Accessibility - LIFT

this page contains:
Certification for LIFT | How to Ride | Common Q & A | Personal Care Attendants | ADA Contact

NCTD's SPRINTER light rail trains, fixed-route BREEZE & FAST buses, the ADA Paratransit LIFT buses, and the COASTER commuter train are all accessible to persons with disabilities. LIFT is the ADA paratransit service for passengers with disabilities in North County, who, because of their disability, are not able to access the fixed route services. NCTD contracts with Laidlaw Transit Services to operate LIFT. The law requires LIFT riders to be certified for ADA paratransit eligibility.


CERTIFICATION FOR LIFT
To become eligible to ride LIFT, you must first complete an NCTD ADA Certification application.

   - Print the application from the NCTD ADA Certification page
   - Call (760) 966-6500, TTY (760) 966-6527 to have one mailed to you
   - Pick one up at NCTD's Administration Office
     at 810 Mission Avenue, in Oceanside, open Monday - Friday, 8:00 am - 5:00 pm.

Once we receive a completed application, we have up to 21 days to determine if you meet the eligibility criteria established by the ADA. We will then send you a letter informing you of the decision.

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HOW TO RIDE LIFT
Call LIFT at (760) 726-1111 one (1) or two (2) days in advance of your trip to schedule a pick-up. However, if you are calling for a Monday trip, you may call the preceding Thursday, and if you are calling for a Tuesday trip, you may call the preceding Friday.


Please be prepared to provide the following information in this order:

1. Your name

2. The date you will be traveling

3. Your pick up address (including apartment number, building or business name or other specific information or landmarks)

4. The time you would like to be picked up OR the time you need to reach your destination

5. The physical address of your destination (including building or business name or other specific information)

6. Telephone number at your destination

7. If a personal care attendant (PCA) will travel with you

8. If guests other than your PCA will travel with you (including children)

9. If you will be using a mobility device

When scheduling a ride or return trip, please allow:

- plenty of time to finish your appointment in order to meet the vehicle
- adequate travel time
- extra time for the pick-up and drop-off of other passengers and
- traffic delays

The Americans with Disabilities Act allows ADA Paratransit service providers to offer travel times one (1) hour before or one (1) hour after the requested travel time. This enables us to offer more efficient service to all Paratransit users.

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WHEN & WHERE DOES NCTD'S ADA PARATRANSIT SERVICE OPERATE?
LIFT operates during the same days and hours that the fixed-route system operates. NCTD BREEZE buses serve the cities of Carlsbad, Del Mar, Encinitas, Escondido, Oceanside, Solana Beach, San Marcos, Vista, Camp Pendleton, the unincorporated communities of Fallbrook, Ramona, and other portions of Northern San Diego County. LIFT serves the same areas that the BREEZE fixed route buses serve.

You can also transfer to San Diego and Orange County's paratransit services.

NCTD's LIFT ADA paratransit may also service you from home provided it is within 3/4 of a mile from one of our fixed routes.

WHAT IS THE FARE?
The cost for a one-way trip on LIFT is $4 and is due upon boarding. Exact cash or a LIFT ticket is accepted. The drivers do not make change or sell tickets.

LIFT tickets are available for pre-purchase in books of ten (10) for $40.00. You can purchase ticket books with your credit card by calling Customer Service at (760) 966-6740, or you can request ticket by mail envelopes and pay by mail with a check. You can also come into the General Administration Office at 810 Mission Avenue, Oceanside, Monday through Friday, between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. and pay for the books by credit card, check or cash.

WHAT DOES CURB-TO-CURB SERVICE MEAN?
"Curb-to-curb" service means we ask you to be at the curb, ready to board the LIFT vehicle. LIFT is not able to service passengers who need assistance beyond the curb, unless they have an attendant to assist them. Responsibility for a passenger who can not be left unattended is on the caregiver, social worker or care center.

WHAT IF I NEED A PERSONAL CARE ATTENDANT (PCA)?
If you will require the assistance of a personal care attendant (PCA) to travel, please indicate this on your ADA Paratransit application. According to the ADA, a PCA is defined as someone designated or employed specifically to help the eligible individual meet his or her needs. If that need is verified, our certification letter will specify that a PCA may travel with you free of charge. If you do not meet the criteria for a PCA, you may opt to take a paying companion with you; such reservations are on a space available basis.

WHEN MAY I EXPECT LIFT?
LIFT vehicles will arrive any time within a 20-minute "ready-time" window. Drivers are required to wait five minutes after this ready time window has begun. For example, if your reservation is between 9 am and 9:20 am, and the vehicle arrives before the "ready time" has started, the driver will wait until 5 minutes after the ready time has started. When they arrive within the 20-minute window, or if LIFT is late, drivers will wait 5 minutes for you to board the vehicle.

WILL THE DRIVER COME TO MY DOOR?
No. You must be out at the curb waiting for the LIFT bus at the start of the "ready time."

WHAT IF I'M LATE OR MISS MY PICK-UP?
If you do not arrive within the 5-minute wait time, the driver will mark you as a "No-Show" and will depart the location. LIFT is not required to call you when the vehicle arrives or before it leaves your location.

NOTE: Passengers with a "late cancellation" and/or a "no-show" will still be charged for the scheduled trip. $4 is due at the time of the next pick-up. A "late cancellation" is when a person calls to cancel a scheduled trip less than one hour before that scheduled trip. A "no-show" is when a person makes a reservation and then is not ready at the scheduled place and time.

HOW DO I CANCEL A TRIP?
Notify LIFT Reservations at (760) 726-1111 as soon as possible, preferably more than 1 day before the scheduled trip. If you give 1 hour or less notice, you will be charged for that trip. $4 is payable at the time of your next pick up.

MAY I CONNECT FROM A BUS TO LIFT?
Yes, when you board a SPRINTER, BREEZE or FAST bus then board LIFT, you will only pay the difference between the two fares.

WHAT IF I TRANSFER FROM LIFT TO THE COASTER?
When you board LIFT, ask the driver for a transfer for the COASTER. Retain the transfer. With it, you will not need to pay an additional fare to ride the COASTER.

MAY I UTILIZE NCTD'S OTHER SERVICES?
Yes. When you have been certified to ride NCTD's ADA Paratransit, bring: 1) your letter and 2) an ID that has your picture and name on it to Customer Service at 810 Mission Ave. in Oceanside. We will take your photo and issue you an ID. This ID card allows you to board BREEZE and FAST directly and pay only the reduced Senior/Disabled fare.

If you are certified as needing a PCA, your new card will state "PCA - YES." This allows your PCA to ride with you at no additional charge on SPRINTER, BREEZE and FAST buses.

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PCAs
Personal Care Attendants (PCAs) may ride regular SPRINTER trains, BREEZE & FAST buses free of charge when they accompany a person certified to use paratransit services. In other words, passengers who are certified to use LIFT paratransit with the assistance of a PCA, are eligible to let their PCA ride free on all SPRINTER trains, BREEZE & FAST buses.

Passengers need to show a "Paratransit/Reduced Fare ID Card" photo identification from NCTD with the PCA-YES symbol on it. The PCAs Ride Free on Fixed Route Program is only available on NCTD SPRINTER trains, BREEZE & FAST Buses, not the COASTER or San Diego (MTS) buses.

How To obtain a "Paratransit Reduced Fare ID Card"
IF YOU ALREADY HAVE THE GREEN "PARATRANSIT ID" YOU DO NOT NEED A NEW PHOTO. If you had an In-Person Interview as part of your application process, you do not need to have another photo taken. Please call (760) 966-6500, or (760) 966-6561, and we can send you an ID through the mail. If you do not currently have the green "Paratransit ID" card, and are certified to use LIFT, you can come into our main office at 810 Mission Avenue in Oceanside, Monday through Friday, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., to get your photo ID. If this is inconvenient for you, just call us! We will set a convenient time to come out and take your photo at your home, and send your photo ID in the mail. See "ADA Contact" information below.

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ADA CONTACT

To obtain this information in alternate formats, contact

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