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TARPS-eligible Passengers Can Ride TARTA
Fixed-route Service For Free Beginning November 1
Toledo, Ohio, October 22, 2012: Effective November 1, 2012, disabled riders eligible to use the Toledo Area Regional Paratransit Service will be entitled to free rides on fixed-route Toledo Area Regional Transit Authority buses. The action was approved by TARTA’s Board of Trustees in September.
The free rides for TARPS-eligible riders apply to TARTA’s scheduled, fixed-route service; Call-A-Ride service; and the Muddy™ and Walleye sports shuttles.
“We have TARPS-eligible riders who are capable of getting to a bus stop and waiting for a regularly scheduled TARTA bus, when their disabilities and the weather cooperate,” said TARTA General Manager James K. Gee.
“All a TARPS-eligible rider has to do, once he or she has boarded the TARTA bus, is to show TARPS identification; and he or she will ride free.”
This new feature is advantageous for both TARPS-eligible riders as well as TARTA. Eligible riders do not have to pay a fare or schedule a ride in advance, and TARTA does not have to dispatch a TARPS vehicle to the rider’s home.
According to Gee, “We know there will be savings; but, until we know how many eligible riders utilize the service, we can’t predict TARTA’s savings.”
Unlike TARPS service, drivers on TARTA’s fixed routes will not provide door-to-door service for the disabled. Eligible riders must present themselves at scheduled stops and, once discharged from the bus, must be able to proceed to their destination themselves of with the help of a friend.
All TARTA fixed-route buses are equipped with lifts and special tie-down spaces for wheelchairs. TARTA drivers operate the lifts to assist disabled individuals board and exit the bus, but the drivers will not go to a person’s residence to assist them. Door-to-door service will continue to be provided by TARPS drivers.
Fares for TARPS service are $2 per one-way trip. One-way fares for TARTA fixed-route service are $1 for adults and children six and above. Senior citizens (age 65 and over) ride for $.50 (with a TARTA or Medicare ID). Children under six ride free, when accompanied by an adult. Transfers are not available.
Additional information on this new feature can be found on TARTA’s web site, TARTA.com, click on Riders Services and then on TARPS.
About TARPS
The Toledo Area Regional Paratransit Service is a comparable, complementary paratransit service for riders covered by the Americans with Disabilities Act. It was established in 1989 and is operated by TARTA. TARPS is a schedule-in-advance service using special vehicles designed solely for riders with special needs. It covers TARTA’s service area in Lucas and Wood counties.
About TARTA
The Toledo Area Regional Transit Authority was formed in 1971 and is a political subdivision under Ohio law, similar to a park district or a school district. TARTA carries some 3.2 million passengers annually and provides interconnected, regional service to seven communities in Lucas County – Toledo, Maumee, Waterville, Ottawa Hills, Sylvania and Spencer and Sylvania townships ‑ and Rossford in Wood County.
TARTA can be contacted by calling 419-243-RIDE (7433) or visiting its Web site, tarta.com.
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