Transit Action Network (TAN)

Jameson Auten, KCATA Vice President of Regional Service Delivery, Sheila Styron, Public Policy Specialist at The Whole Person, and Janet Rogers of Transit Action Network discuss Special Transportation issues in the Kansas City region, including upcoming coordination improvements between the four transit agencies and why, no matter how disabled you are, you can only use the Johnson County Special Edition bus if you live in Johnson County.

Where: Radio Active Magazine on KKFI 90.1FM Kansas City Community Radio (KKFI.org)

When: Tuesday August 19 @ 6PM 

Listen to PODCAST:   http://content.blubrry.com/kkfi901fm/RadioActive_Magazine_2014-08-19.mp3

Auten will discuss the special transportation services available through the transit agencies and Styron will discuss the reasons for ADA transit services as well as her personal experience as a user and why she prefers to use the regular bus service as much as possible.

The American With Disabilities Act (ADA) establishes paratransit (meaning “along side” transit) eligibility rules for people with disabilities. Systems falling under the ADA guidelines are considered ADA complementary services. The services are provided for eligible individuals within ¾ of a mile from a fixed route bus service. Commuter Express services are not required to provide special transportation service for people with disabilities.

Our four transit agencies provide special transportation for people with disabilities as well as seniors, even if they don’t have disabilities. Johnson County’s service is not an ADA complementary service.

The current services have various eligibility requirements, costs, hours of operations and contact numbers, and trying to use them can get quite complicated.

Earlier this year Auten made a presentation to the Regional Transit Coordinating Council (RTCC) about the fractured nature of the current services.  Auten’s presentation: RTCC Paratransit Coordination

This council has adopted the task of improving and streamlining the paratransit services in our region. TAN covered RTCC’s commitment to improve regional paratransit services  earlier this year.

RTCC Tackles Big Transit Issues – Funding and Paratransit

If a transit agency provides special transportation for Non-ADA clients, then they can set their own eligibility rules and costs for Non-ADA trips. All of the transit agencies provide Non-ADA services for seniors starting at either 60 or 65 years of age.

One of the biggest upcoming transit issues is how the aging baby boomers will impact the cost and availability of both ADA and Non-ADA services as this large segment of the population needs more transportation. Auten told us that Share-A-Fare currently has 600 people a month signing up as either renewals or new customers. Since approximately 10,000 Americans are turning 65 everyday, this sign-up number is not surprising, but it is daunting when you consider the future impact on special transportation services.

Who to contact: One of the goals of the RTCC is to have one call center to schedule all paratransit trips. Until that happens, KCTA will forward your call to the appropriate agency if you call them. Here are all the numbers and websites for the paratransit services provided by our transit agencies.

ADA and Non-ADA service

KCATA Share-A-Fare  website  816-842-9070

Unified Government Transit Dial -A-Ride  website  913-573-8351

Independence (IndeBus)  IndeAccess  website  816-461-IBUS  (816-461-4287)

Non-ADA service ONLY

This service is ONLY available to people who live in Johnson County (includes seniors and people with disabilities).

Johnson County Special Edition  website  913-782-2210

The next Transit Talk is scheduled for October 14.