🚐 “Access A Ride or Access A Roulette?” — The Daily Gamble of Disability Transportation in NYC

Tuesday Morning Madness: A Comedy of Errors… Or Just Another Day

It’s 9:10 AM, and I’ve already had a full day. And no, not the productive, fulfilling kind of full day…..more like the “I’ve been outside since 6:45 AM because I rely on Access A Ride, and now I’m talking to myself in the cold, wondering where I went wrong in life” kind of day. The type of day where you just wanna say f**k it!…and quit pretending. 

I thought this Tuesday would be a good one. I was wrong. But hey, if you’re a disabled New Yorker depending on paratransit, you probably already know where this is going. If not welcome to the game show I like to call:

“Hurry up and Wait”

It Started Like Any Other Ride…

As any seasoned Access A Ride user knows, you need to be outside early. Not “on time” early….like, “did the sun even rise yet?” early. If you’re not out there, visible and glowing like a neon sign, you’re marked as a no show. That’s right, even if the driver pulls up like a getaway car and takes off before you can wave.

Today, I was smart. Or so I thought. There was a garbage truck blocking my street, so I moved to the corner to make things easier. I saw a van and thought, “That must be my guy!” I hustled back to my building like a caffeinated NASCAR driver in a wheelchair, ready for pickup.

Spoiler alert: It wasn’t my guy. Or was he?

Even worse: My actual driver zipped right by without so much as a glance. I guess he was.

Did he stop? Nope.

Did he even look? Definitely not.

Did he tell dispatch I wasn’t there? You bet.

So now, according to Access A Ride, I’m marked as a “no show.” You don’t wanna accumulate to many NO SHOWS, because AARP will suspend your account. 

Calling the Powers That Be!

So I make the call. You know the one. The “please don’t punish me for someone else’s incompetence” call.

I get a lovely lady on the line (shoutout to her for trying), and I calmly explain my case. Calmly…ish.  

“Ma’am, I was outside, I followed the rules, and the driver didn’t even slow down. That’s not a no show. That’s a no effort.”

Her response? Call back after 8 AM. Try again. Maybe the universe will be more forgiving next time. 

I’m kidding she said no such thing. 

Access A Ride: The Lifeline We Can’t Always Rely On

Here’s the deal: Access A Ride is both a blessing and a burden.

It’s literally my only option some days and for people like me, that means everything.

But let’s keep it real: The service is wildly inconsistent.

Some drivers are cool as hell.

Some are new and trying their best.

Some have clearly been doing this too long and need a break.

And others? Well…

Let’s just say if Satan had a shuttle service, these guys would be doing overtime.

Language barriers? Fine. Everyone’s out here trying to earn a living.

Bad attitudes? Ok fine.

Zero effort? Not acceptable.

It’s not even about the ride sometimes it’s about being treated like a human being who deserves to be picked up, seen, and heard. Not ignored and dismissed

“Service” Should Mean Something

What bothers me most is that Access A Ride often doesn’t feel like a service. It feels like a program a cold, bureaucratic machine on autopilot. The drivers don’t always know how to be of service, and maybe they were never trained to be.

Let’s face it: they’re not hiring based on compassion or awareness. They’re hiring bodies to move other bodies.

But we’re not packages.

We’re people.

The Daily Battle: Good vs. Evil… And My Sanity

Every day with Access A Ride is a gamble.

Will I get the chill driver who’s easy to talk to?

Or the guy who gives off “I’m about to leave you” energy from two blocks away?

Sometimes I’m patient. Sometimes I want to scream.

But most days, I just laugh, because if I didn’t, I’d go nuts. I like to think I’m a professional at being patient… or at least just a few hours shy of certification.

Final Thoughts from the Sidewalk

I got left behind today.

Again.

All because I was standing 20 feet away from a driver who didn’t bother to look.

But I’m still here, writing this blog, doing what I can to shed light on what it’s really like relying on a system that feels rigged against you half the time.

So, to my fellow riders, I say:

Keep showing up.

Even when they don’t.

And to Access A Ride?

Do better.

Because showing up isn’t just our job it’s yours, too.