Five Communities Receive NCMM Grants to Pursue Community Mobility Solutions

The National Center for Mobility Management (NCMM) is pleased to announce the five communities that have been selected to be a part of the 2019 Community Mobility Design Challenge. These communities will work over the next six months to develop and test ways to address mobility challenges experienced by low-income community members for whom a lack of transportation is an obstacle to the pursuit of economic opportunity, community integration, and health and well-being.

For the Community Mobility Design Challenge 2019, grants totaling $108,645 have been awarded to five communities, chosen in a competitive process. The complete list of awardees and their focus areas are given below:

Economic Opportunity 

• Mercer County, NJ (Lead agency: Greater Mercer Transportation Management Association, Inc.)

Community Integration

• Washington and Ozaukee Counties, WI (Lead agency:  Interfaith Caregivers of Ozaukee County, Inc.)

Health and Well-Being

• Lee and Ogle Counties, IL (Lead agency: Lee - Ogle Transportation System)
• Allen County, KS (Lead agency: Thrive Allen County)
• Clark and Cowlitz Counties, WA (Lead agency: Human Services Council) 

Before applying for the grant, each community researched the extent of the identified transportation challenge through interviews and other types of primary and secondary research. Later this month, NCMM staff will lead the teams in developing insights from their “deep dive” into the specific transportation needs of low-income community members, which will then inform their solutions. During the six-month grant period, the teams will develop and propose solutions, test key assumptions about the concepts with potential users, and modify the solutions to ensure they closely respond to the identified challenge. The teams will also plan how to operationalize the solution, paying close attention to the financial viability and sustainability of the solution.

The communities that are a part of the Community Mobility Design Challenge are bringing together relevant partners such as health care, workforce, transportation, or other key community agencies, some of whom have never collaborated together before. They will also create performance measures to show the projected impact of their project, among other key indicators.

You can learn more about the Design Challenge, or find updates on our grantees on the Community Mobility Design Challenge 2019 Planning Grants page.