For Transportation Providers

General Resources and Information

5 A's of Senior Friendly Transportation

  • The Beverly Foundation identified five factors that are essential to senior friendly transportation. These five factors are known as the 5 A's of Senior Friendly Transportation and are widely accepted as criteria for assessing the usability of transportation services by seniors. These factors are Availability, Acceptability, Accessibility, Adaptability, and Affordability.

Assisted Transportation Network of Alberta (ATNA)

  • ATNA is a community of practice developed by MARD and the Edmonton Seniors Coordinating Council with the goal of bringing together people who are committed to improving assisted transportation services in Alberta. ATNA offers resources and information to individuals and organizations interested in implementing, expanding, and/or improving an assisted transportation service. ATNA also offers the opportunity to connect with other solution-seeking individuals to network and share knowledge and best practices.

Transportation Toolkit for the Implementation of Alternate Transportation for Seniors in Alberta

  • MARD, in collaboration with a number of stakeholders including the Ministry of Seniors and Housing, has developed a Toolkit to assist municipalities and community organizations in building and sustaining an Alternate Transportation for Seniors (ATS) service in their region or community. Sections in the Toolkit include Getting Started, Developing & Implementing a Project Plan, Conducting a Needs Assessment, Developing & Launching Your Service, Receiving Feedback & Evaluating Your Service, and Building a Sustainable Service.

Provincial Transportation Needs Assessment

  • In 2016-2017, MARD conducted a Provincial Transportation Needs Assessment of seniors and persons with disabilities (PWD). In each of the reports, there is valuable information on the unmet transportation needs of seniors and PWD and what these individuals think alternate transportation services should look like.

Funding Sources

City of Edmonton Community Investment Operating Grant

  • The City of Edmonton Community Investment Operating Grant program provides operating assistance to Edmonton's non-profit organizations whose activities benefit citizens of Edmonton. Your organization's primary mandate must fall under one of the following categories:
    • Social Services: social programs and activities that help the citizens of Edmonton to strengthen personal or community life.
    • Multicultural: promotion of human and group relations, in which ethnic, racial, religious, and linguistic similarities and differences are valued, respected and exchanged.
    • Recreation/Amateur Sport: those activities and experiences in which an individual chooses to participate in his/her leisure time and includes, but is not limited to, athletic, physical, historical, natural science, cultural, social and intellectual.

Community Initiatives Program

  • The Community Initiatives Program (CIP) provides funds to enhance and enrich community initiatives throughout Alberta. The program is intended to reinvest revenues generated from provincial lotteries in communities, to empower local citizens, and community organizations to work together and respond to local needs.
  • Relevant categories within Community Initiatives Program (CIP) are:
    • Project-Based Grants: provide financial assistance for community organizations for such things as equipment purchases, facility construction or renovation projects, hosting/travel/special events, new programs or special funding (i.e., disaster) requests within Alberta. Maximum funding available is $75,000.
    • Community Operating Grants: provide financial assistance to registered non-profit organizations in Alberta to enhance the organization's ability to operate and to deliver services to the community. Maximum funding available is $75,000.

Edmonton Community Foundation

  • Supports requests from charities representing arts, culture and heritage; education and learning; human and social services; health and wellness; recreation and leisure; and the environment and conservation through its Community Grants Program and with other forms of assistance.
  • An organization is eligible to apply to the Community Grants Program if it is a not-for-profit organization serving greater Edmonton, and has a charitable registration number from Canada Revenue Agency (CRA).

New Horizons for Seniors Programs

  • The program is a federal grants and contributions program that supports projects led or inspired by seniors who want to make a difference in the lives of others and in their communities.
  • NHSP supports projects that address one or more of the following five program objectives:
    • promoting volunteerism among seniors and other generations;
    • engaging seniors in the community through the mentoring of others;
    • expanding awareness of elder abuse, including financial abuse;
    • supporting the social participation and inclusion of seniors; and
    • providing capital assistance for new and existing community projects and/or programs for seniors.

Other Resources

An In-Depth Analysis of Ride-Scheduling Software Programs

  • This comprehensive report provides information on the different ride-scheduling software options available to organizations providing alternate transportation to seniors and those with disabilities.

Assisted Transportation Volunteer Driver Program Toolkit

  • This toolkit was developed by the Edmonton Seniors Coordinating Council to strengthen the capacity of senior-serving organizations to provide assisted transportation through volunteer drivers. It is a 23 section guide to help in the planning, development, and audit of volunteer driver programs.

Guide for Drivers of Seniors and Persons with Disabilities

  • Developed by Alberta Transportation, this Guide offers information on suggestions on client service, handling of mobility aids, loading and unloading passengers, defensive driving, collision & emergency preparedness for drivers of seniors and persons with disabilities.

Insurance Toolkit for the Volunteer Sector and Information for Voluntary Organizations

  • This toolkit provides information for nonprofits, charities, and community-based organizations that have both paid and volunteer staff. Describes the different types of insurance including automobile (Owned and Non-Owned), business interruption, commercial or comprehensive general liability, crime, directors and officers liability, professional liability, property, special events liability, and tenant's legal liability. Explains risk management and how to understand and evaluate insurance policies.

Let's Plan On It - A Guide for Providing Transportation Services in Rural Areas for Seniors and Persons with Disabilities

  • This document was developed to help municipalities, service providers, consumer groups and other interested parties develop a local public transportation system for use by seniors and persons with disabilities.

Resources for Providers of Accessible Transportation Services: A Toolkit

  • This toolkit was developed as a resource for accessible transportation service providers and those contemplating entering the accessible transportation industry in Alberta. The toolkit is divided into three sections:
    • Non-Financial Resources, such as strategic planning, regional coordination guides, and legislation.
    • Funding Sources at the federal, provincial, and municipal levels.
    • Other Related Information, including provincial/territorial transportation accessibility plans.