United Way Halifax is offering up funding to its agencies for transportation as the transit strikes continues into the third week.

Carole McDougall, director of communications for United Way Halifax, said it “became obvious” in the last few days that some of the organizations it supports needed financial help getting people to things like programs and medical appointments.

“People have been trying to work around this, they have been carpooling and getting some of the volunteers that they have involved to help drive people,” said McDougall on Tuesday.

“It became obvious to us that perhaps there was something we could do to help.”

McDougall says United Way has offered each of its 56 agencies $500 for a total of about $28,000.

“We realize that this is a … small amount that is not going to cover every single potential request an agency would have, but it’s to help with that.”

But for Joe Gibson, every little bit helps. Gibson, the executive director of the Freedom Foundation of Nova Scotia, a transition home for men in early stages of addictions recovery, said program participants usually hop on a bus from Brule Street in Dartmouth to a treatment centre in Woodside and back.

He said HRM has provided a van so that volunteers can drive men to and from appointments, but it costs about $100 per week to operate.

“It might not seem like much, but that’s certainly a lot of money when we struggle with our funding to begin with,” said Gibson. “We’ve been doing this now for a few weeks, and it all adds up.”

McDougall said she expects that if the strike lags on, more funding could be provided a second time.