In state fiscal year 2012, the Executive Office of Health and Human Services received a $600,000 federal grant to facilitate local and regional mobility management and transportation coordination efforts across the state.

The goal of this grant funding is to build the Commonwealth’s technical assistance and organizational capacity to help local stakeholders share their best practices; identify strategies to reduce barriers to coordinating transportation options; network and disseminate information about transportation resources; and develop creative solutions to meeting the trip needs of low income, disabled, older, and youth populations across the state so they may access jobs, services, and community life.

EOHHS’s Human Service Transportation Office will implement the grant, along with the University of Massachusetts Disability Employment Policy Project’s Work Without Limits Initiative.  The funding is available through June 2014.

Project Components:

  1. Create an online information hub on mobility management and transportation coordination at www.mass.gov/hst
  • Develop an interactive map of local transportation resource directories or inventories to assist residents in finding transportation options
  • Work with local transportation coordination teams, regional planning agencies, transit authorities and other groups on developing common data elements for local online transportation trip planners and resource directories
  • Create a central source for Massachusetts specific information and web updates on mobility management tools, strategies, best practices, funding opportunities etc.   
  • Develop and produce online communication materials, such as a newsletter
  1. Conduct community transportation outreach
  • Conduct outreach and networking to encourage connections among community stakeholders and support community-based transportation collaborations
  • Work with existing Work Without Limits coordination teams to further their efforts and facilitate sharing of best practices
  • Build on the Human Service Transportation Area Advisory Council (HSTAAC) model, engaging stakeholder groups in Boston and eventually throughout the Commonwealth to encourage broad-based dialogue and collaboration among public, community and private transportation providers and the transportation disadvantaged
  • Gather information on transportation resources in the area, educate agency and nonprofit providers on transportation options, and document unmet needs
  1. Perform analysis of identified statewide policy gaps, barriers, and opportunities for coordination and provide technical assistance to mobility managers and coordination initiatives
  • Develop technical briefs on issues or barriers (whether perceived or real) such as insurance liability, ride sharing among different agency consumers, vehicle cost allocation methods, etc. with recommendations for how to address them in Massachusetts
  • Gather information on best practices and examples of local coordination that are effective
  • Survey effective mobility management information dissemination practices
  • Provide technical assistance and support to local coordination teams.