MONROE — Volunteer drivers are in demand throughout Green and Lafayette counties.
Both the Green County Aging and Disability Resource Center (ADRC) and Southwestern Wisconsin Community Action Program (SWCAP) are looking to sign up drivers to help those without transportation. Drivers are reimbursed for the miles they drive at between 50 to 58 cents per mile.
The vast majority of rides are for people who need to attend medical appointments.
About 20 people gathered at the Blackhawk Technical College campus in Monroe Nov. 19 to discuss the need for drivers. Morgan Kennison from the ADRC office said the position of being a volunteer driver is flexible to when the driver is available. ARDC drivers are reimbursed for rides at the Internal Revenue Service reimbursement rate of 58 cents per mile. Because the service is volunteer, payments for mileage are non-taxable.
The need for drivers stems from the shift in the population, Kennison said, which shows that in the next 10 years, 30% of the population will be over the age of 65. The demand for volunteer driving services will increase as fewer people maintain their own vehicles or have the ability to drive.
“We see that it’s just continuing to grow and grow with the miles we are driving,” Kennison said. “Sometimes these are simple, local trips, or round trips to places like New Glarus. Sometimes it’s a trip for a medical service in Madison.”
The ADRC drove 55,000 miles for Green County residents in 2018. So far this year it’s already provided 59,000 miles worth of rides.
Kennison said the service doesn’t compete with the local taxi company because the nature of the rides has to fit into a specific category.
As for volunteer drivers, they can participate at a level they are comfortable with – they could make one trip a week or they could drive several days a week. Kennison said the ARDC has 15 volunteer drivers throughout the county, but is in need of many more.
Brigitte Elet of Monroe is a volunteer driver for the ARDC and SWCAP. Elet said she’s found a great deal of satisfaction being a volunteer driver.
“It’s something that I love to do,” Elet said. “I like listening to the stories of the people who I’m driving. I enjoy meeting new people and hearing about them. It’s a thankful job. I’m doing something that’s good for people and it makes me feel good.”
Many of the volunteer drivers for the ARDC are at or near retirement age and take on the role as a way to stay active in their free time, Kennison said.
To become a volunteer driver in Green County a person must fill out an application, pass a criminal background check, pass a caregiver background check, have proof of insurance, pass a vehicle checklist and inspection and pass a driving record check. The whole process goes by quickly, Kennison said.
Lori Jacobson of SWCAP said there’s a significant need for volunteer drivers in both Green and Lafayette counties. SWCAP provides rides through its “Lift rides” program. SWCAP serves several counties in southwestern Wisconsin and has logged 705,000 miles in rides so far this year.
Jacobson said the rides SWCAP gives are mainly for the purposes of attending medical appointments or getting clients to and from work. SWCAP and the ARDC work together and often SWCAP provides rides that the ARDC’s drivers “can’t get to,” Jacobson said.
Currently SWCAP is reimbursing drivers at 50 cents per mile.
“There’s a large need in every county we serve for transportation,” Jacobson said. Currently SWCAP has just one volunteer on its roster in Green County.
Jacobson said SWCAP is seeking to gain volunteer drivers for its upcoming “Late Night/Early Bird” driver program.
“We are providing driving services for more than 800 people each year,” Jacobson said. “Currently we don’t have a volunteer available to drive on Thanksgiving Day and this is the first year that’s happened. Our need for volunteer drivers is overwhelming.”
The meeting at Blackhawk Tech in Monroe was opened by Troy Maggied, the executive director of the Southwestern Wisconsin Regional Planning Commission.
“We need to increase the volume of drivers and also have drivers at many different locations,” Maggied said. “In rural Green County we have no drivers, so we’re trying to target that.”
Jacobson said SWCAP has had to turn away 55 ride requests this year.
“It’s very hard to turn people away,” Jacobson said. “So many requests are coming in and we simply don’t have drivers to fill them all.”
For more information on becoming a volunteer driver for the ARDC, contact Kennison at 608-328-9499 or online at ardcswwi.org. For more information on becoming a volunteer driver for SWCAP, contact Jacobson at 608-930-2191 or e-mail l.jacobson@swcap.org.