Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: TUESDAY, March 19, 1991 TAG: 9103190324
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: B3 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: JOEL TURNER MUNICIPAL WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
But she will have to find another way to make the trip once or twice a month because she has been told she is no longer eligible for the service.
Brown, who has been blind for nearly 35 years, has relied on the special service because Valley Metro buses don't travel by her doctor's office in Southwest Roanoke.
She rides the bus when she goes downtown to shop or to shopping malls. She has a teen-age companion who goes with her on the shopping trips and serves as her guide.
But Brown's companion is not familiar with streets in Southwest Roanoke where her doctor's office is located. His office is several blocks from the nearest bus route, so she can't use the bus because she has no one to guide her from the bus stop to the office.
Stephen Mancuso, Valley Metro's general manager, has decided that Brown can no longer use the service that is provided in vans equipped with wheelchair lifts. He thinks she can use buses for all of her trips.
The decision has upset Brown and several other blind residents who said they also have been told they can no longer use the van service.
"I can't understand why I am no longer eligible. I have been eligible all of these years, and there has been no change in my condition or situation," Brown said.
Because of the recent increase in the demand for the van service, Mancuso said Monday all handicapped residents are being recertified to determine if they are eligible to keep using it.
He said it's not fair to allow people who can use buses to use the vans. That ties up the vehicles when others in wheelchairs or with other handicaps might need them, he said.
Handicapped residents have complained recently about having to make reservations a week in advance for trips because so many people are using the vans. One reason for this is that some people who can use regular buses are using the van service, Mancuso said.
Valley Metro contracts with Roanoke Agencies Dial-A-Ride, a transportation company for social service agencies in the Roanoke Valley, to provide the service. RADAR has vans equipped with wheelchair lifts.
Mancuso said he is sympathetic to Brown's case, and he has told her he would reconsider his decision if she provides additional information. Brown has shown that she can use buses for shopping trips, he said. "I don't see how she could qualify for both."
The criteria is whether a person can reasonably be expected to use bus service, he said. "There is no hard-and-fast rule. We are evaluating it on a case-by-case basis."
Mancuso said he realizes there "may be a perception that we are insensitive and uncaring, but that is not the case. Our concern is that the service is provided to people who really need it."
A coalition of handicapped organizations recently urged City Council to expand the service and extend the hours. The group complained that reservations must be made far ahead of time because of the demand.
Council agreed to expand the service and voted to charge a $1.50 fare to help cover the cost. The service has been provided free. But the fare has upset some handicapped residents who will ask council to lower it next week.
by CNB