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Spring is playing hard to get, but grant season is in full bloom! This special edition of MassMobility highlights current and upcoming funding opportunities available to support mobility for older adults and people with disabilities in our communities.
We are also looking forward to our annual conference later this week, and it's not too late to join us! Details below.
This newsletter is compiled by
MassMobility
, an initiative of the
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Grants to include older adults and people with disabilities in transportation planning
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Grants of up to $35,000 are available for short, six-month efforts to increase inclusion of older adults and people with disabilities in transportation planning projects. This funding comes from the
Administration for Community Living through the national
Transit Planning for All project. Up to 20 grants will be awarded nationally, and grantees will receive technical assistance from national leaders as well as opportunities to learn from each other. Applications are due May 4; interested parties are invited to participate on a conference call April 17 to learn more.
Learn more and apply.
Planning to apply?
Let us know!
Adam Frank at the Massachusetts Executive Office of Elder Affairs is available to discuss your proposal and see if there is any way that Elder Affairs or the aging service network can assist.
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Grants to make communities more age-friendly
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The AARP invites communities to apply for
challenge grants to improve mobility and support age-friendly communities. Projects resulting in a p
ermanent, physical improvement in the community; t
emporary demonstrations that lead to long-term change; and n
ew, innovative programming or services are all eligible. Last year, AARP awarded 88 challenge grants nationally, including funding for crosswalk enhancement, amenities at rural bus stops, and development of an outreach program to encourage people to walk. Learn more and apply.
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Grants to improve mobility for older adults and people with disabilities
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MassDOT announced that this year's
Community Transit Grant Program application period is scheduled to open on Monday, May 14 and close at 5pm on Monday, June 11. This annual, competitive grant opportunity offers federal and state funds for transportation benefiting older adults and people with disabilities. Applicants can apply for vehicles, as well as for funding for service operation or mobility management projects. For examples of eligible projects, check out
last year's grantees.
To ensure that applicants understand grant requirements and are familiar with the online grant management system, MassDOT will offer a series of
trainings across the state in late April and early May. Workshops are scheduled for New Bedford on April 30, Worcester on May 1, Springfield on May 2, Lawrence on May 3, and Boston on May 4. Training sessions are mandatory for new applicants. Past applicants who did not apply last year are also encouraged to attend, and all are welcome.
Details are posted on
MassDOT's Community Transit Grant program webpage
.
To RSVP for a session or request
more information, please contact
Alex Cox,
Grants Management Specialist.
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Small grants to improve transit service in rural or small urban areas
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Last week, MassDOT opened the annual
Helping Hand mini-grant application. C
ouncils on Aging, private nonprofits, and Regional Transit Authorities can apply for small grants of up to $1000 for equipment or projects designed to update or enhance transit services in rural and small urban areas. Applications are due by May 18. Learn more and apply.
Helping Hand is a project of MArtap, which also offers regular driver training opportunities around the state. Check their calendar for upcoming opportunities near you.
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Conference to showcase community transportation April 11
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It's not too late to join us for the 2018
Innovation and Mobility Exchange,
a two-day conference scheduled for April 10 and 11 at the DCU Center in Worcester. On-site registration and payment ($75 for public sector and nonprofit attendees) will be accepted if you are not already registered.
Both days will feature sessions related to highway engineering and technology, and the second day - Wednesday, April 11 - will also feature sessions related to community transportation for older adults, people with disabilities, and low-income individuals. For example, join us on April 11 to hear:
- How practitioners are engaging employers to address employment transportation needs
- Examples of healthcare organizations that are taking steps to address patients' transportation challenges
- Strategies for marketing and publicizing transportation services
- Profiles from practitioners who have successfully woven together many different types of funding to support mobility efforts
- Introduction to Mobility as a Service and how it could relate to mobility management
- A lunchtime keynote by Robin Lipson, Chief of Staff and Chief Strategy Officer for the Massachusetts Executive Office of Elder Affairs
- Afternoon plenary on accessibility and equity issues regarding autonomous vehicles ("driverless cars")
This year, in addition to practitioners from across Massachusetts, we welcome presenters from out of state as well. Learn from Connecticut in the marketing session, from national experts based in DC and Chicago in the National Center for Mobility Management session, and from Ithaca (via Skype) in the Mobility as a Service session.
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Help your consumers ride transit independently and safely
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Interested in helping your consumers learn to ride the fixed-route bus system in your community? Thanks to funding from MassDOT, the
Kennedy Center - expert travel trainers from Connecticut - offer regular workshops on how to provide
travel training or develop a travel training program. Staff from transit agencies, human service agencies, and educators or transition specialists are welcome. The next workshop is coming up April 25-27 in Springfield.
Learn more and register here. Space is limited, so please
register soon if you are interested.
If you would like to receive information about additional upcoming professional development opportunities related to travel training,
contact us to join the Massachusetts Travel Instruction Network listserv.
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For those of you who only know us through the newsletter,
MassMobility is a state initiative based at
EOHHS which also receives funding from MassDOT. We seek to improve mobility for seniors, people with disabilities, and others in all regions of Massachusetts by sharing information about existing services and supporting organizations in their efforts to fill transportation gaps.
We provide presentations to human service agency staff to help them learn how to help consumers find transportation, and we also provide technical assistance to any organization looking to address transportation challenges. We welcome you to contact us any time if you have a question or idea for a project that would improve mobility for seniors or people with disabilities.
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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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