Clearlake >> Even as they prepare to sunset the free ride program they have offered for the last few months, Lake Transit Authority (LTA) has come up with another way to continue helping all those who were displaced by the Valley Fire.
On Oct. 30, LTA General Manager Mark Wall announced the Valley Fire Ride Assistance Program (VF-RAP). To participate in the program, a qualified rider — any person who can provide documentation showing they resided in one of the areas hit by the Valley Fire and is in need of transportation — and a driver complete an application. The driver is somebody who is willing and able to provide transportation assistance to that rider.
Depending on the needs of the rider, up to a 200-mile monthly allotment may be granted, with a 35 cents-per-mile reimbursement rate to help cover the costs of fuel and maintenance.
That mileage limitation only applies to the rider, however, so it is possible for a driver to provide transportation services to multiple people. The rider keeps a log for the month documenting the trips taken, and the driver is then reimbursed for those trips via an EBT card.
“This is similar to a program called ‘Pay your Pal’ that’s being utilized by 17 agencies in California,” said Wall, on the roots of the VF-RAP program. “Instead of Lake Transit finding volunteers, its up to the riders to find the volunteers. These programs have found its not only probably easier and more effective, but really it helps people build relationships and connections to others by asking for that ride.”
Funding for the service is being provided through grants and emergency aid provided by Caltrans.
Although the LTA will offer advice on where a potential rider might connect with a driver, no lists will be maintained identifying those who are willing to provide the service.
“We will offer a number of suggestions to see if they can find a volunteer — ideas about friends, relationships they might have. We can offer advice where they might look, but there won’t be a list of volunteers,” Wall clarified. “In some cases it might be the IHSS worker, somebody from their church, a friend, or neighbor. One of things that happened with the fire, a lot of people might have had help before, but now that helper isn’t living nearby anymore. Now they have to ask somebody new. This provides incentive for volunteers.”
Those interested in information about or applying for the program should contact LTA Mobility Programs Coordinator Karl Parker at 995-3330 or 263-3330. Information can also be obtained by emailing VF.ride.assist@gmail.com or visiting www.laketransit.org
The free bus rides officially end Nov. 14, almost exactly two months since the Valley Fire started, but Wall reports the program was a huge success, with ridership topping 2,000 people on some days.
“That compares to roughly 1,300 a day last year, which marks a pretty substantial increase,” he said. “It’s free, everybody likes something that’s free, I think, but there’s also people who didn’t need transportation a year a go who need it now. I think people are finding they like using Lake Transit, the community on the bus.”
