Organizers host LIFT kickoff

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Supporters hosted a Local Individual Family Transit kick off event Friday in Perryville.
Free rides were given from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Ginny Smith, one of the LIFT team members explained the process of obtaining funding through the National Center for Mobility Management for the transportation event and answered a few questions.
“It’ll be branded differently from SMTS,” Smith noted. “It’ll be LIFT service provided by SMTS. It will be branded with a different logo and have a different concept.”
Smith said the findings have shown those in the 18-59 year-old demographic have the biggest transportation need.
“It’s affordability,” she said. “That age demographic has very little opportunity for affordable transportation because our older citizens, 60 and plus, or disabled, have grant opportunities that pay for their transportation on our demand and response service and the 18-59 (year-olds) have to pay full price for our services so they (often) can’t afford it.”
“If it’s $14 to come into town for one day, could you afford that for a whole week? This offers an affordable solution for that age demographic to get to work, to get to the grocery store, to get to more opportunities for their family.”
A proposed price point of $1 to $3 for unlimited riding all day long has been suggested, though nothing is definitive at this time.
“It was on survey data that we collected of low income housing, economic opportunities for employment, it even went along the lines of grocery stores, social services, people need to get to their medical appointments and things like that,” she said. “Our route is basically a combination of all of those services…This was our first shot at what we think will be working for them.
“Ridership offsets the cost but community support and other grants is what actually funds the cost. It’s not really about profitability because we’ll never really break even.”
“Public transportation is often viewed as the medical bus, the old people bus, the disabled bus, you get the picture,” Smith said.
She explained how the LIFT initiative would be different than the demand and response model of the Southeast Missouri Transportation System.
Organizers believe the system could operates daily, operating on a flexible route, with a flexible schedule that depend on passenger request
Advanced reservations are required
Smith explained this was a proposed transportation solution
A deviated fixed route is a combination of a fixed route and demand response service model. This process uses pre-determined timetables but often deviates from the route, up to one-fourth of a mile from the regular route.
“It offers efficient, dependable, cost affordable solution, the only catch with it is that the rider must be able to board and deboard the bus because that bus driver never leaves their seat,” Smith said.
Benefits of this system, according to Smith, include access to transportation, contributes to economic development and overall quality of life of rural communities
Reliable transportation is needed for rural residents to access health care services, consumer services and employment and educational opportunities, according to Smith.
While rural public transportation is available to everyone, no matter the individuals’ age, the three most common users are older Americans, people with disabilities or people with low incomes.
It has been determined that SMTS cannot provide the required trips for all of Perry County.
“Whether trips to work or medical appointments, this age group seems to face the most challenges,” Smith said. “This need was recognized in 2019 by a group of like-minded community members.
The group met on numerous occasions, attempting to seek a solution to address this transportation need.
A deviated fixed route is a hybrid model that combines a fixed route as well as demand and response system.
“The final stages of our solution will begin when our group is hopefully awarded a grant that will allow us to operate a 30-day pilot (program),” Smith said.

This grant, which the local transportation organizers submitted documentation for earlier this month, is to be awarded in January 2022.
The group wanted individuals to try out the system and get theiur feedback.
“Our grant group encourages you to hop on the bus today and use LIFT over the next few hours. This type of transportation can bring numerous benefits to Perryville. After today’s event, our group hopes to take your words and questions to solidify our solution. While no solution is perfect, a deviated fixed route can offer dependable and affordable transportation.”
Organizers are optimistic this could eventually open up avenues for a new transportation service in Perryville.
Even if the grant is awarded, it will require community support, Smith said.
This could include agreements to build bus shelters, sponsoring a month’s worth of transportation, bus maintenance and other options.
The solution will ultimately be part of the existing transportation system. “SMTS is not going anywhere…It’s just a part of, and an extension to, what we already have,” Smith noted.
Perryville resident Diane Brown believes there is a need for this type of service.
“I think a big need,” she said. “I think it’s going to be very good. There are a lot of people out there who don’t drive and they maybe don’t drive because they just can’t drive or they can’t afford a car.”
Reliability and dependability, to her, would be the key components of a proposed citywide transportation system.
“I think being on time would be one, the other is just reliability, if I had to work at TG or somewhere if I was on work on time, and not late,” she said. “That would be a big thing.”
She attended Friday’s event with her husband, Larry Brown, and they were among the first group that left the Catalyst Center shortly after 9 a.m.
“Us ourselves, we don’t really need it right now, we’re both good drivers,” Larry Brown said. “We’re here for the food pantry and the community to help check it out.”

LIFT organizers will likely find out if they receive a grant in early 2022. The monthlong program could take place in late spring, around April or May.
“If the pilot (program) is successful than at that point our group, along with SMTS, will look into the community to see if it’s sustainable to keep on the road. If it’s sustainable after the grant, then it would start immediately after the pilot. Today is just kind of test phase to see what we’ve been working on,” Smith said.
She then attempted to answer questions for those in attendance.
“From now until then, do you have the funding or means, or the ideas how to promote this to get it to the people who really need it?” asked Jackie Wengert, Perryville Chamber executive director.
Social media, the newspaper as well as television commercials were all mentioned as options
“We don’t what that perfect solution is because we target that 18-59 demographic,” said Pam Deneke.
We see that’s what needs it the most but I don’t know if there is a one size fits all to get this into the community. We do have the funding. We don’t know the perfect solution.
For Friday, a 12-person bus was used, and that would likely be what is used if the program gets a monthlong trial run next spring “unless it fills to capacity constantly.”
Jerry McCloud was driving the bus at Friday’s kickoff.
A deviated fixed route does not account for those with accessibility issues, according to Smith.
“With enough community support, ideally this service would operate for free, so there would be no charge for getting on and off the bus,” she said.
For SMTS, it costs an average of about $30,000 a month to operate a bus, Smith said.