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
Widow looking for answers after Quebec man dies in Texas Ironman competition
The widow of a Quebec man who died competing in an Ironman competition is looking for answers.
Amid concerns over 'collateral damage' Trudeau, Freeland defend capital gains tax change
Facing pushback from physicians and businesspeople over the coming increase to the capital gains inclusion rate, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his deputy Chrystia Freeland are standing by their plan to target Canada's highest earners.
Tom Mulcair: Park littered with trash after 'pilot project' is perfect symbol of Trudeau governance
Former NDP leader Tom Mulcair says that what's happening now in a trash-littered federal park in Quebec is a perfect metaphor for how the Trudeau government runs things.
Fewer medical students going into family medicine contributing to doctor shortage
As some family doctors are retiring and others are moving away from family medicine, there are fewer medical students to take their place.
Bodies found by U.S. authorities searching for missing B.C. kayakers
United States authorities who have been searching for a pair of missing kayakers from British Columbia since the weekend have recovered two bodies in the nearby San Juan Islands of Washington state.
'It's discriminatory': Individuals refused entry to Ontario legislature for wearing keffiyeh
Individuals being barred from entering Ontario’s legislature while wearing a keffiyeh say the garment is part of their cultural identity— and the only ones making it political are the politicians banning it.
Competition bureau finds 'substantial' anti-competitive effects with proposed Bunge-Viterra merger
The proposed merger of agricultural giants Viterra and Bunge is raising competition concerns from the federal government.
Douglas DC-4 plane with 2 people on board crashes into river outside Fairbanks, Alaska
A Douglas C-54 Skymaster airplane crashed into the Tanana River near Fairbanks on Tuesday, Alaska State Troopers said.
NASA hears from Voyager 1, the most distant spacecraft from Earth, after months of quiet
NASA has finally heard back from Voyager 1 again in a way that makes sense. The most distant spacecraft from Earth hadn't sent home any understandable data since last November.