I have five family members who cannot move to the third seat of a vehicle. Is there a way to transport them all at once ?

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I have five family members who cannot move to the third seat of a vehicle. Is there a way to transport them all at once ?

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I have five disabled family members :
1. husband is feeble and had a stroke
2. daughter needs foot surgery... scheduled
3. sister had compression fractures spine
4. sister’s husband broke his hip
5. brother is ambulatory with a walker

My best transport is a Kia Sedona which at least has four doors, but I see no more accessible vehicle for transporting these family members when they have multiple physician appointments at similar times (we try to schedule different days, but there are so many appointments.)
Right now my nephew is in town and helps with transportation in a separate vehicle and my daughter can drive until her surgery.

Driving Family Caregiver Mobility

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Check with the Columbus, GA public transit system and ask about small buses, paratransit, or other direct transit outside of what are known as fixed routes.

The buses typically have lifts for wheelchairs, as extra space in the vehicle. I don't know how many seats they have.   The area behind the driver is in my experience open, with one or more wheelchair seats, and necessary equipment to lock a wheelchair in place while the bus is in transit.

In our area fees are only a few dollars.   Some senior centers have these, through arrangements with the public transit agency.

I'd like to raise a relevant issue, and that's safety.   With that many people compromised in terms of mobility, what emergency plans do you have?   No one wants to think about a car crash, or being caught in a winter storm, but these things do happen.   If you have to evacuate the vehicle quickly, what are your back-up plans?

I'm not trying to scare you, but I think that's an issue to consider.

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Thanks.
I will check these suggestions out.
I never thought about the Area Agency on Aging or staggering pickup times.

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I have a dodge grand caravan minivan with two bucket seats in the second row. Both of these seats easily fold down half way (back folds down into the seat to create a "stool") or flip on down into in floor storage compartment. When I needed to strap down infants in the 3rd row seat, I often folded one of the second row seats back down so I could sit down on the folded seat "stool" from the doorway with the infant in my arms and then turn to face the 3rd row and strap the infant into their child seat. After getting three kids into the 3rd row car seats and a 4th into a second row seat, I would restore the back on the folded seat to its normal position, place a booster seat in it, and strap in an older child. The oldest (when I was transporting 6) sat in the first row passenger's seat with the air bag disabled.

I would think your daughter with a problem in one foot could seat herself on the folded down 2nd row seat and scoot around until she could settle in the 3rd row seating. Perhaps you brother could do the same? The 3rd row has adequate leg room but the seats are a little lower so they wouldn't work for anyone with hip problems and would be difficult for someone with serious knee issues.

Is it possible when appointment times are close you could use public transport to get a couple to their appointments and then pick them up 2-3 at a time after appointments and run them home before picking up the others? My experience with the public transports is you spend a lot more time waiting after appointments since you cannot confirm the pickup until the appointment is over. Even if there's a wide pick up window where you need to be ready for pickup, you do that waiting in the comfort of your own home.

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This may not be possible for you, but rental car places have vans,, big ones! You may be able to rent one on occasion, and with 5 people pitching in the cost should be minimal, as you only need it for a few hours and the mileage should be minimal as well. I would think maybe you could get a good price for only a few hours on weekday.. Less than a Uber? They have big sliding doors and bench seats sometimes..

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That’s a good idea! If you are gonna rent, make sure you don’t rent from an airport-they charge 40% in extra fees (taxes and facility charges). Learned that the hardway.

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Your area on aging doesn’t provide buses but they can provide information on the barons transportation services in your area.

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Call your local Office of Aging and see if they provide buses. They are wheelchair accessible.

I think u have enough on your plate without having to worry about sister and her husband. They need to do for themselves. Their children need to get involved.

You still have ur brother living with you? Another responsibility u don't need. If he is on Medicaid for health insurance, they provide transportation.

Your responsibility is to ur family.

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I have five family members who cannot move to the third seat of a vehicle. Is there a way to transport them all at once ?

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