The National Mature Media Awards which annually recognizes the best marketing, communications, educational materials and programs for older adults announced that USAging has won two Mature Media Awards for the following NADTC publications:

Meeting the Needs of Older Passengers with Vision Loss: Guidance for Transportation Providers

Drivers Make the Difference for Older Passengers with Vision Loss

Call for Transportation Innovations!

NADTC is seeking transportation innovations targeted to the needs of older adults and people with disabilities. We know that many transportation programs across the U.S. have developed creative, practical and accessible transportation innovations. This is an opportunity to showcase innovations in your local transportation programs, and to be featured on NADTC's website!

Please visit NADTC's webpage for more information and how to apply! The application deadline is Friday, August 18. If you have any questions, please Email us at contact@nadtc.org.  

Office Hours: Helping Transition Age Youth Overcome Barriers Through Travel Training

On Wednesday, August 23, 2023, from 2-3pm (EST), NADTC will host an interactive discussion on travel training strategies for students with disabilities and how it helps them to overcome transportation barriers when transitioning to adult life. Keith Fox, Transition Coordinator for Easterseals Crossroads, will discuss their community partnership and travel training strategies developed over the past 19 years working with people with disabilities.

NADTC’s Office Hours are designed to be interactive and will limit attendance to 30 participants to encourage small group discussion and interaction with the facilitator. This is a great opportunity to learn from industry experts and your peers.

To ensure the best experience, if you need additional assistance to fully participate or have any questions about accessibility, please contact Katherine knewman@easterseals.com.

NADTC Learning Shorts

Hosting meetings is a frequent and necessary component of the work of community transportation providers across the country. In our newest Learning Short, you'll learn six strategies for increasing the effectiveness of your next meeting! To view additional topics, please visit our Learning Center webpage.

Lessons Learned: Coordination Coalition Initiative

Over the past year, NADTC worked with two organizations to enhance accessible transportation in their communities by developing coalitions to address transportation barriers, and generate or sustain positive change. This Lessons Learned report focuses on insights gathered throughout the project period, and is meant to be a resource for current or future coalition teams.

Thank you to ConnectAbility of MN (Saint Cloud, MN) and the Kansas Coalition for Accessible Regional Transportation (Topeka, KS) for their dedication to improving accessible transportation!

Recordings Now Available

In case you missed it, on June 28 NADTC featured two speakers who focused on the use of assistive technology and how transportation programs may use them to better serve older adults and people with disabilities. To access the recording and presentation, please visit NADTC's website.

On June 29, NADTC hosted its first in a series of Human Services Webinars. This session showcased three unique vaccination programs, detailing how they are reaching older adults and people with disabilities in their communities needing access to vaccination sites, recognizing that transportation as a key promotional activity. The recording and materials are available on our website.

National Senior Citizens Day is August 21!

Your agency is likely already doing a lot of great things to support older adults, but this is an opportunity to celebrate their unique contributions to your organization and surrounding community! Here are a few ways to honor our Seniors:

• Showcase your riders (and drivers) on social media
• Allow older adults to use your service for free on August 21
• Encourage staff to volunteer for organizations that assist older adults in the community

FTA recently announced 130 awards through the Bus and Bus Facility and Low- and No-Emission Vehicle programs. These grant awards total nearly $1.7 billion for transit projects in 46 states and territories. The funding invests in more than 1,700 American-built buses, and nearly half will be zero-emission models!

Toyota Mobility Foundation is seeking host sites for their Sustainable City Challenge. Ten cities will be chosen to receive capacity building support to understand the issue they want to solve and attract innovators to provide solutions. In February 2024, the top three cities will be chosen to host a City Challenge in their community to find solutions for local mobility challenges.

U.S DOT and the Build America Bureau have announced the availability of $3.4 million in competitive grant funding under the Rural and Tribal Assistance Programs to provide early-stage developmental assistance for infrastructure projects in rural and tribal communities. Applications are due September 28!

TRB has extended its deadline for NCHRP 08-183, Volunteer Driver Programs Serving Rural and Low-Density Communities. This project will identify existing volunteer programs, particularly in rural or low-density areas, and available resources on these programs, including tools for planning services or monitoring and dispatching volunteers. Nominations being accepted until the panel has been formed.