[nfbmi-talk] article on Detroit metro transportation service

[Michael Powell]

Hello all.

I am passing this on and am curious if anyone has used this service and what
they thought of it

Michael Powell

New group provides low-cost rides to seniors, sight-impaired adults

 

 By Bill Laitner Detroit Free Press Staff Writer 

 

Terry Chaney of Royal Oak stepped outside
his doctor's office Monday in Birmingham, guided by his volunteer driver.
What the visually impaired Chaney, 59, didn't expect was a surprise from the
head of a new metro Detroit nonprofit -- ITN Metro Detroit, which stands for
Independent Transportation Network. 

 

Executive Director Lori Fidler handed
Chaney a $25 gift certificate, good for more of ITN's chauffeured trips,
because Chaney had just logged the group's 500,000th ride. Notching that
milestone
for the 16-year-old group, which operates in 22 states, was a thrill, Fidler
said. We're excited this happened here because we're really just getting
started,"
she said. 

 

The metro Detroit office, Michigan's first, opened last fall to match people
60 and older and sight-impaired adults, with volunteer drivers,
Fidler said. ITN of Metro Detroit already has had numerous callers asking
for rides but it needs more volunteer drivers, since it expects to grow
rapidly
as baby boomers age by the millions, she said. The rides are a boost to
Chaney and his wife, Marcie Brink-Chaney, said the retired advertising
researcher.
Both Marcie and I are totally blind," Chaney said. She's a respiratory
therapist at Detroit Medical Center, and she found out about ITN," he said.
The
couple has used cabs and SMART connector buses for years, "but this is more
like just having a friend you can ride with," Chaney said. The two
especially
like ITN's rides for taking their cats to the groomer's and vet's office, he
said. The tab is cheaper than many taxi services and more flexible, he said.
Cost is $1.50 per mile plus a $4 fee for each pickup, said JaWanda Mitchell,
dispatcher for the group, which takes calls seven days a week. There's also
a $50 yearly membership and a $50 deposit for reservations. A few callers
said that was too costly, she said. We have a scholarship fund for
low-income
seniors, but we just started so we don't have anything in the fund yet," she
said. ITN's service makes sense because most metro Detroit communities
"don't
lend themselves to walking anymore," said Nancy Martens, a registered nurse
and founder of ElderCompass.net, which advises seniors and their caregivers.
More Details: How you can help ITN Metro Detroit is a nonprofit agency that
provides low-cost rides for seniors 60 and older and adults who are
sight-impaired.
The group is seeking volunteer drivers, who are reimbursed 35 cents a mile
or can apply that to an account for future rides that they or loved ones
need.
For details, call 248-262-7269 Or go to www.itnmetrodetroit.org

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