Cars 4 Causes® Affordable Transportation Program
The Cars 4 Causes® Affordable Transportation Program converts donated vehicles into both a contribution to charity and hope for a family in need. Through our Affordable Transportation Program, we sell approximately 400-500 cars per month -- smog-compliant & road-ready -- to people searching for essential transportation. Proceeds from the sale of these vehicles go to donors' charities of choice.
Cars 4 Causes® Affordable Transportation Program News Releases
Affordable transportation - Stumbling block to employment
CALIFORNIA, July, 2007 -- Transportation costs have been
steadily rising over the last several decades, taking more and more out of the pockets of American families. And the situation, hard on the wallets of everyone, is toughest on the poor.
The poorest 20 percent of Americans - those who can afford it least - spend 40.2 percent of their income on transportation, says a report by the Surface Transportation Policy Project (
www.transact.org), a not-for-profit advocacy organization devoted to study and improvement of transportation options.
Even before the latest 2007 rise of gas prices into the $3-and-above range, transportation costs were hitting home with commuters and, indeed, with all drivers. Affordable transportation is, seemingly, a problem without a solution. But maybe not. One group has come up with a recycle, reuse, re-drive strategy for affordable transportation. It's a simple idea: take cars from people who don't want them and get them into the hands of someone who does.
This kind of out-of-the-garage thinking takes about 6,000 to 7,000 donated cars per year, sees them smogged and inspected, and then moved into the affordable transportation category, says Pat Jessup, executive director of Cars 4 Causes® (
www.cars4causes.net). Some of the cars go directly to families in need, some are sold and money from them goes to charities designated by car donors.
Affordable transportation is not a luxury, the Surface Transportation Policy Project report says. It can mean the difference between getting to work on a daily basis and getting there sporadically, if at all, and depending on the kindness of relatives and friends. The fact is that getting to work, schools, doctors, or even getting to the supermarket can prove impossible without a car.
Lower income families suffer most from the sprawl that has spread across almost all of the country. The simple answer to lack of transportation - move closer to jobs and stores - is not always possible. Over the last several decades, communities have been designed with the car in mind, notes the Earth Day Network, an Internet site that serves as a connection for environmentalists worldwide (
www.earthday.net). Urban sprawl hits low-income families hard, making it difficult to get anywhere without a car.
And public transportation? Not always available, says the Surface Transportation Policy Project report. Just over half of American households report having access to public transportation.
"We can't fix everything," says Jessup, "but we can help find affordable transportation and kick away the major stumbling block, the initial cost of the car itself, for many families." Her not-for-profit organization, Cars 4 Causes®, receives donations of vehicles and donates the vehicles themselves or money raised by the sale of them to designated charities.
Cars 4 Causes®, "The Charity That Gives To Charities"® is a non-profit, IRS Code 501(c)(3) tax-exempt charity. We help people turn used vehicles into tax-deductible charity donations. Cars 4 Causes® has been a trusted avenue for charity funding since 1997. Proceeds from tax-deductible donations of vehicles go to qualifying non-profits. Read our Vehicle Donation FAQ’s to see how Cars 4 Causes® works for you!
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The poorest 20 percent of American households spend 40.2 cents out of every dollar on transportation. (Surface Transportation Policy Project)