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2005 report and accomplishments

The committee’s major focus on the fixed-route system in 2005 was the stop announcement program, in which bus drivers call out the names of upcoming stops. In 2004 the committee sent a letter to King County Executive Ron Sims recommending a 75% compliance rate and that the department set up a detailed work program to meet that goal. Following that letter and a presentation by ASAC to the Regional Transit Committee, Metro Transit invited ASAC to work in partnership with Transit Operations on key elements of the work program, including monitoring, review of training materials, liaison with base ADA committees, and participation at base ADA fairs.

To that end, in 2005 the committee:

• Viewed the training video and observed the new operator training for riders with disabilities;
• Accompanied Transit chiefs and supervisors as they were monitoring operators’ compliance with the stop announcement policy;
• Met with the leadership of Local 587 to discuss ways that the union and the committee could work together to improve stop announcements;
• Attended base fairs on the Americans with Disabilities Act to meet with operators and other base personnel on the stop announcement program; and
• Presented at a quarterly meeting of Operations ADA team.

The committee will be making a recommendation on compliance with the stop announcements program and will continue to work collaboratively with Transit Operations and Local 587 to improve overall compliance.

In 2005, Metro Transit and Sound Transit released the Transportation Needs and Options Report. The committee originally requested this needs assessment in order to determine whether there was a significant number of people living outside the Metro Transit service area, or "footprint," who therefore could not get paratransit service. The ASAC Task Force had identified this issue as a priority because of concerns that as real estate prices escalate in the more densely populated areas where there is good transit service, more and more people have to locate where the cost of living is lower, outside the transit footprint. This leaves low-income community members who have disabilities without transit, and means that they are not eligible to use Metro’s Accessible Bus and Van Services. To that end, the committee is reviewing the Transportation Needs and Options Report and working toward a recommendation.

The committee also made the following recommendations this year:

• That the King County Council increase the taxi scrip allotment to "make whole" riders who otherwise would receive less service with the taxi fare increase; and
• That Metro Transit involve the committee in capital design and equipment purchases that affect older adults and riders with disabilities.

Last update: December 22, 2005