Portland, Maine
Tuesday, October 28, 1997
by John Alphonse
An ITN dispatcher uses a computerized map database to keep staff and volunteer drivers on course.
A non-profit startup operation based on a plan conceived by director Katherine Freund, the Independent Transportation Network has already grabbed national media attention from ABC News, The New York Times and Parade Magazine. And with backing from the likes of UNUM and the Federal Transit Administration, it has the potential to help solve a huge national transportation problem; providing affordable, convenient transport for citizens unable to drive themselves or access existing public transportation options.
Looking for solutions to deal with an increasingly aging national population and inadequate public transit to accommodate these citizens, Freund devised a funding system - based on a combination of corporate support, volunteer involvement, local business cooperation, and customer incentives - that makes it affordable for the elderly and visually impaired to remain mobile in style. It enables those living in towns such as Yarmouth, which have no public transportation, to get to activities and appointments elsewhere in Greater Portland by charging cents-per-mile rates, with discounts for things such as advance appointments and ride sharing.
The ITN uses automobiles in its program as a way to keep costs in line while providing a level of service that's often essential to the elderly and visually impaired and not being offered at present by our local public transportation infrastructure. Customers pay for the service, but at an affordable rate made possible through Freund's funding creativity.
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Only in operation since 1995, the program presently doesn't service enough customers to fill its vehicles, so lots of one-passenger trips are inevitable. However, "it's not the intention of the ITN to increase one-passenger vehicle occupancy, but to decrease it" when the program hits full steam, Freund says. She says combining passengers along routes will become more logistically possible when the number of users increases, ultimately leading to less pollution and traffic congestion.
Elderly and impaired citizens within a 15-mile radius of Portland are eligible to take advantage of the ITN's service. The organization prides itself on creating or maintaining independence for elderly and impaired individuals, enabling them to remain active community members without imposing on the good will of friends and relatives.
The most crucial element to the program's success is "volunteers," acknowledges Freund. "Without more volunteers, this model will not work."
Volunteer for the Independent Transportation Network!
For more information, contact the ITN:
Independent Transportation Network
309 Cumberland Ave.
Portland, ME 04101
207-828-8608
© 1997 reality x publishing co.
All rights reserved.
