Approve the City of Alameda Transportation Program Plan for Older Adults and People with Disabilities for Fiscal Year 2025/2026
To: Honorable Chair and Members of the Commission on Persons with Disabilities
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The City of Alameda (City) provides a variety of transportation services for older adults and people with disabilities through its Paratransit Program, which has dedicated funding from the Measure BB Transportation Expenditure Plan administered by the Alameda County Transportation Commission (Alameda CTC). The City Paratransit Program’s two flagship programs began operating as three-year pilot programs in fiscal year 2022/2023: the City of Alameda Free AC Transit Bus Pass program (Free Bus Pass Program) and the Alameda Independent Mobility (AIM) program.
Staff recommend approval of the City of Alameda Paratransit Program plan, including continuation of all regular programs, conversion of the highly successful Free Bus Pass program from pilot to permanent, and a one-year extension of the AIM pilot program to allow for further refinement and program evaluation.
Background
Every year, Alameda County Measure BB provides the City of Alameda with a dedicated funding source for transportation programs serving people with disabilities and older adults. These funds are used to develop locally-responsive paratransit and mobility programs that supplement East Bay Paratransit, a regional program administered through BART and AC Transit. Information about the City’s transportation services for older adults and people with disabilities is available at AlamedaCA.gov/paratransit <http://www.AlamedaCA.gov/paratransit>.
Pilot Programs
In 2022, the City launched two pilot programs to provide better access and mobility services, and replace programs that were becoming outdated or had limited participation. Both pilot programs are now in the final year of their three-year pilot.
• Alameda Free AC Transit Bus Pass Program is a program for low-income residents of the City of Alameda who are ages 65+ and members of Mastick Senior Center or are between the ages of 18-64 and have a certified disability. This program replaced the Alameda Free Loop Shuttle in response to high costs, low ridership, and low customer satisfaction with the Loop Shuttle. In 2022, staff determined that most Loop Shuttle riders also rode AC Transit buses. With the new AC Transit Bus Pass Program, qualifying residents can ride all AC Transit routes at all times of day at no cost to them.
• AIM (Alameda Independent Mobility) is a concierge service providing subsidized same-day curb-to-curb transportation network company (TNC) services for City residents who are 70 years+ or at least 18 years old and East Bay Paratransit certified. The current concierge contractor, Eden I&R, also provides the 211 service in Alameda County. This program replaced taxi vouchers and serves as a curb-to-curb, on-call service to supplement East Bay Paratransit.
Regular Services
These pilot programs are part of a larger paratransit program with regular, ongoing services that are not part of the three-year pilot.
• Alameda Point Collaborative receives subsidized BayPass Clipper cards that allow for free transit on 23 public transit systems throughout the Bay Area.
• Travel Training provides community education in one-on-on sessions and monthly Transportation 101 workshops, including trip planning and transit app training. When feasible, it includes Hop on the Bus with Us to introduce and provide experience taking public transportation.
• Outreach includes multilingual customer service, creating and distributing marketing materials, press releases, community outreach, and presentations.
• Group Trips include trips for Mastick Senior Center members and Leisure Club transportation for adults with developmental disabilities who meet twice a month.
• Capital Improvements include ADA improvements in the public right of way and bus stop enhancements like shelters and amenities.
Discussion
Pilot Programs Update
Since the two pilot programs began, staff have tracked participation, ridership, user feedback, and made observations on the overall program administration and operation. These factors inform the staff recommendations to convert the Free Bus Pass Program to permanent and extend the AIM pilot by one year.
Free AC Transit Bus Pass Program
The Free Bus Pass Program has been a major success, with participation and ridership growing each year and 205,823 rides taken in 2024. Participants in the Free Bus Pass Program are now taking over 18,000 rides per month, compared with 900 boardings per month on the Loop Shuttle pre-COVID. Growth in program participation and ridership is shown in Exhibit 1 - Presentation. As of the writing of this staff report, the program had 967 enrolled participants and 37 people on the waitlist.
The Free Bus Pass Program serves a diverse customer base with 73% of participants identifying as Asian or Asian-American and 49% speaking Cantonese. Demographic data is shown in Exhibit 1- Presentation.
The Free Bus Pass Program is extremely popular with high customer satisfaction. In the 2024 transportation survey for older adults and people with disabilities, participants reported that the free bus pass helps them achieve higher independence, financial stability, and improved mental health. Participants reported using their passes to travel between Park and Webster Streets, to Oakland Chinatown, to grocery stores and the food bank, to doctors’ appointments both in Alameda and Oakland, and to recreation and fitness opportunities like the Oakland YMCA. All participant feedback from the survey is provided in Exhibit 2.
Because of the program’s success, staff recommend converting the Free Bus Pass Program to a permanent component of the City Paratransit Program.
Alameda Independent Mobility
AIM has also been a success, although some aspects of the program need further evaluation. As a concierge service offering Uber/Lyft rides to City residents 70+ and those 18 and older enrolled in East Bay Paratransit, AIM increases access and mobility for vulnerable community members. The program supplements East Bay Paratransit, which requires advance reservation that can present difficulties for users. For example, an advance scheduled ride can work to go to a doctor’s appointment but is more difficult to arrange for the return trip. AIM meets allows participants to schedule on-demand return trips using Uber or Lyft and subsidize the fare up to $25. Participants can use AIM for up to six trips per month.
In 2024, AIM provided 1,576 rides to 166 participants. This was a 55% increase in rides and a 33% increase in participants from 2023. Participants who filled out the 2024 transportation survey reported that they rely on the service and are generally happy with the program. Some participants have had issues with bringing their mobility devices and service animals on Uber and Lyft, and others note that they wish there were more than six trips allowed per month. As of the writing of this staff report, there were 171 enrolled participants.
While AIM has generally been successful, some user experiences and operational considerations require further evaluation. Staff recommend continuing the service through an extension of the pilot by one year while the team assesses potential next steps for the program. The City is currently working with Nelson\Nygaard to perform a program evaluation that will focus on these key topics:
• Vehicle Accessibility: Uber and Lyft had previously committed to making wheelchair accessible vehicles available, but this has not consistently been the case. Peer communities face similar challenges with TNC reimbursement programs, and the program evaluation will investigate the feasibility of alternatives to Uber and Lyft.
• Program Cost: Because of the cost of the Uber and Lyft rides and the program administration through Eden I&R, the average cost per ride is $16.60, with the rider responsible for the first $4. Alternative program models could decrease this cost and allow for more rides per user within the available program budget.
• Ease of Use and Customer Service: While feedback on the program has generally been positive, some users report long hold times or other challenges accessing the service. The evaluation will investigate customer experience with other service providers in peer cities.
• Eligibility Expansion: For Measure BB Paratransit funding, Alameda CTC requires that same-day transportation programs serve all adults 70 and older. The AIM program previously required participants to report low incomes and be certified in East Bay Paratransit, so this change expands the eligibility significantly. The program evaluation will assess how to structure the overall program to afford increased demand.
Regular Services Update
All regular services are progressing successfully. In the calendar year 2024, City Paratransit Program staff conducted 10 education workshops and trainings, including 6 Transportation 101 sessions and 2 Hop on the Bus with Us trainings. Of these, one Transportation 101 workshop was conducted in Cantonese. The Paratransit Program will offer even more workshops in 2025 with the new Paratransit Coordinator who started in 2024 now fully on board.
Staff continue to do transportation outreach and community support out of Mastick Senior Center, including one-on-one support for community members in applying for and getting access to mobility services. The program also continues to lead group trips through the Leisure Club for adults with developmental disabilities.
When Paratransit BB fund balance is available, the Paratransit Program supports capital construction to increase accessibility. In 2024, funds were appropriated for bus stop and ADA access improvements as part of the Central Avenue Improvements Project, and in 2025 funds are expected to support construction of these features in the Clement Ave/Tilden Way Project.
Staff are currently exploring opportunities to expand and enhance regular services. This may include a future partnership with Community Resources for Independent Living (CRIL) to provide travel training services and further expansion of translated and multilingual outreach.
Program Budget
The operational budget for the City of Alameda paratransit program was $520,000 for the fiscal year 2024-2025. The recommended budget for fiscal year 2025-2026 is $520,000 (the expected amount of Measure BB Paratransit funds), including $270,000 for the Free Bus Pass Program and $94,000 for AIM.
Potential Free Bus Program Expansion
Due to the popularity of the Free Bus Pass program and current waitlist, staff is developing a budget proposal to clear the waitlist as part of City Council consideration of the 2025-2027 biennial budget.
RECOMMENDATION
Approve the City’s Transportation Program Plan for Older Adults and People with Disabilities for Fiscal Year 2025/2026.
Respectfully submitted by
Liz Escobar
Paratransit Coordinator
Susie Hufstader
Senior Transportation Coordinator
Lisa Foster
Transportation Planning Manager
Exhibit
1. Presentation
2. Comments submitted with 2024 Transportation Survey