Photo By Spc. Elayseah Woodard-Hinton | Spc. Antonio M. Windom, a native of Ann Arbor, Mich., with 184th Military Intelligence...... read more read more
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By Spc. Elayseah Woodard-Hinton
20th Public Affairs Detachment
FORT WAINWRIGHT, Alaska - Residents and guests of Ft. Wainwright in need of transportation around post or who desire to save on the price of gas, can take advantage of the Armed Services YMCA, Y on Wheels free ride service.
The free ride taxi service is a door-to-door free ride taxi that provides service to anyone on post so long as they are 18 years or older, said Layne St. John, deputy director of the ASYMCA Fairbanks Satellite Office. Anyone under 18 who wishes to use this service must be accompanied by a parent or a legal guardian, except in cases where a servicemember or their spouse is under the age of 18.
In some situations, transportation can be provided to destinations off post. "We will go a couple of places off post, but it's pretty limited," said Janna Urschel, program director of the ASYMCA, Fairbanks Satellite Office. "We'll go to the armory or the airport if we have enough time and advance notice."
Customers are asked to plan ahead and call in advance to use the service, especially if they have an appointment.
Riders should try to call 30 minutes to an hour before they need to be at an appointment just to make sure they get there on time, said Urschel.
Currently, only one vehicle and one driver provides transportation at a time. Peak hours for the service are typically first thing in the morning, lunch hours and when people are getting off work.
"We do run into situations, and this does sometimes irritate our ridership, where all of a sudden a driver calls in sick, we can't get a hold of the relief driver and we don't have anyone to drive," said St. John. "We will have to shut the service down for those hours. That happens, not frequently, but it does happen. Our apologies then go to our ridership. If we had more than one vehicle going at one time then one can cover the other."
The current hours of operation for the taxi service on Ft. Wainwright starts at 7:30 a.m., and the last call is taken at 7:30 p.m., Monday through Friday. There is also a free ride service offered at slightly different hours to anyone who currently resides, or plans to visit, Elmendorf Air Force Base or Ft. Richardson.
The ASYMCA is looking at the possibility of expanding the service hours and implementing a fixed route system at Ft. Wainwright.
"The biggest reason why we can't expand at this point is finances," said St. John.
ASYMCA is a non-profit service and does not receive government funding. Money for the Y on Wheels free ride service comes from sponsors and donations that the organization solicits from the community.
"We are very lucky to have Geico Insurance and Jeff Campbell Insurance Agency partially sponsoring us for about one-third of the costs," said St. John. Cellular One also donated phones for the drivers to use for their dispatch system.
"The annual Combined Federal Campaign program is also very important to us," said Urschel.
Y on Wheels was established in May 2005. The program is always being reviewed and the organization encourages people to give feedback through the Army Family Action Plan or the Interactive Customer Evaluation online system. The shuttle drivers can also provide surveys created by Y on Wheels upon request.
"It's a pleasure for us to be able to serve the troops their families and the folks supporting them on base," said Urschel.
For a free ride, patrons can call 353-3733 for the Ft. Wainwright shuttle or 384-3733 for service at Elmendorf AFB and Ft. Richardson.
| Date Taken: | 04.08.2008 |
| Date Posted: | 05.16.2008 10:54 |
| Story ID: | 19465 |
| Location: | US |
| Web Views: | 78 |
| Downloads: | 48 |
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