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Trumbull senior-citizen ridership rising after changes in structure
By Ed Runyan
WARREN
Bolstered by a strong showing in July, ridership by senior citizens through the Trumbull County senior services levy is on pace to have its highest number of riders this year.
Senior levy Administrator Diane Siskowic-Jurkovic provided The Vindicator and the county commissioners Tuesday with statistics showing that the 2,812 rides given in July was second only to the 2,897 given in July 2011.
Siskowic-Jurkovic said the highest number of rides given in a year since she became administrator in 2009 was 28,000 in 2011. The number reached 26,700 in 2018 and is projected to top that this year.
“This is the best it’s been in years, as far as transportation,” Commissioner Frank Fuda said during the commissioners workshop meeting Tuesday.
Siskowic-Jurkovic said she suspects the reason the numbers are higher is because of the change on July 1 in how the rides are provided.
The commissioners removed seniors money from the county’s public transportation service, Trumbull Transit, and awarded it directly to four companies that provide rides – All American USA Taxi of Warren, Garwin Inc. of Hubbard, Comfort Care-A-Van of Youngstown and Country Neighbor of Orwell.
Since the change, senior citizens are no longer being put on a waiting list for rides, Siskowic-Jurkovic said. She thinks the public also is becoming more aware of the services through additional exposure in news reporting.
Today, the commissioners will be asked to award an additional $12,000 to All American USA Taxi, $14,000 to Garwin and $191,000 to Comfort Care-A-Van for rides through the end of the year. It will bring the total allocation for 2019 to about $450,000.
Mike Salamone, Trumbull Transit administrator, will try to obtain grant funds this fall to generate additional money for senior citizen rides.
The commissioners recently authorized putting the senior services levy back on the ballot this November for another five years.
The 0.75-mill levy, first approved in November 2005, generates about $2.3 million a year for a variety of services to senior citizens age 60 and older, such as home-delivered meals, transportation activities at senior centers and in-home services.