City Unveils Car-Share Van For Disabled Passengers

When Ed Gold's van was towed for a parking violation last year, he faced greater problems than finding a way home.

His son used a wheelchair and without their customized van, they were stuck. But now that Berkeley is the host of the nation's first wheelchair-accessible car-share van, people in Gold's situation could have another option.

The city jointly funded the van with City CarShare, a company that allows members to use over 270 cars in more than 150 locations in the Bay Area.

"It makes City CarShare appeal to a whole community that had nowhere to go," said Gold, who is a member of the city's Commission on Disabilities.

Councilmember Dona Spring, who uses a wheelchair, arrived in the van, called AccessMobile, and rolled down a folding ramp in the rear of the vehicle for its debut yesterday.

"This is the way of the future," Spring told a group of supporters. "We need to share vehicles and use them when we just really need them."

Spring said she usually uses taxis, which are expensive, when she needs to travel. She said the new van allows her to consider day trips that would improve her quality of life.

"I am so pleased the city of Berkeley is first in the country, maybe in the world, making this opportunity available," Spring said.

Since the city partnered with City CarShare in 2002, it has been considering using the program to increase the amount of transportation that is accessible to the elderly and disabled, said Matthew Nichols, the principal planner in the city's office of transportation.

The idea of a wheelchair-accessible van was kick-started in 2007 when the city won $25,000 from the National Organization on Disability's Accessible America contest.

The prize money became the city's contribution to fund the $50,000 van; City CarShare paid the rest.

The van will be exclusively reserved for disabled users and city staff on weekdays and will be available for all City CarShare users on the evenings and weekends.

Officials said they were unsure what the demand would be for the van, which is parked at Milvia and Center streets, but hoped it would prove successful.

"I think it's a good start, I think it will provide a level of transportation not available before," said Paul Church, the secretary for the Commission on Disability.

Tags: DISABILITY, COUNCILMEMBER DONA SPRING, CITY CARSHARE