Para Transpo users are facing a barrage of issues, from a lack of advance booking to phone queues.
The City of Ottawa’s transit commissioners heard late last month that the booking system is a particular problem for an increasing number of disabled customers who rely on Para Transpo to get around the city.
Centretown resident Rob Bender, who is blind, has encountered problems in the past trying to book transportation through Para Transpo, which is operated by OC Transpo. He is generally happy with the service because these on-going bookings can be made further in advance, but casual bookings such as medical appointments are more complicated.
“People who require vans, if they’re in a wheelchair for example, can call at 7 a.m., but I can’t call until 9 in the morning the day before I need transportation,” Bender says. “By the time I get through the phone queue, the bus is often already full.”
Customers must book single trips over the phone, which can only be done the day before. The phones open at 9 a.m. and this is what causes the long phone queues. The system was set up to avoid cancellations at the door but can cause problems for clients.
“I know they’re doing what they can, but being on hold for, like, 30 to 40 minutes while I’m at work is not really optimal,” he says.
Karen Scott, who has multiple sclerosis, relies on Para Transpo to take her to doctor’s appointments as well as physical therapy sessions. “I always call right on the dot of 9 a.m., but I usually don’t get through until 9:40 and by that time the busses might already be full,” she says.
Scott says when she has tried to book transportation through Para Transpo, more than half of the time she has needed to find another option because they simply couldn’t find a seat for her. Troy Charter, who is in charge of transit operations at OC Transpo, says the organization is aware of problem.
“The past five years we’ve experienced an increasing interest to our service, but the demand is getting so high now that we’re having to look for new ways to provide the service to as many people as possible,” he says.
Charter says Para Transpo is working on coming up with a solution to better suit the costumers’ needs, including a recommendation to allow customers to book three to seven days in advance.