By CAMERON LUCADOU-WELLS: clucadou-wells@mmpgroup.com.au
THE back-flipping bureaucractic bungle over a pensioner’s shopping has grown to comic proportions with an apparent failure by council staff to communicate their changes.
Greater Dandenong Council has been urged to simply “get on with it”, and been told to implement its new policy regarding shopping jeeps on the community bus, and ensure all concerned know that pensioners can now get on board with two bags of shopping instead of one.
The council’s backflip followed an episode last October, when a bus driver abandoned Dandenong North pensioner Grace Willans at Waverley Gardens shopping centre because she had a shopping jeep.
Ms Willans’ stand resulted in council agreeing the system didn’t work. It decided to buy an 11-seat bus fitted with a lift and a cage to elevate and store jeeps for shoppers.
It also voted for an increase of shopping bags from one to two for each elderly passenger, the purchase of collapsible jeeps to be used by passengers, and a helper assisting people on and off the bus.
But Ms Willans discovered last week that the council’s good intentions had not filtered through to the people involved, as the bus driver ‘‘chided me for having two bags’’.
“I gave him one bag and carried the other one on myself,” she said.
‘‘The changes are very good. (But) I think the council should tell the rules to the old ladies and the bus drivers.’’
Cr Maria Sampey said she couldn’t understand why there had been a delay, at least on the shopping bag increase.
‘‘Councillors have been briefed on this since April 22 and known the outcome,” she said. “It’s been eight months since I asked for a review. Get on with it.
“If it wasn’t for Grace being so courageous, we wouldn’t have known the service was not workable. She has made life a bit easier for the elderly in the future.’’
Council community services director Mark Doubleday said council would notify passengers of the bag increase this week.
“The council is in the process of sourcing appropriate shopping jeeps,” he said.
“They will be made available to residents using the service over the next month on current shopping buses which have a lift and cage.’’
He said the new bus would be bought within a few months.
