Veterans in need of a ride to medical appointments will now have a new van to transport them. The van was purchased Thursday for the Disabled American Veterans Van Program. Broome County Executive Debbie Preston, along with other county officials, announced the purchase. Many veterans are often too ill to drive themselves, don’t have family members who can drive them, or don’t have any other means of transportation to appointments. Under this program, the Broome County Department of Veterans Services teams with the DAV Van Program to provide free transportation to local out-patient medical appointments, along with in-patient appointments at the Syracuse VA Medical Center. The new van, which was purchased for $22,000 through the Veterans Real Estate Transfer Tax, comes at no cost to taxpayers. The new van joins the current fleet of two vans, both of which have over 100,000 miles on their engines. In 2012, the program provided transportation to more than 300 local veterans, with 240 trips to Syracuse and 190 local trips. The program is available to all veterans, not just the disabled.
