Funding the way to work: Transportation policies with provisions for low-wage workers

Adequate access to employment is a primary factor in providing a means to self-sufficiency for disadvantaged populations. In order to secure and retain employment, people must enjoy a degree of mobility.;The Job Access and Reverse Commute (JARC) program enhances mobility for low-wage workers and low-income individuals by offering federal funding for locally planned and developed access projects. Funding for JARC projects is a combination of federal and local funding, with local funding derived from local sources, such as dedicated taxes, other local-level government-funded programs for disadvantaged populations, businesses, or general accounts.;The objective of this research is to identify local-level funding sources for JARC projects and identify associations between types of local funding and utilization of JARC funding. Little research has been conducted on the implications of local funding measures on federally funded JARC projects. How do the different methods of generating matching local-level funds interact with JARC projects? This research fills a gap in the literature by surveying JARC recipients to uncover sources of local funds.;Survey results show JARC recipients tap a wide range of local sources to fund projects and JARC projects quickly receive federal funding respective to application submittal.