Pacoima : Senior Center Offers Improved Transit

Senior citizens in the northeast San Fernando Valley can take advantage of a new transportation service offered by the Northeast Valley Multipurpose Senior Center.

The center, which opened in January as a cooperative venture between two Pacoima seniors’ organizations, received two handicapped-accessible vans this week from the Los Angeles Department of Transportation.

The vans will provide shuttle service for seniors who reside in Pacoima, Sylmar, Sun Valley, Sunland-Tujunga, Arleta, Mission Hills and Lake View Terrace, among other areas, said Ethel May, director of Pacoima Senior Citizens for United Concerns.

Trips will cost 50 cents one way, $1 round-trip.

Until this week, seniors at the center used three private cars driven by volunteers to transport people to appointments, May said. But offering the service became expensive for the cars’ owners, who paid high insurance rates, May said.

Now, seniors may call a dispatcher at the center to schedule a ride in one of the two vans, which are equipped with full-time drivers and wheelchair lifts.

The Northeast Valley Multipurpose Senior Center offers nutrition programs, Alzheimer’s services and arts and crafts. The new shuttle service is part of a demonstration program designed to provide door-to-door service for seniors and disabled people. The program is funded by the city’s departments of transportation and aging.

For more information, call the center at (818) 834-6100.