Charlottetown man to meet with city, cab companies to discuss absence of accessible taxis

A Charlottetown man who is calling for more accessible transportation options for people with disabilities plans to meet with the city and cab companies to discuss a solution after almost being stranded.

This comes after an incident last month when Paul Cudmore, who uses a wheelchair, says the ramp on his accessible van broke and he had no other way home.

He was leaving the legion in Charlottetown around 11 p.m. when he couldn't get the wheelchair ramp of his van down.

"It only opened about six inches and it wouldn't close," he said. "It was cold, it was like - 10, I didn't have a jacket on. I can't put a jacket on because I have a bad shoulder. I was panicking, I had no idea what to do."

Cudmore said transportation services for people with disabilities such as Pat and the Elephant don't run past 11 p.m. and there are currently no accessible cabs in Charlottetown.

At one point Charlottetown did have an accessible taxi, but the service has since been discontinued. The CBC spoke to six Charlottetown taxi companies, which all confirmed they do not have accessible cabs in their fleets.

He had no idea how he would get home, Cudmore said.

'We just can't leave it in the streets'

His friends thought about calling an ambulance to see if they could get Cudmore home, but he was worried about what to do with his chair.

"We just can't leave it in the streets. The legion was closed at this time and it is a $16,000 chair."

One of Cudmore's friends called a person he knew who drives a cab and they showed up with their van.

"Three or four of them got together and picked me up and put me in the passenger seat of the van," he said, adding that his friends also put his wheelchair in his van afterwards.

Cudmore said he contacted the city to let them know his van was in the parking lot at the legion so it wouldn't be towed. It took two weeks to repair the ramp on his van, leaving Cudmore with few options for getting around and a $3,400 bill.

City needs accessible cabs, Cudmore says

Cudmore worked with Spinal Cord Injury P.E.I. and has been advocating for an accessible cab in the city for years.

"We need an accessible taxi in the city and I don't understand why we don't have one now," he said.

Cudmore said he also thinks about people who have mobility issues who might land at the Charlottetown Airport to learn the city doesn't have accessible cabs.

"What happens if somebody that's not familiar with the province is out having a few drinks and thinks 'I can just call a taxi to get home,' and there is no taxi available to get home, like how do you get home?"

Cudmore said adding accessible taxis to the city would mean freedom for those who have mobility issues — and he's also not the only one thinking about the issue in Charlottetown.

Accessible transportation a 'real challenge'

Officials with the P.E.I. Council of People with Disabilities said the organization has been working on the issue for the past decade.

"Accessible transportation is a real challenge in Charlottetown," said Marcia Carroll, executive director of the organization.

While she said Charlottetown has accessible buses they're off the road at 10 p.m., leaving few options for those with mobile disabilities that want to go out in the evenings.

She said she believes the barrier for adding accessible cabs to Charlottetown is the cost.

"In order for a person to invest in an accessible cab their overhead would be significantly more than a person who is just buying a regular van," Carroll said.

She said she believes a partnership should be created between different levels of government and cab companies to create options like subsidies for accessible taxis.

Comparably, officials with the City of Summerside say there are accessible cabs there.

In Charlottetown, Mayor Philip Brown said he spoke to Cudmore after the incident last month and has now planned a meeting with taxi companies, Pat and the Elephant and the P.E.I. Council of People with Disabilities to try and find a solution. That meeting is planned for Thursday evening.

"I think Paul has opened up a door for us to look at this whole, barrier-free, totally-accessible city that we've been talking about for some time," Brown said.

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