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Town of Brunswick
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MID-COAST COLLABORATIVE FOR ACCESS TO TRANSPORTATION Press Release - April 25, 2005 BRUNSWICK AREA TRANSPORTATION PROJECT AWARDED $50,000 GRANT FROM MDOT VOLUNTEER DRIVER INTEREST AMONG CITIZENS AND ORGANIZATIONS SOUGHT The Mid-Coast Collaborative for Access to Transportation has been awarded a $50,000 grant from the Maine Department of Transportation. The grant will allow the group to: - coordinate volunteer transportation in the Brunswick-Topsham area; - identify opportunities for sharing resources among existing transportation providers; and - explore the feasibility of a limited fixed/flex route transportation service in the area. The Collaborative has been working since 2003 to find solutions for people in the Brunswick-Topsham area who do not have their own transportation or cannot drive The project is a partnership between Coastal Trans, Independence Association, Tedford Shelter, Bowdoin College, United Way of Mid Coast Maine, Mid Coast Hospital, Brunswick Housing Authority, People Plus Center, Sweetser, Sexual Assault Services of Mid Coast Maine, the Town of Brunswick, the Town of Topsham, and interested citizens. The group will work with MDOT and transportation experts Gretchen Ashton of Boston and Tom Crikelair of Bar Harbor. This work is expected to begin in May 2005 and will take about one year to complete. In a parallel effort, the Collaborative has begun to gather information about volunteer transportation resources that are already in place and to gauge the interest with various local organizations and individuals in expanding such a service. This will assist the group in assessing if it is feasible to coordinate these services and make them available to more people needing rides. Please contact Lee Karker of Coastal Trans at 596-6605 or lkarker@mchinc.org, if you have an interest in any aspect of this project or if you would like additional information. HISTORY OF THE PROJECT The Collaborative began its work early in 2003 when Independence Association received a $15,000 “systems change” grant to fund a study to identify transportation needs and potential solutions for people in the Brunswick-Topsham area who do not have their own transportation. The funds were used to hire a consultant, Kathy Freund of Portland, to conduct the study. Through public meetings, surveys and focus groups, the Collaborative’s consultant identified current transportation options in the area and many of the perceived needs that were not being met. Freund’s final report, completed in June of 2004, summarized the information gathered and made some preliminary recommendations for future action. While the study was being done, some representatives of the Collaborative attended a conference on access to transportation in Washington, DC in November, 2003 that was funded by Easter Seals Project Action. The conference provided an opportunity to learn about what was being done in various parts of the country, and to make connections with people and agencies that were already involved in expanding access to transportation in their own communities. In July of 2004 representatives of the Collaborative attended another workshop on access to transportation in Seattle. The trip also provided an opportunity to meet with staff members of Ride Connection in Portland Oregon, an agency that coordinates transportation for that area. In October 2004 local agencies who either provide transportation or who need transportation for their clients were invited to a public forum, facilitated by Jonathan Reitman, to discuss what a community transportation system might look like. There was a useful exchange of ideas. At a follow up meeting of the Collaborative, the group decided to continue to pursue the help of MDOT in designing a system, and to explore other possibilities for volunteer transportation. Discussions with Maine DOT have since brought Tracy Perez of the Office of Transportation Programs to the Collaborative meetings and this led to the group’s request of Maine DOT for a grant for a consultant to help us with three aspects of our work: - coordinate volunteer transportation in the Brunswick-Topsham area; - identify opportunities for sharing resources among existing transportation providers; and - explore the feasibility of a limited fixed/flex route transportation service in the area. Maine DOT approved the request in the amount of $50,000. It requires a 10% match from local sources. Bowdoin College has stepped up to provided half of that amount. The Town of Brunswick will be requested the other half from its 2005-6 budget. Work is expected to begin in May 2005. This has been called “Phase 2” of the project. In the meantime, the group has begun a process, led by Mike Hugo and Ed Benedikt, to gather more specific data about the volunteer transportation resources that are already in place and to gauge the interest with various organizations in expanding such a service. This will assist the Collaborative in assessing the feasibility of a project to coordinate these resources and make them available to more people needing rides. Please contact Lee Karker of Coastal Trans at 596-6605 or lkarker@mchinc.org, if you have an interest in any aspect of this project or if you would like additional information.
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