By Mark Chamberlain
Eagle Times Correspondent
As the Mobility Manager for Sullivan County Transportation, Candy Winot Reed keeps people moving. After all, it’s up to her to connect people to the transportation options that can best get them to their destinations.
She works across sectors with community partners to understand transportation needs in Sullivan County and to create services that respond to those needs.
Reed is one of eight Mobility Managers who work across the 10 New Hampshire counties and under the scope of eight regional coordinating councils focused on transportation. Teri Palmer is the State Mobility Manager guiding this program, working closely with NHDOT and the State Coordinating Council.
Palmer is responsible for ensuring residents across the state have access to and are aware of all transportation resources within the state. She also focuses on finding state and federal funding sources to support New Hampshire’s transportation programs.
Bus routes in the immediate area include Claremont, Newport, Charlestown, and Lebanon, with the Lebanon bus making a total of six roundtrips per day.
“It took us some time to get this service off the ground, but since it launched in 2021, it has provided transportation for hundreds of people in our area,” said Palmer.
SCT is nestled under the umbrella organization Southwestern Community Services, which provides a variety of resources to residents of Cheshire and Sullivan counties. Its goal is to empower low-income people and families as they lift themselves toward self-sufficiency. Transportation is a key component of their programming.
SCT also houses the Volunteer Driver program in Claremont, one of 23 such programs across the state.
“This program is designed to offer door-to-door service for those 60 years and above and for folks with a documented disability,” said Reed. “This includes temporary disability like when someone has a broken leg.”
For riders who qualify, volunteer drivers go to their house to retrieve them and take them to appointments. Drivers are reimbursed for the mileage and receive a monthly stipend, an amount determined by the total trips they’ve completed in a month.
An important service of the Volunteer Driver program is offering rides home for individuals after a hospital stay. Reed works with health navigators at all the local hospitals to inform patients of this program. Health navigators arrange for vouchers and connect the patient to SCT.
Recently approved by the Sullivan County Regional Coordinating Council is a new program focused on vehicle repair offered through J&S Automotive, in partnership with the Claremont Chamber of Commerce. It’s for students, employed individuals, and those looking for employment. Individuals with a vehicle needing repairs submit an application to J&S at one of their three locations in Charlestown, Claremont and Newport. If they meet the program qualifications, J&S Automotive will conduct repairs on the car up to $1,000. J&S is then reimbursed with program funds.
The main goal of the program is to ensure that vehicle issues don’t prevent individuals from self-sufficiency.
Reed not only focuses on four-wheel vehicle solutions. She’s collaborating with a 4-H club, known as the Rogue Robots, which recently launched a bike repair program. The group sets up a pop-up tent at events like street fairs where they repair bikes on the spot. The repairs are free of charge and the team even gives out bike helmets to those who need them.
There is always a need for drivers, Reed says.
“We are always looking for part-time drivers for the Lebanon bus route and the Volunteer Driver program,” she says. “For most of our driving opportunities, a standard driver’s license suffices. But, depending on the bus in use, the Lebanon route may require a commercial driver’s license.’’
For more information on programming or employment, visit scshelps.org and click on the Transportation tab or email Reed directly [email protected]. For more information on the Rogue Robots, find them on Facebook at facebook.com/roguerobotsof4h.
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