Somerville's Door2Door Offers Training on Riding the T

You've likely seen Door2Door vans throughout Somerville.

The Somerville-based non-profit offers rides to seniors and people with disabilities, helping them get to shops, family and outings.

Read more about the organization here.

Now, Door2Door, run by SCM Community Transportation out of 167 Holland St., is partnering with the MBTA to help train seniors and people with physical and cognitive disabilities how to ride the T's buses, subways and Commuter Rail trains.

At an event Tuesday on Boston Common, Door2Door and the MBTA unveiled the new training program, called Ways2Go Travel Training.

"All we need to do to is demonstrate how easy it is to use our system of subway trains and buses," said Beverly Scott, general manager of the MBTA, in a written statement. "A lot of people do not know that the T is so accessible and quite easy to use once you get the hang of it."

Among other things, the program teaches people how to plan trips, and it provides tours of stations and facilities to give people hands-on experience getting around on the T.

The MBTA offers a basic "System Orientation Training," and Door2Door will provide more intensive Ways2Go training to those who need it.

Reed Cochran, executive director of Door2Door, said in a statement that "many of our consumers long for more options and more autonomy in deciding where to go and when. For those who willing and able to adopt fixed route options, the world will be more at their fingertips. Ways2Go training will make the process much less daunting."

According to the Boston Globe, Ways2Go will be able to train 20 to 30 people a month.

To learn about travel training, call (617) 222-5237 or write to HowToTravel@mbta.com.