Volunteer Drivers Toolkit

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Volunteer Driver's Toolkit

Introduction

Welcome to the National RTAP Volunteer Driver Program Toolkit! This Toolkit was developed to assist organizations that provide passenger transportation services to persons with transportation needs and help them with developing and maintaining volunteer driver programs. The Toolkit is a guide that provides the framework for developing and maintaining volunteer driver programs.


Volunteer driver programs are a critical component of many public transportation systems as well as human services transportation, offering specialized or expanded services beyond those typically available through general public transit services and providing a more personal and one-to-one transportation service for customers who may require additional assistance.


The original Volunteer Drivers Guide was developed with broad input from model programs currently operating in Washington State and in other parts of the United States. The Community Transportation Association of the Northwest (CTANW) was contracted by the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) to review and update the Guide in 2011-2013. In 2024 National RTAP contracted with KFH Group, Inc. for the purpose of updating the 2013 version of the Guide by broadening its scope to the national level and developing an online Toolkit. A Stakeholder Workgroup made up of representatives from National RTAP, WSDOT, and the Colorado Association of Transit Agencies (CASTA) served as an advisory group to the project, providing input and feedback through the guidebook update and toolkit production process. Please see the Acknowledgements Section for more background information. 


This Toolkit contains recommendations, examples, and sample forms as well as informational online links, attachments, and resources. It also contains information and resources to help organizations navigate through complex requirements imposed by federal and state laws and various funding organizations. The goal is to strengthen existing programs and to serve as a guide for the development of new programs.


The Toolkit contains the following sections:

Table of Contents

Acknowledgements

National RTAP staff would like to thank the following current and former National RTAP Review Board members and additional SMEs whose expertise and experience shaped the development and update of this Toolkit:

  • Marianna Hanefeld, Washington State Department of Transportation
  • Ann Rajewski, Colorado Association of Transit Agencies
  • Paula Clark, KFH Group
  • Daniel Dalton, KFH Group
  • Meredith Greene, Socius Amica, LLC
  • Ken Hosen, KFH Group
  • Jill Hough, KFH Group 
  • Luke Huddon, KFH Group


Subject Matter Reviewers 

  • Angel Bond, Boulder County Transportation Planning Division,  CO
  • Carrie Diamond, National Aging & Disability Transportation Center, Washington, D.C.
  • Staci Sahoo, HopeLink Mobility Management, WA


Case Study Representatives

  • Melisssa Allen, King County Metro, Community Van, WA
  • Bobbi Craig, New Freedom/Compass IL, WI
  • Lori Hamilton, Space Coast Area Transit/Volunteers In Motion, FL
  • Octavio Hinojosa, Chariot, TX
  • Kristen Kendall, WexExpress New Freedom Volunteer Driver Program, MI
  • Katie Myszka, Ride Connection, OR
  • Jenna Robinson, Senior Alternatives in Transportation (SAINT) Volunteer Transportation, CO
  • Molly Walt, Nevada Rural Counties RSVP Program, Inc., NV


This document was prepared by National RTAP with the financial assistance of the U.S. Department of Transportation. The contents do not necessarily represent the opinions or policy of any agency of the U.S. Government, and the U.S. Government assumes no liability for the contents or use thereof. It does not have the force and effect of law and is not meant to bind the public in any way. 

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Updated October 2025