What does Arlington County have against the disabled?
The County Board is considering yet another hefty fare increase for disabled residents who use its STAR paratransit system. The proposed fare increases represent an unprecedented 270 percent increase in just four years for blind and disabled Arlingtonians, many of whom live on fixed incomes and cannot use regular public transportation.
The price of other county services has never gone up that much, advocates for the disabled tell The Examiner. They’re also troubled by the fact that there are still four vacancies on the county’s Disability Advisory Commission despite a months-long waiting list.
New rules that went into effect last year also require STAR users to wait one hour (down from 90 minutes) before they can get a ride home. One woman who barely gets by on Social Security said that it cost her $7.50 just to go two blocks to the nearby CVS and make an additional stop at the grocery store. The high cost, and the fact that she has to wait two hours in a public place before she can return home, make running even basic errands difficult. “I don’t go out very much,” she sighed.
In 2006, STAR fares went up 20 percent within Arlington (Zone 1), 50 percent in nearby jurisdictions like Fairfax County and Falls Church (Zone 2), and a whopping 250 percent for areas outside the Beltway (Zone 3).
At its recess meeting on Tuesday at 3 pm, County Board members will consider raising them again by 20 percent (Zone 1), 33 percent (Zone 2), and 22 percent (Zone 3) for a staggering combined total of 45, 83 and 270 percent increases in four years. That’s much higher than any proposed fare increases for Metro – on the county’s most vulnerable residents.
One blind Arlington resident only found out about Tuesday’s hearing when she was put on hold trying to book a ride on STAR, which must be done 24 hours in advance. Because information about the fare increase was at the very end of a lengthy message, she said, she only found out about the proposed fare increase by accident.
And that, unfortunately, is no accident.
