Community Rides Grants
Program Overview
2026 Community Rides Grants Awardees
The Community Rides grant program supports local transportation partnerships and the capacity of rural transit programs. Project selections address access to critical needs like employment, healthcare, education, healthy food, social services, regional coordination, recreation, and building technology capacity. The results of the projects will be shared nationally as promising practices. All expenses that are eligible under the FTA Section 5311 program are eligible for this program, except for vehicle purchases and costs for existing transit services. Download the 2026 Community Rides Grant Program Press Release.
Eligible Applicants:
Eligible applicants for awards are existing rural or tribal transit systems that receive or are eligible for FTA Formula Grants for Rural Areas (Section 5311) or Tribal Transit Program funding. Applicants must serve as the lead agency and must have a written agreement with one or more partners that demonstrate their involvement in the project.
Project Selections:
After a detailed and thoughtful review process, National RTAP selected eight projects to fund. In addition to the evaluation criteria stated in the request for proposals (RFP), the Review Committee considered the project types, size and type of the agencies, project partners, and target audience of the project. They also considered the applicants’ recent receipt of other significant competitive awards from FTA or FTA technical assistance centers.
Listed in alphabetical order by state, these projects are launching now. Tribal awardees will be announced soon.
Selected Projects
DJ Transit, Mississippi — $25,000
DJ Transit, Inc. of Laurel, Mississippi, will launch the GRACE Campaign (Grace Ride Access Care Endowment), a pilot project focused on supporting wellness-related transportation. The project is backed by community stakeholders, faith-based organizations, and an established Advisory Board, and the funding will support development of the endowment and program implementation.
Fresno County Rural Transit Agency, California — $48,000
Fresno County Rural Transit Agency will evaluate and implement new scheduling software to improve efficiency and enhance the rider experience. The project will reduce operational costs, increase public awareness, and make services easier to use, while creating a replicable framework for rural transit agencies nationwide.
Giles Health and Family Center, Virginia — $25,000
Giles Health and Family Center will expand its Non-Emergency Medical Transportation (NEMT) services by introducing on-demand and microtransit options. The expanded service will support trips for employment, education, healthcare, social activities, and recovery and addiction support.
Heart of Iowa Regional Transit Agency (HIRTA), Iowa — $31,000
HIRTA will improve access to health care by supporting interoperability between medical platforms and transit scheduling and dispatch software, strengthening coordination between transportation and healthcare services.
Northern Kentucky Area Development District (NKADD), Kentucky — $25,000
NKADD will address disparities in scheduling and trip management systems across regional transportation providers. The project will move the region toward a coordinated demand-response transportation network through technology assessment, platform implementation, and development of an interoperable regional framework.
The Arc Chemung-Schuyler, New York — $80,000
The Arc Chemung-Schuyler’s Community Rides project will expand rural transportation access in Schuyler County by addressing first- and last-mile challenges. The project will extend Dial-a-Ride hours, adjust intercounty routes, add Saturday service, and pilot fare-free rides to reduce barriers and increase access to employment, healthcare, and community activities.
Past Awarded Project Outcomes
The previous awarded Community Rides Grant program projects offer examples of local partnerships aimed at addressing specific transportation needs.
The results of many of the projects are shared below in the form of a final report and a PowerPoint slide deck for each grantee, in alphabetical order by state. Click the name of the grantee or the arrow to expand the window.
You can also see the location of the 19 grantees in the interactive map to the right.
The vast majority of the projects resulted in expanded service that is being sustained after the grant term through Section 5311 or another funding source. As of April 2024, one year after the grants concluded, 16 of the 19 projects have sustained their services or initiatives.
One key takeaway was the need for funds and support to be able to prove the demand and viability for a service in order to get consistent funding. Another takeaway is the value of local partnerships and advocates as well as peer information and support.
Updated 10/12/23
A program of the Federal Transit Administration administered by the Neponset Valley TMA
National RTAP is committed to making this website accessible to persons with disabilities. If you need assistance accessing any content on our website or need alternative formats for our materials, please contact us at info@nationalrtap.org or 781-404-5020.