Public Comment

A February 11 Letter to the Editor regarding MV Transportation and the transit service we provide for Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory wholly mischaracterized our company and safety performance. In fact, the letter completely misrepresented the facts. 

Prior to our first day of service, which began on January 19, we offered each of the 14 career bus drivers the opportunity to remain with MV and continue in their capacity as drivers. MV’s longstanding policy and practice is to retain the experienced workforce when we are selected to start a new service. However in this case, each driver refused our offer of employment and decided to seek employment elsewhere. The insinuation of the letter’s author that MV displaced the drivers is unfair and untrue. 

The author also claims MV is a non-union employee. MV has long-standing relationships with several unions most notably the Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU) and the Teamsters, both of whom represent MV drivers throughout the United States.  

MV operates more than 7,000 vehicles daily in the US and Canada. Our safety performance has received several awards and been recognized nationally by many organizations, including the American Public Transportation Association. The operational division of which the Berkeley Labs service is a part of has successfully passed every audit and inspection conducted by the California Highway Patrol (CHP) and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). The success of our safety record speaks for itself. And to ensure our bus operators were prepared to handle the uniqueness of the hills and narrow roadways within the service area, we increased their safety and behind-the-wheel training by 25%.  

We continue to receive compliments and commendations from riders of this service who have commented on the professionalism and friendliness of our uniformed operators (uniforms were not required prior to MV), and on the cleanliness of the vehicles. 

We take our responsibility to provide a safe and reliable service for our customers, riders and employees very seriously. Anytime we feel that commitment is being questioned, we must respond to ensure the facts are clear. We are excited about our partnership with Berkeley Labs, look forward to a long and successful relationship and will continually seek new and innovative ways to improve the overall service.  

Nikki Frenney is VP of Public Affairs, MV Transportation