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Fullerton advisory committee recommends limits on senior taxi trips, keeps medical rides a priority
Summary
Parks & Recreation staff said rising ridership and constrained Measure 2 funding require caps on the Senior Mobility Program; the committee recommended a 30-trip cap for March–June and a 20‑trip cap starting July 1, forwarding both recommendations to city council (first unanimous, second 4–2).
Parks & Recreation staff told the Fullerton Senior Advisory Committee that growing taxi use and declining Measure 2 (OC Go) funding require a phased reduction in the city’s Senior Mobility Program. Staff recommended capping the number of city‑funded free round trips to 30 per month from March 1 through June 30 and limiting the program to 20 round trips per month beginning July 1, while prioritizing medical appointments and grocery shopping within city limits.
"Staff recommends limiting participants to a cap of 30 free round trips per month," said Parks & Recreation staff during the presentation. The department told the committee that Fullerton’s projected allocation for 2025–26 is $176,939, monthly program funding is about $14,744, and some recent months’ taxi costs approached $30,000, producing an unsustainable gap.
Committee members pressed for details about how the limits would work. Staff said the March–June cap would preserve access to the Fullerton Community Center and that the post‑July changes would refocus coverage on medical appointments, grocery shopping inside the city and access to city facilities; nonemergency medical trips outside the city would be limited to a 10‑mile radius and carry modest copays under the proposal.
Several members and callers raised concerns about the social role of transportation for frail seniors. "A lot of those people … can't walk well. They're in walkers, canes. They are so happy to be able to get out and to go to things," one committee member said, urging care in setting limits. A Fullerton property owner who called in suggested a long‑term alternative: a city‑operated trolley or vehicle program to retain neighborhood access.
Staff also noted contractual constraints: the city’s current cooperative agreement with Yellow Cab (the contracted taxi provider) uses one‑year renewals and—per staff—expires 06/30/2026; OCTA must review any revised service plan because Measure 2 (OC Go) funds require OCTA approval.
The committee voted on the two recommendations separately. The March 1–June 30 proposal to limit free trips to 30 per month was approved unanimously. The longer‑term recommendation—limiting free trips to 20 round trips per month beginning July 1—passed on a 4–2 vote. The committee asked staff to provide the ridership and contract details and to present the recommendations to City Council (staff said a tentative council date is Feb. 17) and to OCTA for the required approvals.
Next steps: staff will forward the committee’s recommendations to City Council for consideration, provide additional ridership and contract information to the committee, and work with OCTA on the revised service plan.
