Report to the community
Summer 1999
Changes coming this fall
You’ll be seeing some changes this fall in the way Metro Transit provides transportation services for people with disabilities and low-income senior citizens.
The cost of special transportation services has been increasing. To continue to provide reliable transportation for people who cannot use the regular bus service, Metro must make some changes to the present system.
Some of these changes will take place this fall. Others will be phased in over the next few years.
How will these changes affect you?
- Rides will be more reliable for riders certified under the Americans with Disabilities Act.
- Riders will see some changes in service, area or hours, and Metro will be helping communities provide other transportation service.
This web page describes changes coming over the next three years. Metro will be letting you know as changes go into effect.
All of Metro's regular transit buses are equipped with wheelchair lifts.
Help is available
The Americans with Disabilities Act, or ADA, provides that all Americans will receive comparable public transportation services when they are not able to use regular service.
But Metro provides a variety of services to help senior citizens and people with disabilities get around the region: buses with wheelchair lifts, training to learn how to use the Metro bus system and paratransit vans for ADA-certified riders.
Free training on riding the bus. Group presentations are available, and Metro can also provide customized, one-on-one bus travel training for people with cognitive, physical or visual disabilities who travel to the same place three or more days a week. For more information, please call 206-633-6628 (voice) or 206-632-3456 (TTY).
Program background
Since 1996, Metro has conducted extensive public outreach on transportation services for people with disabilities and senior citizens.
The Special Transportation Task Force was created in 1996 to help Metro shape special transportation services for people with disabilities and seniors in King County. In addition, Metro held five public meetings in March 1997 to find out what service enhancements were most important. Metro held five more public meetings in June 1997 to get comments on the Draft Report of the Special Transportation Task Force.
In 1998, Metro staff also held focus groups and meetings with local agencies.
Based on public comment, King County Executive Ron Sims recommended changes to the program, and the King County Council approved those changes.
Changes for September 1999
Service area and hours. Beginning in September 1999, Access service hours and days will be determined by those fixed routes — buses with regular routes and timetables — available in the same area. For example, if you live in an area with regular bus service from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. seven days a week, your paratransit service will operate during those days and hours.
If there is no fixed-route service in a particular area, there will be no Access paratransit service. In the past, Access transportation had its own larger, separately defined service area.
To see if your service is affected check with your call center.
Other upcoming changes
- Registration. Beginning next February, Metro will ask program applicants, and eventually current riders, to demonstrate in person that they are eligible for Access transportation. (Metro will provide free transportation to and from these interviews.) Until then, applicants will continue to apply for Access transportation by mail.
- Taxi improvements. Metro Transit will be working with local taxi companies to provide accessible taxis with rates comparable to non-accessible taxis.
- Agency trips on Access Transportation. Access will offer enhanced paratransit, or van service for agencies that share in the cost of providing van service.
- Community vans. Metro will begin providing vans to community agencies serving people unable to use Metro’s regular bus service.
- ADA Access riders. Beginning later in 2000, Access transportation trips will be available only to ADA-certified riders who cannot use the regular bus system for their trips. Riders who are conditionally eligible will receive trips meeting those conditions only. For example, an ADA rider who cannot use the regular bus service at night will receive trips only during hours of darkness.
- Options Access riders. Beginning later in 2000, only those OPTIONS riders living too far from Metro’s regular bus service or Dial-a-Ride will be able to use Access Transportation. The service will be to and from bus stops. Until this change, Metro will continue to provide Access service to OPTIONS riders within their regions.
- Hand-to-hand service. In 2000, persons needing hand-to-hand transportation service — riders who may not be left alone — will need agency sponsorship to ride Access transportation.
- Curb-to-curb service. Sometime in 2001, Metro will provide curb-to-curb Access transportation service to most riders. Door-to-door service will be available for those who need it.
Metro sales office moving
Starting Tuesday, July 20, you can buy your reduced fare permit, senior permit, taxi scrip, Access fare pass and ticket books at the new, bigger Customer Service Office at the King Street Center, 201 S. Jackson St., Seattle, WA 98104. It’s right next door to the Amtrak Station.
To purchase permits, passes, taxi scrip and ticket books by mail, call the following numbers for information: 206-553-3060 (voice) or 206-684-2029 (TTY).
The Customer Service Office at the Exchange Building will be closed July 15 in preparation for the move. You will still be able to buy your Reduced Fare Permit at the Exchange Building from July 15-20. You can also visit the Westlake Station office in the Metro transit tunnel for your Metro needs. For additional information including a map and bus zones which serve the new building, see Metro Customer Service moves to King Street Center.
Metro will be keeping you informed about updates to the program. If you want your name added to the mailing list, or if the address on your mailing label is not correct, please call 206-263-3113 (voice) or 206-263-3116 (TTY).
For more information
Contact Metro’s Accessible Service Office:
- Phone: 206-263-3113
- TTY: 206-263-3116
- E-mail: Access.CustomerService@kingcounty.gov
- Fax: 206-263-3101
- Mail: King County Metro, Accessible Services, 821 Second Ave., M.S. 134, Seattle, WA 98104-1598.
If the address printed on the label has changed, please contact the Accessible Services Office.
or this information in accessible formats for people with disabilities, please call 206-263-3113 (voice) or 206-263-3116 (TTY).
Produced by Transportation Community Relations.
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