Earlier this year, HIRTA was awarded a grant from the National Aging and Disability Transportation Center (NADTC) to meet the needs of underserved populations. This grant is in the process of being wrapped up.

Across over 4,100 square service miles, identifying and prioritizing the needs of our very diverse communities was a priority. Through surveys, focus groups, community meetings, and listening to our riders, we were able to determine the common barriers are the service days and hours and limited English proficiency to make HIRTA a more inclusive experience for all.

Life operates outside of HIRTA's service hours so it's important to our communities to access needed services and live an active, fulfilling lifestyle. People who are transit dependent and live in rural areas want spontaneous travel and want to travel in their communities like neighbors who have their own transportation.

HIRTA has made great strides in being more inclusive, but we can do even better and our communities have provided feedback on what they want to see implemented at HIRTA.

We gathered input from older adults, people with disabilities, and marginalized populations through surveys, focus groups, and a community meeting. One rider said, "As an individual who is blind, I need reliable transportation for access to every aspect of my life. I have and will continue to be a part of HIRTA’s efforts to improve transportation services, because Accessible and good transportation is so important to me. It is my understanding the new software is going to be more user-friendly and provide patrons with even more information. Having the ability to know where my driver is and when to expect them at my house is going to be an extremely useful feature of the new software. No more waiting out in the rain or below zero weather for a bus."

Another rider said, "I worked with HIRTA to complete a survey, attended and participated in their community meeting, plan on participating in their focus group to identify needs and continue the work of breaking down barriers. Inclusion is important to everyone, including people with disabilities and their quality of life. HIRTA does a great job of being inclusive and trying to do what they can to make the service better for everyone. I look forward to helping out in Phase 2 of their grant."

We have applied for the second phase of this grant and look forward to working with NADTC on the implementation phase, and thank NADTC for the opportunity to improve transportation across central Iowa.