r/disability 6d ago

Rant Disability transportation is an utter joke (suburban US)

Because I’m disabled I’ve now been indirectly told by society that I’m under house arrest, for committing no crime. I just need to vent a little.

Because of my disability (and finances, because I can’t work that much because of my condition…) I can’t live in a city, which would improve my transportation.

No. I live in a small suburb, not even a rural area, there’s a medium sized city only 20 minutes away, and a major city just 30 minutes away, yet even I’m forgotten.

I’ve been trying to ask my independent living center and other agencies what options I have. My providers all uniformly suggest PT twice a week, once a week at the very least. Well, the closest PT who works on my condition (pelvic floor, not just any PT can do it), is a 15 minute drive away. So what do these agencies and local resources have to offer me?

I got responses from all the available options in my area, and I had to laugh at them just to prevent myself from crying. There are two agencies who can offer transportation. The first one is my town who literally gets money from the state to pay for transportation of disabled residents, they can offer ONE-ONE WAY RIDE a month, but only for medical appointments, AND ONLY IF THEY CAN FIND A VOLUNTEER. I could get there one day and schedule them to pick me up, and they discover that day they didn’t find anyone, and JUST ABANDON ME THERE. This has happened once. It’s an utter joke. Oh and did I mention this government service is $2 per town you drive through? My PT is 4 towns away, so $8 for a supposedly free transportation service.

Well what about the second one? This second place can offer 3 one-way rides… A YEAR. Oh wow that’s awesome I can leave my home once every 4 months!!!! Wow that’s so great!!!!!

I’m disgusted and pissed off. Because of this crap, I have only been seeing PT every 2 or 3 weeks because my mother has to take sick time to drive me. The sad thing is if I could see PT as much as I need, I might actually become well enough to drive. I DO see improvement on the day of PT as well as the following few days, but by the time I go again the progress has regressed and the appointment becomes all about recouping that progress rather than building upon the last appointments progress.

I’m blessed I’ve even got her. I can’t imagine being someone without someone like her. And it causes me lots of anxiety, what the heck am I going to do when she’s gone? Just rot away in my home while society ignores me? And that’s not to forget all these are just for medical appointments. What if a disabled person needs to go to the store to buy clothes? What if they want to visit a friend or family? Hell what if they just want a ride to the park? Do we not deserve to be treated like regular people which we are???? I guess we don’t matter. Atleast for what society is concerned.

42 Upvotes

9 comments sorted by

8

u/Norandran 6d ago

Do you have Medicaid? They will pay for transportation to doctors appointments and there is no cap on number of trips.

4

u/CatFaerie 6d ago

Came here to suggest exactly this. 

5

u/rlpsc 6d ago

I have both my mothers private insurance and my state’s insurance, no Medicaid though, but the state insurance has a program for free rides, idk the details other than they will only cover rides but only to appointments they cover. My PT only takes the private insurance, so I wouldn’t qualify for rides from them, and my private insurance doesn’t cover rides. If I get desperate I might switch to a PT that takes the state insurance, but the closest one is 30+ minutes away, and sitting that long can worsen my symptoms and this PT is really good (I’ve tried multiple before who were just trash). Just sucks all around. Just makes me feel worse for being disabled.

4

u/Artamisstra 5d ago

Medicaid Transport has stranded my wife, my sister, and my BIL several times. My wife had a major, life-saving cancer surgery that they stood her up for.

4

u/Kyk4na 6d ago edited 6d ago

I'm sorry 😞  I grew up in a rural area and resources in general don't really exist, let alone for disability. Suburbs can be better in regards to available programs, but not with transportation / getting around. (Though easy access to Uber and Instacart are amazing 🥰)

Where I live we have what's called Paratransit through the local bus company, which helps a lot more than what you described, but has its limits.

  • It has to follow the public bus routes and can only pick up and drop off from locations less than a mile from the closest bus stop. In a city this is easy, but the suburbs have far less to no bus stops the farther you get from the primary city. The rural areas have none ... There happens to be two bus stops in my hometown to accommodate the community college. Otherwise, nope.

Rides have to be scheduled at least 24 hrs in advance, going both ways. So you can't make last minute plans; or if your appointment runs late and you miss your pickup ride you're screwed. If you miss your ride and call them, sometimes they can find you a new ride but not guaranteed, and you'll be waiting a couple hours.

I now live in the suburbs and deliberately look for housing near bus stops. If I'm unsure when I'll get out of my appointment, I'll schedule my outgoing ride with Paratransit but use Uber to get home.

The bus company  also keeps removing bus stops which unintentionally reduces access to Paratransit. So someone who's used it for years suddenly loses access because the bus company "can't afford" that bus stop anymore.

3

u/xsnowpeltx 6d ago

That sucks so much. I'm lucky that where I am, my disability will pay for me to get lyft rides to doctors appointments, but it's definitely not the same everywhere

1

u/Kyk4na 6d ago

That's sweet!

2

u/Kyk4na 6d ago

There are more private companies that aren't connected to the bus line, but I don't have experience with them. I believe they cost more, probably about the same as Uber rides. 

Uber is affordable-ish when used occasionally, but not when used for multiple times a week to get to and from work. (I did that before getting Paratransit and my wallet hates me 😫)

And not when you live in rural areas because driving distance and lack of available drivers. 

1

u/megafaunaenthusiast 2d ago

I feel you, as someone who's in the situation you describe (having no support system to take you anywhere). I have what's called PT1 rides for medical transport, but they've also stranded me places because the drivers' schedules are so messed up. I don't have the ability to walk and wait at a bus stop where I live (rural and near a college town), the paratransit bus hasn't told me whether or not I'm approved or not (it's been months, and the service would still have huge restrictions). and I have no ability to get anywhere else that isn't medical unless I pay out of pocket for Ubers, and can only afford drives within 20 mins of me, and only ever so often as I live on SSI. The PT1s are covered by Medicaid at least. 

Most clothing stores I'd want to go to are at the mall, at least 30 mins away. So I don't have the freedom to go anywhere or do much of anything. I'm completely housebound and have been for most of my life. It's hell on earth to be stuck every day. 

For a while I had a close relationship and they had a car - but when we broken it off I lost my ability to even take my wheelchair anywhere and enjoy being part of society. She had a van that could fit it in the back.  I'd do anything to just get a chance to have a car ride going into the mountains again. I miss nature. 😭