Metro Transit in St. Louis, Mo., is making steady progress with transportation accessibility improvements for paratransit customers who utilize Metro Call-A-Ride services. Metro Call-A-Ride provides transportation in St. Louis and St. Louis County for residents who qualify for paratransit services under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Metro Transit has made a number of changes, particularly during the past six months, to focus on delivering reliable Metro Call-A-Ride service and improving the customer experience while decreasing the number of ADA denials. Since July, the agency says the ADA denial percentage rate has been around one percent.
“ADA denials are down and trip capacity is growing. Metro Call-A-Ride customers are experiencing better service,” said Charles Stewart, COO, Metro Transit. “That is a huge step in the right direction. Compare zero or less than one percent for ADA trip denials to one week back in February 2023 when there were nearly 5,100 ADA denials recorded out of more than 11,000 trips requested. This resulted in an ADA denial percentage rate of 45.2 percent. In contrast, Metro Call-A-Ride delivered nearly 8,100 trips the week of Sept. 30, with zero ADA capacity denials.”
In April 2023, Metro Transit adjusted the Call-A-Ride service area boundaries to focus on serving only the required federal footprint for providing paratransit service to ADA customers. Metro’s Call-A-Ride service area is defined as areas that are ¾ of a mile around an existing MetroBus route or MetroLink service and Metro Call-A-Ride is available only when the bus or train is in service on that route. The agency notes that if the starting point or ending point of a trip is outside of the service area boundaries or outside of scheduled MetroLink or MetroBus service area, those trips are not eligible for Call-A-Ride service.
“I’m proud to say we are able to honor our commitment to providing more reliable service to eligible Call-A-Ride customers, helping to better meet the needs of this important group of customers,” said Taulby Roach, president and CEO, Bi-State Development Agency of the Missouri-Illinois Metropolitan District, which operates Metro Transit for the region.
The agency says recruiting operators to drive Call-A-Ride vans has been a key area of focus during the past year. A $5,000 signing bonus for Call-A-Ride operator recruits is still in place. Increasing the workforce has allowed Call-A-Ride to provide more reliable service.
Among the other major changes to improve paratransit service are improving the phone system, offering new texting tools and preparing for the launch a new reservation and dispatch software system by the end of the year.
