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Commission backs balanced senior-transportation plan, asks staff to study staffing and hours
Summary
After weeks of outreach and 170 returned surveys, the commission recommended a balanced senior-transportation model (variation 2) to City Council, and asked staff to study a dedicated staff position to help seniors access alternative services and to run a cost analysis of expanded hours.
The Parks & Community Services Commission recommended on March 12 that City Council consider a balanced senior-transportation option that limits destinations and adds modest co-pays, while protecting commonly used medical destinations.
The commission acted after a detailed staff presentation on ridership, survey results and program models. Kevin Stodder, senior recreation supervisor, told commissioners that staff received 170 surveys from roughly 1,300 program users and that medical trips were the most frequent purpose. “So we received 170 um surveys,” Stodder said, summarizing outreach and usage patterns.
Why it matters: Costa Mesa’s senior-transportation program has been heavily used in recent years; staff said telling patterns emerge in the data that make a fully open, unlimited model unaffordable on the program’s $200,000 target budget. Stodder laid out several alternatives that trade off number of rides, co-pay levels and which in- and out-of-city destinations are served.
Commissioners pressed staff on practical details—ADA compliance, the 48-hour booking rule, hours of operation, how the program handles people with frequent medical needs, and whether the city can coordinate with other services. Stodder and Director Gruner said staff has identified nonprofit partners (Abraar and OCTA’s OC Access program) that offer additional rides, though those programs often require advance booking or fees.
After discussion, Vice Chair Wright proposed a substitute motion to endorse ‘variation 2,’ a balanced model that increases the total permitted rides per user while limiting certain high-cost destination coverage. The motion also directed staff to explore hiring or funding a staff member to help seniors navigate alternative transportation programs and to produce a cost analysis for expanding program service hours. The motion passed on a recorded commission vote and will go forward as the commission’s recommendation to City Council.
What happens next: The commission’s recommendation will be included in the staff report to City Council when the senior-transportation program is scheduled for review. Staff will return with a cost analysis of expanded hours and options for a staffing solution to assist seniors with alternatives and exceptions, and the council will decide whether to adopt the commission’s recommendation.
