Rhode Island Code of Regulations › Title 840 - Public Transit Authority › Chapter 00 - N/A › Subchapter 00 - N/A › Part 2 - Eligibility for RIPTA's Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Paratransit Service (840-RICR-00-00-2) › Section 840-RICR-00-00-2.4 - RIPTA's Process to Determine ADA Paratransit Eligibility (49 C.F.R. Section 37.125)

Current through June 14, 2024
A. All information about the eligibility
				 process, including applications for eligibility, notices and determinations
				 concerning eligibility, shall be made available in accessible formats, upon
				 request.
B. Requests for the ADA
				 Paratransit Application shall be made to RIPTA in writing, by phone, or via
				 email or in person.
C. An
				 application may be submitted by mail or in person. If an individual has not
				 received a determination of eligibility within twenty-one (21) days following
				 the receipt by RIPTA of a complete application, the applicant shall be treated
				 as eligible and receive service until and unless RIPTA denies the
				 application.
D. If the RIPTA Ride
				 office determines an individual to be eligible for ADA Paratransit Service, a
				 confirmation letter shall be sent to that individual. The letter shall include
				 RIPTA's name, the telephone number of the RIPTA Ride Customer Service Office,
				 an expiration date for eligibility, and any conditions or limitations on the
				 individual's eligibility, including the use of a personal care
				 attendant.
E. The following
				 procedures shall apply in the case of a denial of ADA paratransit eligibility:
1. A denial letter shall be sent to the
				 applicant and shall state specifically the reasons for the finding. The letter
				 will include materials about the RIPTA Reduced Fare Bus Pass Program for
				 Seniors and Individuals with Disabilities.
2. The applicant may appeal the denial
				 decision within sixty (60) days and may reapply for ADA Paratransit service in
				 the future if there has been any change in his or her condition.
3. The applicant must submit his or her
				 appeal in writing or via e-mail to the attention of RIPTA's Executive Director
				 of Paratransit Services. As part of the appeal, the applicant may supply
				 additional information pertaining to his or her disability.
4. RIPTA's Chief Executive Officer has
				 designated the Executive Director of Paratransit Services (EDPS) to review the
				 appeal, provided that the EDPS was not involved in the initial decision to deny
				 eligibility. In such incidents the RIPTA Chief Legal Counsel shall review the
				 appeal.
5. RIPTA's Executive
				 Director of Paratransit Services or his/her designee will hold an appeal
				 hearing within fourteen (14) days of the receipt of the appeal letter. The
				 hearing will give the applicant, and his or her representatives, an opportunity
				 to be heard and to present information and arguments. The applicant will
				 receive a written notification of RIPTA's decision on the appeal.
6. RIPTA is not required to provide
				 paratransit service pending the determination on appeal. However, if RIPTA has
				 not made a decision within thirty (30) days of the completion of the appeal
				 hearing, paratransit service shall be provided to the applicant from that time
				 until and unless a decision to deny the appeal is issued.