Category: Paratransit

Paratransit (bus and rail transportation for disabled residents) issues in Silicon Valley.

Tonight’s VTA Board of Directors’ Meeting

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BART tunnel options won’t be the only things the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority (VTA) Board Of Directors will discuss this evening.  Besides discussion of “single-bore” vs. “twin-bore” tunnel choices for the BART subway in downtown San Jose, the VTA Board Of Directors will vote on spending over $3 million of your tax dollars on 64 Braun Entervan paratransit vehicles for its ACCESS paratransit program.

The VTA Board will also vote on spending $847,743 of your tax dollars on parts needed to heat and cool the light rail vehicles.

WHEN: This evening at 5:30pm
WHERE: Santa Clara County Supervisors’ Chambers, 70 W. Hedding St., San Jose

Read up on the transit and parking directions you need to this evening’s VTA Board Of Directors meeting.

See you this evening.

Eugene Bradley
Founder, Silicon Valley Transit Users

We Meet This Thursday

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Among what we will discuss at our upcoming meeting on Thursday at 6pm in San Jose:

  • How we can address VTA’s shortage of buses throughout the county
  • VTA’s street improvement projects on Bascom Ave., Tasman Dr. and Story/Keyes Avenues – and what we can push for

Have anything else transit-related that we should be fighting for? Please address it at our meeting, BEFORE the agenda items listed.  (Otherwise, you will have to wait until the end of the meeting to address your particular item.)  Be prepared to discuss how YOU would help make it happen.

We meet at the San Jose Peace & Justice Center, 48 S. 7th Street in San Jose. Transit and driving directions to the Peace and Justice Center are found here.

Note that if you plan on driving to our meeting, there is limited parking in the back.  Also, do not park in the Grocery Outlet Bargain Market parking lot across the street – you will be towed at your expense.

Can’t make it to our group meeting in San Jose? You can join us via dial-in at 5:55pm. Info is as follows:

  1. Call 1(415)655-0001
  2. When prompted for the “meeting pin number,” enter 190809846
  3. When told that “You have joined the Conference” and after hearing that this is the Silicon Valley Transit Users meeting, please give your name and where you live.

See you on Thursday. We have much to talk about and fight for.

Eugene Bradley
Founder, Silicon Valley Transit Users

Transit Events Calendar Now Available…and More

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Per reader request, a local transit events calendar has now been installed on the web site.  The calendar will help list public transit, bike/pedestrian, and paratransit events and meetings hosted by other citizen groups throughout Silicon Valley.  This will include our own live group meetings.

Examples of entries already present in the events calendar:

In the future, the Event Calendar will also include Valley Transportation Authority (VTA)-hosted public workshops and public meetings.

Hear about a public transit, bicycle/pedestrian, or paratransit meeting or event in Santa Clara County or San Mateo County?  Please let us know at least 7 days in advance of the event so that it can be added to the event calendar.

One more thing:  there have been reports of people not receiving confirmation email when subscribing to new posts or comments.  When you initially subscribe to be notified of new posts or comments to posts, please check your “Junk Mail,” “Junk E-Mail” or “SPAM” folders for the confirmation email.  That confirmation email is sent to ensure your email address is not being abused in any manner.  Click the URL link in the confirmation email to confirm your subscription; otherwise, ignore and delete the confirmation email.

Enjoy the rest of this big Bay Area concert weekend safely and sanely.

Eugene Bradley
Founder, Silicon Valley Transit Users

VTA Hires Its Replacement Paratransit Contractor

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VTA now has someone to run its paratransit (ACCESS) buses and cars.  At Thursday night’s VTA Board of Directors’ meeting, the VTA Board voted to a approve a four-year, nearly $80 million contract with MV Transportation to operate and maintain the ACCESS paratransit fleet.

In the Bay Area, MV Transportation operates and maintains the Dumbarton Express bus service, WestCAT (Western Contra Costa County Transit, and core SamTrans bus routes like the ECR and SamTrans’ “RediWheels” paratransit.

Listen to audio highlights of Thursday evening’s VTA Board meeting below.

What are your thoughts on VTA having MV Transportation as their paratransit provider?  Please comment below.

Eugene Bradley
Founder, Silicon Valley Transit Users

From Last Tuesday’s Group Meeting…

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Our group had a chance to meet the new Coordinator of the San Jose Peace and Justice Center, Michele.  We learned that she uses VTA Access (formerly OUTREACH) Paratransit to commute.  She know about the scandal that led to the ouster of OUTREACH as VTA’s paratransit provider.  She especially likes the pages on our site that feature ways she – and others – can hold VTA accountable for better public transit in

It came as a surprise that she was going to vote against VTA’s Measure B on November 8.  She said that she was tired of all the “measures which ask her for money every year.”  We will be working with her and the Peace and Justice Center to help more people learn about our group, and grow together.

One more thing: more on our stance on Measure B will be posted later this week.  Some of our recent posts will give you a hint on where our group will go with this stance.

Eugene Bradley
Founder, Silicon Valley Transit Users