On Monday, May 14, at 10:30 a.m. Mayor Cantu will be joined in front of the new hospital by Lt. Governor Kim Guadagno and officials from NJ Transit at a ceremony for the start of Plainsboro’s new bus service, the 655 route, traveling to and from the township as well as the hospital, Forrestal Center, Route 1, Alexander Road, and stops in Princeton, including the old hospital site on Witherspoon Street.
Mayor Cantu said the 655 line is significant for two key reasons: it marks the first new bus service in New Jersey in seven or eight years, and it also comes as a result of a public-private partnership between Plainsboro and Princeton Townships and Princeton University and the Princeton Healthcare System (PHCS) — the management company of the new hospital. The university and PHCS provided principle funding for the bus route, and Mayor Cantu said that additional contributions came from the Middlesex County Board of Chosen Freeholders and the Greater Mercer Transportation Management Association (GMTMA) a non-profit public private partnership itself.
#b#New Transportation Service for Seniors#/b#
Ahead of the opening of the new hospital on May 21, Plainsboro Township welcomed a new transportation service for senior citizens and the visually impaired. RideProvide started serving the township on Monday, May 7, extending its service for the first time into Middlesex County due to the opening of the new University Medical Center of Princeton at Plainsboro.
Mayor Peter Cantu made an official announcement on the new service while giving a speech at the Older Americans Month luncheon on Friday, May 4.
“The service is available to all seniors 65 years and over, and all adult residents that are visually impaired. We are very pleased to have this added service available to our senior population as well as those that may have issues with their sight,” Cantu said.
RideProvide is a car service operating with regular sedans, not handicapped-accessible vans. Anyone using a walker or cane who can get themselves into and out of the car can use the service. RideProvide cars are also not medically-equipped.
Residents can make reservations for RideProvide by calling 609-452-5144 between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. on weekdays. Trips must be booked two business days in advance, and to cancel scheduled trips residents should call in between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m. at least one business day in advance.
With a membership, the car service is available for Plainsboro seniors and the visually impaired who need transportation to run errands, go to grocery shopping, hairdressers, or any other trip within the township. An annual membership with RideProvide is $40, payable by check. Those interested in membership can call the same telephone number to request an application, which would be sent to them through the mail.
Users of the service going to any Princeton Healthcare System facility a don’t need to be a member to take advantage of RideProvide. A scheduler for RideProvide said that for any scheduled appointments, testing, or lab work, that would take place at a PHCS facility, PHCS would directly pay RideProvide the cost of the transportation.
For the past five years RideProvide has existed only for residents of Mercer County, and the service is made available through the GMTMA. For more information please visit https://rideprovide.org/
