| If I Could Walk Tomorrow - A Reflection of all the Things We Take ...
How many times have you heard a television personality on a telethon or even your own doctor tell you the unexpected could happen to you? You hear it all the time as non-profit organizations try to raise money. Cancer can strike anyone at any time. Diabetes, stroke, heart disease, Parkinson’s, muscular dystrophy, the list goes on and on. It does not matter who you are, how much money you have, how old you are, or where you are from. Any of these ailments could strike you or a loved one and change your life in an instant.One day you could wake up and have some sort of life limitation. For all intents and purposes, you could wake up tomorrow, get in a car accident, and become a paraplegic or quadriplegic. The truth is we do not know what the future holds because we do not have a crystal ball that we can peer into on a regular basis.
Mobility Unlimited attempts to lift burden after Route 4's closure
When a bus route past his workplace closed earlier this month, Mark Towery took a week off the job just to plot how he would get around town. Wheelchair bound, Towery is relying on friends, co-workers and taxis while a local nonprofit agency readies a van for him to drive. The 33-year-old is just one in a group of disabled riders formerly reliant on Rogue Valley Transportation District's Route 4 that Mobility Unlimited can assist, said executive director Glory Cooper. "The services have been cut where they're most needed," Cooper said. A $1.2 million shortfall in RVTD's budget coupled with low ridership prompted the Sept. 1 closure of Route 4 past Rogue Valley Medical Center. RVTD's Valley Lift also was discontinued in that area because federal funding for the service is directly linked to the proximity of bus routes.
Seeking solutions: New buses may help city's struggling transit ...
Public transit is Lynchburg is struggling with deficits and bus-maintenance problems that often leave paying customers without a reliable way to get to work or to the doctor. But there may be several solutions, both long-term and short-term, that could strengthen a system that many of the city's working poor depend upon. Over the past several weeks, The News & Advance spent more than 20 hours riding nearly every Greater Lynchburg Transit Company bus route, and has interviewed numerous riders. The newspaper also reviewed hundreds of documents detailing maintenance work and costs after filing a Freedom of Information request. Those interviews and documents show that the GLTC faces severe maintenance issues and growing costs to provide service, including rising fuel prices.
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