SENIORS AND physically handicapped inhabitants of Žiar nad Hronom, a town in central Slovakia, area have been able to use the social taxi since the beginning of this year. The local town hall launched the social taxi as a new social service.
Žiarans can take a taxi ride to see a doctor, to offices, to the railway or bus station, to the post office or for doing shopping. In the town area, they can use it for a symbolic one euro; and the ride to the district Šášovské Podhradie, they pay €1.50. The rest is paid by the town office.
“Our town cooperates with two taxi companies operating in Žiar,” head of the mayor’s office, Martin Baláž, told the SITA newswire. “Both get a flat sum of €200 a month from the town, but this can be changed in the future, depending on how inhabitants use them.” He added that the service is meant for people over 62, disability beneficiaries, and people accompanying seriously handicapped citizens.
They can use it on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays between 7:00 and 14:00. Everyone who calls the social taxi must show his ID and the decree of the Sociálna Poisťovňa (SP) insurer about receiving an old-age or disability pension, or the card confirming his grave disability and the need to have an aiding companion. Baláž said that the town plans to make random checks to prevent abuse of the social taxi.
