The National Aging and Disability Transportation Center (NADTC) has announced a new round of funding to support the development of program innovations and new models for equitable and accessible transportation to meet the needs of vulnerable and underserved populations, especially older adults and people with disabilities from diverse communities. NADTC has awarded $173,495 in competitive grants to 9 communities in eight states—CO, CT, IA, NM, NY, OH, OR, and RI.
The 9 grantees will each receive grants of up to $20,000 to engage in inclusive planning with community representatives from historically marginalized populations and local aging, disability and transportation organizations, and develop a written plan of action that addresses transportation equity and accessibility.
Grantees include:
- Agency on Aging of South Central Connecticut in North Haven, CT, will develop a plan for the expansion of TrustedRide-Certified (TRC) in Greater New Haven and implement door-through-door services that serve African American, AAPI, Hispanic, Native American and White older adults and individuals with disabilities who face obstacles such as mobility challenges, limited technology access, language barriers, anxiety and travel avoidance, and living in underserved towns.
- Colonie Senior Service Centers, Inc. in Albany, NY, will develop a plan identifying vital needs of African American, AAPI, Hispanic, Native American, and White older adults and those with disabilities due to isolation during the pandemic. The plan will include a strategy to re-engage them by providing transportation to medical appointments, shopping, health and wellness activities, dining, social and cultural events.
- Family Health Services in Sandusky, OH, will work towards regionalization of transportation systems by increasing the understanding and support for equitable and accessible transportation for African American, AAPI, Hispanic, Native American, and White older adults and people with disabilities through a sub-committee of the Mobility Management Team of community stakeholders and members of the target population.
- HIRTA Public Transit in Urbandale, IA, will build on current planning efforts to more fully engage African American, Hispanic and White people with disabilities and create a committee called IDEAS (Inclusion Diversity Equity Assessment) to expand the organization’s ongoing unmet needs assessment specifically focused on improving transportation for people with disabilities.
- North Central New Mexico Economic Development District in Santa Fe, NM, will identify longstanding mobility needs of Hispanic, Native American, and White older residents with disabilities using inclusive stakeholder assessments to develop equitable plans for adding targeted demand response microtransit in rural New Mexico.
- Pikes Peak Area Council of Governments in Colorado Springs, CO, will provide direction to specialized transportation services offered in the region and aim to better understand the needs of the African American, AAPI, Hispanic, Native American, and White individuals who depend on specialized transit services, identify gaps, and create a list of innovative projects to incorporate into the new Specialized Transit Plan.
- Rhode Island College Foundation-Age Friendly RI in Providence, RI, will explore the expanded use of community and nonprofit vehicles to reduce transportation gaps, and involve updating an inventory of transportation resources, understanding unmet demand, and designing a pilot project in a targeted geographic area for African American, AAPI, Hispanic, Native American and White older adults and people with disabilities.
- Ride Connection, Inc. in Portland, OR, will develop a Technology Innovations Strategy through an inclusive planning process to learn from older adults, people with disabilities, and BIPOC (Black and Indigenous People of Color) communities about their priorities and how people may be
burdened by or excluded through innovation. - The Ohio State University, College of Social Work, Age-Friendly Innovation Center in Columbus, OH, will focus on inclusive engagement of African American, AAPI and Hispanic older adults, individuals with disabilities and individuals with limited English proficiency to capture participant challenges and ideas for solutions for improving the local transit system infrastructure through focus groups, walk audits and transit audits.