Transportation Frequently Asked Questions
Question: What local resources are available to assist my community in planning and developing or expanding public transit services?
Answer:
State departments of transportation, local councils of government, private transportation companies, economic and community development corporations, and regional planning organizations can assist rural communities undertaking transit planning projects. Also, individual state Rural Transit Assistance Programs (RTAPs) provide workshops, on-site training, educational materials, and peer assistance. Contact your state's department of transportation for information on your individual state RTAP resources. In addition the Community Transportation Association of America offers a variety of technical assistance for communities looking to initiate and/or expand transportation services and programs that link people to jobs, medical care and other destinations necessary for quality of life.
Question: What resources are available to provide operating and capital assistance for public transit services in rural areas?
Answer: The Federal Transit Administration's Section 5311 Program can provide funding for 50% of the operating deficit of rural public transit services, and 80% of the capital costs for equipment (such as buses). The 5311 Program is administered by individual state departments of transportation.
Question: What transportation services can rural communities provide for people with disabilities?
Answer: Access to transportation is a major issue for people with disabilities living in rural areas. Some options that can increase transit options for people with disabilities include flexroutes, which allow for fixed transit routes to add on additional stops as needed, and voucher programs, which allow riders to decide who drives them, where and when. To learn about flexroutes, see the Handbook for Rural Flexroute Implementation. To learn about voucher programs, see Making Transportation Work for People with Disabilities in Rural America: The Supported Volunteer Rural Transportation Voucher Program and the Great Plains Rural Initiative on Transportation (GRIT).
By combining transportation services to different special populations as well as the general public, people can be served by routes that are close to where they live rather than routes funded by the agency that serves them. Communities may want to explore the use of vehicles, such as school buses, that are only used part time to provide services for people with disabilities. Strategies that partner transit providers with volunteer or paid individual drivers to provide needed transit are another option to consider. Some issues that should be addressed include appropriate driver training and liability issues. For more information, see Easter Seals' Project ACTION (Accessible Community Transportation in Our Nation) and APRIL's Rural Transportation.
Question:
What federal agencies support human service transportation projects in rural areas?
Answer:
There are several federal agencies that fund human service transportation projects. These are the Department of Education's Office of Special Education & Rehabilitative Services; the Department of Health and Human Services' Administration for Children and Families, Administration on Aging, Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services; the Department of Labor's Employment and Training Administration, and Office of Disability Employment Policy; the Department of Transportation's Federal Highway Administration; and the Social Security Administration Disability Programs. Also, the federal departments of Agriculture, Housing and Urban Development, Interior, Veterans Administration, and the National Council on Disabilities have programs to support transportation projects. For more information about these agencies and their projects a new federal interagency called United We Ride has been developed to coordinate the nine federal departments (62 agencies) that provide funding in support of human services transportation.
Question: What is United We Ride?
Answer: United We Ride is an interagency federal initiative that supports states and their localities in developing coordinated human service delivery systems. In addition to state coordination grants, United We Ride provides state and local agencies a transportation coordination and planning self-assessment tool, help along the way, technical assistance, and other resources to help their communities succeed.
Question: Is there a federal program targeted specifically to assist the transportation needs of elderly persons and persons with disabilities?
Answer: The Federal Transit Administration Section 5310 program, Transportation for Elderly Persons and Persons with Disabilities, provides formula funding to states for assisting private nonprofits groups in meeting the transportation needs of the elderly and persons with disabilities when the transportation service is unavailable, insufficient, or inappropriate. Funds allotted can be 80% of the capital costs for equipment (such as buses) that are used primarily to transport seniors and persons with disabilities. The 5310 Program can also support contracting for services in some cases. This program is not exclusively rural and is administered by individual state departments. In addition a new FTA program, the New Freedom Program (Section 5317), will provide assistance, in both rural and urban areas, to support transit services for persons with disabilities who cannot utilize existing ADA transit services. To find out more information contact the Rural Transit Assistance Program (RTAP) in your state. The RTAP directory is found at: http://www.nationalrtap.org/statecontacts.asp.
Question: Where can I find information about transportation programs in my area that will assist the elderly and the disabled to get to work or to a medical appointment?
Answer: Information on transportation options for the disabled and the elderly should be available at local human service offices, local transit authorities, community and faith-based organizations, and regional planning organizations. Contact your local county social service agency, your community action agency, and/or call 2-1-1 if this service is available, to find out what programs are in your area. Also, you may check the following web sites for listings of local transportation agencies by state, county, and city: the American Public Transportation Association's United States Local and State Transit Links and Public Transportation. If at the local level you are not finding out sufficient information call your state RTAP office.
For transportation to a job The U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration's One-Stop Centers system provide job, career, and workforce information for workers, jobseekers, and employers but many also provide transportation information geared to the needs of low-income workers and job seekers. If the one-stop centers do not provide sufficient information you may need to contact the agencies listed above.
Question: Are there programs or grant opportunities to help tribal communities improve transportation services?
Answer:
Yes, the Community Transportation Association of America has a program called the Tribal Transit Technical Assistance Program. This program is funded through the Rural Business Cooperative Service of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), and is designed to assist tribal communities in enhancing economic growth and development by improving transportation services.
The Administration for Native Americans (ANA) Social and Economic Development Strategies (SEDS) program
will fund projects to develop community transportation activities that support the needs of the elderly, the disabled, and the local workforce. There is a new FTA Tribal Program, Public Transportation on Indian Reservations (Section 5311c), which provides planning, capital and operating assistance to designated tribal entities. For more information, contact regional FTA offices. The majority of the funding opportunities for general rural transportation projects are also applicable for tribal communities as well.
Question: Can Medicaid or TANF funds be used to subsidize transportation?
Answer: States can use federal Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF) funds to assist low-income, working families with transportation. Generally this type of assistance includes bus tokens, fuel costs, car repair, and taxi services. TANF may allow for the provision of diversion assistance, a one-time payment to address an emergency, that if not met would result in a family applying for welfare assistance. Assistance is not limited to welfare recipients, however, the type of assistance offered varies by state.
Medicaid pays for emergency ambulance service and transportation to non-emergency medical appointments if the recipient has no other means to travel to the appointment. Medicaid-funded transportation is available in every part of the country, and is provided by for-profit, nonprofit, and public transportation providers. When not in use to serve Medicaid clients, vehicles can be made available to transport other low-income community residents.
Question: How would a community begin to implement a transportation program to serve the transportation needs of the elderly and the disabled, and rural transportation in general?
Answer: If there is no transportation program to serve the needs of the elderly and the disabled in your area and you would like to implement a program, there are two agencies you should contact. Your state RTAP office (see directory) will be able to provide you with funding information at the federal and state level such as what monies are available to your community through the FTA's section 5310 Program. They can provide technical information to help you start a program, identify successful transportation programs within your state, and will provide you with all the training materials developed by the National Rural Transit Assistance Program (NRTAP).
The Community Transportation Association of America (CTAA) supports the Information Station. This web site provides important community transportation news, resources, and ideas for transit professionals, human services agencies, and for other information seekers exploring mobility issues in their community. The Information Station site provides guides, on-line publications, success stories, and links to related websites. They also have a toll free telephone (1.800.527.8279) with extensions for specific transportation topics regarding medical, senior, employment, rural, and other topics.
Question: Are
there funds that would enable health and social service providers to obtain
and operate transportation services?
Answer:
The Community
Development Transportation Lending Services fund, established
by the Community Transportation Association of America, assists rural
communities in improving or expanding local transit services, purchasing
vehicles, building facilities and promoting economic development. This
loan is designed to assist transportation providers, transit agencies,
human service transportation providers, private transit companies,
suppliers, and manufacturers with their financial capital and related
technical assistance needs. The fund raises capital through cooperative
agreements with United States government agencies and works with
various private sector lenders to develop other sources of capital
for the transit industry.
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for
Children and Families administers the Community Services Block Grant. This grant funds a broad range of social services for low-income communities including transportation projects that improve the
delivery and effectiveness of human services programs. Funding is also
available from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration to support project sites that integrate
substance abuse treatment, health and social service, and transportation services.
Community Development Block Grants from the U.S. Department of Housing
and Urban Development can be used to support construction, operating
expenses and vehicle purchase for community transportation services.
The Federal Highway Administration (U.S. Department of Transportation)
makes funds available for highway construction and rehabilitation and
for planning activities that address welfare–to-work needs. The
Rural Transit Assistance Program provides formula funding to states for
rural transit training and technical assistance.
Question: Where can I find technical assistance and training programs for the implementation of a transportation service in my area?
Answer:
The United We Ride Technical Assistance and Training web site lists programs with contact information and links to their web sites. These programs and centers provide training, resources and direct assistance to communities and states interested in enhancing the mobility and transportation options for all citizens, including older adults, individuals with disabilities, and people with lower incomes.
Question: Are there types of accommodations rural transportation providers must support to comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)?
Answer: Rural transportation providers are not required to provide service in any rural area, however if they do provide a fixed-route service they are required to comply with ADA and provide ADA Complementary Paratransit service. If another type of transportation service is offered such as a taxi or shuttle ADA regulations will apply regarding equivalent and reasonable accommodation. ADA regulations and technical assistance materials are found at: http://www.usdoj.gov/crt/ada/publicat.htm.
Question: What is ADA complementary paratransit service and who is eligible?
Answer: An ADA complementary paratransit service allows disabled people who are unable to make use of fixed-route transit options to ride public transit. Complementary paratransit can take many forms, however, it is most often a bus or van equipped with a wheelchair lift. The paratransit vehicle will go directly to a disabled person's home or other designated pick-up location within a specified area and take them to their destination. ADA specifies that if a person has a functional limitation, including cognitive, that prevents them from independently boarding and riding a public transit bus using a fixed-route, he or she is eligible for paratransit service.
Question: How is "disability" defined using the rules of the ADA for purposes of transportation?
Answer: A person with a disability is an individual with a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more of the major life activities such as caring for one's self, performing manual tasks, walking, seeing, hearing, speaking, breathing, learning, and working of the individual. The definition also includes individuals with a record of such an impairment, or individuals regarded as having such an impairment.
Question: How do the transportation rules of the ADA define "wheelchair?"
Answer: The ADA transportation rules have a very specific definition of a wheelchair. It may be three or four wheeled, manual or powered. However, it may not exceed 30 inches by 48 inches or weigh more than 600 pounds when occupied. See
the Federal Transit Administration's Questions and Answers Concerning Common Wheelchairs and Public Transit.
Credits
David Barr, National Rural Transit Assistance Program (NRTAP)
Pamela Friedman, The Finance Project
Bryna Helfer,
United We Ride
Amy Pass, Easter Seals Project ACTION
Terry Perlmutter,
Administration for Children and Families
Charles Rutkowski, Community Transportation Association of America
Developed by: Aubrey Madler, Rural Assistance Center
Last revised 11/09/2007
