Carolyn Bailey Lewis found something she thought a tumor on her spinal cord had taken away from her for good: her independence.
The tumor, which paralyzed her in 1994, has left Lewis in a motorized wheelchair. She became partially reliant on her friends and family for care.
Now, 20 years later, Lewis, an Ohio University communications instructor, said she’s able to get to work, doctors appointments and the grocery store every day with no more effort than it takes to pick up the phone. It’s called Athens On Demand Transit, and it gave more than 5,000 rides last year to people like Lewis.
More than 3,000 of those rides were for persons with disabilities, and the rest were to provide accessible transportation.
“It’s been a godsend,” Lewis said. “When my husband passed away in 2004, I thought, ‘what will I do?’ I had to have friends or neighbors take me to work, buy my groceries.
“There’s nothing like buying your own groceries.”
For $2 each way, a handicap-accessible van will pick up someone with a disability — whether physical or developmental — or an elderly person, and take them anywhere within the county, granted he or she registers with Athens On Demand beforehand and schedules any rides in advance.
It’s not just for need-based trips, either. Need a ride to a friend’s house? That’s covered, too.
The transit service began in November 2012 and is currently in its trial stages after receiving a five-year, $251,000 grant from the Ohio Disabilities Council and Osteopathic Heritage Foundation of Nelsonville, officials said.
“I’ve heard nothing but good things,” said Councilman Steve Patterson, D-at large. “The only bad thing is that people wish that they had more vans — and that’s a good thing, too. People want to use them as much as possible.”
Athens On Demand, operated by the Hocking Athens Perry Community Action organization, currently owns three handicap-accessible Dodge minivans and one regular minivan, said Cliff Warren, transit supervisor.
“I would say a lot of our riders are repeat riders,” Warren said. “People use it every day to get to work.”
Lantz Repp, Athens Mobility Coordinator, said that last year, 36 percent of the rides were work-related, 28 percent were medical-related, about 14 percent were for health and human services appointments and more than 13 percent were for grocery runs.
“We have a real modern, up-to-date dispatch software where we track everything from how busy we are to the type of people we transport,” Warren said. “We track where they’re going, as far as to the grocery store, to work and to medical appointments.”
Patterson said, though, that there is still much to be done in a sudden situation where a person with disabilities needs a ride across the county.
“You have to call to schedule, and for some people that can be problematic, but only if an acute event comes up that you have to be at right away,” Patterson said. “(Athens On Demand has to) have their schedule in line day-to-day to make it work efficiently for everybody.”
But the service still provides more freedom than many Athens residents had before, making it possible for those with disabilities to travel across the county without calling on friends or family.
“The drivers are superb, and very caring,” Lewis said. “They look out for you. I’ve never had a time where they were late. It has made a world of difference in my life.”
@eockerman
