INNISFAIL - Town council has given the green light to a three-month pilot program that will increase the handivan's hours of service, an initiative giving local seniors and handicapped citizens a viable transportation option for the evenings and on weekends.
The extended service begins Sept. 22, with the handivan operating for the first time on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday evenings from 5 to 9 p.m., and Saturday and Sunday from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. These new 24 hours are in addition to the handivan's current service of Monday to Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
The handivan's new pilot program was approved by council at its regular meeting on Sept. 10.
Karen Bradbury, the town's community and social development coordinator, told council the Transportation Service Review Committee met on Aug. 16 to discuss opportunities for the handivan's increased level of service based largely on community feedback from the 2016 Seniors Needs Assessment, past transportation forums and last year's transportation assessment survey.
From that, the Innisfail Royal Canadian Legion, the handivan service provider, proposed the extended hours for the evenings and weekends. Council was told the extended service is a three-month pilot project for local community use only, with a goal of determining the level of ridership and ongoing need for evening and weekend service.
Bradbury's report to council said the increased usage of the handivan for the next three months could increase maintenance costs and demand on town resources. However, she added the town's mechanic services and maintains the handivan, and legion officials say they can handle the increased service from its end over the next three months without asking the town for additional funds.
"It is anticipated that if the increased level of service is successful, and ridership indicates there is a need to continue the expanded service past the three months that the service provider will ask the Transportation Service Review Committee to make a recommendation to council regarding the need for increased subsidy to cover the expanded level of service," said Bradbury in her report, adding the ask may include monies to cover increased costs for drivers and dispatching services.
Council members were generally supportive of the new handivan extended hours initiative but Coun. Doug Bos wanted to know how the pilot program would be measured to determine its success or failure, and whether it should be continued.
"Are you looking at hopefully getting 10 rides after five o'clock at night and on weekends? What is the goal to consider it successful or not successful?" asked Bos. " I would personally like to see some sort of numbers set.
"It would be nice to publicize how much of a goal we would like to obtain to make it work," added Bos.
Bradbury told council she would bring Bos's concern to the committee to see if they want to set up parameters for usage goals.
However, Coun. Jean Barclay, a member of the transportation committee, said there were other factors with the extended hours other than usage numbers to determine the pilot program's success.
"If you look at the flip side of it and say, 'if we don't have 10 rides a day then it is not successful,' but I am sure for the person who is stuck at home and can't get out of their house because they are handicapped, then one ride is successful," said Barclay. "I think we have to keep that in mind who this service is for -- for people who have no other mode of transportation and are not able to get around on their own."
In the meantime, council was also told town staff will soon make a recommendation for the purchase of a new handivan, which is expected to cost up to $125,000.
Last June council unanimously agreed to have administration move forward with a process to replace the current mechanically problematic handivan, a 2004 Ford eight-seat model that has logged about 243,000 kilometres. Since then, the town has been leasing a 16-seat 2009 handivan for $2,500 a month until a new and permanent handivan can be purchased.
