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TRANSPORTATION Politicians call for meeting to address concerns from page At continue it could lead to a loss of service the softspoken 23-year- old says Im speaking up about this for all of the people who dont have a Due to health issues it can be difficult to provide notice before cancelling a ride Mr Barker says Mobility Plus manager Sharon Doyle said she couldnt speak to the experiences of specific individuals but noted the demerit point system is in place for a reason At one time the system was dealing with an epidemic of sched uled trips being cancelled at the last minute and it quickly become clear action was needed she said adding the options were to either charge riders for missed trips or issue demerit points as a deterrent After looking at how other systems handled the issue opted for the latter At six points a letter is issued informing a passenger of their missed or cancellations while 12 points results in a loss of service for two days A total of 18 demerit points keeps you off Mobility Plus for a week while 24 nets a 30day ban plus a meeting with a manager At 36 points the person is barred from riding Mobility Plus for 90 days The demerit point system was not put In place with the inten tion of penalizing people Ms said We recognize that circumstanc es do arise that unplanned events happen and that snow events occur but we Just ask passengers to com municate that to the staff We recognize that circumstances do arise that unplanned events happen and that snow events occur but we just ask passengers to communicate that to the staff While Mr Barker says he has tried to keep transit staff in the loop he has found them to be less than understanding He brought his concerns about the service to Aurora councillors last week The politicians have directed town staff to invite representatives from me region to attend a meeting of the towns accessibility advisory community to discuss Mr Barkers concerns Mr Barker is Just a wonderful advocate and I know Mobility Plus is aware of this resolution Mayor Phyllis Morris said I think we need to get them down here as quickly as possible and Id like to get a discussion going Mobility Plus staff receive Acces sibility for Ontarians with Disabili ties Act arid other training Ms Doyle said Another central issue for Mr Barker is the availability of the one rearloading Mobility Phis vehicle in the region Having to rely on it makes travel difficult to plan and leads to wait times of a week or more when try ing to book rides outside the sub scription service The need for more such vehicles needs addressing especially given the more common sideloading vehicles cant load his wheelchair According to Ms Doyle any one of the 17 26foot sideloading vans should be able to accommodate a wheelchair such as that used by Mr Barker His need for a rearloader seems more based on preference than necessity she said But Mr Barker said it was one of Mobility Plus own Inspectors who told him he couldnt use the side- loading vans That needs to be clarified he said adding he has tried to meet with Ms Doyle for some time In any event Mr Barker said he aims to keep up the fight and would like to see the demerit point system done away with and for the sys tem to permit more flexibility for its users This service is called Mobility Plus but sometimes I thinlfit ought to be called Mobility Min us Extending the hours for which the rearloading vehicle is avail able would be a good start he said as would making the fiveminute departure window a little longer None of the changes hes seeking are unreasonable he added Apart from support from Aurora councillors Mr Barker said hes also being hailed by the Ontario March of Dimes and has received offers of help from local minister and Pro gressive Canadian federal candidate Dorian Baxter He also plans to meet with New marketAurora MPP Frank Wees next month With a little luck and a lot of help change could be on the horizon he said hope the service as ft is today isnt in place four years from now because this region is growing and it seems like Mobility Plus isnt seeing that Mr Barker said adding the fact the population is aging should be taken into account as well This service Is called Mobility Plus but sometimes I think it ought to be called Mobility Minus because its not helpful at all Now in his second semester at Seneca Mr Barker who says his GPA is remains committed to his studies but has frequently started looking elsewhere for transit assistance Dignity Transportation has a great service he said but at per oneway trip its much more expen sive than Mobility Plus Ms Doyle said Mobility Plus wel comes the criticism and looks at any and all complaints as an opportu nity to improve its service We welcome feedback and any time we can clear up misconcep tions thats a good thing she said We can only improve the system if we hear from our users North Newmarket Lions Valentine Dinner Dance GRANITE NEW SHOWROOM 1 66 Gorham Street We hove a winner Slots 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