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Welcome to the October 2016 issue of MassMobility, covering news about community transportation, human service transportation coordination, and mobility management in Massachusetts. Read on to learn examples of how how community colleges, human service agencies, municipalities, and transit authorities are partnering to improve mobility and access for seniors, people with disabilities, low-income individuals, and others around the Commonwealth.
This newsletter is compiled by MassMobility, 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 college partners with Uber to help students get to class
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This year, North Shore Community College (NSCC) students have a new option for getting to classes on the Danvers campus: Uber. The Danvers campus is not served by public transit, and the nearest bus service is a daunting five miles away. Through the
year-long pilot
that launched on the first day of classes, NSCC pays the first $10 when students take Uber between campus and either the North Shore Mall bus stop or the Beverly Depot train station while school is in session.
When NSCC President Patricia Gentile first started at the college three years ago, she was surprised to see how busy the pick-up and drop-off area was and realized that many students did not have their own cars. She reached out to students about their transportation and was particularly impacted by speaking with one student who was spending $40 round trip to take a cab every day she came to campus. Seeking to make the campus accessible to all students, President Gentile worked with the administration to address transportation barriers. The Vice President for Student Affairs had the idea to partner with Uber. NSCC and Uber worked out the details over the summer and launched the pilot on September 6.
Students
enroll in the
pilot by downloading a special NSCC button as part of their Uber app. If a student opens the app from one of the three approved locations during school hours, the button appears. When the student books the ride with the button, Uber automatically discounts the ride by $10.
So far, students have taken approximately 250 rides. NSCC is collecting data on usage and will use it at the end of the year to evaluate the pilot and determine next steps.
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Human service agencies in Berkshire County learn to use Ride Match
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Ride Match allows users to enter their town of origin and their destination and search for transportation providers that offer that service. Users can also request accommodations, such as a lift-equipped vehicle. The database then produces a list of public and private transportation providers that offer the service requested, along with contact information for each. Although open to all users, Ride Match was specifically designed to help seniors and people with disabilities find rides.
Last year, BCAC received funding to develop an information and referral call center for transportation information, but soon realized that anything they developed would duplicate Ride Match. With permission from the funder, they instead used their grant to promote Ride Match among human service agencies that serve the county's seniors and people with disabilities. Hunkler conducted trainings by phone and attended staff meetings and team meetings at organizations all over Berkshire County to show staff how Ride Match can help them assist their consumers in finding transportation. The reception was very warm: "Every place I go, everyone is just amazed. They think it's going to be really helpful," Hunkler reported.
Ride Match continues to expand statewide, with a new website launching soon. Human service agencies in all regions are invited to
check it out and see how it can help your consumers find rides.
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Bedford launches afternoon demand-response service
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After a thorough
planning and public engagement process
, Bedford launched the
DASH
on September 12, a new demand-response service open to the general public. The DASH complements the
Bedford Local Transit
(BLT) service already in operation. While the BLT runs from 9 AM to 3 PM, the DASH operates between noon and 6, so BLT riders who used to have to curtail their outings can now stay out later and come home via the DASH.
Bedford hopes the DASH will attract new riders to public transit and reduce use of single occupancy vehicles in town. While most BLT riders are seniors, Bedford is targeting a wide swath of the population with publicity about the DASH, including schools, the health department, and the housing authority. "Everybody is our audience - we want everybody to try it," says Carla Olson,
Healthy Bedford Coordinator. Youth ages 12 to 18 can ride alone if they have a
permission slip signed by their parents on file. On Fridays a "DASH and Dine" service takes employees to a commercial area with restaurants, in hopes of cutting down lunchtime traffic jams that plague the town.
Thanks to funding from the town, the Middlesex 3 TMA, and a Community Transit Grant from MassDOT, Bedford has funds to pilot the DASH through June 2018. Over time, Olson expects usage patterns will emerge, and the DASH may evolve toward fixed-route service. The town has already responded to demand, adding trips to Lexington due to a high volume of requests, and residents have greeted the new service with enthusiasm.
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Summit on Cape Cod addresses senior transportation needs
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The Cape Cod Regional Transit Authority (CCRTA) organized a Senior Transportation Summit in South Yarmouth on October 5. CCRTA serves 15 cities and towns on Cape Cod, and representatives from 13 Councils on Aging (COAs) and two senior service organizations participated in a discussion about shifting demographic trends and how best to respond to changing mobility needs from a regional perspective. Cape Cod's senior population is rising faster than elsewhere in the Commonwealth, and a significant amount of demand-response transportation has to be delivered in large, low-density service areas. Finding equitable and cost-effective solutions to constantly increasing demand and to rising capital and operations costs were the main discussion topics of the summit.
Among the challenges participating organizations listed were an aging volunteer driver pool and difficulty recruiting new drivers, increasing need for door-through-door medical rides for seniors, high maintenance cost of vehicles running on dirt roads in rural areas, inadequate signage at some bus stops, and a need for fixed-route service to stop at affordable housing developments throughout the Cape.
The group brainstormed potential solutions including joining or starting a centralized scheduling/dispatch system for COA vehicles (while ensuring that drivers would remain the first line of contact with seniors); partnering with private providers such as Zipcar, Uber, or Lyft; educating the public about available transportation services; and proactively seeking out partnerships and solutions as community transportation expands in the region.
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New whitepaper explores innovative mobility
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A new whitepaper explores how state and municipal policies can harness the power of transportation and mobility innovations to improve health, equity, and the environment.
Transportation for Massachusetts released the
Fast Forward
report on October 14 with a half-day conference on the current state of innovative mobility in Massachusetts and opportunities for the future. Zipcar founder Robin Chase offered a keynote address, in which she described how the introduction of autonomous vehicles has the potential to lead to either "hell" or "heaven," depending on how policies shape the implementation.
Transportation for Massachusetts researched and wrote the report in partnership with the Metropolitan Area Planning Council, 495/MetroWest Partnership, Frontier Group, C
onservation Law Foundation, MassCommute,
Acadia Center,
MassPIRG, 128 Business Council, and WalkBoston.
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HST Office requests feedback and suggestions on brokerage
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The Human Service Transportation Office has released a Request for Information (RFI) on COMMBUYS, the Commonwealth's online procurement system. The RFI invites Regional Transit Authorities and transportation providers to offer feedback on and suggest changes to the brokerage that the HST Office uses to provide MassHealth non-emergency medical transportation and transportation for the Department of Developmental Services and other health and human service agencies. The goal of the RFI is to solicit input on the strengths and weakness of the current system and gather creative ideas for how to improve the brokerage model. Responses are due by 4 PM on Friday, October 28. To find the RFI, search for bid number BD-17-1039-EHS01-EHS01-00000009841 on
COMMBUYS
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Coming up in November and December
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The
Kennedy Center of Connecticut is debuting an Intermediate Travel Training Workshop November 15-16, geared toward travel trainers who have been
travel training for at least a year. The workshop is also open to people who have previously attended the three-day introductory workshop offered by the Kennedy Center. This intermediate session is full, but you can
join the waitlist or
let us know if you are interested in participating in the next session.
The Kennedy Center will also be offering another Introductory Workshop on Travel Training December 14-16 in Fitchburg. Anyone who currently travel trains or is interested in starting to offer travel training in Massachusetts is invited to
register. This workshop is targeted to beginner travel trainers, though travel trainers of all levels of experience are welcome.
Find additional upcoming events on our
calendar.
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