With an eye on increasing transportation options for adults with developmental disabilities, the Citizens for Independent Living is looking forward to a big year in 2011.  The CIL, which began in 1984, provides training and housing for the developmentally disabled.

"We want to help our members continue to live independently because that's always been our goal," said CIL board member Jessie Parker.  "We also want to obtain funding to secure the long-term existence of the CIL."

The CIL began with a small group of parents looking for options to provide an independent future for their developmentally disabled children, without the benefit of a state or federal program to help these individuals thrive once their schooling was completed.

The CIL persisted through problems, which included funding and high cost issues, and ran a training program for many years that was designed to help these adults become productive members of the working world by assisting them to get entry-level jobs.

The CIL expanded to provide housing in 1993 with four condominiums that housed seven disabled individuals. After its early success, the CIL was granted land by the township to build 11 apartments for 16 residents for the CIL Woods apartment complex on Route 522.

This year, in addition to fund-raising, the CIL is hoping to increase the transportation options available to members who are reliant on the township's busing service to take them to and from their jobs.

"Part of independent living is not having to depend on someone to pick them up to take them to work," Parker said.   "They have van transports to take them places like Stop&Shop or the South Brunswick Library.  But we want them to be as independent as possible.  We hope someday it will be possible for them to walk and catch a bus that would go where they need to go."