[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 157 (2011), Part 9]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 12618]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




 IN RECOGNITION OF CHARLES IDOL AND THE NEED FOR IMPROVED PARATRANSIT 
                                POLICIES

                                 ______
                                 

                       HON. JANICE D. SCHAKOWSKY

                              of illinois

                    in the house of representatives

                        Saturday, July 30, 2011

  Ms. SCHAKOWSKY. Mr. Speaker, many of our constituents come to 
Washington, D.C. to meet with their elected officials, to gather for 
conferences and to attend events. It's not always easy to do--they have 
to find the funds, take time off from work and often arrange 
alternative care-giving arrangements for family members. For people 
with disabilities, there is another obstacle--a transportation system 
that is often inaccessible because of inadequate infrastructure, poor 
design or breakdowns.
  Today, I want to describe to my colleagues the experience of some 
Chicagoans who worked hard to surmount those barriers and to recognize 
Mr. Charles Idol, manager of Clyde's restaurant in Chinatown, who came 
to their rescue.
  This spring, six Chicago residents traveled to Washington, D.C. to 
attend the National Paratransit Memorial Rally. It wasn't easy for them 
to get from Chicago to Washington but they were determined to be here 
to speak out for improved paratransit policies. Of the six persons, one 
is a volunteer from IMPRUVE (the Independent Movement of Paratransit 
Riders for Unity, Vehicles, Equality) and five are disabled. IMPRUVE is 
a national organization based in Chicago committed to meeting the 
transportation needs of people with disabilities. Dr. Ayo Maat, my 
constituent and President of IMPRUVE, organized the trip and arranged 
meetings with members of the Illinois delegation, including my office, 
to discuss paratransit solutions.
  Once in Washington, those six Chicagoans were confronted by a 
situation that underscores the need for improved paratransit policies. 
The group decided to have dinner in Chinatown and wound up stranded 
after their meal because there was no accessible transportation back to 
their hotel. For over two and a half hours, the group tried to find 
accessible transportation. They called taxi services, Metro Access, the 
police department and 911 and no one could help them. Despite the fact 
that the three in wheelchairs could not ride in a regular taxi, their 
situation was not considered an emergency. One person needed insulin, 
another needed her epilepsy medicine, yet they were unable to get back 
to their hotel room because there was no available accessible 
transportation in our Nation's Capital.
  Fortunately, they found Mr. Idol. Dr. Maat wrote to tell me of his 
generosity, ``Angels do exist and they walk among us as ordinary people 
with extremely big hearts and compassion and love.'' Mr. Idol worked to 
find a solution for these six stranded strangers in Chinatown, keeping 
his restaurant open to them while trying to find accessible 
transportation. When that attempt failed, he paid for a nearby hotel 
room for the three persons in wheelchairs who could not ride a regular 
taxi and sent those who could back to their original hotel so that they 
could retrieve needed wheelchair batteries and medicine. Meeting Mr. 
Idol helped avert a possible catastrophe.
  But it is unacceptable that people with disabilities have to rely on 
the kindness of strangers instead of being able to depend on a safe, 
available and accessible transportation system. The D.C. metropolitan 
area has experienced paratransit ridership growth of more than 10 
percent per year from 2006 through 2009, a trend that is expected to 
continue. Here in our Nation's Capital and throughout the country, we 
still have a long way to go to make sure that growing needs are met. We 
have to make improvements in the infrastructure and availability of 
paratransit so that people with disabilities are able to travel 
freely--to go to work and school, visit their friends, and come to 
Congress to make their voices heard.
  Again, I want to thank Mr. Idol and I want to thank Dr. Maat and 
IMPRUVE for their leadership and commitment to paratransit.

                          ____________________