Sudbury Council on Aging tracks ride-program overrun before hospital shuttle launches Aug. 6

SUDBURY -- July 15, 2024, Sudbury Council on Aging weighs co-pay hike as senior ride subsidies hit $13,000 a month. Director Debra Galloway and Transportation Committee member Bob Lieberman told the council on July 15 that taxi and Uber subsidies for seniors have risen from roughly $8,000 to $9,000 monthly to about $13,000, against a $31,000 state grant paid in two installments, half of the second of which is already spent. "You either increase the co-pay, or you reduce the number of rides somebody can take," Lieberman said. The town's CatchConnect on-demand van launched July 1, and a Sudbury-Wayland Hospital Shuttle through the MetroWest Regional Transit Authority starts Aug. 6 with three round trips Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays at $2 per ride. Galloway reported 477 new Senior Center participants in fiscal 2024, with women outnumbering men 69 percent to 31 percent.