T-TAP: Strategies: Transportation

For most of us, getting to work, getting to the doctor, or getting to church means getting in our car. But for many people, it’s not that easy; there are often many challenges that individuals face when trying to “get a ride.”

In 2004, the Interagency Coordinating Council on Access and Mobility launched United We Ride -- a new five-part initiative -- to break down the barriers between programs and set the stage for local partnerships that generate common sense solutions and deliver A-plus performance for everyone who needs transportation.

What are the Challenges?
There are currently 62 different Federal Programs across 8 federal agencies that provide funding that may be used to support community transportation services. The challenge is one of fragmentation - several federal departments funding programs serving similar, and sometimes overlapping, populations resulting in service duplication in some areas and other areas with no service at all.

What is the Federal government doing about this?
On February 24, 2004, President Bush signed the Executive Order on Human Service Transportation Coordination. The Executive Order calls for action to enhance access to transportation to improve mobility, job opportunities and access to services for people who are transit dependent. The Interagency Coordinating Council was established and has formed six goal specific workgroups to implement the Executive Order.

What is Coordination?
Coordination is working cooperatively to more effectively apply the resources of several organizations to common problems. Coordination can improve overall mobility within a community, particularly when human service agencies are each providing transportation to their own clients. It works to wring inefficiencies out of the disparate operations and service patterns that often result from a multiplicity of providers. Greater efficiency helps to stretch the funding and personnel resources of these multiple departments that provide transportation services. Appropriately applied, coordination can lead to significant reductions for providers and programs. People in need of transportation often benefit from the greater access and mobility plus higher quality services when there is a fully coordinated human service transportation system.

Benefits

Coordination can lead to greater access to funds
Help communities gain access to transportation services
Reduce average cost of passenger trips
Provide more trips to more customers
Increase Productivity and Efficiencies
Enable non-transportation agencies to focus on their core mission
Make transportation services more visible and less confusing to customers

Challenges

More time and money has to be spent up-front, while benefits occur in the long run
Coordination is a continuous effort ?? Often duplicative and restrictive laws become barriers to coordination
Trusting partners in the shared decision making process means sometimes losing control over program and resources

United We Ride Fact Sheet No. 1: What is United We Ride? Prepared by The Federal Interagency Coordinating Council on Access and Mobility For more information contact United We Ride at http://www.unitedweride.gov/contact.htm or visit our website http://www.unitedweride.gov/1_13_ENG_HTML.htm

How each of the 5 components of United We Ride contributes to coordination:

• A Framework for Action. The assessment tool gives state and community leaders a starting point to discuss coordination planning or implementation strategies. Organizations have used the Framework For Action format to conduct planning
meetings and forums. It also facilitates the development and blue print of an Action Plan for coordinating human service transportation. To download the complete Framework for Action and facilitator's guide, please visit the CCAM website at: http://www.unitedweride.gov/1_81_ENG_HTML.htm

• State Leadership Awards. These awards recognize states for their leadership in building and implementing infrastructures, policies and programs that facilitate human service transportation coordination. It is an incentive for states and communities to create innovative coordinated transportation systems and programs. The first state awardees in 2004 include: Florida, Maryland, North Carolina, Ohio, and Washington State. To read more about each state, please visit the CCAM website at: http://www.unitedweride.gov/1_85_ENG_HTML.htm

• National Leadership Forum on Human Service Transportation Coordination. The forum allows state and community leaders to meet and collaborate on strategies for building and implementing human service transportation coordination. The forum is intended to help state leaders address state initiatives, identify action steps and technical assistance needs to improve human service transportation services. This is an opportunity to begin or continue the dialogue on coordinated human service transportation and forge unique partnerships, which is a step toward shared decision-making.

• State Coordination Grants. These grants will be used to help states address gaps and needs related to human service transportation in their geographic regions. Funds can be used in 1) conducting a comprehensive state assessment using the UWR Framework for Action; 2) developing a comprehensive State Action Plan for Coordinating Human Service Transportation; or 3) for states with an Action Plan, implementing one or more of the elements identified within the Framework for Action. Any state agency can take the lead on the proposal for a state as long as there is a clear demonstration of collaboration among multiple state agencies. The Federal Transit Administration and their Federal partners are currently seeking request for proposals. The deadline for proposals is August 23, 2003. For further details, please contact us at http://www.unitedweride.gov/contact.htm

• Help Along the Way. A technical assistance program developed so state and community leaders don’t have to spend time figuring out who to call or where to go to look for help. The program uses state coordination “ambassadors,” who are here to help bring cross-agency technical assistance teams to you. These ambassadors have facilitated meetings and have helped to forge alliance along the lines of coordination. For more information on state coordination ambassadors, contact Elizabeth Solomon at 202- 366-0242 or http://www.unitedweride.gov/contact.htm. For a PDF file of the technical assistance brochure, please visit: http://www.unitedweride.gov/

TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE RESOURCES

Nation Transit Resource Center
c/o Community Transportation Association of America
http://www.ctaa.org/ntrc
800.891.0590

Easter Seals Project ACTION
Technical Assistance
http://projectaction.easterseals.com
800.659.6428

Multi-State Technical Assistance Program
c/o American Association of Highway and Transportation Officials
http://www.mtap.org
202.624.3625

Rural Transportation Assistance Program (RTAP)
http://www.nationalrtap.org
202.408.9541

Intelligent Transportation System (ITS)
Peer to Peer Program
http://www.its.dot.gov
866.367.7487

National Job Links Employment Transportation Initiative
c/o Community Transportation Association of America
http:// www.ctaa.org/ntrc/is_employment.asp
800.527.8279

In partnership with the National Transit Resource Center, we’ve also developed a listing of publications on coordinated services. For a list of these resources, please visit our website: http://www.unitedweride.gov/

This website was developed by T-TAP, funded by a cooperative agreement from the U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Disability Employment Policy (Number E 9-4-2-01217). The opinions expressed herein do not necessarily reflect the position or policy of the U.S. Department of Labor. Nor does mention of trade names, commercial products, or organizations imply the endorsement by the U.S. Department of Labor. Virginia Commonwealth University, is an equal opportunity/affirmative action institution providing access to education and employment without regard to age, race, color, national origin, gender, religion, sexual orientation, veteran's status, political affiliation, or disability. Privacy Policy. If special accommodations or language translation are needed contact Katherine Inge at: kinge@atlas.vcu.edu or Voice (804) 828 - 1851 | TTY (804) 828 - 2494.