Tammy Lee Thomas started to ride the 1A New Kensington/Tarentum bus last fall to get to her new job Downtown.

The inbound trip has been no problem. The bus picks her up at the Tarentum Park-and-Ride and gets her to work on time. If it's a minibus instead of a full-size coach, she might have to stand for the entire 22-mile trip.

Getting home, however, has been a problem. A big problem.

The 1A is scheduled to arrive at 6:19 p.m. at the Uptown East Busway and Penn Station C stop behind The Pennsylvanian apartment and office building.

"But it has a pattern of not coming on time or not coming at all," said Mrs. Thomas, 51, of Tarentum, a diabetic who has other health problems. She said she gets to the bus stop well before the bus is due, but has been stranded seven times "in all kinds of weather" since Oct. 22. She and other riders have had to wait more than an hour for the next bus.

She has to support herself and her husband, Bill Thomas, 59, a steelworker who has been laid off by Allegheny Ludlum. She pays $90 a month for a bus pass.

When the 1A failed to show Oct. 22, she used her cell phone to call the Port Authority. She spoke to a customer-service representative who identified herself as Karen. She said Karen kept her on hold while five attempts were made to contact the driver of the missing bus.

She said Karen told her the driver didn't respond to any of the where-are-you calls from the traffic department, and that no one knew where he was.

She said she had to wait until the next bus at 7:24 p.m. and didn't get home until 8:45 that night.

She said she called the next day and spoke to a less-than-helpful man who identified himself as Dave. "He told me there was no reason why the driver should be MIA [missing in action]." He said he did not want to hear about it because it was "not his problem" and that he would "just pass along" her complaint.

Mrs. Thomas said she wanted the Port Authority to send her a letter explaining why the driver failed to show and why he didn't respond to the calls that were made to him.

She also called the office of County Executive Dan Onorato to complain about the absentee bus, but had yet to hear from him or one of his staffers.

Mrs. Thomas said she and other riders have been stranded when replacement drivers have gone "right past us because they don't know the route." Taking this bus "is like [playing] the lottery [because] you don't know if you can get home."

She said she has complained by phone and online every time the 1A bus has failed to show. She said she has passed her cell phone around to other stranded riders so they could register their complaints.

Mrs. Thomas said the Port Authority has yet to respond in writing to her complaints. "I feel there is no accountability at PAT. It has to find a better way to deal with ridership complaints."

She sent me an e-mail about her bus problem. I forwarded it to Dave Whipkey, a spokesman for the Port Authority.

Her latest exasperating experience with the transit system occurred Feb. 2, when the 1A bus ran out of fuel in Cheswick. "We were right in the middle of the road, right in front of the Cheswick Theater," she said. It was her first day back to work after a five-day hospital stay and a week-long recuperation at home.

"The driver flagged down another bus that took all the passengers who were going to New Kensington. My husband was sick and couldn't come to get me. Those of us going to Tarentum had to wait in an unheated bus.

"The driver, who was very nice, used my cell phone to make six calls to get another bus and a fuel truck. The fuel truck arrived first and filled the tank but the bus wouldn't start. Finally, after more than an hour, another bus came to take us home.

"It was outrageous," she said. "The Port Authority has a garage in Harmar that isn't that far away from Cheswick. It should have sent another bus right away."

Mr. Whipkey said the agency apologizes to Mrs. Thomas and the other 1A passengers for the "service issues" that have occurred. He said the buses hold 120 gallons of diesel fuel. He said the buses do not have fuel gauges, but are supposed to be filled up every day.

"Several factors led to the 1A buses arriving late and leaving Downtown Pittsburgh," Mr. Whipkey continued. "We temporarily experienced a shortage of buses operating out of the Harmar garage due to various mechanical issues. The mechanical issues have now been solved and the buses are back on the road.

"Also, a larger suburban coach has been placed in the 1A rotation for the afternoon. As a result, the equipment issue appears to be resolved. Port Authority Road Operations personnel are aware of the [no-show] issue and are working to improve the reliability of the 1A service. We will continue to monitor the 1A service and welcome any feedback from our customers in that regard."

To register complaints -- or compliments -- go to www.portauthority.org or call 412-442-2000.