When a bus route past his workplace closed earlier this month, Mark Towery took a week off the job just to plot how he would get around town.

Wheelchair bound, Towery is relying on friends, co-workers and taxis while a local nonprofit agency readies a van for him to drive. The 33-year-old is just one in a group of disabled riders formerly reliant on Rogue Valley Transportation District's Route 4 that Mobility Unlimited can assist, said executive director Glory Cooper.

"The services have been cut where they're most needed," Cooper said.

A $1.2 million shortfall in RVTD's budget coupled with low ridership prompted the Sept. 1 closure of Route 4 past Rogue Valley Medical Center. RVTD's Valley Lift also was discontinued in that area because federal funding for the service is directly linked to the proximity of bus routes.

"I thought it was a just a scare tactic," Towery said. "There's so many people depending on it."

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Despite purchasing his own van, the Medford resident was still dependent on Valley Lift for about two months while Mobility Unlimited outfitted his vehicle with hand controls and a wheelchair ramp. Now a co-worker shuttles Towery to his receptionist's post at an assisted living center on Golfview Drive. Friends give him rides to and from physical therapy. When no one else can pick him up, Towery takes a $12 taxi ride.

"It can be really frustrating to rely on other people to do things for you," Towery said.

A recent recipient of several grants, including $10,000 from the Reed and Carolee Walker Fund of the Oregon Community Foundation, Mobility Unlimited can provide other physically disabled working adults with wheelchair lifts for their vehicles or motorized scooters, Cooper said. Like Towery, clients must purchase their own vans before Mobility Unlimited installs lifts and hand controls.

Any physically disabled working adult with financial need can apply for assistance, as well as those in job training programs. Self-sufficiency for its clients is the mission of Mobility Unlimited, and selection criteria are based partly on clients' motivation, Cooper said.

"We want to help people succeed in life," Cooper said.

"By overcoming the barrier of transportation, our clients can do that."

Call 618-9468 for more information or visit the agency's Web site at www.mobilityunlimited.org.

Reach reporter Sarah Lemon at 776-4487, or e-mail slemon@mailtribune.com.