Synthesis of Information Related to Transit Practices. Topic SB-32. Use of Agency Trip Agreements in ADA Paratransit Service Delivery

Transit agencies must provide complementary paratransit service (to eligible people) under provisions of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). In addition to providing ADA paratransit services for individuals, many transit agencies also provide specialized transportation to human service agencies through formal and informal agreements. The U.S. Department of Transportation’s ADA regulations at Appendix D to 49 CFR Part 37 describe these complementary paratransit “agency trips” as those “guaranteed” to a social service agency, where the social service agency makes riders’ trip reservations and pays for transportation, as opposed to trips where the rider is the payor. The DOT regulations allow a transit agency to “negotiate any price it can” for trips meeting the agency trip description. As more transit agencies seek to implement these arrangements and contact FTA to provide examples, a synthesis study on the current state of transit industry practice is urgently needed. The objective of this synthesis is to identify and document current practice (1) whether and how transit agencies have negotiated and structured these local agency trip agreements with human service agencies to cover cost, meet mutual needs, maintain service quality and monitor for ADA compliance, and (2) how the transit agencies have also implemented local service policies, such as hand-to hand or door through door or other methods for individuals with disabilities who cannot be left unattended. The synthesis will provide examples from the industry on current policies and procedures.

• Record URL:
  http://apps.trb.org/cmsfeed/TRBNetProjectDisplay.asp?ProjectID=4604

Language

• English

Project

• Status: Completed
• Funding: $45000
• Contract Numbers:

  Project J-07, Topic SB-32

• Sponsor Organizations:

  Transit Cooperative Research Program

  Transportation Research Board
  500 Fifth Street, NW
  Washington, DC    20001

  Federal Transit Administration

  1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE
  Washington, DC  United States  20590
• Project Managers:

  Garcia-Colberg, Mariela

• Performing Organizations:

  Thomson Consulting

  Philadelphia, PA  United States 
• Principal Investigators:

  Thomson, Barbara

• Start Date: 20181016
• Expected Completion Date: 0
• Actual Completion Date: 0

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Compliance; Demand responsive transportation; Paratransit services; Persons with disabilities; Quality of service; Social service agencies; State of the practice; Transit operating agencies
• Identifier Terms: Americans with Disabilities Act
• Subject Areas: Administration and Management; Passenger Transportation; Public Transportation; Society;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01835926
• Record Type: Research project
• Source Agency: Transportation Research Board
• Contract Numbers: Project J-07, Topic SB-32
• Files: TRB, RIP
• Created Date: Feb 14 2022 9:43PM