CHICAGO-- When the Welfare to Work bill became law in 1996, community organizers and social service agencies knew that the challenge before them was two-fold. Not only did they have to train and prepare welfare recipients for the workplace, they had to make sure they could get to their new workplace.
Hiring incentives, the hot economy, and eagerness on the part of welfare recipients to make a transition to work took care of the first problem. But the daunting challenge of lengthy reverse commutes on public transportation is still an impediment to many jobseekers.
The Access to Jobs and Reverse Commute program provides federal grant money to agencies and organizations to develop transportation services for inner-city welfare recipients to reach suburban job opportunities. The program is a part of the huge Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century (TEA-21) legislation that was signed into law in June 1998.
The Chicago Area Transportation Study (CATS) is holding a workshop August 10, 1999 to maximize the funding for northeastern Illinois and develop a cohesive job access plan for the region. Approximately $75 million in grants will be awarded nationally, and CATS is working to make sure that the Chicago area receives its fair share.
"Federal regulations and guidelines are often as difficult to navigate as rush hour traffic," said Donald Kopec, CATS Deputy for Programming. "We want to work with potential applicants to improve their proposals and broaden the range of programs while developing a fair, solid plan for the entire region."
The Chicago Area Transportation Study is the official Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) for northeastern Illinois, designated by State and local officials to carry out the urban transportation planning process for the region. The region includes all of Cook, DuPage, Kane, Lake, McHenry and Will counties, plus a portion of Kendall County.