Paratransit is the most widely available transit service, with over 5,000 transit agencies providing it. However, most of those agencies limit the service to persons with disabilities, their attendants and companions, and older Americans.
Paratransit (also called demand response or dial-a-ride) is comprised of passenger cars, vans or small buses operating in response to calls from passengers or their agents to the transit operator, who then dispatches a vehicle to pick up the passengers and transport them to their destinations. A paratransit operation is characterized by the following: (a) The vehicles do not operate over a fixed route or on a fixed schedule except, perhaps, on a temporary basis to satisfy a special need; and (b) typically, the vehicle may be dispatched to pick up several passengers at different pick-up points before taking them to their respective destinations and may even be interrupted en route to these destinations to pick up other passengers. The following types of operations fall under the above definitions provided they are not on a scheduled fixed route basis: many origins-many destinations, many origins-one destination, one origin-many destinations, and one origin-one destination
Types of Service
Complementary paratransit service is required by law for those persons with disabilities and others not able to use fixed-route service. Generally it must operate in the same areas and during the same hours. The fare is limited to twice the fixed-route fare. Service may be the fixed-route bus agency or by a completely separate agency.
General paratransit service is not required by law and is not subject to the restrictions imposed on complementary paratransit service. The transit agency may limit the service to certain people or it may be available to anyone. Some such services operate during late-night and weekend hours in place of fixed-route services.
User-side subsidy service is a transportation arrangement where the rider's cost of transportation is partially subsidized by the transit agency. The user is the rider who pays a reduced fare. A typical user-side subsidy program is operated through taxicab operators or a brokerage system which may charge a per-ride fee for handling the rider's transportation arrangements.
Types of Vehicles
Almost all paratransit service is operated with vehicles less than 30 feet in length since generally only a few people are on board the vehicle at any time. Despite their small size, most such vehicles have two doors similar to transit buses, though the rear door (used for wheelchairs) may actually open behind the vehicle instead of towards the side.
A van has a typical seating capacity of 5 to 15 passengers and is classified as a van by vehicle manufacturers. A modified van (body-on-chassis van) is a standard van that has undergone some structural changes by another company, usually made to increase its size and particularly its height. The seating capacity of modified vans is approximately 9 to 18 passengers.
Small transit buses (see the Bus section for definitions) are also used by a small number of transit agencies.
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