“Who could be more vulnerable?”

Re: February 17th articles, Accessible transportation in the age of MAiD and Teen girl allegedly kidnapped by Lyft driver

To the Editor:

All the news that’s fit to print. 

Both of these news stories richly deserved your attention, giving the implications for vulnerable individuals. 

After all, who could be more vulnerable than those with mobility issues and children?  Those needing wheelchair accessible cabs have faced an uphill battle since they were initially introduced in the late 1980’s, especially after start-up federal and provincial grants to help defray the cost of one of these vehicles dried up.  Municipalities faced another problem ensuring a sufficient number of operators willing to provide the service. 

After all these years, these issues have yet to be fully resolved.  Far from it.

As for the Lyft incident, how many women and children subjected to abuse will it take before both governments and the general public wake up to the fact so-called ridesharing companies need regulating, and their drivers need proper screening and training prior to getting behind the wheel?

While Ontario burns, Ford fiddles.

Peter Pellier