[2] It also operates a para-transit service known as Ottumwa Transit Authority Lift[3] and Job Access Reverse Commute (JARC), a dial-a-ride service geared towards employees.
[5] The OTA was surrounded by controversy in 2011, following a state audit and investigations by the Federal Transit Administration and the Iowa Department of Transportation.
The state auditor's office determined that OTA overstated ridership “by an estimated 50 percent,” and that the inflated numbers were increased by office staff on the instructions of Director Pam Ward.
[10] On June 1, 2011, Director Pam Ward and Tom Jones, the man union officials say altered driver timesheets, were both placed on indefinite leave.
In January 2013, Ward was indicted on four counts of making false statements to the Department of Transportation regarding ridership numbers.