Greater Madison MPO

Specialized Transportation

Specialized Transportation Services in Dane County

The Dane County Department of Human Services provides individual and group transportation services which enable seniors and people with disabilities and to access their communities and needed services. Transportation assistance may also be provided for low-income families or persons with unusual medical transportation expenses. For more information, call Dane County’s Transportation Call Center at (608) 242-6489.

Accessible paratransit service is provided by Metro Transit in the Madison area.

Monona Transit provides specialized transportation for seniors and people with disabilities (Monona Lift) within Monona with service to and from Madison.

Stoughton Transit provides accessible accessible transportation within a 3 mile radius of Stoughton.

The Retired and Senior Volunteer Program (RSVP) of Dane County provides individual rides to medical trips for adults aged 60 and over and for people with disabilities with their driver escort service.

The YWCA’s YW Transit program – (608) 316-6888 – provides rides for low-income people going to and from work and employment-related activities, as well as safe rides at night.

Coordinated Public Transit – Human Services Transportation Plan

The 2019-2023 Coordinated Public Transit - Human Services Transportation Plan for Dane County serves as the locally developed coordinated plan for projects funded under the Section 5310 Enhanced Mobility of Seniors and Individuals with Disabilities Program. It was developed through a process that included representatives of public, private, and non-profit transportation and human services providers and participation by members of the public.

Section 5310 Enhanced Mobility of Seniors and Individuals with Disabilities Program (CY 2024 Funding)

The Greater Madison MPO (MPO), in cooperation with the Wisconsin Department of Transportation and Metro Transit, administers the Section 5310 Enhanced Mobility of Seniors and Individuals with Disabilities Program.  The Section 5310 Program provides formula funding to states and large MPOs to improve mobility for seniors and individuals with disabilities. Grant recipients in the Madison area will be selected through a competitive process by the Greater Madison MPO. For a map of the urban area (blue boundary), click here. For projects outside the Madison area, please see the Wisconsin Department of Transportation’s website for the statewide Section 5310 grant program.

The minimum local share for projects is 20% for capital projects and mobility management programs and 50% for operating projects. An additional $38,379 in CRRSAA and ARPA supplemental apportionments is available with no local match requirement - these funds must be used to cover operational expenses, including salaries, or expenses of vehicle modifications to improve driver and passenger safety such as sneeze guards or air filtration systems that were expended between January 20, 2020 and May 11, 2023. Recipients will be required to adhere to the Section 5310 Program Management and Recipient Coordination Plan (PDF). Projects must carry out the Section 5310 program’s goal of enhancing mobility for seniors and people with disabilities and must be consistent with the locally developed Coordinated Public Transit – Human Services Transportation Plan.

Eligible Recipients

The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) states that eligible recipients include "private nonprofit organizations, state or local government authorities, or operators of public transportation."

Note: Private operators of public transportation are eligible recipients. The FTA definition of “public transportation” includes shared-ride surface transportation services.” Private taxi companies that provide shared-ride taxi service to the general public on a regular basis are operators of public transportation, and therefore eligible recipients. “Shared-ride” means two or more passengers in the same vehicle who are otherwise not traveling together. Similar to general public and ADA demand response service, every trip does not have to be shared-ride in order for a taxi company to be considered a shared-ride operator, but the general nature of the service must include shared rides.

Eligible Activities

As described by the Federal Transit Administration, traditional Section 5310 project examples include:

  • buses and vans
  • wheelchair lifts, ramps, and securement devices
  • transit-related information technology systems, including scheduling/routing/one-call systems
  • mobility management programs
  • acquisition of transportation services under a contract, lease, or other arrangement

As described by the Federal Transit Administration, nontraditional Section 5310 project examples include:

  • travel training
  • volunteer driver programs
  • building an accessible path to a bus stop, including curb-cuts, sidewalks, accessible pedestrian signals or other accessible features
  • improving signage, or way-finding technology
  • incremental cost of providing same day service or door-to-door service
  • purchasing vehicles to support new accessible taxi, ride sharing and/or vanpooling programs
  • mobility management programs

For ARPA/CRRSA funded-projects, eligible activities include:

  • Salaries paid to employees between January 20, 2020 and May 11, 2023
  • If the applicant certifies that no employees were furloughed during the Covid-19 pandemic, operational expenses such as the purchase of cleaning supplies, personal protective equipment, or modifications to vehicles to protect drivers and passengers that were made between January 20, 2020 and May 11, 2023

Note: Under MAP-21, the program was modified to include projects eligible under the former Section 5317 New Freedom program, described as capital and operating expenses for new public transportation services and alternatives beyond those required by the ADA, designed to assist individuals with disabilities and seniors.

2023 Section 5310 Program Application Materials (CY 2024 Funding)

Instructions (PDF)

Application (XLXS)

Application (PDF)

Follow the instructions above. Download the application spreadsheet (.xlxs) above and fill out the necessary fields according to the instructions. If you are not able to use the spreadsheet or if you have any questions about the application, instructions, or process, please contact Ben Lyman (contact information below).

Applicants may sign applications electronically. Applicants are encouraged to “print to .pdf” instead of printing and scanning applications, as this improves legibility and reduces file size.

Other required documents:

  

Calendar year 2024 Section 5310 grant program schedule:

Application released.....................................June 1, 2023

Applications due...........................................8:00 AM (CST), August 7, 2023

Preliminary awards announced.....................September 6, 2023

Awards finalized............................................October 4, 2023

Grant cycle begins..........................................January 1, 2024

Grant cycle ends.............................................December 31, 2024

For more information, contact:

Ben Lyman
(608) 243-0182

Email

Additional guidance and grant application information is available in the FTA Circular:

FTA C 9070.1G