PTSC now has special buses for disabled

FOR THE first time, buses are being made available to the differently-abled from the Public Transport Service Corporation (PTSC). The corporation yesterday commissioned five buses to accommodate those who use wheelchairs, as well as six other buses for service in Port-of-Spain and San Fernando. All of the buses are to become operational in the next two weeks. Fees to use the services are yet to be determined. At yesterday’s commissioning at the PTSC’s South Quay compound, president of the Trinidad chapter of Disabled Peoples’ International (DPI), George Daniel, said with over 125,000 disabled persons in the country, the initiative to have buses to suit their needs, would now “bring out members of the community” who are not regularly seen outdoors. Daniel made Works and Transport Minister Franklin Khan an honorary member of the DPI and lauded him for the efforts to get the buses.

Acting Social Services Delivery Minister, Mustapha Abdul-Hamid, said PTSC would also soon launch a dial-a-bus service for the disabled, during off-peak periods. The city buses will service shoppers and others coming into Port-of-Spain. Khan said PTSC had to provide a service for all, unlike private operators who decide not to take the old because they moved too slowly, or not do return trips because there were not enough passengers. Khan also announced that the comprehensive National Trans-portation Study will begin later this month and be completed in 12 to 15 months. The study will look at the social, financial and geographical factors, as well as map the future role of the PTSC. Khan said he had also been given the mandate by Prime Minister Patrick Manning to take over the drainage plan for Port-of-Spain. He lamented that development could take shape in the forms of multi-storey buildings, yet every time the rains fall, the city is flooded. Khan will meet the Mayor of Port-of-Spain to discuss the matter.