Tollway Company Wants Trial Moved Out of Riverside

The operator of the 91 toll lanes has asked a judge to transfer to another venue a lawsuit alleging that the company engaged in unfair business practices. The company, California Private Transportation Co., said it could not receive a fair trial in Riverside County.

The motion, filed this week, is in response to a lawsuit earlier this year by Richard D. Ackerman, a lawyer who commutes to Orange County from Corona. Ackerman has asked that his case, which seeks $100 million in damages, be certified as a class-action lawsuit to include residents of Corona who regularly use the Riverside Freeway.

Ackerman’s lawsuit contends that the state granted the company an illegal monopoly over private transportation in the Orange County-Riverside County corridor.

California Private Transportation said it would be difficult to receive a fair trial in a county “when all of its citizens are either parties to or have some financial stake in the litigation.” The company also contends that it has been “undeservedly vilified in the local press and by local officials.”

The motion includes copies of articles from the Los Angeles Times and the Riverside Press-Enterprise.

At the company’s request, a Superior Court judge in Riverside County has transferred to San Bernardino County a separate lawsuit brought by the Riverside County Transportation Commission.

“We feel confident that the judge will once again agree the case is best heard outside of Riverside County,” Greg Hulsizer, general manager of California Private Transportation, said Thursday. “That being said, we continue to think the lawsuit is completely without merit.”

Ackerman countered, “Every litigant is entitled to an impartial and fair proceeding. It doesn’t matter what jurisdiction we’re in, we’ll be able to beat these guys.”