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Bravo! Snagged
from USA Today, with one formatting change. Excellent idea, I hope this catches
on. Besides the obvious advantages of safety, savings (no car expenses for
seniors on limited incomes!) and fuel economy, there should be no shortage of
part time and volunteer drivers, either, with this roller coaster jobs insecure
economy. - kwc Ride
program for senior citizens flourishes in Maine
PORTLAND, Maine
(AP) — Margaret Emmons had not driven in more than 20 years. So when her
husband died last fall, she had no use for their 1997 Ford Taurus. Rather than sell it or give it
away, she decided to trade it for rides through the Independent Transportation
Network. Now, all she has to do is call for someone to come and give her a
lift, perhaps even in her old car. "It's
what saves me," Emmons, who is 80, said after returning from the grocery
store on a snowy day. "I'd be sunk without it." Launched
a decade ago, the Portland area's Independent
Transportation Network provided 15,200 rides to senior citizens last
year with no taxpayer money for operations. The concept of trading in cars for rides is aimed, in part, at getting elderly
motorists off the road when they can no longer drive safely. The program was
the brainchild of a mother whose son was run over by an old man. The
Portland idea is catching on. This year, pilot programs are being launched in
Santa Monica, Calif., Orlando, Charleston, S.C., and the Trenton, N.J., area.
Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, plans to propose a five-year, $25 million federal
grant program to take the idea nationwide. Katherine
Freund came up with the concept after she watched in disbelief as a motorist
ran over her 3-year-old son Ryan as he played in front of their house in 1988.
The Buick never stopped, and the 84-year-old driver later told investigators
that he thought he had run over a dog. The
accident left her toddler in a coma. Ryan eventually recovered, and Freund went
on to study the issue of senior drivers while in graduate school. "What was a personal experience
for me was a much larger social problem," she said. "I thought, 'This
thing has to be fixable.' This isn't a disease for which there's no cure. We
know what the solution is: We need transportation for the elderly." By
the time she left the University of Southern Maine with a degree in public
policy, she had refined her idea. The former real estate agent knew that senior citizens' cars
often get little use. Using the model of a reverse mortgage, a home equity loan
that enables people to tap into the value of their homes, Freund applied the formula to cars. §
Elderly
people trade in their cars and the value is booked into an account from which
they can draw to receive rides. §
Family
members and friends also can add to the account by donating cars or cash, or
their time as volunteers. §
Taxpayers
win because the program operates with volunteers and donations. §
Senior
citizens win because they get to ride in a regular car, not a taxi or a bus.
And the car comes when they want it. No waiting at cold, icy bus stops. §
Communities
that help to recruit volunteers are given credits for rides for their elderly
people. Doctors, supermarkets and other businesses frequented by senior
citizens get into the act by providing small donations for each ride. An
annual campaign helps to meet the $250,000 budget, most of which goes to an
executive director, outreach coordinator, two dispatchers and six part-time
drivers. There are many more volunteer drivers. Emmons
is one of 1,000 members of ITN in Greater Portland. The four pilot communities
will begin offering rides this spring and summer. The
need for transportation for people like Emmons is great. The 65-plus population
accounts for more accidents per miles driven than any group other than
teenagers, according to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. And their
numbers will swell as the nation's 78 million baby boomers reach their golden
years. Emmons
and her husband used ITN occasionally when he was too ill to drive. After he
died, ITN hauled away the couple's car on a flatbed truck. Emmons received
about $2,000, the car's wholesale value, which went into her account. Her Taurus was nicer than most donated
cars, so it will join the small fleet of ITN vehicles. ITN sells donated
vehicles it doesn't need. Emmons
uses ITN to go to the doctor's office or to buy groceries. On average, $7 to $8 is deducted from a
user's account for each ride.
She receives discounts
for scheduling her rides in advance and for sharing a ride with someone else. She
likes being in control and not having to rely on charity from family or
friends. "The last thing I'm
going to do is go begging rides from people," she said. http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2006-01-16-senior-rides_x.htm?csp=34 |
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