Coordinated Public Transit Human Services Plan
Total Page：16
File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb
COORDINATED PUBLIC TRANSIT HUMAN SERVICES PLAN PREPARED BY: NORTHERN MIDDLESEX COUNCIL OF GOVERNMENTS PREPARED FOR: NORTHERN MIDDLESEX METROPOLITAN PLANNING ORGANIZATION JANUARY 2015 The Northern Middlesex Metropolitan Planning Organization (NMMPO) complies with Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), and other federal and state nondiscrimination statutes and regulations in all programs and activities. The MPO does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, English proficiency, income, religious creed, ancestry, disability, age, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or military service. Any person who believes herself / himself or any specific class of persons to have been subjected to discrimination prohibited by Title VI, ADA, or other non- discrimination statute or regulation may, herself/himself or via a representative, file a written complaint with the MPO. A complaint must be filed no later than 30 calendar days after the date on which the person believes the discrimination occurred. A complaint form and additional information can be obtained by contacting the MPO as outlined below. For additional copies of this document or to request a copy in an accessible format, please contact MPO staff by mail, phone, fax, or email. Mail: Northern Middlesex Council of Governments 40 Church Street, Suite 200 Lowell, MA 01852 Phone: (978) 454-8021 Fax: (978) 454-8023 Email: [email protected] The document is also available for download on our website at www.nmcog.org _________________________________________ Preparation of this document was funded through a contract with MassDOT, in cooperation with the Federal Highway Administration and the Federal Transit Administration, U.S. Department of Transportation. Its contents do not necessarily reflect the official views and policies of U.S. DOT. i Table of Contents Page Number I. Introduction 1 II. Plan Goals 2 III. Statewide Coordinating Council on Community Transportation and the Regional Coordinating Councils 3 IV. Merrimack Valley Regional Coordinating Council 4 V. Coordinated Plan Development Process 5 VI. Regional Context 5 A. Population Characteristics 5 B. Age and Sex 6 C. Disabilities in the Northern Middlesex Region 9 D. Income 12 1. Per Capita Income 12 2. Median Household Income 12 3. Median Family Income 13 E. Poverty in the Region 14 F. Regional Transit Needs 15 VII. Inventory of Current Transportation Resources 17 A. Fixed Route Bus Service 17 B. Paratransit Service 19 1. Road Runner Demand Response Transportation Service 19 2. Road Runner Complementary ADA Demand Response Service 22 3. Councils on Aging Senior Demand Response Service 23 C. MBTA Commuter Rail Service 26 D. MVRTA Bus Service 26 E. MRTA HHS Brokerage Service 26 F. Peter Pan Bus Lines 27 G. Boston Express Bus Lines 27 H. UMass Lowell Student Bus Service 27 I. Middlesex Community College Inter-campus Shuttle 27 J. Commercial Wheelchair and Ambulance Service Providers 27 K. Other Private Service Providers 28 VIII. Identifying Gaps in Service 30 IX. Service Improvements Undertaken to Address Identified Gaps 32 X. Identifying Strategies and Projects for Addressing Regional Gaps 33 List of Tables Table 1: Population Change in the Northern Middlesex Region (2000-2010) 6 Table 2: 2008-2012 ACS Population Estimates by Age and Sex 8 Table 3: Population with Disability which Limits Transit Use 9 Table 4: 2008-2012 ACS Population Estimates by Disability 10 Table 5: Per Capita Income by Community, 2000 and 2008- 2012 12 ii Table 6: Median Income by Community, 2000 and 2008-2012 13 Table 7: Median Family Income by Community, 2000 and 2008-2012 14 Table 8: Number and Percent age of Residents Living Below Poverty, 2000 and 2008-2012 15 Table 9: Elderly Persons in the Northern Middlesex Region 16 Table 10: Population Ten to Fifteen Years of Age in the Northern Middlesex Region 16 Table 11: Vehicle Availability per Household 17 Table 12: Communities Served by Lowell Based Road Runner 21 Table 13: Communities Served by LRTA Complementary ADA Service 22 Table 14: Communities Served by Councils on Aging Transportation 24 Table 15: Coordinated Goals, Objectives, Strategies, Projects and Performance Measures 34 List of Maps Map 1: Coordinated Public Service Transit-Human Service Plan Map 18 Map 2: Lowell Regional Transit Authority Service Area-Fixed Route and Road Runner Paratransit 20 Appendices Appendix 1: Meeting Attendance List and Meeting Notes Appendix 2: NMCOG Survey Questions Appendix 3: Merrimack Valley RCC Survey Results iii I. INTRODUCTION On February 24, 2004, President Bush signed Executive Order 13330 to: “enhance access to transportation to improve mobility, employment opportunities, and access to community services for persons who are transportation-disadvantaged”. The Executive Order also established the Interagency Transportation Coordinating Council on Access and Mobility (CCAM) to: Promote interagency cooperation and the establishment of appropriate mechanisms to minimize duplication and overlap of Federal programs and services so that transportation-disadvantaged persons have access to more transportation services; Facilitate access to the most appropriate, cost-effective transportation services within existing resources; Encourage enhanced customer access to a variety of transportation and resources available; Formulate and implement administrative, policy, and procedural mechanisms that enhance transportation services at all levels, and Develop and implement a method for monitoring progress on achieving the goals of the Order. The CCAM developed United We Ride, a federal interagency initiative aimed at improving the availability, quality and efficient delivery of transportation services for older adults, people with disabilities, and low income individuals, by advancing the following goals: Simplify customer access to transportation; Reduce duplication of transportation services; Streamline federal rules and regulation that may impede the coordinated delivery of services; and Improve the efficiency of services using existing resources. United We Ride’s mission was strengthened through the federal surface transportation legislation known as SAFETEA-LU (Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users), which was signed into law in 2005. This legislation included a requirement that programs funded under Section 5310 (Elderly Individuals and Individuals with Disabilities), Section 5316 (Job Access and Reverse Commute), and Section 5317 (New Freedom) be derived from locally developed, coordinated human services transportation plans. On July 6, 2012, President Obama signed into law, the Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century (MAP-21), which replaced SAFETEA-LU as the federal legislation that funds surface transportation. Sections 5316 and 5317 were eliminated under Map-21. Activities eligible under Section 5316 were moved to the Urbanized Area formula program (Section 5307) or the Rural Area formula program (Section 5311) and activities funded by Section 5317 were folded into Section 5310. MassDOT administers the Section 5310 program in accordance with State Management Plans. Forty-five percent (45%) of the funds may be spent on operating, while fifty-five (55%) percent must be spent on capital projects. As with the previous 5316 and 5317 programs, there is a 50 1 percent match required for operating funds, while capital project match requirements retained the 80% - 20% (federal- local) funding split. Prior to MAP-21, Section 5310 funding was reserved for demand response types of service and mobility management programs. Under MAP-21, Section 5310 funds may be used to expand service beyond the mandatory ADA service area, and for fixed route service that aids in the transition from demand response. In addition, MAP-21 required a review and update of the Metropolitan Planning Organization’s Coordinated Public Transit-Human Services Transportation Plan, and maintained the requirement that all funded projects be included in and derived from a coordinated human services transportation plan. The Plan must be “developed and approved through a process that included participation by seniors, individuals with disabilities, representative of public, private and non-profit transportation and human service providers and other members of the public”. This document serves as an update to the region’s 2010 Coordinated Public Transit-Human Services Transportation Plan. The Plan serves as a framework for improved coordination of transportation services among both public and private providers in order to enhance transportation services for disadvantaged, disabled and senior populations. The document has been developed to meet the federal requirements outlined in FTA Circular 9070.1G for “a locally developed, coordinated human services transportation plan” that includes the following elements: “An assessment of available services that identifies current public, private and non-profit providers; An assessment of transportation needs for individuals with disabilities and older adults; Strategies, activities and/or projects to address identified gaps in current services and needs, as well as opportunities to achieve efficiencies in service delivery; and Priorities for implementation based on available resources (from multiple program sources), time, and feasibility for implementing specific strategies and/or activities identified.” II. Plan Goals For some segments of the population, such as