Free EV Rides For Rochester's Disadvantaged
Some residents of disadvantaged communities in Rochester lack the resources to obtain transportation critical to their lives. We will create a non-profit charity for electric vehicle owners to supply free rides to the elderly, blind and disabled residents of Rochester utilizing Lifespan's Give-a-Lift program. In addition, we will partner with the 19th Ward Community Association to identify other underserved residents. For driver safety we will provide "Medical Transport" plaques for their vehicles. In addition we will subsidize the purchase of electric medical motor vehicles and install charging stations in order to cut green house gases.
Expanding Give-a-Lift to the city will initially impact the quality of life of the target demographic: the elderly, blind and disabled. The impact will be proportional to the number of rides given. The first volunteers will come mainly from retired Tesla Owners Club of New York State (TOCNYS) members in the Rochester area. It will take some time and effort to increase the awareness of this service. In the beginning, rides will be initiated by referrals from existing agencies, such as Lifespan and Medical Motor Service. Methods used to increase awareness in the suburbs with be adopted for use in the city. After a pilot program has been implemented, the pool of volunteers will be increased to all electric vehicle drivers and the rider demographic will be increased by partnering with the 19th Ward Community Association and by word of mouth. Once a significant impact has been made on underserved Rochester residents, the same model will be expanded to the rest of New York state and beyond. At the same time, incentives to convert to electric vehicles will be expanded to all medical motor companies in Monroe County. To accommodate this, Charge Point will expand their charger installations. This will increase the impact on vehicle emissions.