Delays On VTA's Paratransit Service Predicted After FBI Serves Warrant On Contractor

SANTA CLARA COUNTY, CA – More than 7,000 clients receiving paratransit services from the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority may see delays after the agency learned today that the FBI served a search warrant on its former contractor.

Outreach and Escort Inc. was privately contracted with the agency to provide rides for people with disabilities, but an audit led the agency's board to terminate the agreement in June, VTA CEO Nuria Fernandez said during a news conference this afternoon at the agency's San Jose headquarters. (Scroll down for video.)

The agency makes an average of 2,500 trips per day under the program with more than 7,000 registered clients, Fernandez said.

The agency was in the middle of a 12-month transition period to change the service provider when it learned this morning that the FBI executed a search warrant at Outreach's offices in Milpitas, Fernandez said.

The warrant led the VTA to implement its contingency plan by directly working with MV Transportation, which was already providing the service in the contract with Outreach, which served as the broker, according
to Fernandez.

The clients already know the dispatchers and drivers currently providing the paratransit ride services, she said.

The agency is working on entering into an emergency contract with MV Transportation, Fernandez said.

Paratransit customers can learn more information about the service by calling the agency's customer service line at (408) 321-2300.

Some customers might still end up calling the Outreach offices, but not hear a response, Fernandez said.

"We just ask that our customers and the public at large be very patient with us. We'll be as responsive as we're able," she said.

The customers can also call the customer service number to connect with dispatchers who can address their requests, Fernandez said.

Customers are advised to expect some delays in receiving responses, but the agency will make sure it prioritizes those with emergencies, according to Fernandez.

"These are some of the neediest people of the community," VTA board chairwoman and Santa Clara County Supervisor Cindy Chavez said.

In July 2015, the VTA board requested for an audit and once it was completed, voted in June to terminate the contract, according to Chavez. "We did not receive all of the information we requested and we received almost none of it in a timely fashion," Chavez said of the audit.

The board additionally filed a lawsuit alleging false claims and fraud against Outreach, Chavez said.

The board also decided to contact the Santa Clara County District Attorney's Office and FBI once the audit was completed, according to Chavez.

The board is currently in the process of requesting proposals from potential contractors who can take over the paratransit service, Chavez said.

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--Bay City News/Image via VTA