Socially useful transport using volunteer vehicles

October 2023

Centre d’études et d’expertise sur les risques, l’environnement, la mobilité et l’aménagement (CEREMA)

1 - OPERATION OF A TUS (Socially useful transport)

There are two phases to running a TUS using personal vehicles provided by a volunteer:

Phase 1 consists of putting the TUS beneficiary in touch with a volunteer driver to organise the journey.

In practical terms, the beneficiary calls the service coordinator before the journey is due to take place, within the time limit set out in the TUS rules (often 48 hours in advance). The coordinator then looks for a suitable volunteer, based on availability and geographical proximity, and assesses how much the driver should be paid. If the volunteer driver agrees, he or she then calls the beneficiary to arrange the meeting and the details of the journey, particularly if the volunteer is required to help with certain tasks such as shopping or administrative formalities.

This introductory phase may be organised using computer tools and applications. During this phase, care should be taken to ensure that the TUS does not compete with local taxi or ambulance services;

The 2nd phase concerns the journey itself.

The volunteer driver collects the beneficiary from their home and makes the agreed journey(s). In many cases, the driver also accompanies the beneficiary beyond the simple driving (helping an elderly person with shopping, for example). At the end of the journey, payment is made by hand and/or by handing over a receipt signed by the beneficiary if the rules of the service stipulate that the beneficiary pays the amount for the journey to the association, which then pays it to the volunteer.

2 - COSTS AND SOURCES OF FUNDING FOR THE SERVICE

With the exception of national associations wishing to use a sophisticated platform to put people in touch with each other, the main advantage of a TUS using personal vehicles is that the investment costs for the association organising the service are limited to the purchase of basic telephone and computer equipment. On the other hand, the running costs may be higher than the investment costs if the association decides to employ a referral person to run the service and put people in touch with each other. As a general rule, the annual operating budget for a TUS varies between €17k and €34k.

The list below gives a range of average annual costs for the main operating items:

• annual salary of the support worker: between €12k for a subsidised job and €30k for other types of contract;

• volunteers’ expenses, some of which are paid in part by the association: between €5k and €18k (depending on the amount of travel covered and the amount per kilometre covered);

• TUS promotion/communication activities: between €1k and €2k;

• car and civil liability insurance, when taken out by the association: between 0.5 k€ and 1.5 k€ ;

• office and administrative supplies: between €0.5k and €1.5k;

• telephony and internet: between €0.5k and €1k.

The main source of funding for the service comes from grants that the association can obtain from public authorities and certain economic players. The amount of subsidies varies greatly depending on the TUS and the ‘funders’. In the most favourable cases, project sponsors manage to obtain subsidies of several tens of thousands of euros spread over several years by applying to the State, the Département, the Community of Communes or the Region, in particular as a local AOM, and to private foundations.

The other sources of funding for the service are memberships in the association, amounting to €1k to €2k a year, and contributions from beneficiaries towards the cost of travel. In addition, local authorities sometimes provide the association with an office and an administrative officer for certain administrative tasks.

3 - SIZE AND OPERATION OF THE SERVICE

To develop and sustain a TUS, a solid network of volunteers needs to be recruited and nurtured. Few associations manage to achieve the target of one volunteer driver for every three users, which is necessary for the TUS to function properly. This sometimes means that requests for journeys have to be turned down, particularly when the service is starting up.

The implementation and operation of a TUS is organised around the following actions:

• a communication campaign aimed at elected representatives, charities and doctors’ surgeries to raise awareness of the service among the target beneficiaries;

• an assiduous, grassroots campaign to recruit volunteers;

• Drawing up service charters for volunteers and beneficiaries;

• checking vehicle authorisations (registration certificate, insurance) and volunteer drivers (driving licence required);

• organising training and events for volunteers (road safety, first aid, etc.) or beneficiaries (taking public transport alone, etc.);

• organising regular social events to encourage social contact between volunteers and beneficiaries and to keep volunteers motivated.

4 - PROJECT DEVELOPMENT APPROACH

The projected timetable for bringing a TUS into service varies considerably depending on the nature of the project and the capacity of the association behind it. The size of the project has a considerable influence on the subsequent implementation of the TUS. The key points are to secure long-term sources of funding and to recruit and retain enough volunteer drivers to keep up with the growth of the TUS. Strong local and multi-partner mobilisation, as close to the ground as possible and involving elected representatives and social players in particular, makes it easier to obtain subsidies and recruit the volunteer drivers who are essential to the smooth running of the service.

5 - EXAMPLE OF THE TUS IN THE COLOMBEY SUD TOULOIS AND SAINTOIS COMMUNITIES OF COMMUNES

In November 2012, the CIEL association, affiliated to the Familles Rurales federation, set up a TUS for the residents of the Pays de Colombey Sud Toulois and then the Pays du Saintois. These two communities of communes cover 93 communes with a total population of 26,000.

The service is available on a means-tested basis. Beneficiaries must pay an annual contribution of €23 per family and not own a private vehicle. In 2017, 75% of beneficiaries were retired, but the proportion of young beneficiaries is increasing over time, reaching almost 40% by 2022. That year, 27 volunteer drivers made 1,564 trips (66,094 km) for 195 users. This represents a 55% increase in journeys compared with 2016.

Use of the TUS is limited to five journeys per user per month, with a maximum range of 80 km return. The main reasons for travel are medical appointments (30%), shopping (17%), leisure (16%) and administrative formalities (12%). In 2022, the average round trip distance was around 40 km for the entire area covered by the TUS (Pays de Colombey Sud Toulois and Pays du Saintois).

In practical terms, the service operates Monday to Friday from 9am to 6pm, but beneficiaries must make their request to the association at least 48 hours before the journey. If the beneficiary’s appointment exceeds 2 hours, the volunteer driver in charge of the return journey is not necessarily the same as the one in charge of the outward journey, but this is exceptional.

The beneficiary’s contribution to the cost of the service is differentiated according to two resource levels (€0.10/km or €0.35/km). The remainder of the cost of the journey, including the whole of the upper leg (the journey between the volunteer driver’s home and the meeting point with the beneficiary), is financed by the association with the help of funders who recognise the value of the service (CD, Communauté de communes, CAF, etc.). The volunteer driver is therefore reimbursed for the whole of his or her journey, including the upper leg. To trigger payment, the volunteer driver fills in a trip summary form, which he has the beneficiary sign and then submits to the association. In 2022, the CIEL association’s TUS budget amounted to €30k for volunteer driver expenses, to which should be added the €32,360 salary of the ‘solidarity mobility’ project manager.

The association’s assessment of the TUS is positive, and it is developing the areas of work listed below to consolidate the service:

• continuing to develop direct communication with social and medico-social professionals and local authorities in order to raise awareness of the scheme among beneficiaries and potential volunteer drivers;

• communicate directly with local residents via radio, newspapers and newsletters;

• organise social events for local residents to present the scheme, in partnership with the local authorities and the association;

• organise meetings between beneficiaries, volunteers and drivers;

• continue to organise training sessions for volunteer drivers;

• diversify and strengthen the funding plan, and continue to develop cultural access in partnership with local organisations.

6 - CONCLUSION

The TUS services provide a mobility service that is adapted to the needs of people in precarious or isolated situations, and are complementary to other mobility services that are part of a multimodal service package aimed at all local residents.

Sources

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