A disabled teenager says he has been left stranded for hours in freezing weather because transit buses have been too full or had broken wheelchair lifts.
Daniel Yanko waits at a bus stop in Anmore nearly every day after school for a community shuttle bus. The trouble is, says his mother, the 18-year-old Heritage Wood Secondary Student has been left on the curb countless times by drivers who couldn't or wouldn't help him onto the bus because it was packed or disabled facilities were broken.
"The wheelchair lifts weren't working. The bus was always full," said his mother, Kimberly Yanko.
"All the kids standing at the stop get on the bus except me," said Daniel.
Over the past 18 months, Kimberly has kept a record of the correspondence she sent and received from TransLink. So far, the problem hasn't been resolved. On Thursday she came face-to-face with TransLink representatives.
"I spent $710.35 on taxis fares on this child in less than three months. Can you tell me that the average family can afford that?" she said.
"It's our responsibility to make sure the lifts are working...we hopefully will do better," said TransLink CEO Tom Prendergast.
"The proof is in the pudding. The proof is your son being able to get on a bus and having a seamless trip and not having any other problems."
According to the BC Coalition of People with Disabilities, there are many stories of the system failing the disable.
"We do hear stories about people having problems with the buses. It's good they're accessible, but they're so often full that wheelchair users can't get on them," said Jane Dyson of the BC Coalition for People with Disabilities.
Daniel Yanko is set to graduate from grade 12 this year. He hopes to be as independent as possible. His mother hopes something as basic as riding a bus will allow him this freedom.
"It's sad that he has to fight this hard for his independence. It's even sadder that society stops him from it," she said.
With a report from CTV British Columbia's Anna Gebauer.
