On Feb. 1, APTA unveiled the online Veteran and Military Family Resource Center to strengthen the connections between public transit systems and military communities via job fairs, industry-wide hiring goals, and information.

The website highlights public transit agency initiatives for veterans, features links to veterans’ job fairs nationwide and federal hiring programs, and serves as a clearinghouse for news and articles, reports, statistics, market research, and other resources for the veteran and military community. It also features links to websites of other veteran-related programs and a discussion forum for interested parties to communicate and engage with others about veteran-related issues.

“With more than 300,000 military personnel leaving the service every year, veterans face many challenges in transitioning to civilian life,” said APTA President & CEO Michael Melaniphy. “Public transportation connects veterans with work, education, health care, and other important services. APTA is delighted to recognize and support transit agencies as they reach out to veterans and their families.”

The website is one of many recommendations proposed by the APTA Military/Transit Cooperative Task Force established in 2012.

APTA encourages its members to link to this website to make it available to veterans and their families.