Essential Express® vanpool!

Manzanita Works is honored to share that our Essential Express® commute program has been awarded a grant to create long-haul vanpools for essential workers who commute to work in Redwood City!

Income qualified essential workers will be able to try commuting by vanpool *for free* up to 12 months in one or more vanpools with qualified transportation service providers, thanks to the sponsorship of the City of Redwood City and local transportation sales tax dollars provided by San Mateo County Transportation Authority.

• First route: Livermore <—> Redwood City!
• Anticipated launch date: mid-August.
• Route will operate Monday through Friday excluding key federal holidays.
• Departure and arrival times for both morning and evening commutes will be determined based on the participant cohort's work schedules.
• Priority will be given to essential workers in education, health care, family care, food service, and first responders.
• Income qualifications are based on 80% of the Area Median Income (AMI) from the California Department of Housing and Community Development.

We are collaborating with several transportation service providers to connect essential workers to vanpool and shuttle routes. The inaugural Essential Express® vanpool route will be with award-winning Mosaic Global Transportation, a family-owned, minority-owned, small business based in San Jose, California with over 24 years of experience.

Are you an essential worker commuting by car from Livermore to Redwood City? Would you be interested in trying a vanpool as an alternative way to commute?

Sign up on our Essential Express® Interest List to be informed of the application and enrollment process.

Thank you to everyone who has weighed in so far on potential routes. Keep them coming! We encourage essential workers to fill out our Long-haul Route Wishlist as we explore the creation of additional long-haul routes. Some examples: driving from Santa Cruz to San Mateo or from Gilroy to Los Altos Hills.

Manzanita Works invites you to register for a state-wide webinar hosted by the California Department of Insurance on:

Understanding Your Health Insurance Rights: Coverage, Care, Costs, and Consumer Protection in California. August 19, 2026, from 6:00–7:00 PM

The webinar will help consumers better understand:

• Their health insurance rights, including protections for preventive care, behavioral health, reproductive care, and language access.
• Which state agencies regulate different types of coverage.
• How CDI’s Consumer Services Division assists with claim denials, complaints, and coverage issues.
• Learn how to avoid health insurance-related scams.

Registration link: qrco.de/CDI2026

Manzanita Works is a Caltrain Regional Partner for 2026, connecting qualified essential workers to the local rail agency's Pass Forward program since the program's inception in 2021. If you are interested in participating in 2026, please fill out our Pass Forward Interest Survey. We can then connect you with the SamTrans survey the public agency administers for Caltrain. Once these steps are completed, and you are qualified and approved as a rider, we will meet up with you to provide your card for use in 2026. Note: Educators are ineligible for this program in 2026 unless they are a returning participant and are within the income thresholds.

We've been thrilled to see our inventory of e-bike loaners get into the hands of essential workers who live or work in Redwood City, work at Moffett Park in Sunnyvale, or work at the Contra Costa Transit Village in Walnut Creek. Our fleet is growing steadily across the region.

“It has been a great way to introduce the world of bikes to me, and the benefit of them on my health, and the idea that I am more likely to own one for myself," one Essential Wheels® participant has said. "I've been looking into them for commute, especially ones that can carry my payload, as a therapist.”

If you are an essential worker who is interested in borrowing an e-bike for free for up to one year, visit our program website to learn more and add your name to our Essential Wheels® Interest List to stay informed about when additional e-bikes become available.

Thanks to the generous support of Grace Lutheran Church of Palo Alto in 2026, we now have more shoes available through our Essential Kicks™ program connecting essential workers to pairs of non-slip work shoes. In collaboration with service providers Footwear Etc. and KEEN, the program will provide shoes to income qualified essential workers in healthcare, education, food service, family care, and first responders while supplies last. Fill out our Essential Kicks™ Interest List if you think you could benefit as supplies are available.

With 80 members who are residents across 19 communities in four counties, our tool lending library, Essential Tools™, is humming along. Essential Tools™ Members can borrow items in the inventory for free on a weekly basis and receive discounts at Hassett Ace Hardware Stores. If you didn't see the local press coverage in November, check it out at the Redwood City Pulse. You can join the Essential Tools™ program here.

We are honored to be collaborating with the San Mateo County Office of Emergency Management on key initiatives. Come visit our booth at the:

San Mateo County Annual Disaster Preparedness Day August 1, 2026, from 10:00 AM – 2:00 PM San Mateo County Event Center. 1346 Saratoga Dr., San Mateo, CA 94403

This event connects the community to local agencies and organizations to receive disaster preparedness resources and information. There will be awesome vehicles to put out hot blazes, hands-on workshops to keep you cool under pressure, and fun activities for all ages. Essential Tools™ will also present a booth with info on how to help prevent wildfires through home hardening and more.

Manzanita Works is not affiliated with any of the properties or programs listed below. However there are several local affordable housing vacancies available at this time for below-market-rate units that may be of interest to essential workers on our mailing list. Please contact the properties directly for more information:

• Cirrus Redwood City 2580 El Camino Real, Redwood City, CA 94063
  • Currently leasing for three (3) affordable one-bedroom units. These units are available to households making up to 100% of AMI.
  • Applications will be reviewed on a first-come, first-served basis until September 23, 2026, at 5 p.m.
• Laureola Oaks 907 East San Carlos Avenue, San Carlos, CA 94070
  • Currently accepting applications for its waitlist. 1-, 2-, and 3-bedroom units are available to households earning between 50% to 60% of AMI.
  • Applications must be received by July 7, 2026, at 5 p.m. to be considered.
• The Millton 900 Chestnut St Redwood City, CA 94063
  • The Millton is a 100% affordable apartment community, with 119 units that will be leased at below-market rental rates to qualified households.
  • The deadline to apply to the waitlist is September 30, 2026, at 5 p.m.

Manzanita Works, Inc. is a 501(c)(3) dedicated to supporting the workforce and their families live fruitful, dignified lives. We focus on helping essential workers close the gaps that interrupt their ability to come to work in 6 portfolios: housing, commute, health, food security, family care, and the future of work.