Transit change: Rochester disabled riders face fewer options as RTS On Demand phaseout starts in January

Transit change: Rochester disabled riders face fewer options as RTS On Demand phaseout starts in January Tom Kowalski News10NBC RTS On Demand van (WHEC file photo) ROCHESTER, N.Y. — Some members of Rochester’s disabled community are preparing for changes as Rochester Transit Service plans to end its On Demand service starting early next year. News10NBC’s Tom Kowalski spoke with riders who rely on the service for work and appointments. RTS leaders said they have to cancel On Demand because it takes up 14% of the budget but only accounts for 3% of all riders, costing more than six times more per rider than a regular bus ticket. Pedro Caquias, who is temporarily handicapped, said, “Uber for me to get to work is 50 bucks and then to get home. So it’ll be $100 a day and I work five days a week. I can’t really afford to spend $500 on transportation.” Caquias broke his leg and totaled his car in a crash in June, and he is not expecting it to fully heal until the summer. He said the On Demand service helped him as he continued to heal from his injury. “I was working a lot, and it was really coming in handy. So the goal was to save up enough to buy a car. And this job was perfect for me. And they gave me a really good position. So without [RTS On Demand], I don’t even know how I’m going to get there because it’s so early in the morning. I go there at around 5 a.m.,” Caquias said. RTS said it currently faces a $30 million budget deficit due to increasing costs, which led to the decision to cut On Demand. Bryan O’Malley with the Center for Disability Rights said, “Once the service discontinues, the alternatives are few and far between.” O’Malley said it should be up to the state leaders to help fund the deficit that RTS is facing. “The governor herself has always approached disabilities with a chief priority of increasing disabled folks presence in the workforce. And so this stands in direct contrast to that. And we are hopeful that, she will recognize that and step in to help alleviate the crisis that is brewing,” O’Malley said. Denise Palis, whose daughter Stacey Palis takes RTS On Demand, questioned why there is not more funding for services like this. “Why can’t we get some funding for the taxes that we pay here in the state of New York?” Palis said. Denise said she and her husband will have to pick Stacey up and drive her to her job because Stacey cannot drive due to a central auditory processing disability. “I agree with Go Bills, but they just spent all this money on the new stadium, and we need stuff right here in Monroe County,” Palis said. RTS said it plans to expand service across Monroe County, especially in Greece, where it has seen the highest need for On Demand. RTS plans to phase out On Demand starting in January, with Brockport, Irondequoit, Pittsford and Webster dropped first. Other communities will still have access to the service until early April. After that, RTS plans to expand its regular routes.