Riordan Calls for 3 Reviews in Wake of Trash Truck Crash

Two weeks after an accident between a city trash truck and a school bus that killed two 8-year-old boys, Mayor Richard Riordan on Wednesday called for a trio of reviews of the city’s sanitation operation, and Councilman Richard Alarcon blasted city staffers for delaying a report on whether garbage truck mechanics should be moved from one department to another.

In a letter to the Board of Public Works, Riordan requested the establishment of:

* a “blue-collar commission” of experts from the public and private sectors to review the city’s truck design by Ontario-based manufacturer Amrep Corp.;

* a round table of city mechanics, drivers and others to review maintenance procedures,

* and an independent study to compare the city’s operations to industry standards.

During a hearing Wednesday, Public Works Committee Chairman Alarcon complained that bureaucrats had not complied with his request to report on whether the mechanics, who work for the Department of General Services, should be consolidated into the Bureau of Sanitation to improve communication with drivers and supervisors.

Board of Public Works President J.P. Ellman and top city staffers said they had not had time to study the proposed consolidation because they were consumed with the crisis.