‘YRT is gambling with her health’: Markham wheelchair user struggles with accessible public transit

York Region Transit’s Mobility On-Request says travel training is mandatory to assess eligibility

Yorkregion.com
May 31, 2023
Yoyo Yan

Bibianne Xu says she is reluctant to stir the pot. Until she has to.

Xu, who has multiple sclerosis (MS), lives in Markham and needs to travel around. But she is having a tough time contending with York Region’s accessible public transit.

“I want to live my life to the fullest,” said 51-year-old Xu. “I don't want transportation to limit me so much.”

When she lived in Scarborough, she used TTC’s Wheel-Trans service many times per week and never had any concerns about being a part of community life.

But after she moved to Chartwell Woodhaven Long Term Care Residence in 2022, she found that YRT’s Mobility On-Request (MOR) door-to-door paratransit is different.

As indicated in her doctor’s notes, Xu’s condition compromises her body’s ability to regulate her internal temperature. If exposed, for any length of time, to very hot or very cold conditions, her body’s functions will be further compromised.

Thus, Xu requires door-to-door transit service with climate-controlled vehicles in order to maximize her safety and quality of life, according to a note written by Dr. Tania Bruno, a neurophysiatrist from Toronto Rehabilitation Centre.

Even though YRT had received two letters from Dr. Bruno, a well-known expert in multiple sclerosis, Xu’s application and subsequent appeal for “unconditional” ridership status was still denied.

Instead, she’s been given only “conditional” status, which means she needs to take YRT’s “family of services,” an umbrella of transit options including MOR, YRT, Viva Rapid Transit and others.

For travels over longer distances, that requires her to transfer between vehicles instead of getting door-to-door service.

“I am truly flummoxed by their decision,” said Xu. “It’s an insult to my disabled condition.”

After many emails and phone calls with customer service, Xu was offered a solution -- going through a travel training process to determine her eligibility.
That’s a paradox for her, as she is fully functional with no cognitive, mental or emotional disabilities.

“If you go on a good day for me, I will prove nothing. If you go on a bad day for me, you're doing permanent damage to my nervous system,” she said.

“YRT is gambling with her health,” wrote Peter Busciglio, director of membership and client services for the MS Society of Canada York Region chapter, in an advocacy letter to local councillors. “This is appalling and very upsetting to all of us in York Region living with MS at My MS Family.”

YRT didn’t comment specifically on Xu’s case, citing customer privacy. “We continue to work with this customer to complete their assessment in a manner that is best suited to them to help accommodate per the parameters provided,” said Sharon Doyle, manager of Mobility On-Request.

As part of the paratransit onboarding process, customers complete an assessment and travel training that allows YRT to understand the needs of the client on a case-by-case basis, said Doyle.

As of 2022, the MOR fleet includes 111 sedans and accessible vans, as well as 30 low-floor accessible small to mid-size buses, providing service to 1,500 registered users. Combined MOR paratransit and conventional ridership totalled over 302,000 trips.

According to Doyle, the 2023 operating budget for MOR is approximately $23.5 million and is predominantly funded through tax levy. Pushing a family of services is also better for taxpayers because MOR is a very expensive service, Doyle said.

But in detrimental weather, for Xu to take public transit, she has to take a costly taxi service or rely on her 78-year-old father to drive her around, or remain at the mercy of the church when she travels to teach ESL for newcomers at the Peoples Church in North York.

Xu was born in Hong Kong and came to Ottawa when she was 13. She spent 20 years in Michigan working as a piano teacher, before she moved back to Toronto.

Despite adjusting to the changes in her life, Xu is appreciative of all that she experiences at the long-term care centre, except for her trouble with travel.

“I feel (like I have) a role in speaking up against an organization limiting me from living a full life.”