Figure 3: The limited space and operations of paratransit vehicles fail to meet both the demands and needs of primary users.
to change day-to-day, depending on the riders that request the service and their desired origin and destination. Increased vehicle miles traveled in order to avoid excessive traffic congestion can lead to delays in the pick-up and drop-off of all clients scheduled for service in a given day. Time and efficiency are major factors that often hamper the effectiveness of paratransit. If paratransit is to be improved for the sake of the rider, a direct benefit would be to provide clients with more free time, and less time spent waiting for paratransit to pick them up or to drop them off. If paratransit is to be improved for the sake of decreasing operating costs, again, it is largely an issue of time. The more time a transit driver spends delivering one client to their destination, the larger the increase in overall costs in gas and labor. It also has the potential of not allowing for an additional client to be picked up if the scheduling threshold is met due to inefficiencies.
POTENTIAL SOLUTIONS There are many small ways in which the system can be improved. Some of the more compelling solutions, or improvements, that are currently proposed and minimally implemented have the potential to show, or have already shown, a modicum of success. One compelling solution is treating paratransit vehicles with the same priority that bus routes are given in high density intersections.
By allowing these vehicles to enjoy priority status, or to be “green-lighted� through an intersection, their subjectivity to vehicle traffic and congestion is reduced. This can be implemented in several different ways from a planning perspective. A design approach might lead to a dedicated lane, where only bus operators or paratransit vehicle drivers can drive. From a technological standpoint, these vehicles can be synced with the traffic signals, ensuring that there is as little wait time for red lights as possible. By reducing the amount of time paratransit clients are sitting in traffic, it increases the efficiency and reliability of the system, as the time schedule would be less effected. Overall, this seems like a good solution, especially if implemented in areas where public transit vehicles are already given priority at high density intersections. Another solution is flex-route systems, which are starting to gain in popularity in the United States, as curb-to-curb service is seen as inefficient and costly. Curb-to-curb service, while necessary for some paratransit users, may not be necessary for the majority of people using paratransit services. Flexroute systems enjoy more freedom than fixed-route systems and provide more stability than curb-to-curb services. Flexible routes have the potential to deviate from the daily route to accommodate the needs of specific individuals that may have greater needs than others utilizing the service. That being said, there is
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