Partner spotlight: LyftUp Access Alliance

In August, we began partnering with Lyft through their LyftUp Access Alliance to provide access to free Lyft rides to MBK Communities—connecting them with the reliable transportation they need to continue their critical work during these challenging times.

This year, the enduring destructive impacts of COVID-19 and other systemic inequities have laid bare the longstanding disadvantages faced by communities of color in accessing necessities, such as food, healthcare, employment, and reliable transportation. The LyftUp Access Alliance was created—supporting 11 founding member organizations with the recognition that reliable transportation is a factor in social and economic mobility. At this moment in history, it is more important than ever to remove any and all barriers that stand in the way of people’s ability to access essential needs and opportunities.

Since August, ride credits have been disbursed to our Impact and Seed Communities in Atlanta, Chicago, Albuquerque, and other cities around the country. These rides have been deployed to support a range of activities, including youth transportation to and from essential jobs, job interviews, and local food distribution efforts.

Lawndale Christian Legal Center, a Chicago Seed Community partner, is leveraging the rideshare credits to support their clients’ access to legal aid services and job opportunities across the city. Juma Ventures, a National Seed Community partner, helped one local youth, Corterio, secure a job canvassing neighborhoods across Atlanta, helping residents register to vote in October. He shared that he “would not have been able to get to work every day if [Juma] didn’t have the rideshare credits provided through the LyftUp Access Alliance.” 

In the coming months, 14 of our Impact and Seed Communities will continue to have access to Lyft rides through March 2021 to connect program participants and their families to essential needs and essential work during the COVID-19 pandemic.  Learn more about the Access Alliance and chip in to support MBK Communities in bridging the transportation gap for youth and community leaders. (Opens in a new tab)