[NFBMI-Talk] The Michigan Flyer, disability-friendly local area transportation

[Lydia Anne Schuck]

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Michigan Flyer Needs Your Help
Five months ago—on March 16—Michigan Flyer completely suspended service. We were worried about the health of passengers, drivers, and staff as the coronavirus spread. And people stayed home instead of riding with us because government authorities restricted non-essential travel due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

So our fleet of luxury motorcoaches—which had been transporting over 250,000 passengers a year between East Lansing, Brighton, Ann Arbor, and Detroit Metro Airport (DTW)—came screeching to a halt.

Since then, literally hundreds of you have reached out to express concern and ask when we will resume our essential daily connections for intercity commuters and air travelers.

We’re deeply grateful to all of you for your patience and past patronage. But here’s the dilemma we now face:



[Michigan Flyer Fleet]

Safety Yes, but No Funding Yet
If safety were the only issue, we could address it in a heartbeat—just as our parent company, Indian Trails, Inc., did with extensive masking, distancing, and sanitizing requirements to minimize the chance of virus spread. It then restarted daily scheduled bus service on August 8<http://trk.cp20.com/click/36js-28wjc8-poy1jt-dgk9tt6/>.

So, as far as precautionary measures go, we’re ready to roll.

However, unlike most other forms of public transportation—i.e., public transit, trains, and airlines—Michigan Flyer has been funded almost entirely by passenger fares, not tax dollars. So, without some government support now, we would operate at an unsustainable loss, month after month. We know this for sure because the subsidized public carriers that are currently operating continue to experience very low ridership. Also, most of our passengers use airlines at DTW to travel to or from the mid-Michigan region, and the airlines are still operating at only 20 percent capacity.

The key to restarting Michigan Flyer (as with all privately owned bus companies that operate public transportation without subsidies) is temporary government support of the same type that is being provided to virtually ALL other public transportation companies.



Please Consider Taking Action
You may be able to help get Michigan Flyer back on the road—and serving you with dependable, environmentally friendly transportation—by writing to government leaders who are concerned about public transportation in Michigan. All we would need is temporary, one-time funding, even if it’s just enough to restart with a reduced schedule.

It’s simple to email Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and MDOT:

[MichiganFlyer_Bullet.png]  Just copy the following addresses into the “To” field of an email message: whitmerg1 at michigan.gov<mailto:whitmerg1 at michigan.gov>; Gretch.Whitmer at michigan.gov<mailto:Gretch.Whitmer at michigan.gov>; MDOT at Michigan.gov<mailto:MDOT at Michigan.gov>;

[MichiganFlyer_Bullet.png]  Make sure we get a copy of your email by pasting info at michiganflyer.com<mailto:info at michiganflyer.com> into the “CC” field.

[MichiganFlyer_Bullet.png]  For the “Subject” line, write “Please support temporary funding for Michigan Flyer”.

[MichiganFlyer_Bullet.png]  Finally, in the body of your message, explain briefly why Michigan Flyer is important to you.

Please also consider contacting your Senators and Representative in Washington, D.C. It’s easy to do by using the email forms on their websites, which can be found at the links below.

[MichiganFlyer_Bullet.png]  U.S. Senators for Michigan are Debbie Stabenow<http://trk.cp20.com/click/36js-28wjc8-poy1jx-dgk9tt0/> and Gary Peters (he already supports the CERTS Act).

[MichiganFlyer_Bullet.png]  To reach your U.S. Congressional Representative, click here<http://trk.cp20.com/click/36js-28wjc8-poy1jy-dgk9tt1/>.

And please feel free to write me with any questions. (I am a BIG fan of the Michigan Flyer and appreciate its disability-friendly actions over the years). Thanks!

anna
schnitzr at umich.edu<mailto:schnitzr at umich.edu>