Sec. 980.2. Purpose and mandate

(a) Purpose.

The program has the following purposes and objectives:

(1) to enhance the access of people in rural counties to health care, shopping, education, employment, public and recreation services and improve the mobility of transportation disadvantaged persons;

(2) to assist in the establishment, maintenance, development, improvement and use of public transportation services in rural counties;

(3) to encourage and facilitate the most efficient and economical use of all federal, state and local funds used to provide passenger transportation in rural counties through the establishment of a coordinated public transportation service to be operated by a single operator of passenger transportation in each county;

(4) to increase the productivity of existing programs' resources used for transportation by increasing the hours of vehicle operation and by expanding services and service eligibility through regular advertising and marketing and in such manner as to transport more persons, especially those in need of transportation but who do not typically receive transportation services;

(5) to provide for the participation, to the maximum practicable extent, of existing transportation providers and resources in the development of coordinated public transportation services in rural counties;

(6) to establish a single focus for passenger transportation service planning and operation at the county level to maximize integration of resources, minimize underutilization of vehicles and eliminate duplicative or fragmented services;

(7) to provide a mechanism or process for local decision-making that will allow continuing participation by all transportation disadvantaged sub-groups, consumers, human service agencies and current providers including private enterprise, in designing effective transportation services and selecting a service operator.

(b) Mandate.

Public, private, and private non-profit corporations or organizations applying for or receiving federal, state or local aid in order to provide or contract for public transportation services or transportation to the general public and specific clientele groups in rural counties, shall coordinate and integrate funding and resulting services, to the maximum extent possible, with Services Coordinators and Coordinated Service Operators in said counties in accordance with this Part. A rural county's designated Services Coordinator may request, from public and private agencies receiving federal, state or local aid in that county, such information or data related to transportation services, facilities, equipment, usage, costs, revenues and funds as he or she may deem necessary for the preparation, revision, updating and implementation of the county's coordinated public transportation service plan. Transportation services funded under this Part must be coordinated with transportation services funded by other federal, state and local sources.