Job Access and Reverse Commute (jarc) Program fy 2009 Service Profiles Region X alaska, Idaho, Oregon, and Washington October 2010 fta-08-0162 Job Access and Reverse Commute (jarc) fy 2009 Service Profiles: Region X

Puget Sound Educational Services District (656)

Road to Independence (774)

Location: North Pierce and South King counties (WA)
Type: Trip-Based Services/Vanpool (service only)
Goal: Improved access/connections
Service description: We currently are both a transportation provider as well as a training program. We train low-income TANF participants as drivers who in turn drive our vans that transport other low-income clients who need to get to employment or employment related activities. At the end of the driving training our drivers typically have obtained a CDL class B with an S endorsement and find unsubsidized employment in the transportation field.
Our riders are referred through case managers that work with clients who qualify as special needs based on their income status or disability. Most often they are in a work training program or part of a supported employment program. They are unable to transport themselves due to the hours they work and the limited transportation available or their disability. Our clients would not be able to participate in their work opportunity without our service as they do not have access to or qualify for other transportation options.
Evaluation: We currently evaluate our program on the number of clients trained as drivers and then moved to unsubsidized employment in the transportation field as well as the number of clients transported. When clients are placed with us through the Community Jobs program as drivers they are also required to complete an exit survey on their experience in the program. We consistently receive high marks from clients who complete our program. We have many clients who encourage their eligible friends to attend our program.
Accomplishments: This past year we expanded our program to incorporate South King County by accessing the JARC vans through contracting with King County Metro. South King County has historically been an underserved area of County for special needs clients in need of transportation services. The agencies we partner with in South King County primarily work with immigrants and refugees. We are not only providing job training to those that are ready through our training program but we are also providing transportation services to newly arrived immigrants and refugees in need of a variety of pre-employment services so that they can be ready and eligible for employment.
Lessons learned: Our biggest on-going challenge continues to be finding eligible drivers to be placed in our training program. Many interested drivers are not eligible due to many reasons such as previous driving record, drug and alcohol issues, limited English, and other issues. The challenge is to maintain enough drivers to serve the clients that are in need of transportation. We continue to pursue other partners that would increase our driver pool.