A crisis exploded after state and federal transit funding for FY2008 (fiscal year) took a 31% cut and forced a reduction from 27 to 18 transit routes in Martin County, Florida. When the county proposed an additional 20% in budget cuts in FY2009, those unable to drive due to brain injuries, cognitive limitations, epilepsy, vision loss, and a myriad of other impairments took action.
As an advocate for people with disabilities at a Center for Independent Living, I recruited, trained, and organized transit riders to plead with the Martin Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) not to cut any funds from public transit.
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As someone who had been driving since age 18, I wasn’t the most critical person to speak. More important spokespeople were those directly affected by the cuts. We joined forces to educate Commissioners on how lives would be negatively impacted if riders couldn’t take the bus to medical appointments, work, stores, and the like. Further reduction in public transit would result in medical emergencies, unemployment, and malnutrition.
Riders dependent on public transit were trained to confront commissioners with emails, letters, individual appointments, personal impact statements, and public comments at weekly BOCC televised meetings. One rider was applauded in the BOCC chamber after telling how she was forced to ride her bike seven miles to her doctor’s office in a heat index of 107℉. This was bad enough, but what about the majority of riders who were unable to compensate by riding a bike.
The action climaxed on June 17, 2008, when 17 Community Coach public transit riders and advocates followed through on their plan to picket at the Martin County Administrative Center. The picketers were blind or visually impaired, brain injured, mentally ill, and wheelchair users carrying hand-made pickets that read:
■ MARTIN NEEDS COACH ■ SAVE THE COACH, SAVE JOBS ■ LET ME RIDE ■ COACH IS MY LIFELINE ■ COACH IS CRITICAL ■ FULLY FUND COACH ■ NO COACH NO ALTERNATIVE ■ NO COACH NO WAY OUT
Three of the five commissioners responded to my request that they talk to individual picketers during a break from the BOCC meeting. The commissioners responded favorably to the demonstration and went on the record assuring riders that funding for the bus service would remain. Two commissioners agreed that cutting bus funding would threaten the jobs of both riders and bus drivers.
Several media reports spotlighted how proposed budget cuts negatively affected people with disabilities:
- Daphne Duret, “Elderly and disabled ask Martin commission not to cut buses.” Palm Beach Post (June 17, 2008).
- George Andreassi, “Disabled fight for Stuart public transit.” Stuart News (June 17, 2008).
- R.J. Harrington, “Community Coach riders protest to keep a slice of Martin budget.” Stuart News (June 18, 2008).
Despite the warm reception at the demonstration, riders continued advocacy at the July budget workshop to be sure the commissioners didn’t renege on their agreement to spare transit from budget cuts. And the commissioners were true to their word.
So what action have you taken in response to a funding crisis? This post is a condensed version of Chapter 18, Transit Funding and Public Participation, in “ALWAYS AN ADVOCATE: Champions of Change for People with Dwarfism and Disabilities” coming in October 2021. Go to my website for book updates, https://angelamuirvanetten.com/books.