Nurturing Our Retired Citizens		Replication Guide

Transportation Initiatives

Mission

To educate seniors about transportation options currently available and to increase the number of options available.

Program Description

These initiatives educated seniors and their caregivers about transportation options available and facilitated connections to those options.

Community goals met

• Identify seniors who are isolated and engage them in community activities.
• Empower older adults to participate in the community.
• Educate residents and service providers about existing resources.
• Initiate an outreach program to connect seniors and their families to available services in the community.
• Develop a collaborative mechanism to identify gaps, coordinate programs and avoid duplication.

Program Leadership

NORC Transportation Liaison

• Researches transportation models in several communities
• Researches all transportation options available in the community
• Helps seniors navigate the transportation system to increase their access

Impact

Through our educational forums, this project had the potential to impact a large number of seniors and their caregivers by helping seniors overcome barriers to gaining access to various methods of transportation.

Planning Timeline

This was an ongoing initiative for one year. Ideas of the Steering Committee or the Senior Consumer Advisory Committee were researched and developed as they were suggested.

PR, Marketing & Dissemination

These programs were advertised in the local community newspaper, senior program newsletter, NORC newsletter and on the local cable TV station. See attached flyers.

Process and Outcomes

A community-wide transportation forum was planned in conjunction with all transportation providers to educate seniors and their caregivers about options available to them.

NORC staff helped seniors fill out applications to metro mobility (local ADA transportation program) and rides were provided to help them get photo ID’s necessary for ride identification. People were educated about eligibility and application compliance to assure their acceptance into the programs.

Several discussions were held in an effort to coordinate the use of senior housing vans to help seniors living in single-family homes gain transportation to local businesses and activities. Liability and availability of drivers were the main obstacles in moving this program forward.

Budget

Summary

We found that the issues with transportation were difficult and expensive to impact due to differing funding sources from taxes or government agencies. Because each community was funded separately, the coordination of services across community boundaries was not possible at this time.

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