DARTS to end planned trips for Hamilton adult special needs group

A Hamilton organization supporting adults with special needs is voicing concern that the day trips essential to the development of their participants may end after DARTS declined to continue offering group transportation.

Adele Amatucci says her 29-year-old daughter Carolina loves to bowl, visit the farm and socialize.

“They need to be seen, they need to be heard, they need to know that they exist,” explains Amatucci. “You know, it’s to enhance their lives.”

Last week, things changed when Amatucci was told that the day trips her daughter has come to love so much would stop.

Cornerstones says DARTS declined to provide group transportation to its day programs as of Thursday.

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It says the city told them group bookings and charter services are not a requirement under the legislation and have historically been provided by DARTS as a courtesy when it doesn’t interfere with other transit services.

“You can’t shun them in an area and that is it, they need to go out and experience things like everyone else.” said Amatucci.

Other parents like Cathy Playfair feel the same.

“Adults need to be stimulated, yes they have all sorts of activities within their groups, but they need the community. I wish I could do it, I wish I could be the one that takes them. I’m getting older, I’m in my 70’s, I really have a difficult time spending all that extra time to do things like that in the community.” said Playfair.

A representative for Cornerstone says they found a temporary solution for now. For now, they can organize outings on a weekly basis with DARTS but the organization’s afraid that it’s not going to last.

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Cornerstones says it is waiting to hear back from the city as they work to find a more permanent solution.

The city says trips are dependent on the availability of vehicles on the road and the spaces in them.

When it comes to large bookings, the city released a statement that said in part that bookings can, “can stretch the capacity of specialized transit that would otherwise be available for individual travelers” and adds that it works to ensure group trips are accommodated when possible.

For now, parents like Playfair and Amatucci are worried their children will have to miss out on an important aspect of their lives.