At the beginning of 2021 Pakruojis District Municipality Administration handed over to Pakruojis non-stationary social services center a specialized vehicle – a car that seats 9 persons (including a driver).

“The lift is comfortable, the car is new, beautiful, smells of paint. According to the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, when everything must be adapted for the disabled, this car in Pakruojis district, like a swallow, makes life easier for the disabled,” after testing the new vehicle said Robertas Ašmanavičius, a member of the Pakruojis District Municipality Council.

The vehicle provides a shuttle service for the elderly, people with disabilities, and families. Because the bus is equipped with a special lift, the service is very convenient for people with reduced mobility or those using a wheelchair – with the help of an automated lift, the passenger can easily get on the bus and special seat belts ensure their safety.

The car’s passenger area has a climate control system and air conditioning, so passengers can drive comfortably in both cold and warm seasons. Purchase of such a vehicle will enable a greater number of people with special needs to benefit from the service and will significantly improve the quality of the shuttle service provided by the center.

According to Daiva Rutkevičienė, Head of the Social welfare department of Pakruojis District Municipality Administration, the transportation services provided by the district social institutions a few years ago were of poor quality. The available vehicles were old, worn out, vehicles with special lifts were damaged and no longer suitable for repairs. It is gratifying to note that with the financial support from European regional development fund during the last three-four years Pakruojis District Municipality Administration has been able to purchase and hand over to the district social institutions 2 new vehicles with special lifts for transporting disabled people. Another 7 vehicles intended for the service of social functions were purchased from state and municipal budgets.

Laimutė Kazokaitienė, the director of Pakruojis non-stationary social services center (hereinafter referred to as the Service Center), is glad that the transportation of disabled people, who move only with the help of a wheelchair, became much easier precisely because of the automatic lift. “We could not provide such a service to people with disabilities ourselves before; we had to look for someone who could provide a special transport service. And now this service is at your fingertips” – shared the director.

Although the announced quarantine is still in force in the Republic of Lithuania, the Service Center provided the shuttle service to 23 persons, of whom 14 were persons with disabilities (recognized as incapacitated or partially able to work, with a level of high or medium special needs or disabled children), 3 persons of retirement age who have reached the age of 75 and older, 6 persons from families, experiencing social risks. Transport services were mostly provided to drive them to (from) treatment, rehabilitation and nursing facilities, several times to / from inpatient social care and nursing facilities, and 2 times people were transported to get the COVID-19 (coronavirus infection) vaccine.

The specialized vehicle was purchased by Pakruojis District Municipality Administration in accordance with Interreg V-A Latvia–Lithuania Cross Border Cooperation Programme 2014–2020 project No. LLI-513 “Empowerment of generations for social integration” (Power of Generations) (hereinafter – the project), financed from the European Regional Development Fund, state budget of the Republic of Lithuania and Pakruojis District Municipality budget. The aim of the project is to improve accessibility and efficiency of home care and day care social services in Pakruojis (Lithuania) and Iecava (Latvia) municipalities for lonely elders, people with disabilities, families at social risk and children being raised in those families.

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More information about the project ⇒ here.

The contents of this publication are the sole responsibility of Pakruojis District Municipality Administration and can under no circumstances be regarded as reflecting the position of the European Union.

Reference to Interreg V-A Latvia–Lithuania Cross Border Cooperation Programme 2014–2020 website www.latlit.eu.

Link to the official website of the European Union www.europa.eu.