Portal:FTA Mobility on Demand Sandbox/Intro
The Mobility on Demand (MOD) Sandbox Program is a Federal Transit Administration effort to support innovation among transit agencies and cities. Through the MOD Sandbox program, FTA provides organizations grants to conduct demonstration projects experimenting with unconventional operations. To be eligible, organizations must partner with at least one other organization (such as a private mobility provider or academic research institution). MOD Sandbox grants can cover up to 80% of the cost of a project; in 2016 (the program’s first year) it awarded nearly $8 million to 11 projects.
The ITS Joint Program Office (ITS JPO) and Federal Transit Administration (FTA) Office of Research started developing the MOD Program in 2015 to support applied research to better understand partnerships between emerging mobility providers and local transportation agencies, and to explore the federal role in supporting such partnerships. ITS JPO and FTA launched the $8 million MOD Sandbox grant program in May 2016, with eleven projects approved for funding in October of the same year.