ST. LOUIS COUNTY, Mo. — Many people dealing with disabilities in parts of the St. Louis region had to find alternative transportation on Monday.
The Metro Call-A-Ride service, which provides transportation to people facing disabilities, scaled back.
As of April 10., Metro will only cover what federal law requires, service within 3/4 of a mile around existing MetroBus and MetroLink routes.
This comes amid staffing shortages across the board for Metro St. Louis Transit in recent years.
The days ahead for Yulanda Rozier and her daughter, who is dealing with disabilities, will be tricky to navigate.
"I work Monday through Friday 7 [a.m.] to 8 [p.m.] sometimes and I just have to have dependable transportation to and from Lafayette for her being that she's a disabled adult," Rozier said.
Up until Monday, Rozier's daughter got to and from work using Metro's Call-A-Ride.
They live in Florissant, just outside one of the areas where Metro Transit will no longer provide service, because its outside of their new service boundaries.
Cuts have sparked major concern among disability rights advocates.
Some filed a federal complaint citing problems with a high rate of trip denials and long wait times when calling to schedule trips.
Aimee Wehmeier, president of Paraquad, told 5 On Your Side people facing disabilities should not have to choose between two bad choices.
"One is less transportation or more transportation that is not done well and neither choice is a good choice,” Wehmeier said.
Rozier said she already started looking into alternative transportation but was faced with expensive quotes and a less flexible schedule.
"One was like $90 each way. With Call-A-Ride ... it was very affordable ... $2 each way,” she said.
The low cost is a convenience Wehmeier's group and others are fighting to maintain.
“My biggest hope is that we have a reliable transportation source -- affordable accessible, transportation," she said.
Metro Transit's COO Charles Stewart provided the following statement:
“We do not have the driver resources to continue to provide reliable Metro Call-A-Ride service outside the federally required area. Staying within the federally required service area that complements fixed MetroBus and/or MetroLink service will enable us to provide better service to our customers whose trips are within the required service area. The majority of approximately 1,000 customers we have spoken with one-on-one in the past few weeks, will not be impacted by today’s service change because their trips are already within required service area.
We are aware several local organizations who advocate and also serve the disabled community are unhappy with the service area change, and we understand their complaints. We have been struggling just to meet the minimum federal requirements due to a workforce shortage. The service area change implemented today for our Metro Call-A-Ride customers is not something that we wanted to do but was absolutely necessary so that we can move toward compliance with federal paratransit regulations. Finding solutions to the gaps that currently exist in serving the disabled community is something that we must address as a region, and we stand ready to work with other stakeholders on different solutions to help create a more robust menu of transportation options for disabled citizens in the St. Louis region.”
The company provided a list of alternatives to those who are not in their coverage area and need transportation online.
Riders can check their eligibility by calling 314-982-1505.
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