Council to settle
bus pass refundBut a city attorney says there
is no money to pay back those
who turned in their passes
The fate of more than 28,000 senior citizen and disabled bus riders who turned in their unexpired bus passes to buy new ones at a higher price will be decided by the City Council rather than a federal court judge.
On Nov. 14, after a short fight in federal court, the city announced it would honor an estimated 10,000 to 15,000 existing bus passes until their expiration date.
But that offer left the other riders feeling betrayed for following city directions and standing in long lines to surrender their unexpired bus passes and buy new ones.
Yesterday, attorneys representing the city and five bus riders who filed suit emerged from a closed-door conference in federal court to announce they reached a resolution for the City Council to compensate bus riders who relinquished their unexpired passes.
"We've reached a good resolution for everyone," said Jack Schweigert, an attorney representing the riders who sued the city last month in U.S. District Court.
"For now, the city is honoring all the old unexpired (unrelinquished) passes until their expiration date, and the City Council will decide and vote on a fair way to compensate those who exchanged their passes," Schweigert said as he left federal court yesterday afternoon.
"We are trying to do the right thing," said Deputy Corporation Counsel Gregory Swartz, who represents the city in the suit.
The City Council next meets Dec. 3, but Swartz said the city would not be ready with its plan by then.
City spokeswoman Carol Costa said it is unclear when the issue will go on the council's agenda. The council goes into its end-of-year recess next week.
Costa said the city estimates there are 10,000 to 15,000 people who still hold unexpired passes.
The five bus riders argued their constitutional rights were violated when the City Council decided to increase fares and cancel their unexpired passes.
In the aftermath of the monthlong bus strike late this summer, the city raised bus fares, in part to help pay for the bus workers' new contract.
The biggest increase was for seniors and disabled riders, who saw fares rise to $30 for a one-year pass of unlimited rides from $25 for two years.
The bus riders won their first victory Nov. 7 when U.S. District Judge Helen Gillmor granted a 10-day restraining order to the original five riders and one who was added to the suit, allowing them to continue to use their unexpired passes for 10 days.
The suit did not have class-action status, and therefore Gillmor's ruling applied only to the six named in the suit. But the ruling pushed the city to find a resolution for the other riders.
The city decided Nov. 14 to honor all existing passes until their expiration dates.
But that decision left out those who had surrendered their unexpired passes and bought new ones.
Swartz has repeatedly argued the city needs the estimated $1.3 million from raising bus fares for seniors and the disabled to keep the bus system running at full service.
Now, the city is faced with refunding money to riders who relinquished their unexpired passes. Schweigert said the city will base compensation on the unused months left on a pass.
"The city doesn't have the money to refund," said Swartz, shaking his head as he left federal court. "I'm not sure where we will find it."
