MTC receives $350,000 state grant to study seamless paratransit trips

The Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC) received a $350,000 state of California grant to analyze best methods of providing a non-transfer, cross-jurisdictional Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) paratransit ride.

The "One-Seat Ride Pilot Evaluation," is a regionwide project that could potentially include any city within the nine-county Bay Area on paratransit.

MTC has funded pilot programs to test various methods of non-transfer, cross-jurisdictional rides and the project seeks to evaluate each method to determine which models are most feasible for implementation.

The project will focus investments in providing a more seamless trip for riders using ADA paratransit services through the region’s public transit agencies. The project partners for the work include MTC and all public transit providers in the counties of Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, Napa, San Francisco, San Mateo, Santa Clara, Solano and Sonoma, Calif.

The analysis will help to guide MTC and transit operator's decision-making in funding projects that expand paratransit beyond the ADA and provide a more efficient and effective paratransit trip to riders.

The work is supported by recommendations in statewide plans (Caltrans Strategic Plan; California Transportation Plan 2050; and California Master Plan for Aging), as well as local plans and planning efforts (SF Bay Area's Coordinated Public Transit-Human Services Transportation Plan and the Transit Transformation Action Plan).