Specialized transit cuts more than inconvenience for riders
Rhys Evans has relied on Niagara Specialized Transit for years, using the service to transport him from his Pelham home to and from work and school.
But a few weeks ago, Evans and other passengers feel they were thrown under the bus after the number of rides per day were abruptly limited for all 800 registered users.
The 26-year-old, who has required a wheelchair for most of his life since being diagnosed with cerebral palsy at birth, said he uses the service five days a week to attend class at Niagara College and on Saturdays to get to his job as a greeter at a shop in Niagara-on-the-Lake.
But a letter issued to Niagara Specialized Transit (NST) users said the changes were “due to budgetary constraints stemming from the substantial demand for the service,” and are “necessary to maintain the stability, availability and consistence of the service for the remainder of the year.”
“During this transition, you may encounter circumstances where the service does not have the capacity to provide your desired trip,” the letter said.
Although the Region has recently taken steps to resolve the issue restoring previous service levels, the changes that came into effect Aug. 20 cut the number of specialized transit rides per day in half.
And for Evans, it meant weeks of repeatedly being forced to find alternative transportation.
“This happened three weeks in a row. That’s three weeks that I had to get alternate transportation because people are inept at doing their job,” Evans told members of Niagara’s public health committee, Tuesday afternoon.
“This is not right,” added Evans, who spent $35 for cab fare to attend the committee meeting — compared to the $6 he would have paid for the specialized transit service.
“I want to see more transparency, more respect and more clarity as to what they’re doing,” he said.
Liz Hay faced the same challenges getting to her job as an academic adviser at Brock University.
“I’ve already been told that my next ride with the service will be on Thursday of next week,” she said.
In the meantime, Hay relied on friends to get around. But that’s something she said other users of the service likely didn’t have the option of doing.
“There are people that are using ODSP that are marginalized in many other ways,” she said. “I have friends who are retired with cars who can take me to places I need to get to, but there are people in this region
who don’t have that option.”
Hay has expressed her concerns about the service disruptions on social media, while also reaching out to regional councillors. In response, she said Niagara Specialized Transit essentially told her: “Sorry for the inconvenience.”
“It’s not an inconvenience,” she said. “This is my job.”
Evans said the inconsistent service affected other aspects of his life, too. For instance, he requires the services of a personal support worker and if his transportation is even 10 or 15 minutes late, it puts him in jeopardy of missing out.
“As a person with a disability, there’s more to planning your day then just your regular schedule. I have to book PSWs, I have to book transportation, I have to book other things,” he said.
Welland MPP Jeff Burch issued a media release Wednesday regarding the NST changes, after being contacted by constituents including Marlene Goodfield — a 73-year-old retired registered nursing assistant from Thorold, who has relied on the service to access the rehab services she needs to recover from a recent stroke.
“I am really appalled this could be done so recklessly without any thought given to how this much needed service means to those who rely on it,” Burch said. “There is also a lady who needs dialysis treatments at Welland hospital left high and dry with the trips reduced.”
The Region’s public works committee heard Tuesday morning that there has been a surge in demand for the service, resulting in a projected $413,322 cost overrun on the Region’s $2.1-million budget for NST services if nothing changed.
More resources were found for the program, including $100,000 from public works budget surpluses, to help the NST regain a daily average of 100 trips through to the end of the year on a firstcome, first-served basis — for an annual overall total of about 26,000 trips. The committee also voted to have staff attempt to negotiate changes in the NST service agreement with its provider to reduce the rate, which averages about $80 per trip. The committee heard from staff that renegotiation was something to which the provider indicated it would likely be amenable.
The report was clear that any changes will not affect the fares or the hours of operation. They are protected by Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA).
A change has been made in the area of trip bookings requested with less than 48 hours’ notice. They can no longer be accommodated. When NST ridership was lower, the provider tried to honour late trip request when possible. The public works committee also heard details of the NST’s pilot project with Hamilton’s specialized transit program (DARTS) for trips to Hamilton that will help the overall health of Niagara’s service.
A transfer hub was established in Stoney Creek. It allows the NST to keep vehicles in Niagara for additional trips. Regional staff also said the benefits of the pilot project are more than just financial. It allows NST riders to access Hamilton for a variety of purposes, beyond medical appointments, which had made up the vast majority of trips.
Public health committee members also approved a motion by Regional chair Alan Caslin Tuesday afternoon, calling for the development implementation of performance measures for the specialized transit service that will be used as criteria for selecting future service providers, while also directing regional staff to report on ways to improve the customer services of the current service provider, BTS Network.
The health committee’s motion is to be considered in conjunction with the report discussed at the public works committee meeting.
Although St. Catharines Coun. Tim Rigby pointed out that council’s lame-duck status prevents elected officials from adequately increasing funding for the service, CAO Carmen D’Angelo said regional staff can spend greater than the $50,000-limit councillors face in the months before an election.
“So, we can implement it,” D’Angelo said during the public health committee meeting. “It’s just that it can’t be a council decision.”
The Region also posted a media release on its website Wednesday, saying that despite the recent changes there “will be no decrease in levels of service.”
It also says a comprehensive study of accessible transit services is being initiated this fall, looking at existing services available across the Region.
And despite the changes, the media release says the service “complies with the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act.”
Meanwhile, Evans and others in need of transportation are still waiting.