CoCT says it issued letters to institutions & users about reduction of Dial-a-Ride services

CAPE TOWN - The City of Cape Town has responded to claims made by the Western Cape Disability Network, accusing the metro of not informing them about the decision to scale back on Dial-a-Ride services.

From September, the transport service will only be available to eligible wheelchair users and people with severe walking impairments.

ALSO READ: Budget constraints led to Dial-a-Ride service reduction - CoCT

Those who qualify will only be able to use the service to get to work and back home.

Acting treasurer for the Western Cape Disability Network, Anthony Ghillino, said that none of the city officials mentioned this when they met two weeks ago.

"We have a meeting with the city every three months to discuss all things access-related, and we had no prior warning or notice of the pending changes. There was no consultation and no discussion, so we question where’s the transparency?"

MMC for Urban Mobility Rob Quintas said they did issue letters informing users of the change on 7 August. 

But this was on the same day it issued a media release announcing the decision.

"We have distributed letters to all institutions we serve and those who have made past trips on the Dial-a-Ride vehicles. The department deployed additional resources to have the letters delivered to the homes of the remaining users. This process is unfortunately not immediate and will take approximately a week to distribute to all active users."