From the Salt Lake Tribune. In the picture, Dave Carter, of West Valley City, speaks out against proposed changes in service as UTA took public comment on proposed fare increases and service cuts for disabled UTA riders.SOUTH SALT LAKE, Utah -- The Utah Transit Authority's boardroom overflowed with wheelchairs, walkers and assistance dogs April 15 as disabled bus riders bashed a plan to cut paratransit service and raise fares.
Dozens applauded each time a rider took the microphone to register opposition. Many speakers echoed a common theme: More than a ride, UTA's "flextrans" vans give them life.
"We have a right to an active life," said Bountiful resident Mickey Adelhardt, who uses a wheelchair. She suggested that instead of reducing the service area or adding $1.50 to the fare, as proposed, the agency crack down on light-rail riders who take advantage of honor-system ticketing.
Some cried during their testimony or asked others to speak for them.
UTA has offered paratransit services at an affordable cost for years, blind Salt Lake City resident Robin Doyle said, and riders have built their lives around them. The agency should trim other expenses, she argued, not services to those who need them most.
"I don't have friends and family to rely on," she said, patting her black guide dog's head during a pause for applause.
UTA's proposal would bump the $2.50 one-way paratransit fare to $4 -- twice as much as the regular adult ticket for bus or TRAX rides. (Double the regular fare is the most allowed by the Americans with Disabilities Act.) For their money, riders get door-to-door service by a van that is wheelchair-accessible, though they must schedule their pickup times a day ahead.
The agency also proposes ending service beyond three-quarters of a mile from a bus line or rail station. Federal law requires disabled service to at least that point.
UTA began providing the service in 1988, two years before Congress passed the ADA. Since then, the number of paratransit trips has jumped from 200,000 to about 500,000 a year, said Cherryl Beveridge, UTA general manager for special services. In the past year, as the economy slowed, sales-taxes revenues that help fund the service plunged by more than $18 million.
Some users pay $84 a month for an unlimited paratransit pass -- another amenity the agency intends to discontinue. But Beveridge said paratransit is meant to serve those with no alternative for their most important trips.
"It was intended to be a safety net," she said. Every trip costs UTA $35, and Beveridge said officials have to consider slicing into that subsidy the same as they have cut administrative costs. That message did not please audience members, some of whom asked rhetorically whether UTA officials would give up annual bonuses that reach into tens of thousands of dollars -- and higher -- for some top executives.
Van pickups require advance notice to a dispatcher, and the rides can take hours as drivers deliver people to various locations. An hour into the hearing, a dozen or so people had to leave to catch their scheduled bus, whether they had spoken their minds or not.
Several who did speak said it's the only affordable way for them to get to and from work."I don't get any state-funded money," said Frank Wade, a Midvale rider who uses a wheelchair. "I use flextrans to work two jobs, and I'm not going to be able to use flextrans and support my family if I have to spend $16 a day to get on the bus."
State Rep. Trisha Beck, D-Sandy, spoke against enforcing the three-quarter-mile limit. Wheelchair users would have trouble navigating through weather, she said, and she worries about her mentally disabled son having to get to and wait at pickup spots within that zone.
Blind van rider Raymond Wright, of Sandy, complained that UTA still would offer monthly passes to standard transit riders.
"It's discriminatory."