Review flags wheelchair safety lapse as $9.59 million senior-ride extension returns

A Fulton County review cited an avoidable passenger incident involving improper wheelchair securement, problems getting dialysis riders to appointments on time and unreliable arrival information. The contractor nevertheless earned a satisfactory overall rating—and commissioners are being asked to extend its transportation contract for up to $9.59 million.⁠[1][2]

The Transdev Services request is on the November 4 agenda after holds on October 7 and October 21. It would cover January 1–December 31, 2027, with other terms unchanged. Our earlier transportation preview described the proposed yearlong extension; the latest agenda records the second hold but does not explain either postponement.⁠[2][3]

The performance evaluation is not a snapshot of service this fall. Dated July 13, it covers April 2–July 1 and gives Transdev a score of 72, within the county's 70–79 satisfactory range. Project management and the quality of reports and deliverables received excellent ratings.⁠[1]

The specific service comments were less reassuring. The evaluator wrote that the program was “still experiencing issues with on time performance with our dialysis clients.” Users were also reporting long telephone holds and inaccurate information about bus arrival times.⁠[1]

Contract-compliance oversight received a needs-improvement rating. Its accompanying comment cited “another avoidable passenger incident with improper wheelchair securement.” The evaluation does not describe that incident in detail or say whether anyone was injured.⁠[1]

Those findings matter for a service that Senior Services says transports approximately 1,800 eligible seniors and participants with developmental disabilities. The contract covers senior centers, adult day health centers and developmental-disability training centers, along with dialysis, other non-emergency medical appointments and group trips.⁠[4]

Senior Services still recommends approval, saying the extension would keep transportation intact while the county pursues a new request for proposals. The proposed extension form also describes the contractor's performance as satisfactory. Those assessments sit alongside—not in place of—the evaluation's specific concerns.⁠[1][4][5]

The November 4 item remains an approval request, not a completed award. The records reviewed do not establish that the service concerns caused commissioners to hold it.⁠[2]