Pace Partners with Uber to Offer Rides to Paratransit Customers, DuPage County, IL 2022

Pace Suburban Bus is partnering with Uber, a transportation network company, to pilot the DuPage Access Program. This program provides fare subsidies of up to $30 for eligible ADA Paratransit customers living in suburban DuPage County, west of Chicago. Rides provided by Uber must start and end within Pace’s designated ADA Paratransit service area. Customers can request rides in real-time or ahead of schedule through Uber’s app or website; PACE plans on providing a reservation-by-phone option to customers without smartphone or internet access. Customers can use the DuPage Access Program eight times per day and are only required to pay for fares over $30. In other words, if a total ride fare is $34.50, customers only pay $4.50 out of pocket ($34.50 – $30 subsidy = $4.50).

Pace is funding the DuPage Access Program with a $1.1 million budget. These funds are part of a larger $6 million budget that Pace has set aside for partnerships with transportation network companies (TNCs) in the 2022 fiscal year. The DuPage Access Program is modeled after Pace’s Taxi Access Program in Chicago, which offers fare-free taxi rides to customers with disabilities. This new service provides a new mobility option to suburban paratransit customers while other transit services are understaffed. Like other transit agencies across the United States, Pace faces a significant labor shortage that is negatively impacting its services. The DuPage Access Program and other TNC partnerships can model how agencies can provide new transportation services to targeted populations.

Last updated February 14, 2022