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Abstract
The benefits of interagency coordination of public and human service transportation have
been recognized and promoted by federal, state and local governments. Potential
coordination benefits can be realized by centralizing critical functions of transit
operations. One of the ways this can be realized is by brokering partransit services. This
paper discusses barriers that agencies face when planning to implement paratransit
brokerages. The barriers were developed from a synthesis of the literature and interviews
with paratransit providers in Illinois. Strategies for implementing brokerages that attempt
to overcome these barriers based on an analysis of paratransit operators in the state of
Illinois are also presented. These strategies include establishing an advisory board,
developing an agreement among participants, specification of the type of brokerage that
will be implemented and technological changes.