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Folsom resident says RT Go service failures leave seniors, people with disabilities missing appointments
Summary
A resident urged the council to press Regional Transit over software and scheduling failures in the RT Go paratransit service, saying residents have missed medical appointments and paid fees for no-shows.
During the public comment portion of the Folsom City Council meeting, resident Margie Donovan described repeated failures of the RT Go paratransit service operated by Sacramento Regional Transit and asked the council to address the problem.
Donovan said she and other residents have experienced late pickups, missed medical appointments and out-of-pocket fees for missed appointments because the buses arrive outside the expected window. "This is unacceptable," she said. "Some of you may know that I went to CVS, and I was on channel 13 after missing a doctor's appointment and having to pay a $100 fee for missed appointment." She said drivers sometimes fail to communicate safety information; she described nearly falling on a bus when a driver did not warn riders.
Donovan asked the council to take action beyond relying on Folsom's representatives to the Regional Transit board: "We have got to get our residents to their medical appointments on time. It is unfair that we have to pay for missed appointments because the buses are late." The council did not take action during that meeting on the comment, but staff and council members acknowledged the concern and noted there are representatives on the Regional Transit board who could raise the issues with the agency.
Why it matters: paratransit reliability can affect access to medical care for seniors and people with disabilities; constituents urged city-level attention to service coordination with the regional agency.
