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SWFL Transportation Provider For The Disabled and Disadvantaged Suspends Service

Good Wheels Inc. Facebook Page

Update: The Hendry County Board of Commissioners announced  that MV Transportation will be the emergency Community Transportation Coordinator for Glades and Hendry Counties.  MV Transportation is preparing to resume Transportation Disadvantaged services in the area on Monday, February 24, 2020.Riders in Glades and Hendry Counties are asked to call MV Transportation at 800-260-0139.

The organization that has transported the disabled and disadvantaged in Southwest Florida for the last 30 years is permanently suspending its services.

Good Wheels Inc., CEO Alan Mandel said the nonprofit has been trying for months to receive funds that were allocated to it through federal grants given to the Florida Department of Transportation, and an approved loan from the Small Business Association

"We did work with those groups trying to get the funding received so that we could continue to operate, but those different agencies have not provided the funding," Mandel said. 

At a board meeting held on Tuesday night, the organization decided to suspend all services after Wednesday, Feb. 19.

"We tried to impress on everybody the need for the funding immediately and without it we just cannot go forward," Mandel said. 

Mandel said Good Wheels made between 12 to 14,000 trips a month and served people across Lee, Collier, Hendry, Glades and Charlotte counties.

Mandel recommends those who relied on their services to call their respective county manager’s office for transportation details.

Andrea Perdomo is a reporter for WGCU News. She started her career in public radio as an intern for the Miami-based NPR station, WLRN. Andrea graduated from Florida International University, where she was a contributing writer for the student-run newspaper, The Panther Press, and was also a member of the university's Society of Professional Journalists chapter.