Colorado RTD riders with disabilities will have to pay more for door-to-door access
Tuesday's RTD board meeting lasted more than three hours, voting on changes to the Access on Demand services late at night.
The Access on Demand program provides free or subsidized curb-to-curb ride access for people with disabilities. The program works with partners, including Uber and Lyft.
The proposed changes included: an increase in fare from free to $6.50, a decrease in subsidy for each ride from $25 to $20, and 22 hours of ride service instead of the previous 25, and what RTD says is an expanded service area to anywhere in the Regional Transportation District.
Ultimately, after multiple votes, all proposed changes passed with an amendment changing the new fare to be $4.50 for program riders and $2.25 for those using RTD's low-income LiVE program.
Right now, RTD says the program is growing rapidly in popularity, and affordability is a concern. RTD says the program currently costs about $17 million a year. But many of those who rely on the program say the small portion of RTD's overall budget is worth their ability to travel independently.
One of those riders is Claudia Folska, who orders the rides regularly to get around.
"Yeah, they don't like blind girls driving cars," Folska said.
Folska isn't just a participant in the Access on Demand program, but also a former RTD board member who helped start the program.
"What I think is important and really great about access on demand is that it enables me to be free to exert my own autonomy, to go when I want, where I want, right? Instead of having to wait around for people to help me," Folska said.
As of August, Folska is one of more than 3,000 riders who use the program. RTD reports active users growing 20% since January. To handle the growing demand, RTD debates these possible fare increases for months.
When discussing the proposed $6.50 rate, Folska said, "I wouldn't be able to afford Access on Demand, and I would lose a lot of my autonomy. It'd be a sad day."
Dozens of other riders packed RTD's meeting room on Tuesday to share their concerns about the possible change. Some public speakers shared potential hurdles for access to their jobs, or limited ability to go to doctors' appointments. However, RTD shared that these prices may be necessary to continue the program at all.
"We know it's a popular program, but on the path that it's on right now, you could be risking losing it if we don't look at a financially cautious approach in the future," Executive Committee Chairman Julien Bouquet said.
Some public speakers mentioned they wouldn't mind paying a small fare, but that $6.50 would be out of their budget on top of the lesser $20 subsidy per Uber or similar ride.
However, starting in January, these new changes will take effect. Board members signaled that this could be an ongoing discussion moving forward when considering the cost of other accessible transportation options.