MassDevelopment, in partnership with the Metropolitan Area Planning Council, awarded Mystic Valley Elder Services $50,000 in funding to help the agency increase its transportation service capacity through contracts with taxi and livery companies.
The funding is through the Taxi, Livery, and Hackney Transportation Partnerships Grant Program, an operational subsidy program aimed at expanding transportation service capacity through contracts with licensed taxi or livery businesses.
MVES will use this award to contract with Malden Taxi and Suburban Taxi to facilitate transportation to medical appointments and grocery stores for seniors and adults living with disabilities who are isolated in their communities. It will also help MVES’ Vaccine Transportation Program which provides free transportation to COVID-19 vaccine locations to individuals aged 60 and older.
“Transportation can be a big challenge for older adults and adults living with disabilities who want to maintain a healthy, active life,” said Lauren Reid, director of community programs at MVES. “Accessible transportation services are vital for enabling older adults to live independently. Our transportation experts are here to help you craft a transportation plan to fit your needs. We can make sure you get to your appointments and remain connected to your friends and community.”
MVES provides assistance in accessing community transportation resources that are provided by Councils on Aging, the MBTA’s The RIDE, and through providers that MVES directly contracts with including taxi services. In addition, MVES can help people access services through the MassHealth program along with other local resources. The transportation department can also schedule transportation to medical appointments for consumers enrolled in the various state funded homecare programs who require assistance.
MassDevelopment and MACP awarded $2,543,883 in funding to 47 cities and towns, municipal agencies, regional transit authorities, nonprofits, and health and human service providers through the Taxi, Livery, and Hackney Transportation Partnerships Grant Program. Administered by MAPC, these grants will help communities supplement existing transportation options, create new programs to transport individuals to work, grocery stores, non-emergency medical appointments, and other destinations, and facilitate delivery of essential supplies such as food and medicine to residents in need. The Taxi, Livery, and Hackney Transportation Partnerships Grant Program is funded by MassDevelopment’s allocation from the Commonwealth’s Transportation Infrastructure Enhancement Trust Fund.
“Getting the most fragile Massachusetts residents to work, grocery stores, medical appointments, shelters, and other critical destinations and creating new business for taxi and livery companies makes these grants special in the time of COVID-19,” said MassDevelopment President and CEO Dan Rivera. “MassDevelopment is proud to put resources from our allocation of the Transportation Infrastructure Enhancement Trust Fund to work to benefit both the taxi and livery industry and our communities, and we thank the Metropolitan Area Planning Council for partnering with us to administer the program.”
“The pandemic has stressed many transit systems, senior shuttles and other shared rides,” said MAPC Executive Director Marc Draisen. “These grants will provide a critical resource to help municipalities and human service organizations to fill the gaps and ensure that people can get to work, shop for food and attend medical appointments. We are so pleased to have the folks who drive cabs and livery vehicles step up to provide these critical services, especially in these difficult times.”
For information, call 781-324-7705 or visit http://mves.org.
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