{"id":2546,"date":"2023-10-27T14:08:11","date_gmt":"2023-10-27T14:08:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/saveourhandydart.ca\/?page_id=2546"},"modified":"2025-06-20T18:26:26","modified_gmt":"2025-06-20T18:26:26","slug":"home-2","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/saveourhandydart.ca\/","title":{"rendered":"Home"},"content":{"rendered":"\n \n
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Save Our HandyDART!<\/h1>\n

TransLink's Board of Directors will be voting on bringing the service under public control. Send a letter urging them to do the right thing by riders and workers- HandyDART should be for people, not profit!<\/h3>\n Send a Pre-Written Letter to TransLink!<\/a>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n
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Tens of thousands of Metro Vancouver residents\nrely on HandyDART to get to daily\nmedical appointments, adult daycare\ncentres, and other essential services. So why does TransLink rely on private companies that are notorious for poor safety practices, bad working conditions, and labour unrest<\/a> to operate HandyDART?
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The three-week long strike against Transdev in 2024 came about because of the private contractor\u2019s lack of public accountability. A lack of accountability\u2014and corporate profit-seeking\u2014 have led to HandyDART\u2019s overreliance on taxis, myriad safety problems, unreliable service quality, and poor working conditions for drivers. 
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Following the strike, the BC NDP committed to bringing HandyDART in-house as part of its campaign platform<\/a>. Since the election however, we have seen little follow through from Eby\u2019s government on this issue.
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\n <\/span><\/b>TransLink's Board of Directors has the opportunity to solve the crisis at HandyDART at its root. The agency has announced that they will vote on whether to continue contracting out HandyDART to multinational corporations that only care about profits, or finally bring this critical service under full public control. (June 17 UPDATE<\/span>: although the vote was originally scheduled for March 2025, then pushed back to June 26, TransLink recently revealed that the vote has been delayed yet again, with no new date set yet). \n <\/span>\n
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\n Five city councils in this region have passed resolutions supporting bringing HandyDART in-house, six Mayors \u200bon the Regional Council of Transportation have signed our open letter<\/a>, and more than 500 riders have signed our petition. Our HandyDART community is united on this issue- but will TransLink and Provincial decision makers follow through?
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Click the above link to send a pre-written letter to TransLink and Minister Farnworth urging them to do the right thing by riders and workers, and protect the\nfuture of this service by bringing HandyDART in-house!
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Take Our Rider\n <\/span>\n <\/span> Survey \n <\/h1>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n
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Our coalition is surveying riders to tell us about how they\u2019ve been directly affected by TransLink\u2019s increasing use of taxis. Your answers will help us show decision makers that riders care about having trained, professional drivers do the pick up. If you would like to take the survey anonymously that\u2019s fine! Just check off the \u201cPlease remain anonymous\u201d box at the end.
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\"Taxi drivers are not trained in dealing\nwith seniors, people with disabilities and\npeople with mobility challenges. In most instances they have been unwilling to\nhelp. They do not even get out of the cab\nto assist you from the door or even into the cab. They do not give attention to\nsafety. I am not even buckled in and they\nstart driving...When I know that it is a [HandyDART] bus picking me up, it gives\nme a feeling of relief to know that I am in\ngood hands and my ride will be an enjoyable experience, as HandyDart\ndrivers are consistent in their routine,\npatient, and they even anticipate when I\nneed help.\"
\n -Gwen, a longtime rider<\/span>\n
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\"Please stop using taxis as a replacement for\nHandyDART drivers and buses! HandyDART\ndrivers are very helpful; I need the back lift\nand have a cane as well as a cart; there is never a problem assisting me and I am always\nassisted to the entrance door of my\nappointment; on returning drivers always\nsearch me out to find me in a reception area; I\nhave nothing but compliments and thanks for\nexperienced and helpful HandyDART drivers.\"
\n -Patricia, a longtime rider<\/span>\n
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I had scheduled an important appointment but the day before I was told that my scheduled times had been\nchanged. They said they would pick me up an hour later than I had scheduled and\nthat this was the only way I could get a HandyDART ride. I was also told that they\nwould only be able to provide a ride to my appointment and they couldn\u2019t provide\none back. On the day of they sent me a taxi, which took me to a halfway point\nwhere I then had to wait for an actual HandyDART driver. The current system is\ncompletely unacceptable; the taxis are a problem because I\u2019ve had so many drive\naway without even giving me a call to let me know they\u2019ve arrived!  
\n -- Ghislaine, a HandyDART rider<\/span>\n
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\"HandyDART drivers are usually pleasant and\nhelpful... I much prefer bus drivers versus taxi\ndrivers. I have a NO TAXI alert on my file so I\ndon't have to deal with the stress of the taxi\nriding experience.\"
\n -Barbara, a longtime rider<\/span>\n
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