Over the past three years, the San Luis Obispo Council of Government (SLOCOG) has diverted almost $1 million of social service transportation funding from Ride-On Transportation to fund its Senior Go program and other projects. This year, SLOCOG is providing only $215,000 or 4 percent of Ride-On’s $5 million budget, which provides 168,000 social service rides a year.
Meanwhile, Ride-On is facing dramatic increases in operation costs of $269,401 for fuel, drivers’ wages, maintenance facility rent, and health benefits. Ride-On has requested one-time, emergency funding of $100,000 to help cover these cost increases. SLOCOG has a surplus $125,000 of social service funding from last year, but staff is recommending that the board not support Ride-On with emergency funding on Feb. 5 that will save this nonprofit service, which has provided millions of rides since its creation in 1993.
Ride-On is asking the community to show your support for Ride-On by calling SLOCOG and telling them to provide emergency funding for Ride-On. Please call (805) 781-1385 and tell them to support Ride-On with $100,000 of emergency funding. Ride-On has always been there for our community, now we need your support.
Mark Shaffer
executive director
Ride-On Transportation
This article appears in Jan 30 – Feb 9, 2020.
NO! Budgets are created for adherence. Follow yours just as my household has to follow ours or we end up homeless.
NO MORE $ FOR RIDE-ON OR ANY OTHER GOVERNMENT DOLE DIVISION! The taxpayers are done with this endless hand out game.
Ride On provides a vital service for individuals with developmental challenges and senior citizens who depended on its senior shuttle are paying more since slocog gave that contract to Ventura Transit Services. Granted no solution is going to be easy, but to let a vital organ die because of personal feelings is immature at best.