[Nfbf-l] Fw: Article from South Florida Sun Sentinel Local 2009 12 26

[Sherri]

This is the article featuring Tom Ryan e-mailed to me directly from my 
Newsline Online account. Want to know how to read NFB Newsline Online? Just 
go to: http://www.nfbnewslineonline.org to find out. Any questions, please 
contact me. Happy reading!

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "NFB-NEWSLINE Online" <nfbnewsline at nfb.org>
To: "Sherri Brun" <flmom2006 at gmail.com>
Sent: Saturday, December 26, 2009 8:48 PM
Subject: Article from South Florida Sun Sentinel Local 2009 12 26


SHUTTLE USERS WORRIED OVER 2010 CHANGES\ BROWARD HOPES TO SAVE ON TRANSIT 
FOR THE DISABLED. The door-to-door shuttle service used by thousands of 
disabled Broward County residents will undergo a major shakeup at the start 
of the year, and worries abound about potential problems getting people to 
doctor's appointments, work and shopping. Longtime van companies have been 
ditched. New firms have scrambled to get enough vans. Residents in need of a 
ride will have to call a centralized dispatch center that's being set up 
rather than directly contacting a favored company. With only days left until 
the transition, one new provider has failed to prove it would be ready. 
County officials also have gone to court to prevent current firms from 
following through on threats to stop service before the end of the year. The 
changeover has Tom Ryan concerned about whether he will be able to get from 
his home in Pembroke Pines to work in downtown Fort Lauderdale. Ryan, who is 
blind, relies on the shuttle service daily. It is just a real, real mess," 
Ryan said. They are not prepared, and we are headed toward a catastrophe. 
The county provides more than 900,000 rides a year to disabled residents who 
can't use regular mass transit. County commissioners ordered the 
restructuring of tax-supported paratransit service to help overcome a $109 
million budget deficit this year. By rebidding the van contracts and 
switching to a central dispatch system, officials think they will save $8 
million. The county's three longest-serving providers - AAA Wheelchair Wagon 
Service, Handi-Van Inc. and Village Car Service - lost out to lower-cost 
competitors. Business will be divided among Lucanus Development Center, 
Tender Loving Care Transportation, Allied Medical Transport, Medex 
Transportation and Support Management. After lawyers and executives at AAA 
Wheelchair, Handi-Van and Village Car began questioning the readiness of the 
new companies, commissioners gave County Administrator Bertha Henry 
emergency authority to deal with any crisis over their holiday break. 
Support Management missed a deadline to show it had the necessary vehicles. 
The county then shifted three-quarters of the company's business to the 
other firms. The county has been inspecting vehicles to ensure they are in 
proper condition and plans a dry run before Jan. 1. Transportation Director 
Chris Walton predicts a smooth transition despite the problems. He said that 
customers should see little difference in their service and that the central 
dispatch system is similar to the way other major metropolitan areas run 
paratransit programs. What we had was very good and what we will have should 
be as good once people get used to it," he said. It is a more efficient 
system. Karen Caputo, of AAA Wheelchair and Herb Schlanger, the lawyer for 
Handi-Van and Village Car, think Support Management's problems bode ill for 
the switchover Jan. 1. Caputo fears the elderly and disabled will be left 
waiting  or turn away scared when drivers they don't know show up. This is 
going to be a sin, a blight on Broward County," Caputo said. Scott Wyman can 
be reached at swyman at SunSentinel.com or 954-356-4511.. CAPTION: Tom Ryan 
heads home from work with his seeing eye dog, Mica, on a paratransit 
shuttle. Ryan is worried about the change in service in 2010.\ Robert Duyos, 
Sun Sentinel. Photo(s).

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