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Greetings!
This June 2016 issue of MassMobility covers news about community transportation, human service transportation coordination, and mobility management in Massachusetts. Read on to learn about a youth transit discount, driving retirement for seniors, a new workshop to help Councils on Aging train drivers, and more news from around Massachusetts.
This newsletter is compiled by the MassMobility team, a joint initiative of the Massachusetts Executive Office of Health and Human Services and MassDOT. Above, we have added the MassDOT Rail & Transit logo to the newsletter to emphasize the joint nature of the mobility management work between EOHHS and MassDOT and the close working relationship between MassMobility and our colleagues at MassDOT Rail & Transit.
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Community Transit Grants to be announced
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MassDOT is currently notifying the organizations that were selected for funding through this year's Community Transit Grant Program. A few awards are described in a blog post, and a final list of awards will be posted in late June or early July on MassDOT's website.
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New MArtap training responds to requests
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MArtap has a new, two-day training for managers and supervisors.
How to Provide Driver Orientation and Oversight is currently
scheduled for Auburn July 28-29, Greenfield August 9-10, and Falmouth September 12-13. This training was requested by members of the Pioneer Valley Regional Coordinating Council, as well as by other Councils on Aging. Managers who complete the training will be able to provide basic training to new drivers.
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Conference materials now online
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Presentations and notes from all sessions of the 2016 Massachusetts Community Transportation Coordination Conference are now online. Revisit your favorite workshop of the day, or check out the presentations from a session you weren't able to attend! If you have suggestions for next year's conference,
let us know.
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MBTA youth discount becomes permanent
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Last year, the MBTA piloted a Youth Pass that made discounted weekly and monthly passes available to youth age 12 to 18 in Boston, Chelsea, Malden, and Somerville. Youth age 19 to 21 were also eligible if they showed proof of enrollment in an education, job training, or state or federal benefit program.
On June 6, the MBTA Fiscal and Management Control Board
voted unanimously to extend this pilot through the summer and then make this discounted monthly pass permanent.
The board also voted to expand eligibility to include youth through age 25 and to invite 13 additional communities in Greater Boston to participate. Youth will only be able to participate if their municipality signs on to help administer the pilot.
The pilot was developed as a partnership between the MBTA and local advocates, including the Youth Affordabili(T) Coalition, a Boston-based, youth-led effort to increase access to transportation for low-income youth.
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Amesbury cable show covers local transportation options
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In the show, Watson and Fontanella talk about the different services offered by MVRTA, including paratransit, fixed route services to get around the Merrimack Valley region, commuter bus services into Boston, and the medi-ride service that transports people to medical appointments in Boston. Summertime beach buses also run between the Merrimack Valley and area beaches in Newburyport, Salisbury, and Hampton, New Hampshire. In addition, MVRTA offers travel training, where an individual can learn how to ride the bus in a safe, one-on-one environment.
Since being filmed in November 2015, the show has aired at least 15 times. Any community in the region can contact Amesbury Community TV and request the show to air on their local cable channel.
At the end of the show, Annmary announces that her senior center is partnering with MVRTA and the Regional Coordinating Council on a how to ride the bus video, which is scheduled to be released this summer.
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Seniors and professionals discuss retiring from driving
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Transportation Resources, Information, Planning, and Partnership for Seniors
(TRIPPS) recently hosted a two-part series on driving retirement. As TRIPPS program director Kerri Ann Tester explains, "the process of driving retirement is different for everyone. It can be expected or unexpected, gradual or sudden, and voluntary or involuntary. More and more drivers are starting to make plans early and are exploring the many alternatives to driving while they're still young and healthy. They think of planning for driving retirement in the same way as they plan for where they'll live and how they'll spend their time as they grow older here in the Commonwealth."
On May 17, a panel consisting of representatives of the Brookline Police Department, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC)'s gerontology department, the BIDMC
DriveWise program, and the
Registry of Motor Vehicles, as well as a caseworker from the City of Newton discussed the importance of planning for retirement from driving and resources available to help seniors and their families.
On June 16, six local seniors discussed how they get around without driving, including walking, riding the MBTA, using ride-hailing apps, biking, THE RIDE, and THE RIDE's
taxi pilot program. They shared tips, such as doing research ahead of time and asking a lot of questions. One panelist recommended that audience members should "diversify their transportation portfolio."
TRIPPS is a joint venture of the Newton and Brookline Councils on Aging, the Brookline Community Aging Network, and the Brookline Age-Friendly City initiative, with funding through MassDOT's Community Transit Grant Program.
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Kennedy Center offers fifth introductory travel training workshop
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In May, 20 travel trainers and future travel trainers from transit authorities, human service agencies, and school systems gathered in Worcester for a three-day introductory workshop.
Travel training is individualized instruction to teach a person with a disability or senior the skills and knowledge they need to use fixed-route public transit independently.
This workshop was the fifth in a series offered by the
Kennedy Center and funded by MassDOT.
The series began in 2014, after members of the Massachusetts Travel Instruction Network recommended that MassDOT provide introductory workshops on travel training to help increase the quantity and quality of travel training available around Massachusetts.
During the workshop, Kennedy Center staff presented an overview of the components of a travel training program, including intake, safety, route analysis, street crossing, and understanding the effects of medications on trainees. On the third day, attendees boarded an out-of-service bus provided by the
Worcester Regional Transit Authority (WRTA) to learn about wheelchair securement and explore the WRTA hub. Travel trainer Tess Sebastian shared information about the WRTA system with attendees.
The Kennedy Center workshops are open to anyone who currently offers travel training, plans to, or is working on starting a program.
For more information or to sign up for a future workshop, please
contact us
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Calling all volunteer driver programs
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Volunteer driver programs are invited to fill out a quick survey to assist with MassMobility's research about volunteer driver programs operating in Massachusetts.
Then join us on July 19 from 1:30 to 3:30 PM at the Natick Council on Aging for the next Volunteer Driver Forum! The agenda will include a discussion about using software to schedule rides, as well as discussions about liability and insurance options. The forum is open to anyone who either runs or staffs a volunteer driver program and anyone who is thinking about starting one. Please RSVP.
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National conference highlights replicable models
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MassMobility staff and MassDOT's Statewide Mobility Manager Aniko Laszlo attended this year's Community Transportation Association of America's national
EXPO conference in order to learn about best practices and innovative approaches from other states.
Pre-conference intensive sessions offered the chance to explore transit marketing and healthcare transportation. General conference session topics ranged from Medicaid transportation to driverless cars; highlights included a presentation on inclusive transportation planning and a panel of four mobility managers discussing what mobility management looks like in rural, suburban, urban, and statewide settings.
Price Armstrong, Paratransit Analyst at the
Pioneer Valley Transit Authority, presented on how the rapidly growing senior population is disrupting traditional transit and paratransit service delivery models. He overviewed various strategies for adapting to this demographic shift, from coordination of transportation services to senior housing incentive programs. Through the
mobility management poster session, MassMobility presented a
poster on the Massachusetts Travel Instruction Network as an example of how facilitating peer networking can assist frontline workers with implementation of high-quality programs.
Angie Azevedo, Senior Transportation Planner and Mobility Manager at the
Southeastern Regional Planning and Economic Development District, attended EXPO and enjoyed the opportunity to connect with other mobility managers and community transportation professionals: "The opportunity to network and learn from colleagues all over the country was priceless. It seems like every state and every transit operator within each state does things a little bit differently to fit their community. Nationwide conferences allow us to find services from all over the country that we can piece together and better our communities. This experience is invaluable and I would absolutely encourage anyone who is able to attend." Azevedo serves as Co-Chair of the
South East Regional Coordinating Council on Transportation.
Next year's EXPO conference is scheduled for June 11-16 in Detroit.
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Ballot initiative advances
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In May, the state legislature voted 135 to 57 to advance a citizen ballot initiative that would impose a four percent tax on residents earning over a million dollars. The additional revenue raised would be earmarked for education or transportation. At least 25 percent of legislators need to approve the measure again in 2017 or 2018 for it to appear on the ballot in November 2018.
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Coming up in July and beyond
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On July 19, join us for a Volunteer Driver Forum. A
nyone who runs, staffs, or wants to develop a volunteer driver program is welcome. Learn more or RSVP.
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Follow us on Twitter
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| Are you on Twitter? If so, follow us @MassMobility for links to community transportation resources relevant to organizations and agencies here in Massachusetts. If you aren't on Twitter, you can still see our posts online at twitter.com/MassMobility/. |
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We want to know your stories
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| If you have suggestions for news items or topics to cover in future newsletters, please contact us or submit a guest article. Comments, questions, and feedback are also welcome. |
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Please share this newsletter
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| Please forward this newsletter widely to others who are interested in mobility management, community transportation, or related topics and encourage them to subscribe to receive future newsletters and publications. You can also read past issues of all MassMobility newsletters. |
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