Kasey Hopper patiently waits for his bus on bus route five Monday through Friday. He’s been doing that for about 12 years and because he’s legally blind, using the bus has been helpful to get to work.
“Specifically for work, with my specific disability, I don’t drive. Uber and ride shares can cost a lot of money, so using Sun Tran is my main source of transportation,” Hopper said.
He teaches at the Arizona State Schools for the Deaf and the Blind and teaches his students how to use the bus. It’s a skill he said is transferable to using the bus in other cities.
“It allows them to get from point A to point B and allows them to have that freedom and independence so they’re not relying on other people. They’re not relying on transportation that can be late,” he said.
Earlier this summer in one draft of their Comprehensive Operational Analysis study, the City of Tucson’s Department of Transportation and Mobility was considering getting rid of bus route five , which extends from Pima Community College’s west campus to Udall Park.