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Wrecker service rotation to remain the same despite concerns
Peggy Ussery / aussery@dothaneagle.com
June 28, 2006
It's been more than a year since Dothan commissioners adopted new regulations for the city's wrecker service rotation. Yet problems and complaints just don't seem to go away.
Commissioners discussed concerns during their Tuesday meeting, but in the end opted not to make any changes. Problems arose most recently when the Dothan Police Department made a mistake on the commission's policy in a letter that went out to tow-truck operators.
The mistake, Chief John Powell said, eliminated a measure that allows wrecker service owners to relay calls to other companies on the rotation list if they can't respond to a call.
A rotation list is used to call wrecker companies when a vehicle needs to be towed, such as in car accidents. There are currently 17 companies that rotate in two-week cycles.
Under regulations adopted by city commissioners in early 2005, the communications center dispatches service calls to the next company on the rotation list when the wrecker service on rotation cannot respond in a timely manner. But the regulations also give tow-truck operators the option to relay their calls to other companies on rotation.
The police department corrected its mistake, and that's when complaints started.
Powell said the department simply wants to get roadways cleared after accidents.
"It's a public safety concern for the police department," he said. "We're not concerned to be quite honest who moves the cars. Our concern is to get the highway cleared and ensure additional accidents do not occur."
Commissioner Paul Lee was charged with meeting with wrecker service owners and coming back with recommendations. Lee's only recommendation was when a wrecker company on rotation cannot respond, the next wrecker service on rotation should be called automatically for back-up. And the city should keep going down its rotation list until a wrecker service can respond. Owners would not be able to relay calls themselves.
Lee said the city's police officers need full control of a scene from beginning to end and should know which service will respond. Making the change will take out any "gray area" left in the regulations, he said.
"We should not leave a door cracked for any problems to occur," Lee said.
New requirements were adopted in 2005 in response to concerns about wrecker companies securing multiple slots on rotation. Some used suite addresses at the same location and addresses for empty lots or other businesses to get multiple business licenses and more shots at rotation.
But one wrecker owner said there are still problems with the system, and the only fair way is to not allow companies to relay calls to other wreckers on rotation. Malcolm Conner said one company has handled calls for three others on rotation.
"It should be that the dispatcher calls the next one on the rotation list," Conner said.
Powell said the city needs the wrecker services and cautioned commissioners not to overwhelm dispatchers with too many calls. But, he said, the rotation is a mechanism for tow-truck companies to make money.
"Wrecker services do not dictate policy to the city," Powell said. "The city sets the policy, and the wrecker services can either choose to participate or they don't have to participate."
"Don't waste time calculating your chances of success
and failure. Just fix your aim and begin" ----- Guan Yin Tzu
Above is video feed, below is newspaper story link
www.dothaneagle.com/servl...th=%21news
Wrecker service rotation to remain the same despite concerns
Peggy Ussery / aussery@dothaneagle.com
June 28, 2006
It's been more than a year since Dothan commissioners adopted new regulations for the city's wrecker service rotation. Yet problems and complaints just don't seem to go away.
Commissioners discussed concerns during their Tuesday meeting, but in the end opted not to make any changes. Problems arose most recently when the Dothan Police Department made a mistake on the commission's policy in a letter that went out to tow-truck operators.
The mistake, Chief John Powell said, eliminated a measure that allows wrecker service owners to relay calls to other companies on the rotation list if they can't respond to a call.
A rotation list is used to call wrecker companies when a vehicle needs to be towed, such as in car accidents. There are currently 17 companies that rotate in two-week cycles.
Under regulations adopted by city commissioners in early 2005, the communications center dispatches service calls to the next company on the rotation list when the wrecker service on rotation cannot respond in a timely manner. But the regulations also give tow-truck operators the option to relay their calls to other companies on rotation.
The police department corrected its mistake, and that's when complaints started.
Powell said the department simply wants to get roadways cleared after accidents.
"It's a public safety concern for the police department," he said. "We're not concerned to be quite honest who moves the cars. Our concern is to get the highway cleared and ensure additional accidents do not occur."
Commissioner Paul Lee was charged with meeting with wrecker service owners and coming back with recommendations. Lee's only recommendation was when a wrecker company on rotation cannot respond, the next wrecker service on rotation should be called automatically for back-up. And the city should keep going down its rotation list until a wrecker service can respond. Owners would not be able to relay calls themselves.
Lee said the city's police officers need full control of a scene from beginning to end and should know which service will respond. Making the change will take out any "gray area" left in the regulations, he said.
"We should not leave a door cracked for any problems to occur," Lee said.
New requirements were adopted in 2005 in response to concerns about wrecker companies securing multiple slots on rotation. Some used suite addresses at the same location and addresses for empty lots or other businesses to get multiple business licenses and more shots at rotation.
But one wrecker owner said there are still problems with the system, and the only fair way is to not allow companies to relay calls to other wreckers on rotation. Malcolm Conner said one company has handled calls for three others on rotation.
"It should be that the dispatcher calls the next one on the rotation list," Conner said.
Powell said the city needs the wrecker services and cautioned commissioners not to overwhelm dispatchers with too many calls. But, he said, the rotation is a mechanism for tow-truck companies to make money.
"Wrecker services do not dictate policy to the city," Powell said. "The city sets the policy, and the wrecker services can either choose to participate or they don't have to participate."
"Don't waste time calculating your chances of success
and failure. Just fix your aim and begin" ----- Guan Yin Tzu
