ACL: National Transportation Accessibility Center

ACL is announcing a new grant award to develop a National Transportation Accessibility Center (NTAC). The grant of $485,000 over a one-year period has been awarded to the Community Transportation Association of America (CTAA), which will be partnering with the UMass Boston Institute for Community Inclusion, USAging, and DJB Consulting. NTAC also will work closely with people who need or use transportation services, the transportation sector, and an array of national, state and local organizations throughout the country. This award seeks to expand access to transportation for people with disabilities and older adults by increasing awareness and adoption of transportation accessibility strategies, inclusive planning, and mobility on demand transportation systems.

The transportation industry is changing quickly with new technology like electric and self-driving vehicles and transportation systems. The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act will make historic investments to rebuild America’s roads, bridges, and rails, creating an important opportunity to make sure transportation is designed, built, and rebuilt around the principle of accessibility for all.

The NTAC will develop and promote strategies that make transportation services more accessible for people with disabilities, older adults, family caregivers and others in their support network, include:

• identifying and sharing successful accessibility strategies;
• developing the National Accessible Transportation Accelerator Network (NATAN);
• identifying and sharing materials through an ACL-hosted NTAC website; facilitating five communities of practice to increase accessible transportation options for historically marginalized and underserved communities; and 
• coordinating with the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) and ACL transportation-related centers to leverage resources and expand dissemination of effective practices.

NTAC will serve as a national resource and technical assistance center that advances greater awareness, adoption, and use of assistive technology and other strategies that make transportation systems, services, program enrollment locations, websites, and apps accessible and responsive to the needs of people with disabilities and older adults. Learn more about ACL’s inclusive transportation efforts.