done to protect us from disruptive or abusive passengers?</p>
<p>Answer: Oahu Transit Services, which has the city contract to operate TheBus and paratransit services including the Handi-Van, does have a policy on handling disruptive passengers, said Wayne Yoshioka, director of the city Department of Transportation Services.</p>
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Question: I was riding the Handi-Van on March 30 when it stopped to pick up a passenger who made the driver wait longer than the allowable five minutes. The man had told the reservations clerk he wanted to be taken to Waipio Costco, but when we got there, he refused to get off and insisted the driver take him to the airport. The driver called the dispatcher. Two police officers came and tried to cajole the man out. In the end, they refused to remove him. It was upsetting for everyone. I ended up getting home two hours later than usual. There apparently are no policies to protect other passengers or drivers. Can something be done to protect us from disruptive or abusive passengers?

Answer: Oahu Transit Services, which has the city contract to operate TheBus and paratransit services including the Handi-Van, does have a policy on handling disruptive passengers, said Wayne Yoshioka, director of the city Department of Transportation Services. Login for more...