Adapted transit users in Montreal concerned over service cuts
Montrealers with mobility needs say they are feeling increasingly isolated by changes to adapted transport services.
The local transit authority, the STM, announced last week that a labour shortage in the taxi industry means it will scale back transport services for people who use adapted transit.
"I know how significant this may be for your life and activities," said STM general director Marie-Claude Léonard in an announcement Monday, adding that the organization is working hard to resume service.
For now, users will need to plan around fewer available trips, and optional companions likely won't be able to ride with them.
That has a severe impact on Sandra Gualtieri and Adam Tryhorn. Both use wheelchairs, and support worker Shelby Johnson helps ensure they can run errands and get to appointments.
"I use paratransit for everything. Groceries, shopping, medical appointments, all of which I need to bring a companion with me to assist me," said Gualtieri.
"It's just denying someone their right to leave their homes," said Johnson, adding she may have to meet them there. "If I'm going to just have to travel separately, like, just take a different bus or a metro, and if it takes longer, they just have to wait for me to get there, and pay for it out of my own pocket?"
While they can still get around on their own, Tryhorn fears some people won't be able to attend appointments at all.
"As for the medical issue, a lot of people won't be able to go to their medical appointments if they don't have someone to help them," he said.
Montreal Mayor Valerie Plante said the city will look at ways it can help to alleviate pressure on the transit system.
"If you're living with a disability, it's already hard enough. So having the ability to use public transport is so important," she said.
The STM told CTV News that while it's trying to resume service, people with mobility needs should try to limit their travels to less busy times and use the metro or buses when possible.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Quebec nurse had to clean up after husband's death in Montreal hospital
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
Northern Ont. lawyer who abandoned clients in child protection cases disbarred
A North Bay, Ont., lawyer who abandoned 15 clients – many of them child protection cases – has lost his licence to practise law.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Maple Leafs fall to Bruins in Game 3, trail series 2-1
Brad Marchand scored twice, including the winner in the third period, and added an assist as the Boston Bruins downed the Toronto Maple Leafs 4-2 to take a 2-1 lead in their first-round playoff series Wednesday
Cuban government apologizes to Montreal-area family after delivering wrong body
Cuba's foreign affairs minister has apologized to a Montreal-area family after they were sent the wrong body following the death of a loved one.
'It was instant karma': Viral video captures failed theft attempt in Nanaimo, B.C.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
What is changing about Canada's capital gains tax and how does it impact me?
The federal government's proposed change to capital gains taxation is expected to increase taxes on investments and mainly affect wealthy Canadians and businesses. Here's what you need to know about the move.
New Indigenous loan guarantee program a 'really big deal,' Freeland says at Toronto conference
Canada's Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland was among the 1,700 delegates attending the two-day First Nations Major Projects Coalition (FNMPC) conference that concluded Tuesday in Toronto.
'Life was not fair to him': Daughter of N.B. man exonerated of murder remembers him as a kind soul
The daughter of a New Brunswick man recently exonerated from murder, is remembering her father as somebody who, despite a wrongful conviction, never became bitter or angry.