Using the HSTP to Support Funding Pursuits

Implementation of HSTP strategies that address unmet needs or barriers will be carried out through projects and programs developed by individual transportation service providers, many of which are likely to require some kind of supplemental funding to implement.

Service providers will pursue funding from various sources for projects. Transportation providers will likely turn to Consolidated Grants for funding. This HSTP aims to open doors for a variety of funding opportunities as well.

Relationship of HSTP to Consolidated Grant Program

The most prominent funding opportunity is the biennial WSDOT Consolidated Grant program. It is launched every two years, in even numbered years, to award funding for the next biennium.  A call for projects is underway in 2026; another call will be conducted in 2028. Funding is available for a wide variety of project types and for a wide variety of project sponsors; it is not restricted to transit agencies and tribes.

Consolidated Grant applicants will respond to a few questions in the application about the HSTP.

·       Project Need: Your project must speak to one or more of the unmet needs or barriers included in this 2026 HSTP. Applicants may find this pdf version of Chapter 4 - Unmet Needs and Barriers helpful in supporting your response. These needs and barriers were derived from public comments and detailed community health needs assessments and other sources, refined with input from human services transportation providers from across the region, data from Department of Health resources, and social media accounts from a variety of service providers. They will be vetted further through public review and refined as warranted in September 2026.

·       Planning and Coordination: You want to reference the 2026 Human Services Transportation Plan in your response to this question. This pdf of Chapter 5 - Mobility Strategies will be helpful. You will also be asked to indicate what page in the HSTP your project proposal is located on. Enter “TBD by PRTPO.” When PRTPO concludes its review and ranking process in December, projects will be amended into the HSTP in a Consolidated Grant Projects appendix and that information will be provided to WSDOT.

Finally, when you submit your application through the online GMS portal, save a copy as a pdf and email it to Amna Parson, the PRTPO Coordinator. Her email address is AmnaP@kitsaptransit.com. This is important. In October and November PRTPO will begin a review and evaluation process for WSDOT of all the projects submitted. She needs a copy of your application to use in that process. You’ll find a button to “print” your application form to the left of the “submit” button in GMS.

 Relationship of HSTP to Other Funding Opportunities

Human services transportation providers may reference this HSTP and its strategies to obtain funding from other sources, including grants from WSDOT or from countywide STBG funding processes or the regional Transportation Alternatives program, as well as from non-transportation sources.

Tribal Transit Mobility Program
The Tribal Transit Mobility application is nearly identical to the Consolidated Grant application. While it does not require specific HSTP citations, it may increase your competitiveness to reference PRTPO’s HSTP and the relevant issues and strategies in your Tribal Transit application.

STBG and Transportation Alternatives Programs
These periodic grants can fund a number of strategies related to vehicle replacement, bus stop improvements, accessibility improvements, as well as education, outreach, and planning projects. These are federal funding programs though. It’s important to be sure this is the right color of money for these projects. But if it is, referencing identified issues and strategies from the HSTP can contribute to a project’s competitiveness.

Rural Health Transformation Program
Recent efforts by the Department of Health and the Health Care Authority to secure upwards of $1 billion to improve rural health care in Washington and access to its services are likely to result in new still-to-be-defined funding opportunities over the next 3-5 years for some of our human services allies. We want this HSTP to support those efforts. The HSTP demonstrates a degree of cooperation and coordination between our transportation and health services sectors and our overlapping interests.

PRTPO is particularly interested in efforts to improve rural mobility for the hardest to serve needs and address some of the barriers and disconnects identified in this plan. Increasing the capacity for mobile integrated health services is one promising approach to meeting people where they are and reducing the travel barriers they face.

We also support funding efforts that seek to retain and expand health services available locally. Our partners struggle to meet demand for long-distance travel for medical appointments today; any reduction in locally available care services will exacerbate that issue. This HSTP demonstrates that not only is reliable transportation a priority concern for local health care services, but locally available health care services are a priority concern for transportation.

Applicants wishing to reference this HSTP in their funding proposals may use the following citation:
2026 Human Services Transportation Plan for the Peninsula Region, Peninsula Regional Transportation Planning Organization, October 2026 (anticipated)

SECTION CONTENTS
Relationship to Consolidated Grant Program
Relationship to Other Funding Opportunities

HSTP Online Site index

Introduction
Human Services Transportation
Unmet Needs and Barriers
Mobility Strategies
Implementation Funding Support
Inventory of Transportation Services
HSTP Resources

Are you completing a Consolidated Grant or Tribal Transit Mobility Grant? If so, you may find these pdf versions of HSTP Chapter 4 and Chapter 5 helpful. The page numbers and strategy references in the final report will not change.
- Chapter 4 - Unmet Needs and Barriers
- Chapter 5 - Mobility Strategies

Get in Touch!

To share your thoughts on the 2026 update of the Human Services Transportation Plan that is underway, correct inaccurate information, or help us identify missing information, please drop us a note. Thanks!

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