Not feeling the love from RFTA

Dear Editor:

Last Tuesday, I found out how some RFTA employees feel about the taxpayers that support them. They do not care, because we always pay our taxes. That morning the bus was supposed to start from Aspen Highlands at 7 a.m. The bus driver on “City Route 4” failed to read his start time and route timetable, and decided to start in town rather than at Highlands. No bus arrived even close to the assigned time, so I jumped into my car and sped off to work, passing at least five other people who were still waiting for the bus out in the snow and cold.

I then called RFTA to ask about the problem. The woman at Rubey Park who answered the phone was very rude and transferred me to a phone mailbox, which I am sure is never heard by anyone. (I did leave a message and am still waiting to be called back.) I called again and was put through to a man at RFTA dispatch who identified himself as a supervisor on duty. But when I started to explain my complaint, he quickly hung up on me. The sad truth is that RFTA and its staff do not care about taking care of taxpayers.

I have extensive experience in the operation of large commercial vehicles. Almost every time I ride in a RFTA bus, I am truly amazed that the drivers of these vehicles do not appropriately use the transmission retarders and just use the brakes. This practice causes unnecessary wear and tear on expensive taxpayer assets.

Because of my recent experience with RFTA and the lack of care given to the buses, I will be actively opposing the proposed RFTA sales tax increase. Since I cannot rely on RFTA to get me to work on time, it has little value to me. RFTA employees might not care about the way they treat us on the bus, but I am sure the decision makers care about being paid. Please oppose all new taxes for RFTA until a significant improvement is made in customer service and driver training.

Mike Lyons

Aspen