The Wisconsin Fast Forward program encourages increased collaboration between Wisconsin's workforce, employers, local or regional economic development organizations, workforce development boards and non-profit community to foster and to expand opportunities for lowincome workers. The goal of the Commute to Careers program is to connect people with lowincomes or disabilities to jobs through enhanced local transportation services. A lack of transportation is a significant barrier to getting and to keeping jobs for workers. Improving transportation services can improve the economic outcomes among these workers and employers throughout the State of Wisconsin.
Expanded Wisconsin Fast Forward Program: The standard Wisconsin Fast Forward (WFF) program is a state-funded grant program to provide employer-focused worker training grants. The Office of Skills Development (OSD) at the Department of Workforce Development (DWD) administers the grant program. The 2017-19 biennial budget allows for expanded Wisconsin Fast Forward initiatives to meet identified workforce needs. This effort is based on DWD's previous collaboration with the WisDOT in the Wisconsin Employment Transportation Assistance Program (WETAP), which enhanced local transportation services. Many unemployed or low-income workers are unable to provide their own transportation to and from work due to circumstances related to disability, age, or income level. If these workers live in rural areas, they may also face barriers related to limited transportation options and the need to travel to another community for work.
This WFF Grant Program Announcement is a unique partnership with the Wisconsin Department of Transportation (WisDOT). Unlike the standard WFF program, which does not fund capital acquisitions, WisDOT funds available through this GPA can fund vehicle purchases for flexible transportation solutions. Flexible transportation refers to any demand-responsive mode of transportation that connects workers to employment opportunities that are not readily accessible to them.
This program offers two grant types:
- Program Grants- The Program Grant opportunity through WFF is open to applications from Wisconsin entities that can demonstrate a critical need to transport unemployed, low and moderate-income workers to employment opportunities in Wisconsin: private employers in good standing, non-profit 501(c)(3) organizations, or consortiums comprised of employers, non-profits and organizations that serve people with disabilities. Program Grant funds are available to serve the needs of Wisconsin workers statewide. Governmental entities are not eligible to apply for Program Grants.
- Vehicle Grants- The Vehicle Grant opportunity through WisDOT is open to non-profit and local public bodies (including tribes). This money is targeted to low-income residents at 150 percent of the federal poverty level or less. Vehicle Grant funds are only available to projects that provide most of their services in areas identified by DNR for traffic congestion and vehicle emissions reduction, which include Milwaukee, Racine, Kenosha, Waukesha, Washington, Ozaukee, Walworth, Sheboygan, Kewaunee, Manitowoc and Door counties.
None is available.
The priority of this grant opportunity is to establish affordable, self-sustaining, flexible transportation programs that can grow and adapt to meet the needs of the employees and employers which it serves. Employers, through investment in the transportation program, will gain access to a larger pool of workers and have fewer absences and have less turnover of their employees related to logistic issues associated with transportation. A wide variety of creative and specialized demand-responsive transit projects (DRT) have been implemented across the State of Wisconsin to provide flexible, user-oriented services. Potential transportation projects could include:
Similar models that achieve the objective of connecting low-income workers to quality employment opportunities may also be funded under this grant program.