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'They've broken my trust': TARC3 problems persist, frustrated customers protest and ask for changes

TARC says it's working on a campaign to hire more drivers to fill the gap, but Louisville's Metro Disabilities Coalition is not sold on TARC's plan.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. — After voicing their frustration over TARC3's reliability, members of the community and riders protest the current state of the Transit Authority of River City's paratransit service for people with disabilities.

Travelers who depend on TARC3 are at times being left in limbo by a service specifically created to make their lives easier.

"We should not be stuck with a paratransit contract that is not delivering services," said Marcellus Mayes, who leads Louisville's Metro Disabilities Coalition.

One of the service's regulars, Libby Davis, told WHAS11 in June she was told it would take nearly six hours to pick her up from a medical appointment. Fearing a threatening drop in her blood sugar, she had to find another way home.

"I had eaten before I left and taken insulin, so I was good, but it turned out it didn't work like that," she said. "They've broken my trust."

Sherrie Bishop had a similar experience. With no vision in her right eye, TARC3 is important to her commutes to and from appointments. When she called TARC3 after an appointment with UofL Health, an operator told her she might have to wait close to eight hours for a pickup.

"I had [scheduled] to call to pick me up, and I'm ready, and he said, 'Well, we don't have anybody to pick you up,'" Bishop said.

Like Davis, Bishop was unable to wait.

"I'm diabetic, I would have needed something to eat... my medicine and all that," Bishop said. "No, I didn't wait on them." 

TARC's executive director Carrie Butler confirmed travelers have had to deal with longer waits, saying driver shortages are to blame. She told Metro Council TARC is working on a campaign to hire more drivers to fill the gap, but Louisville's Metro Disabilities Coalition is not sold on TARC's response.

"But [the driver shortage] alone is not the major issue...the major issue is that's a bad plan," Mayes said.

WHAS11 asked TARC Friday for specifics on their plan. Butler did not directly answer, instead saying, "Protests are important and can raise awareness. TARC acknowledges that areas of our service are in need of improvement. Unfortunately, we are short on operators, and our customers are feeling that shortage first-hand due to its impact on service."

Mayes himself is legally blind and said he believes TARC is not using some of these funds correctly, and putting too much responsibility on MV Transportation: the service it's been contracting with since last year.

"Right now, there's no checks and balances, nobody to oversee the operation, no quality control," Mayes said.

Mayes said he wants a change in TARC leadership and a raise in wages for their workers on the ground. He is looking to city leaders to provide a push, and said he would like some of the funds from the American Rescue Plan given to the city to be invested into transit issues.

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