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Since November 2010, Access-A-Ride (AAR) has gradually enforced AAR trip restrictions If you’re affected, you’ll discover that you’re still eligible for some AAR trips. And you’ll learn what to do Overcoming Transportation Barriers Until 1990, when the ADA became law, many Americans with disabilities faced insurmountable The ADA always intended customers with disabilities to use buses and subways when they are able Transportation Barriers Vary: A person whose disability causes him/her to face a barrier on a particular day in relation If your assessment indicates that cold weather is a barrier that prevents you from using the bus, If your assessment shows that you cannot walk more than three-to-four blocks and the bus stop is a greater distance from your home, AAR will take you to the bus stop (feeder service). Then you can ride the bus to your destination. At this time, with the exception of subscription trips, we only require you to use feeder service one way. If we have determined your eligibility to be stairs-restricted, you are entitled to AAR for the portion of your trip that would require the use of an inaccessible subway station. If a customer requests an AAR trip and our system determines that: 1) he/she faces no transportation barriers, or 2) traveling to and from the bus stop to the customer’s destination does not exceed the individual’s travel limitation (e.g., cannot walk more than 3-4 blocks), then the customer will not be eligible for AAR for that particular trip on that day. The reservationist will inform him/her how to make the trip by bus. Customers Who Believe They Have Wrongfully Been Denied AAR Service Should Appeal Their Eligibility Status or Reapply for AAR Service: If you receive a letter from AAR that states you are not eligible for AAR service, or that you are conditionally eligible, you have a right to appeal AAR’s decision within 60 days of the date of the letter. (Appeal Instructions come with the notification letter.) If more than 60 days elapse, you must reapply for AAR. In both cases, you will need to provide additional documentation (usually medical) that functionally describes how your disabling condition prevents you from getting to or using the bus or subway
The front of the card has your photo, and: Your ID Number Expiration Date The word “YES” appears next to “Personal Care Attendant” if you are approved to travel with a PCA. Your PCA travels free of charge with you on AAR and on NYC Transit and MTA Bus Company buses (local and express) as well as the subway at all times. Eligibility Conditions: If you have conditional eligibility, your card lists specific conditions that apply to you and determine your eligibility for certain AAR trips. Conditions are explained in material sent with your card. Click here for What to Expect When You Request an AAR Trip. The back of your ID card has: Important AAR phone numbers. Your Access-A-Ride ID card is an important tool. Show it to the driver prior to boarding an AAR vehicle to ensure you are on the correct vehicle. AAR Customers Pay Reduced Fare When Traveling on If you are able to travel on public transit for some of your trips, you can save money. Display your AAR ID card to a bus operator when you board, and you’ll pay a reduced fare. The easiest way to pay reduced fare in the subway is to apply for and use a Reduced Fare MetroCard, or a Reduced Fare AutoGate MetroCard if you are unable to use the turnstile. Click on the links above or call 511 for information..
Free Travel Training Available Transit currently sponsors travel training for qualified paratransit AAR customers. Cerebral Palsy Associations of New York State (CPofNYS) is conducting the training under contract with NYC Transit. Trainees master the following skills: • Planning a trip: use of schedules, signs, telephone, information services, and landmarks. A training candidate should be motivated and medically stable, and should use the bus/subway often enough to maintain newly learned travel skills. Training is well under way. There is limited space, so don’t wait to apply! Call 212-947-5770, extension 627, and leave a message. A member of CPofNYS’ travel training staff will contact you. Revised No-Show/Late Cancellation and Subscription Service Policies Effective November 1, 2011, customers reserving seven or more trips within a month who no-show and/or late cancel 30 percent of them may be suspended. Missed trips are considered excessive when a customer reserves seven or more trips within any month and no-shows and/or late cancels 30 percent or more of them. At no time can a customer’s missed trips exceed seven trips within one month. For example: 1) If a customer reserves seven trips within a month and no-shows two trips and late cancels one trip, that individual may be suspended because three trips represents over 30 percent of the individual’s trips or, 2) If a customer reserves seven trips and no-shows or late cancels all seven trips within the month, that individual may be suspended. A first suspension is for two months. Additional suspensions within the same rolling 12-month period will result in longer periods of suspension – up to three years. Subscription Service customers, please note: NYC Transit may suspend any subscription canceled 30 percent or more in two consecutive months. At no time can a customer’s missed trips exceed seven trips within one month. For example: 1) If a Subscription Service customer takes twenty trips a month and cancels six trips (30 percent) in each of two consecutive months, the individual may be removed from Subscription Service or, 2) If a Subscription Service customer cancels seven subscription trips in a month, the individual may be removed from Subscription Service. This will be considered a consistent pattern of cancellations of any part of a subscription. The decision to suspend is final. Suspended Subscription Service customers must submit another request for Subscription Service but the request will only be considered four months after the suspension date. Customers whose subscription service is suspended due to excessive cancellations still have the right to request advanced reservation trips. You can read, download or print these policies by clicking here. Or, call the Eligibility Determination Unit (EDU), 877-377-2017. Press 1 for English, then press 1 for EDU. Helpful Hints Late Pickups – Paratransit is a shared-ride service that requires flexibility in its scheduling. In order to accommodate the thousands of trips provided daily, AAR has a 30-minute waiting period. It begins at your scheduled pickup time and ends 30 minutes later. For example, if you have a 9 a.m. pickup, your AAR vehicle is on time if it arrives by 9:30 a.m. but is late if it arrives at 9:35 a.m. Exact Fare, Please! AAR Drivers Do Not Provide Change – AAR drivers collect exact fare prior to the vehicle’s departure, and may collect it before a customer boards. Drivers are not required to transport individuals who do not pay the fare. No Trip Priorities or Assigned Seating on AAR, Except for Wheelchair/Scooter Users – AAR considers a trip to Macy’s the same as a trip to Mt. Sinai Hospital, just as it would be on a fixed-route bus. In addition, you are not guaranteed a front seat in the van or sedan. Taxi Reimbursement – Customers should anticipate receiving reimbursement checks 30 days after the date their reimbursement request is submitted. We are working diligently to reduce the waiting period to three weeks. You can avoid additional delays by mailing reimbursement requests directly to: AAR Taxi Reimbursements, MTA NYC Transit, Paratransit Division, 130 Livingston Street, Brooklyn, NY 11201. PCAs travel free-of-charge because they are supposed to assist customers with whom they travel. We strongly suggest that customers authorized to travel with a PCA always do so. The customer’s AAR ID card will note “YES” next to “Personal Care Attendant.” Remember: AAR does not have staff to monitor or supervise its customers. An AAR vehicle is just like a city bus, except that it transports its customers door-to-door. If you think it’s unsafe to let your family member or the individual you assist travel alone on a fixed-route bus, don’t let him/her travel alone on AAR. • Keep your AAR ID card handy. When you request a trip, the reservationist will ask for your AAR ID number. With our busy schedules, it’s always a good idea to double check travel plans. On the day of your trip, call Transit Control (click here for AAR Telephone Directory) to confirm your trip’s pickup time, pickup and drop-off addresses and the carrier transporting you. Press 1 for English or 2 for Spanish, then press 5 to be connected to a customer information agent (CIA). Although your vehicle number may not be available, confirming travel details helps you be prepared for your vehicle’s arrival. You may call Transit Control before, during, and after the 30-minute waiting period (this period begins at your scheduled pickup time and ends 30 minutes later) to inquire about your vehicle’s location and estimated time of arrival (ETA). A CIA may also be able to pinpoint your AAR vehicle’s location if it’s equipped with an Automatic Vehicle Location Monitoring system (AVLM). Currently, 97 percent of AAR vehicles are equipped with AVLM.  Back to Top
Holidays When Subscription Service is Automatically Cancelled If you are traveling on these holidays, you must call to reserve a trip. New Year's Eve Day; New Year's Day; Martin Luther King, Jr. Day; Presidents' Day; Good Friday; Memorial Day; Independence Day; Labor Day; Columbus Day; Veterans Day; Thanksgiving Day; Day after Thanksgiving; Christmas Eve Day; Christmas Day.
In Extreme Weather: Staying Home May be Your Safest Option When the weather forecast predicts snow, ice, torrential rain, high winds or a hurricane, keep in mind that AAR may pick you up, but may be unable to transport you back home. Drivers may not be able to assist you over mounds of snow or across ice, keep you upright in high winds or protect you from falling debris. Your power chair, scooter, wheelchair, walker, cane, or guide dog may prove useless in snowdrifts. If your trip is not medically necessary or otherwise urgent, ask yourself, Is Your Organization Interested in a Presentation About AAR Service? If your organization has 15 or more people who want to learn more about AAR service, please call 718-393-4147 or 718-393-4130 to arrange a presentation.
How to Get More Information About AAR
NYC Transit Customer Services Available Publications • How to Apply or Recertify for Access-A-Ride Paratransit Service Access-A-Ride Telephone Directory Call 877-337-2017 toll-free from area codes 212, 718, 347, 516, 631, 646, 914, and 845. From other area codes, dial 718-393-4999. If you are deaf or hard of hearing, use your preferred relay service provider or the free 711 service relay. You will know you are connected to Access-A-Ride's (AAR) telephone system when you hear: “Thank you for calling AAR. Please listen to the following important message. If you do not wish to listen to the message, please press 1.” Then you will hear, “You have reached AAR.” Conversations with AAR personnel are recorded and may be monitored. After selecting 1 for English or 2 for Spanish, choose from the menu below: For eligibility, appeals, certification or application questions, please press 1. Hold for assistance if you do not have a touch-tone phone. Back to Top |
