In an effort to help people with disabilities access job training and get hired, one of the nation’s leading ride-sharing services plans to offer free or discounted rides.

Lyft’s Jobs Access Program will provide complementary or lower-cost rides to individuals with disabilities and other targeted groups in more than 35 markets across the U.S. and Canada.

The company said rides will be available to get to or from job training programs, interviews and to get back and forth from work for the first three weeks of employment before new hires typically get their first paychecks.

“For the unemployed, reliable transportation to a job interview or to the first few weeks of work can mean the difference between successful, long-term employment and lost opportunities,” Lyft said in a statement about the new initiative launched late last month. “We are focused on communities that stand to benefit most from short-term transportation support, ranging from veterans to individuals with disabilities.”

The ride-sharing service is partnering with nine organizations — including Goodwill and the National Down Syndrome Society — to connect with people in need of transportation.

Ashley Helsing, director of government relations at the National Down Syndrome Society, said the Lyft program addresses a major need.

“There are roughly two million people living with disabilities in the United States. Of those two million, nearly 30 percent, or 560,000 people, are unable to leave their home because of transportation barriers,” Helsing said. “The ability to get around easily, especially for employment in the disability community, is crucial to the future.”

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