Mike Gantala, wearing green, rises into a transportation van to give him a ride to where-ever the man with cerebral palsy needed to go. The Homage program gives qualifying rural and semi-rural residents who live too far away to get Dial-A-Ride-Transportation (DART).
Photo courtesy Homage
Snohomish County residents Jon Howe, who has Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis and Primary Lateral Sclerosis, and Alan Gossett are advocates for transportation funding for disabled individuals and seniors living in rural Snohomish County.
Gossett, who is Howe’s husband and caregiver, spoke to Homage after discovering its Transportation Assistance Program (TAP) provided transportation to the disabled outside of doctor visits. Homage is a nonprofit providing vital services to seniors and disabled individuals.
Homage could not provide them with transportation. It was disappointing but Gossett decided to take action.
Gossett emailed Washington State Department of Transportation Secretary (WSDOT) Roger Millar. He received a response 30 minutes later. In four to five weeks, the funding was approved.
When Gossett’s letter got to WSDOT, its Deputy Director for Public Transportation Don Chartock said it was “a chance for us to see there’s a real need for us.”
In March, Homage asked the community for donations. They donated $18,000. WSDOT gave $400,000. In total, they raised $418,000 for Homage’s TAP program.
Gossett said that Howe felt like a prisoner at home for 15 months. This is because of a lack of transportation for disabled people in his area.
Mike Gantala, a TAP rider who has cerebral palsy, said “there’s limited bus service.” He does not live near a bus stop. Consequently, his current transportation service goes to his home.
Otherwise “the bus does not come by my house at all,” Gantala said. His caregiver takes him to a bus stop if no bus comes.
Gantala said (because of the hours) it is “still limited.” Transportation ran Monday through Friday from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Homage’s Senior Director of Government Funded Programs Juli Rose said that it is difficult turning down passengers. When there is a lack of funding, Homage prioritizes medical and employment rides first and has to “cut social visits and shopping.”
“When Alan contacted us, I was heartbroken to share that we were unable to accommodate any additional riders,” Rose said.
The demand for transportation for the areas they serve exceeds funding. There are more riders than there are drivers. Currently, Homage has 11 drivers and 14 buses.
The WSDOT funding allows current TAP funding to be redirected elsewhere in Snohomish County to address limited transportation and riders on wait lists.
Most of the funding comes from WSDOT. About 70% of the money comes from the government. Homage reapplies every two to four years.
When the pilot program started doing well in the past, Homage exceeded its transportation budget.
They needed to seek “additional funding so that we could finish the year” and next year, according to a previous interview Rose did. Homage’s next funding cycle starts in July 2025.
The recent funding will allow Homage to provide more than 8,700 rides from now to June 2025. Now, they can operate six days a week. Riders can make trips outside of “medical appointments and employment.”
To meet requirements, riders must be Snohomish County residents, be 55 or older, or disabled or low-income and be in a rural enough area that does not have DART paratransit service. To know if you qualify, call 425-423-8517.
To address funding in the future, WSDOT is working “with the community to get people in applying for grants that support providing access” to expand the service they can give, Chartock said.
