PHOENIX — Sharan Rankin, a wheelchair user from Mesa, claims her accessibility needs were not met after waiting five hours at the airport for a ride.
"It's been almost 20 years since I've had a family vacation," said Rankin. "So, my son and my daughter decided to take me on a trip.”
The tropical getaway to Cabo was years in the making. Rankin had no problem getting there, but coming home, she said, "I felt totally helpless. I had just come back from a great vacation.”
Rankin landed at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport at 12:30 a.m. on April 6. She reserved a ride home in advance through Valley Metro Paratransit.
After she landed, Rankin said, “They did not call me. So, I called dispatch and I asked, ‘Well, what's going on?'"
Finally, she got a call from Blue Van Shuttle Service, contracted by Valley Metro.
"[I] asked him exactly where was I supposed to meet him at," Rankin recalled. "He told me Terminal Three, Door Five."
She said she had help getting down to the door for pickup from airport officials but waved them off since her ride was expected to be there.
With two bags weighing over 90 pounds, she relied on Blue Van Shuttle Service to help with her bags since she was traveling by herself.
By 1:20 a.m., Rankin said no airport personnel was around at that time. The driver from Blue Van Shuttle Service told Rankin, “You're going to have to have security bring you out.”
"He says, ‘Well, you're going to have to take that luggage. You’re going to have to put it on your lap and roll it out. Because he's sitting out there waiting on you," Rankin said.
ABC15 spoke to Blue Van Shuttle Service over the phone. They said they marked Rankin as a ‘no-show’.
Valley Metro initially said they did not have a record of Rankin’s April 6 reservation for pickup. But ABC15 sent Rankin’s reservation to Valley Metro, and they said they’re looking into it.
“I was hurt that a person's humanity did not kick in,” Rankin said. “They didn't have empathy for me.”
Blue Van Shuttle Service told ABC15, per Sky Harbor's policy, they cannot leave their vehicles unattended.
Rankin still had no ride as of 3 a.m. It wasn't until nearly five hours after she landed that she got a ride.
"'Five o'clock,'” she said a dispatcher told her. “'We finally have somebody to pick you up.' And that was Quality Transport Service.”
"Whenever Quality Transport Service picked me up, he came inside the terminal," Rankin said. "‘He picked my bags up and he took me out to my van and even to show it was no problem.”
In addition to the transportation issues, Rankin had to file a claim for her wheelchair, which was damaged during travel.
ABC15 heard back from Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport on the matter. They provided multiple statements in part:
"Sky Harbor has staff working in the airport 24 hours a day, and a 24-hour switchboard (602-273-3300 press 8). We encourage any customer who needs assistance to reach out to our staff either in person or via telephone. Once a call is made to our switchboard, a staff member will be sent to assist the customer in-person. There are also phones on the Information Counters that can be used to call for airport assistance."
"Sky Harbor Operations offers special needs permits for drivers who need to park temporarily at the curb and help a customer who needs extra assistance."
"On April 6 at approximately 5:30 a.m., the Operations supervisor received a call from a company called Quality Transportation stating that there was a customer inside the terminal who they needed to pick up – she had luggage and needed assistance. Airport staff met the vehicle on the curb and provided a temporary special needs permit. Airport staff then escorted the driver into the terminal to help out the customer with her luggage. We do not know if this was the same customer, but this is an example of how our special needs permits are used at the curb."
"Customer service is a top priority for Sky Harbor, and we are sorry that this customer had this experience. We encourage anyone who needs assistance while at Sky Harbor to reach out to any staff member or pick up a phone at the Information Counter and call our 24-hour switchboard."
Valley Metro provided the following statement regarding Rankin's experience:
We offer our sincerest apologies for the situation that Ms. Rankin experienced as a RideChoice passenger. RideChoice is a service for ADA paratransit certified people with disabilities and seniors age 65 and above who reside in participating communities. RideChoice service is provided by a network of rideshare transportation providers with wheelchair-accessible vehicles.
Ms. Rankin scheduled a trip with one of Valley Metro’s RideChoice providers on April 5 from Terminal 3 at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport. While the RideChoice provider was on-site and waiting at the appropriate pick-up point at Terminal 3, Ms. Rankin was unable to reach the vehicle in the pick-up area without assistance. The RideChoice driver was unable to leave his vehicle to assist Ms. Rankin to the vehicle due to airport policies established since 9/11 forbidding vehicle operators to abandon their vehicles for any period of time. Since that time, policies have been reviewed by Valley Metro and the RideChoice provider to ensure that there is improved communication and emergency provisions that can be activated when a passenger is unable to reach the assigned vehicle.
It is our priority to provide safe and efficient service to all Valley Metro passengers and we will endeavor to provide high-quality service that Ms. Rankin and all RideChoice customers need, expect and deserve.
