I’ve spent a good part of the last two days looking into the bus services available for people with special needs so I could answer a letter I recently received from Jim and Jody Johnson of Sun City Center.
They have a neighbor in an electric wheelchair and thought he would be a perfect candidate for HARTline’s HARTplus program for the disabled.
He wasn’t, and they were disappointed.
“I thought this program would be the answer for our wheelchair residents to enjoy the many attractions the Tampa Bay area has to offer,” the letter said. “We were shocked to find that this valuable service is not available in Sun City Center yet it’s available in Apollo Beach. Sun City Center residents would have to find their way to Apollo Beach to take advantage of it.”
Whoa! Available in Apollo Beach but not Sun City Center? I knew I had to check this one out.
After speaking with Kathy Karalekas, HARTline spokeswoman, and Lauren Skiver, HARTline’s director of paratransit and customer services, I have a better picture of just how severely flawed our public transportation system is.
But not just for the disabled. For everyone.

First, the overall problem
In a state where people are regularly asked to use public transportation, Skiver, who is not disabled, says it would probably take her four to five hours to ride public transportation from Tampa to Sun City Center and some other parts of South Shore.
Skiver says people do not want to pay for more routes, so each one takes in a lot of territory and makes a bunch of stops.
While it is ridiculous to think people who must get to appointments, buy groceries and – good grief – get to work, could live on this kind of schedule, the problem goes even deeper than that. There are no rest stops; water fountains or bathrooms on the routes, which makes the long ride times even more unbearable.

Not treated differently
Yet Skiver says HARTline complies fully with the Americans with Disabilities Act.
“The whole purpose of the ADA is that people with limited abilities such as loss of sight, hearing or mobility are not treated any differently than those who have all those abilities,” she said.
Since HARTline routes 84 and 31 that run in South Shore, and connect to make Tampa travel possible, are both equipped with wheelchair floor lifts (as are all HARTline’s regular buses) they fit the legal requirements for travel for the disabled.
“Still, we make 6,000 special transports a month. Each costing between $30 to $38 each way (between Tampa and South Shore). The point is, if it takes me five hours to get from here to there, it also takes other riders (including the disabled) the same amount of time,” she said.
While HARTline recognizes the lengthy ride times are not feasible for many, especially those with special needs, Skiver says they cannot do any better with the funds they are allotted.
“We want to put more rubber on the road. That’s our business. But you can’t do it without funding,” she said.

So are there any special services for the disabled?
The answer is yes, but they often don’t meet the needs of those they are intended to help.
I was told that people with physical, cognitive, emotional, visual or other disabilities that make it impossible for them to use HARTline’s fixed-route bus service, either permanently or for a certain period of time, may be eligible for HARTplus services.
Two things must be done to find out if a person qualifies.
First, an application must be submitted. This may be obtained by calling HARTline’s information line, 254-4278, or by logging onto HARTline’s Web site, http://www.hartline.org.
Next, a personal interview and functional evaluation will be done. Transportation to this interview can be provided if necessary and written information provided by a physician or social service agency may be brought to the interview and considered in the eligibility process as part of the assessment.

Please explain HARTplus
HARTplus services are not “anytime” trips, like are provided by a private cab. They are available on the same days and times as HARTline’s local buses and cost from $2.60 to $5.20, depending on the destination, payable only with exact change or by using a HARTline punch pass.

What’s available
through HARTplus?
HARTaccess: Van services for those who cannot get to a bus stop or use a regular bus.
HARTlink: For people who can ride a regular route, but cannot get to bus stops. Van services take these people to the regular bus stop.
HARTflex: Also for people who can use a regular bus, but cannot get to a bus stop but it is different from HARTlink. This is a regular bus that can leave its regular route for as much as 3/4 of one mile to pick up an eligible person for an additional fee.
So in conclusion
Getting back to Jim and Jody Johnson’s letter; the e-mail that started my quest for the truth about South Shore’s bus system.
Let’s face it, this system is not working. It isn’t user friendly.
I’ve lived in places including parts of Europe where public transportation was so good it would be silly to even own a car. And, I’ve lived in parts of Tennessee where if you forget an item at the nearest general store you have to drive 25 or 30 miles down a dirt or gravel road to retrieve it.
South Shore is somewhere between those two scenarios but more closely resembles the second.
It would be impossible to work at most jobs available here without having a car – or a very reliable friend. Things are just too far apart.
And grocery shopping is impossible on public transportation because by the time you get home, your perishable foods are spoiled.
But do we want to pay for more public transportation? Remember the smaller class sizes we wanted but couldn’t afford?
Money: that’s the key to bus service, health care, class size, emergency personnel, teacher’s pay – in fact, to all the crises Floridians hear about every day.
Jim and Jody, I’m glad you cared enough about your friend’s needs to write me. And I’m sure my digging out this information will help others, as well. But in the end, I can give you no comforting answer.
As of today, there isn’t one.
u Send your questions and concerns to me at 3036 College Ave., Ruskin, FL 33570 or e-mail them to with “Road Raves” in the subject line.

Penny Fletcher is the editor of The Sun and the South Shore News.