Temple gets $7.5M from PCORI to help adults with disabilities navigate public transportation

Temple University College of Public Health will study ways to help young adults with disabilities learn how to navigate public transportation under a $7.5 million contract from the Patient-centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI), a nonprofit research funding organization.

The goal of the Temple initiative, called Chance to Ride, is to foster independence among people who are transitioning out of support services for children with disabilities. Transportation can be a major barrier to employment, getting involved with the community, and socializing, said Beth Pfeiffer, a health and rehabilitation sciences professor at Temple and the project’s lead investigator.

The study will test two approaches — one led by staff members, and one by peer supporters who have an intellectual or developmental disability.

“Our hope is that this study can help reduce these barriers and that these individuals will have more independent forms of transportation so that they can live independently and engage with their communities,” she said.

Schools, parents, and other caretakers typically provide transportation for children, but when young people age out of public support services — typically around age 21 — they may be on their own to figure out how to get around.

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The program will work with individuals to address physical disabilities, communication limitations, and sensory issues that might affect their ability to travel.

The training will also cover how to read road signs and how to handle emergencies.

They will practice traveling on public buses or SEPTA’s rail or subway lines, initially accompanied by a Chance to Ride provider, then on their own.

Participants will be assigned to work with either a Temple staffer or a “peer supporter,” another individual with disability who has been hired to work with Chance to Ride. The study will look at whether participants report better outcomes when they work with a community member with shared personal experience or with a medically trained professional.

Participants will complete a survey after the training to report back what they found most helpful or unhelpful, and what changes they have seen in their ability to get around.

Temple is working with the University of Florida, the University of Minnesota, and the University of New Hampshire. Each institution will partner with community organizations that serve adults with disabilities to provide the transportation training.