DART New Service Model "FAQ"

Thank you David Sheppard (Manager, Paratransit Customer Relations) for sending us this updated information! Please post any questions or comments.

Q. What is the new service delivery model?
A. The new service delivery model has three parts: next day ADA service, subsidized service, and coordinated service. The next day ADA service is the service that is being provided now. Subsidized service is something that we plan to have in the future where riders can choose a more flexible and spontaneous service by paying a little more than the $3 base fare. Coordinated service is also something that will happen in the future where DART will coordinate our services with other agencies, such as health and human service providers.

Q. Why is DART privatizing its Paratransit services?
A. DART has always used a contractor to provide drivers and maintenance. The only change with the new model is that the scheduling and dispatching functions will also be done by the contractor.

Q. How does the new service model differ from what DART Paratransit is doing now?
A. Instead of one vehicle type, DART will be using a variety of vehicles, to include vans, sedans, and taxis.

Q. Will the new service model completely do away with vans?
A. No. There will still be fully accessible vans for all customers who need them.

Q. How will I schedule trips using the new model?
A. Trips will be scheduled just like they are now, by calling the same number, 214.515.7272.

Q. Will I be picked up by a taxi?
A. Possibly, if your travel needs can be accommodated by a taxi.

Q. How can I be assured that this new pool of transportation providers will be courteous, friendly, and operate safe vehicles?
A. The drivers will be fully trained and expected to provide excellence in customer service, safety, and sensitivity. Any drivers who do not provide excellent customer service will be removed from our program.

Q. Is the one-way fare expected to increase with this new model?
A. No. Currently, there is no discussion of a fare increase for this new model.

Q. When are these changes expected to occur?
A. The new service is anticipated to go into effect October 1, 2011.

Q. Is there an opportunity for me to learn more about the new service model?
A. Yes. The new service model will be explained in detail at DART’s Americans with Disabilities Act Community Meetings. The next meeting is scheduled to occur at the Richardson Civic Center on Saturday, October 16, at 10:00 a.m. During the meeting, DART staff members will explain in further detail the many benefits of this new service model. We will also be discussing the new service delivery model at our meetings in January, March, May, July, and September, 2011.

Q. How will the new model benefit me?
A. We expect our riders to experience a higher quality and more personalized service. We expect ride times to be shorter, and on-time performance to be higher. We also expect that riders will have greater flexibility and more spontaneity in making trip reservations.

Please note: Effective Friday, October 1, 2010, our department name will change from Paratransit Services to Mobility Management Services.

End to Discriminatory Insurance Practices?

September 23, 2010, is a critical date in expanding health care to young Americans and ending harmful and discriminatory insurance practices.

Highlights of the changes taking effect include:

• Health insurance plans can no longer refuse insurance to youth under age 19 who have health conditions.
• Employers who offer dependent care coverage must continue to offer it to dependents up to age 26.
• Harmful limits placed on how much an insurance company will pay over a lifetime for an individual are removed.
  

These changes are part of the Affordable Care Act, which prohibits discrimination against people with disabilities, expands access to long-term services and supports and makes a number of other changes to our health care system. Learn more about these changes and how they may impact you—read the latest National Policy Matters or visit HealthCare.gov.

Major Changes in Store for DART’s Paratransit

During the two decades that DART has been providing paratransit services for riders who cannot access the fixed route system, there have been lots of changes, tweaks, grumblings and successes. But now DART planners are looking at an entirely different approach to providing the service.

DART currently is offering a “supply driven” model. DART decides how many vehicles and drivers are needed with an eye on what it can afford. The “supply” of rides is determined by budget, estimated hours and availability of vehicles. That then dictates how many hours of rides are offered.

The new plan under consideration is “customer driven”. DART will hire a transportation management company who will coordinate ride request with independent transportation providers with whom they have contracts. It would work something like this; a certified paratransit rider calls the reservation number and requests a ride much as it is currently done. The transportation management’s software searches through the independent providers for a match. A rider could be matched with someone who also accepts work form an established taxi company for example.

DART is quick to point out that this will be nothing like the brief and troubled attempt several years ago to work with cab companies. We will address the differences in a later communication.

There are obvious financial advantages for DART in the new plan, but there are huge potential benefits for riders as well as it will dramatically increase the pool of potential drivers. As the need for rides increases then the management company will increase the number of trip requests to as many independent transportation providers as are needed to satisfy customer demand.

Just think, in a few years we might not be just looking at “same day” reservations, but trip request within a few hours of the time a ride is needed. This change in how DART delivers paratransit services is still in the early planning stages and nothing is definite at this point. One thing that DART will always retain is customer service and eligibility determination.

The Arc of Dallas will keep posting updates as the planning unfolds.

Students

Schools had been in session for two or three weeks when The Arc got a call from the mother of a five-year old student. Her son was being evaluated by his school to confirm his diagnosis of autism. She was calling seeking help because her five-year old son has already been suspended and sent home twice since the beginning of school! How is this possible?

“Special education students [sic] in Texas public schools are nearly twice as likely to be suspended as students in the general education population, according to recent Texas Education Agency testimony,” reports The Texas Tribune’s Kate Ergenbright.

TEA found that for every 100 students receiving special education supports, there were 55.8 in-school suspensions and 25.1 out of school-of-school suspensions.

The mom of one student who was sent home five times last year feels, “Teachers don’t know how to deal with special education kids, so it gets to a level where they will explode because they are tired of dealing with this kid.”

If over taxed professionals is part of the problem then consider that this year legislators are looking at billions of dollars less to provide services. This coupled with the astonishing finding that the number of students with autism in public schools grew 404 percent from 1999 to 2009, a statistic Committee Chair Florence Shapiro, R-Plano, called “mind-boggling.”

Caregivers must understand not only students’ rights, but effective suggestions and techniques to offer the IEP team. The sections on discipline and behaviors in It’s a New IDEA from The Arc of Texas and Advocacy, Inc. is packed with good information for students, families and education professionals.

Have you had a troubling experience with your student being inappropriately disciplined or do you have a terrific success story? Please tell us about it. It always seems as if the most effective ideas come from sharing with others.