Waupaca County’s workforce rideshare program hit 1,000 rides in less than five months.
The Catch-a-Ride program gave its first ride Dec. 15 and reach 1,000 rides May 5, said Jeff Mikorski, executive director of the Waupaca County Economic Development Corporation, which oversees the service.
The program is funded by a Workforce Innovation Grant of up to $3.2 million administered by Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation and the Department of Workforce Development.
Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation Secretary and CEO Missy Hughes visited Waupaca Wednesday to celebrate the success of an innovative 24/7 rideshare program.
“Employees and businesses cannot thrive if workers aren’t able to get to work,” Hughes said. “Access to reliable, affordable and safe transportation is a barrier to workers building careers and is a challenge our state needs to overcome to build our workforce. Programs like Waupaca County Catch-a-Ride, mobilize communities, state government, nonprofits, and businesses to solve a complex challenge.”
Waupaca County Catch-a-Ride partners including WCEDC, Feonix Mobility Rising and Make the Ride Happen, employers and community members gathered at Waupaca Foundry to celebrate the program’s early success.
“We have helped a number of folks gain employment,” said Valerie Lefler, CEO and founder of Feonix-Mobility Rising, a national nonprofit which is helping run the Waupaca County Catcha-Ride program. “We’ve helped folks maintain employment. We’ve helped people who are transplants from other states and afraid to drive on snow or ice get to work safely. We’ve also helped individuals who were unhoused living in a rural community get a job for the first time in years.”
The Workforce Innovation Grant is currently subsidizing rides so users pay just $3 per ride, but to keep the program sustainable the partners will need to look for other revenue sources and new ways to support low-income riders, said Holly Keenan, director of Make the Ride Happen, a project of Lutheran Social Services. Make the Ride Happen is working on case management to help connect riders with other available services.
“With record-low unemployment at 2.5% and a record number of jobs, Wisconsin employers are seeking new ways to attract and retain skilled workers. Transportation is a critical factor in workforce attraction and retention in this region and across the state,” said Amy Pechacek, DWD Secretary-designee.
Waupaca Foundry has a number of employees who use the service.
“It’s been very beneficial to have an alternative ride option to refer people to in situations where they don’t have access to a vehicle,” said Carmen Peskie, human resources manager at Waupaca Foundry. “I am happy to hear that we’ve had so many folks taking advantage of this opportunity.”
Antonio Ponce works third shift as a machine operator at the foundry. He had been working in California when a friend told him about opportunities in Wisconsin and he applied at Waupaca Foundry. He started at the foundry on Jan. 23 and at the time had no driver’s license and no car. He credits the ride program with allowing him to keep his job.
ThedaCare has been another supportive employer working with Catch-a-Ride even before the program began in Waupaca County.
In 2018, ThedaCare employees and community members identified transportation as an issue impacting both health and the economy. As a result, ThedaCare helped support Make the Ride Happen, a program of Lutheran Social Services, in Waupaca County to begin work on this issue.
Theresa Vollendorf works in the Emergency Department at ThedaCare Medical Center in New London.
“Due to medical issues, driving at night is sometimes hard for me and working mainly evening shifts involves a lot of night driving,” Vollendorf said. “In the past, I have been worried about getting home safely in the evenings. Now, with the ride program, I am picked up at my front door and dropped off at the entrance to work. The ease of the program gives me a positive way to begin my shift.”
