John Stehn has been cleansed of faith in YarraBy Ed Merrison
A DISABLED pensioner is at the end of his tether with a taxi service that has let him down time and time again.
Healesville man John Stehn said he was left stranded at home for a full day on Tuesday, 28 November, when a cab he called at 8.45am did not come until almost 5pm.
The straw that broke the camel’s back came a week later when a driver refused to wait while Mr Stehn dropped off clothes and picked up curtains at the dry cleaner.
“He told me he could only wait 30 seconds,” said Mr Stehn, who turned down the ride because he did not want to be left hanging around in town on a 30-degree day.
“I’m absolutely disgusted. I’m having nothing but trouble with our local taxi service,” he said.
Mr Stehn, who suffered from polio when he was younger and is on crutches after breaking his knee last year, says he has been using the taxi service on and off for almost 10 years.
“It seems to me it’s getting worse and worse,” he said. “The only way I can get around is to rely on friends.”
Mr Stehn lives a short distance from the town centre and would prefer to walk to the doctor than chance the taxis when his next appointment comes around this week.
“Many times I’ve had to cancel doctor’s appointments because the taxis aren’t able to pick me up,” he said.
Yarra Valley Taxis manager Christian Steele disputed Mr Stehn’s claim of being stranded for an entire day, but admitted the taxi industry was an unpredictable beast.
He blamed the problems on a combination of a driver shortage and the impossibility of foreseeing what jobs would come in, but said it was not unreasonable for people like Mr Stehn to expect their demands to be met.
“Of course Yarra Valley Taxis should accommodate all passengers whether they’re elderly or young,” he said.
“The service can meet their demands with the full quota of drivers but even with a full capacity when it gets busy it’s difficult to control.”
But the unreliable service has led Mr Stehn to question whether there might be a better option for people in his situation.
“Is there a possibility we could organise some sort of community bus?” he asked.
“This town is full of disabled people and pensioners and if the cab company can’t come up with a reasonable service, there must be an alternative.”
Karen Kisala, chairwoman of Community 3777, said members were working on the possibility of a door-to-door Telebus-style service to tackle what had been a long-running problem.
A steering committee has been set up comprising various community groups to discuss possibilities for a new service.
“Taxis certainly aren’t the solution for everyone,” Ms Kisala said.
