Visiting family or making the trip to work each day could be easier with Total Mobility, a nationwide transport scheme for people with disabilities.
The scheme, which is coordinated by regional councils, gives mobility options to people with disabilities if they have difficulty accessing public transport safely. Total Mobility provides a 50 percent discount on taxi fares to eligible users, up to a maximum set by each regional council.
Barbara Tane from Life Unlimited knows how important it is for people with disability to be able to get out and about in the community. She assesses people in Hamilton city for eligibility for the Total Mobility scheme, and sees how it can make a difference for many people who might otherwise feel isolated.
“It means they can get out and carry on with the things they like to do – just everyday, ordinary life things, like going to church or the shops or to work.”
The service provided by Life Unlimited is unique in that Barbara will visit people at home to complete the assessment if they can’t travel to her Palmerston Street location. She’ll even take their photo for a Total Mobility ID card too. It’s an important service considering the difficulties applicants face accessing transport.
“I can spend a bit of time with them, just having a chat or they might show me around their garden. As part of the assessment we’ll talk about their condition, what difficulties they experience and what mobility equipment they need to get around.” Applicants may also need to provide information from their doctor or other healthcare provider.
Many of the people Barbara meets are experiencing significant life changes. They may be new to disability, recovering from surgery, or suddenly unable to drive. “For people who may have lost their licence, it gives them their independence back — lots of people don’t like having to rely on family to get around.
“One lady said she’s been given her life back and she’s not a prisoner in her own home anymore.”
Anyone in Hamilton can call Life Unlimited on 0800 008 011 for more information about Total Mobility or to arrange an assessment. In other areas contact your local regional council to see how the scheme operates near you, or read the Total Mobility guide from the New Zealand Transport Agency.
Who is eligible for Total Mobility?
Anyone with a disability that prevents them from undertaking any one or more of the following parts of an unaccompanied journey by public transport in a safe and dignified manner:
- Get to the place where the transport departs
- Get on to the transport
- Ride securely
- Get off the transport
- Get to the final destination
You can only use Total Mobility for transport not already funded by other sources like the Ministry of Health or job support funding from Workbridge.
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