Dynamic Ability Blog

Jim Cyphers-Transportation Intro

24 May 2012 4:15 PM | Perry Stahl (Administrator)
17 May 2012 1:42 PM | Jim Cyphers
Hello everyone, first I'd like to introduce myself. I am a person with a disability. I am an employee of disAbility Connections (D.C.) and work as one of the Independent Living Specialists at D.C. Outside of my regular duties as paid staff here (which also includes being somewhat of a Social Security Disability expert) I've been involved in transportation issues for years advocating for accessable/affordable transportation for everyone. For the past three years I have held a position on the board of the Jackson Ttransportation Authority (JTA) and the LocaL Transportation Advisory Counsil (LTAC). I've been a user of the public transportation system in Jackson for over 30 years and am quit familiar with the needs of people with disabilities for transportation.

I'd like to invite people to participate in a dialogue concerning transportation and all the issues surrounding it. I'll be posting updates from time to time and responding to comments or questions. My hope is that the information shared will encourage us all and create a positive atmosphere and a feeling of moving forward.
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Comments

  • 29 May 2012 2:14 PM | Parrish Stahl
    Transportation advocacy is something everyone can do. True independence will happen when we do a better job at building transportation resources. Transportation needs to be a priority or people see public transit as a luxury not a necessity.
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  • 29 May 2012 3:04 PM | Jen Gossett
    Hi Jim! Have you heard about the Regional Transit Authority (RTA)? I've heard it's an effort to give MI a model to follow when creating regional transit all over. Right now, the planned coverage area is only Washtenaw, Wayne, Oakland, and Macomb. What are your thoughts about this?
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    • 30 May 2012 12:52 PM | Jim Cyphers (Administrator)
      Hi Jen, thanks for your response. I can not say I've heard of the RTA specifically but regional transportation has been discussed for a long time. In theory it is a great idea but economically it doesn't always make sense. Also, it takes mutual cooperation between regional entities. What I mean by that is that if you have a transit system with a relatively large budget and the region that they would be part of serveing would include transit systems that are much smaller it is difficult for the transi system with the larger budget to take on added financial hardship. In JTA's case I believe ther are other issues involved as well and I will refresh my self on the issues and continue my reply.
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