Jefferson Lines announces is participating in a global research collaboration spearheaded by United Against Slavery to fight human trafficking via the 2021 National Outreach Survey for Transportation (NOST). Over 100 contributors including 59 oversight agencies from Canada, Brazil, the Netherlands, and the U.S. will analyze frontline data from the aviation, maritime, pipeline, railroad, roadway, and public transit agencies to craft policies and solutions to disrupt this criminal activity and ultimately make it difficult, unattractive, and unprofitable.

In 2020, United Against Slavery (UAS) became the first-ever recipient of the USDOT “Combating Human Trafficking in Transportation Impact Award.” Christi Wigle, Co-Founder and CEO stated, “The National Outreach Survey for Transportation project will launch July 5, 2021, and be open to our collaboration partners for sixty days. The survey tool is designed to collect frontline data on all types of human trafficking to inform research, programming, evaluation, and other functions of the counter-trafficking community. The aggregate findings and data analysis will be completed and disseminated by April 2022 and will guide the collaboration team in crafting global solutions that can help save lives. Our collaborative data collection efforts at United Against Slavery is to help victims be freed from enslavement and to empower survivors with the resources needed in their healing journeys.”

In recognition of the critical position that members of the bus industry can assume in recognizing and interrupting potential instances of human trafficking, Jefferson Lines has partnered with Busing on the Lookout (BOTL) to train 100% of its employees to act as eyes and ears on the ground to detect and report signs of this pervasive crime. As a result of this training, Jefferson employees have played a role in referring signs of human trafficking to law enforcement since 2017, resulting in multiple victims being freed.

“Jefferson Lines provides service to more than 170 communities throughout America’s Heartland,” said Jefferson Lines President and CEO Steve Woelfel. “Through the training and attention of our company’s employees, we have an opportunity to make a positive difference in combatting human trafficking, which affects so many of the communities we serve. As a leader in the motorcoach industry, Jefferson is happy to support this important initiative.”