The Massachusetts Department of Transportation (MassDOT) on July 22 announced that it has received a $360,000 grant from the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) Innovative Coordinated Access & Mobility (ICAM) Program to undertake a two-year statewide mobility management pilot.
The program, which will fund a statewide mobility management pilot, including hiring a statewide mobility manager and related contractual and administrative support, “will expand mobility by helping connect potential riders to a wide range of services and bring organizations together where there are gaps in the transportation network,” according to MassDOT. The project will cover the entire state, including Justice40 communities.
In 2023, MassDOT conducted an extensive study to explore whether a statewide system of Regional Mobility Managers would benefit older adults, people with disabilities, and low-income people by “improving the awareness, availability, accessibility, and efficiency of transportation services for these populations.” MassDOT published the study on Jan. 31, 2024.
While the study (download below) looked at how mobility management systems function in other states, the primary focus, MassDOT says, “was a deep dive into exploring the perspectives of on-the-ground practitioners helping people with mobility challenges and low income-navigate the existing transportation systems.” The study found support for a statewide mobility management program—and lays out a series of action steps for MassDOT to pilot this program “in a way that complements the work being done by the practitioners on the ground,” the agency noted.
Building on the recommendations of the MassDOT Regional Mobility Manager Study, this ICAM grant award will require MassDOT to work closely with a steering committee. This committee already includes partner state agencies that manage statewide programs and initiatives related to aging and disability and assisted MassDOT with the recently completed regional mobility study.
“Not everyone has the physical or financial means to travel in their vehicles and it is essential that we prioritize initiatives that meet them where they are,” said Transportation Secretary and CEO Monica Tibbits-Nutt. “All of us at MassDOT are looking forward to working with the Steering Committee on this pilot program as the steps we will take will build on a study we just completed, which found widespread support for a more coordinated approach with mobility management.”
In addition to the ICAM grant, the Healey-Driscoll Administration has secured nearly $6 billion in federal funding since taking office and currently has a total of more than $3 billion in current requests pending for federal funds for infrastructure, climate, and economic development projects.
Last year, the administration won a $108 million award for West-East Rail, a $372 million award for the Sagamore Bridge Replacement Project and a $116 million grant for the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority’s (MBTA) purchase of battery-electric buses. Additional grants received recently include $67 million for accessibility improvements at 14 MBTA Green Line station stops and approximately $3.3 million for six municipal airports in Massachusetts.
The Healey-Driscoll Administration has other transportation grant applications pending, including an application for $1.06 billion in grant funding through the Bridge Investment Program (BIP) Large Bridge Project Program to replace the Sagamore Bridge. MassDOT is the lead applicant, applying jointly with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) as the bridge’s owner.
