BRUNSWICK

After 33 years of service, Coastal Trans Inc. will be discontinuing all transportation operations to the Midcoast area next month.

Since 1983, the Rockland-based service has been the Maine Department of Transportation’s designated regional transportation provider for Knox, Lincoln and Sagadahoc counties and the towns of Brunswick and Harpswell, serving hundreds of low-income and disabled individuals.

In addition to rides by appointment, where residents can call 48 hours in advance to schedule transportation, other affected services include the Brunswick Explorer bus service and the Transportation Coupon Program, which subsidizes taxi fares for seniors and people with disabilities.

Changes in the state’s MaineCare transportation system had contributed significantly to some of the challenges with the service, according to Coastal Trans Executive Director Lee Karker.

Prior to 2013, Coastal Trans was the designated MaineCare transportation provider before the Maine Department of Health and Human Services adopted a brokerage system to subcontract other transportation companies for clients. MaineCare trans- portation is now provided by Mid- Coast Connector, a broker in Belfast.

“The way MaineCare transportation was split off from what was a coordinated system is affecting transportation in the state of Maine and it’s very unfortunate,” Karker said on Thursday.

Previously, about 70 percent of Coastal Trans’ business had been from MaineCare clients.

“We knew that the change in the way MaineCare transportation was delivered would have an effect on us,” he said. “But over the last year, there have been, I guess, a lot more other private providers getting into MaineCare transportation for the brokers. We basically had difficulty competing because we have larger vehicles and a lot more regulation around what we do.”

Last year, Coastal Trans provided about 25,000 rides, and served 800 individuals through the program’s appointment system, Karker said. The Brunswick Explorer also provided an additional 25,000 to 30,000 rides in the local area.

Brunswick resident Karen Jones said she started riding the Brunswick Explorer and using the coupon program in 2014 after putting her car away for storage in the winter. While she’s still able to drive, with Parkinson’s disease, Jones hoped “there will still be a bus when I need it” once she eventually stops driving.

“Public transportation needs to be increased in Maine, not decreased,” she said in an email.

MDOT spokesman Ted Talbot confirmed that Coastal Trans’ services would be turned over to an existing regional transportation provider, which will be revealed soon.

“We are confident that there will not be a gap in service,” he said on Thursday. “We will be working with and identifying existing regional transportation providers to provide that service, and we will be able to identify just who they are in about a week’s time.”

For now, Karker said the organization is trying to “make for a smooth transition.”

“We at Coastal Trans are just very disappointed that it came to this,” he said. “We are going to work very closely with whoever comes in to take our place and do everything we can to make sure that there’s no interruptions in service.”

Coastal Trans will officially discontinue their services on April 22, and have announced that they will issue refunds for any advance payments on deposit.

dkim@timesrecord.com

Regional rides

• SINCE 1983, Coastal Trans Inc. has been the Maine Department of Transportation’s designated regional transportation provider for Knox, Lincoln and Sagadahoc counties and the towns of Brunswick and Harpswell, serving hundreds of low-income and disabled individuals.

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