Transportation is available for seniors and adults with disabilities who:

• are without access to transportation or where public transportation is not available.
• have physical or cognitive limitations.
• require specialized transit, i.e. wheelchair access
• do not have family and friends who are able to help out.

Eligibility criteria apply.

Volunteer Transportation

• Available for those clients who need assistance for transportation in town to get to medical appointments, errands/shopping, VON Adult Day Centres etc.
• Also available for those clients requiring transportation out of town for medical appointments.
• Arrangements for a volunteer must be made at least 24 hours in advance.

Coordinated Transportation

• Available for those clients who do not require assistance for in town trips.
• Trips are provided by taxis and our Aging at Home Dodge Caravan.
• Clients are required to pay for their trips using pre-paid tickets (see ticket panel for more information).
• Clients are required to book time calls (when a client wished to be picked up at a certain time) the day before. All trips booked the same day must be called in when the client is ready to go.

Accessible Transportation

• Accessible vehicles are available for those clients using a wheelchair or scooter.
• Transportation is available both in and out of town.
• Clients will be invoiced for all trips, unless they are using tickets for in town trips.
• Out of town transportation also includes a wait time charge, if necessary, of $15.00 per hour.

 

To register or book a ride call EasyRide at:

519-272-9875 or 1-877-500-9875

To book your transportation we will need:

• Your name
• Date of trip
• The time you want to be picked up
• The time you want to return (if return time is unknown, we can arrange for you to call when you would like it)
• Exact pick up and drop-off addresses
• Whether you have an attendant
• What mobillity devices, if any, you use

For your trip, please remember:

• Book one day ahead. Same day bookings may be accomodated when possible.
• Call between 9:00 am and 4:00 pm Monday to Friday.
• Bookings can be one-time or for regularly scheduled trips.
• Service is door-to-door, so bring an attendant if you need assistance once you're there.

Coordinated Transportation:

• Clients are required to pay for their transportation using prepaid tickets.
• Tickets are sold in books of ten tickets for $65.00
• Tickets may be picked up at our office or a client can mail in a cheque for $65.00 and once the cheque is received the tickets will be mailed to them.
• Clients are required to put their names on the back of their tickets (address labels work well for this).
• Tickets do not expire.

Accessible Transportation:

• If a client does not wish to be invoiced for in town trips they may purchase prepaid tickets.
• Tickets are sold in books of ten tickets for $55.00
• Tickets may be picked up at our office or a client can mail in a cheque for $55.00 and once the cheque is received the tickets will be mailed to them.
• Clients are required to put their names on the back of their tickets (address labels work well for this).
• Tickets do not expire.

 

Volunteer Transportation

• In town trips are $5.50
• Out of town trips are calculated based on a rate of $0.45/km
• Client is responsible for any parking charges incurred.
• All trips are invoiced monthly, drivers do not accept cash.

Coordinated Transportation

• In town trips are $6.50
• Out of town trips are calculated based on a rate of $0.45/km
• In town trips are paid with tickets (or invoiced monthly if necessary).
• Drivers do not accept cash.

Accessible Transportation

• In town trips are $5.50
• Out of town trips are calculated based on a rate of $0.45/km.
• A wait time of $15.00/hour will be charged for out of town trips where the driver is required to wait for a client requiring a return trip.
• Trips are invoiced monthly unless client is using prepaid tickets for in town transportation, drivers do not accept cash.

Since our first accessible van began “rolling” in September 2003, SMOW&NS has provided thousands of trips to residents of Stratford and area requiring wheelchair accessible transportation.

One of these residents is Eva Pol. Eva first used our van in 2005 after suffering a stroke and moving to People Care. Eva now resides at Spruce Lodge and uses the van for various purposes, including a weekly trip to church. Eva was born in Holland and immigrated to Canada in her late thirties. She was a pedicurist in Europe and brought her skills to residents of Stratford providing foot care services. Eva not only had clients come into her home, she also provided home visits to clients with limited mobility including some residents of Spruce Lodge. At the ripe age of 75, Eva and her family finally decided it was time for her to retire.

Eva's daughter, Arlene would like readers to know what a great service the accessible transportation has been for Eva. “The service gives Eva back some of the independence she lost after having a stroke and moving into long-term care”. Using the van allows Eva to still be a part of family and community functions whether they take place in Stratford or out of town like a past reunion in Brussels, during weekdays, evenings or weekends. Eva drove until she suffered her stroke and would take daily trips in Stratford as well as country drives. We can only hope her trips in our accessible van evoke in her the feelings she used to have on the open road.

 

I meet Audrey Scantlebury at Spruce Lodge on a Friday morning after she has attended a Tai Chi class. She’s been kind enough to skip the customary tea after class to meet me for a chat, before she and a friend go out for lunch and shopping. It’s a Friday routine they’ve had for years, Tai Chi, tea, lunch and shopping. Audrey agreed to give an interview after I promised her it would be painless, and the complimentary ride I offered to Tai Chi didn’t hurt my chances. “I’ll let you interview me every Friday if you want to give me a free ride to Tai Chi,” she joked.
As we sit down to talk Audrey confesses interviews aren’t really her thing, but when she thinks about how great the transportation she receives from the agency is, she realized it wouldn’t hurt to put her name and face to a service so important to many seniors.

Audrey became a transportation client in 2005. “I had stopped driving, and was taking taxis and the bus. Some friends of mine had registered for the service and they asked me why I hadn’t.” Audrey registered and for the past four years has been using the coordinated transportation service, now a part of EasyRide, to take her grocery shopping, to medical appointments, and of course to Tai Chi. Coordinated Transportation is one branch of EasyRide’s services. This service is designed for clients who do not require the assistance of a volunteer for in-town trips. All transportation services provided by EasyRide are available for seniors, as well as those individuals who: are without access to transportation, or are where public transportation is not available, have physical or cognitive limitations, require specialized transit and/or do not have family and friends who are able to help them out. “I used to take the bus more often, but then the route changed, and in the winter I was having difficulty getting to the stop, especially when walkways weren’t cleared,” says Audrey who lives just within the city limits. “I’m lucky enough to live beside my daughter, but I didn’t want to always have to rely on or burden her for transportation”. As we talk Audrey is very complimentary of the service saying that the drivers are friendly, helpful and punctual and the staff who take her calls are great. She’s recommended the service to others, even friends who are still driving, so they’ll be ready when the time comes. As part of the coordinated transportation service Audrey often takes rides in our Caravan, which she also has only good things to say about. “I really like it and have no problems getting in it. My legs may be short but they still work!”

As we chat I find out that Audrey and I have a few things in common, including living in Sebringville and now Stratford. Audrey grew up in Sebringville and later moved to Stratford. I spent most of my childhood living on the same avenue she now does, before my family moved to Sebringville. (I eventually ended up living in town again.) She loves to read, I also love to read, and we both hate having our picture taken! We are both of the opinion that we aren’t the most photogenic, so much in fact that we both have kept a piece of personal identification from years back because it’s one of the only good pictures we’ve taken - Audrey’s being her driver’s licence from over 10 years ago, mine being my OAC student card also from a certain number of years ago! Audrey’s distaste for personal photos may go farther than mine though. “I recently had to get my passport photo updated. I got three different photos taken. I didn’t think any of them looked like me!” she exclaimed. I settled for my first shot, but only let customs officials see it.
Our interview continues and I ask more questions about Audrey’s past and she states, “This is beginning to sound like an obituary. My friends are going to read this and wonder what I was doing!” I could only laugh at her remark and assure her that this article was merely a special interest piece! And so I learned more about Audrey. She worked for a combined 40 years at the courthouse and jail, as a county stenographer and court attendant at the courthouse and as a correctional officer at the jail. (This would explain why crime novels are one of Audrey’s favourites to read.) Audrey has one daughter and one granddaughter who is attending her third year of university. “That must be an exciting time for her,” I observed. “Exciting yes and expensive,” chided Audrey. Pretty soon the interview was complete, as it was time to lunch and shop. It was painless as I promised as well as being something Audrey could stroke off her list of ‘things she would never do’. “Never say never”, I reminded her as we parted. She smiled and agreed.