Great Moments In Public Transportation and Government
What do you get when you put together the people who run the trains and buses with some of the other government agencies? You get a guy like me writing a story. It feels like old times...daddy's come home.
I used to write about trains and buses on Facebook and I wrote about it a lot. I still would but nothing has happened. Seriously! I get on...get off...and go my way. Really sucks, too cuz it was a real form of entertainment for me. And then there was yesterday.
It really started about a month ago. Each month I buy a pass to ride the CTA and Pace. That's unlimited local buses and trains. Works in the suburbs, too. The pass cost $100. I've been doing it for so long that I really don't know the price of a single ride. Then a friend suggested I try to qualify for a reduced fare handicapped pass.
So I go to the Regional Transportation Authority office in downtown Chicago. They give me a form to fill out and one for my doctor. My doctor takes about a week to fill out the form. He does a tremendous job. According to him, I've had Parkinson's for four years. He's going to be my go to guy when I need my medical pot.
I take the forms downtown and in about two weeks I get a new card. It has my picture on it, too. I look like Bryan Cranston in Breaking Bad. I've just saved $600 this year. It felt like a Geiko commercial. Then it gets interesting.
I tell another friend about this and she asks why didn't I go for the free rides? It's for people who are under 65, disabled and low income. Hey..that's kind of me!! I figure I already have the $600, so why not take a look at what's behind door #2?
I head downtown to the RTA office. I show them my card and say I want to go for the big deal! She shakes her head and says first things first, go to the Department of Aging and start there. Btw...what the fuck kind of name is that? I already hate this, but off I go.
I hit the DoA..interesting acronym for this... and the woman says I'm at the wrong place. I need to go to Social Security and get a printout of earnings to bring back to the RTA office. Now all these offices are within three blocks of each other but still, it's snowing and yucky out. OY!!
I get to the SS office...geez all these funky acronym... and come pretty close to doing a strip search before you can get to the elevator. Jackets, coats, bags and belts. I get up there and for the first time things go smoothly. The printout takes less than five minutes. I head back to the RTA office to finish up and get my prize. YEAH, RIGHT!
At the RTA office the same woman says to go back to the Aging people. I need another form. Shit!!
One more time at DoA and the woman says go upstairs and get Form A. Sigh! I go upstairs, I sign the sign-in list and a manager comes to get me. He says to follow him. This cant be good. We get to his office and he looks at my disabled card, my earnings form, goes into thinking mode, hits a few computer keys and out comes the infamous Form A.
Take Form A back to your doctor, have him fill it out and fax it back to us. SMH (shaking my head)!! Well at least the doctor's office is on the way home.
I get to my doctor's office and explain to the receptionist about the form he previously filled out and ask if he'll do this one, too. She says that's doable but the doctor is on his winter vacation until January 13th. How surprising!
So here's the time events for this...SMH again.... doctor filling out Form A- 2 weeks ( you don't really think that will be the first thing he does when he returns, do you?). Form A at DoA- 7 to 10 business days. Approved Form A and application at the RTA- decision in 3-4 weeks.
Doing the math it seems like it will take close to 2 months. I just figured that out as I'm writing this. I'm really shaking my head now.
There's only one acronym that fits this situation....WTF!!!!!