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National RTAP Webinar: 
Moving from Demand Response to Deviated Fixed Route 

This webinar will discuss the process of evaluating a transit system for the implementation of a deviated fixed route service and will feature a presentation by an agency that operates a deviated fixed route. Best practices and answers to frequently asked questions on this topic will be provided.

The webinar will be held on Wednesday, April 18 at 2:00-3:30 PM ET. Presenters include Julie Schafer of RLS & Associates, Angie Peters of Union County Public Transit in Oregon, and Rob Tassinari of National RTAP. 
New Website and Centers of Excellence for the Tribal Technical Assistance Program 

FHWA and the University of Virginia's  TTAP Center provides comprehensive transportation training and technical assistance to tribal communities, building skills and expertise to ensure the safety and maintenance of tribal roads. The program has established five Virtual Centers of Excellence, including planning and procurement and asset and data management.  
Interested in Hot Topics? Find Cool Answers!

The National RTAP Find Anything Toolkit has selected Hot Topics resources that answer questions posed by users of our Resource Center, and respondents to our national surveys of transit organizations.  Some new topics we've updated include DBE, Pre-Trip Inspections and Transit Development Plans.
April is Distracted Driver Awareness Month

Distracted Driving Awareness Month  is a united effort spearheaded by the National Safety Council to recognize and eliminate preventable deaths from distracted driving.  

National RTAP's Distracted Driving Topic Guide provides selected resources to help raise awareness and curb distracted driving, including our 2 The Point Training Cards on Distracted Driving.
FTA and US DOT Updates

FTA has posted partial  Fiscal Year 2018 Apportionment tables, showing  formula funds for public transportation, pursuant to the Further Extension of Continuing Appropriations Act of 2018. Over $300 million is apportioned toward rural transportation and over $14 million toward tribal transportation.

US DOT announced recipients of nearly $500 million in discretionary grants through the Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery (TIGER) program.  More than 64% of this round of funding was awarded to rural transportation projects.

FTA's March Transit Safety and Oversight Spotlight newsletter contains information on their Two-Hour Accident Notification Guide and upcoming deadlines for State Safety Oversight (SSO) program certification.

US DOT posted a 5-Panel Notice on their website with guidance for collectors, medical review officers (MROs), laboratories and employers.  Confirmation testing is required for 14 drugs under a 5-panel test.
Resources and News

Webinars and Trainings

Easter Seals Project Action (ESPA) is hosting a webinar on  Implementing Conditional Eligibility for ADA Complementary Paratransit Trip-by-Trip on April 4, 2-3:30 PM ET. Topics include tracking riders' conditions and determining eligibility for conditions that regularly change.

NCMM's Conversations with Leaders is a new webinar series with insights into what has made transportation leaders successful. The first is with Ohio DOT's Chuck Dyer on April 12, 2:00-2:30 PM ET.

FTA 101 , an online training created by AASHTO, AASHTO's Multi-State Transit Technical Assistance Program, and NDSU's Small Urban and Rural Transit Center, provides new public transportation professionals an overview of the Federal Transit Administration. The training was updated in March 2018 and is available through National RTAP  National RTAP eLearning .

CTAA has an archive of all their webcasts.  Topics include mobility as a service, non-emergency medical transportation, volunteer transportation programs, driver recruitment and more.

Podcasts

Transportation Radio posted a new podcast in its ITE Talks Transportation series. This episode discusses the relationship between health, transportation, and Vision Zero initiatives.

Publications

Oregon DOT's Transit Development Plan Guidebook provides best practices and recommendations for preparing TDPs, such as stakeholder involvement, needs assessment, finance, implementation, evaluation and documentation.  

Carnegie Mellon University's Scott Institute for Energy Innovation and Traffic21 Institute explores currently available fuel choices in terms of cost, environmental and health impacts, and makes recommendations for transit buses in  Which Alternative Fuel Technology is Best for Transit Buses.

FHWA's 2017 National Household Travel Survey results are now available.  Households took over 220 million vehicle trips in 2017.

Technology Tools

FHWA's Mobile Solution for Assessment and Reporting app is available for download from online app stores.  It enables State DOTs to collect and report post-disaster transportation information, which significantly shortens the data collection process.

Opportunities

The Bureau of Indian Affairs, Office of Justice Services, and Indian Highway Safety Program are soliciting project grants to reduce crashes, deaths, injuries and damage in tribal areas. Applications should be sent to ojs_indian_highway_safety@bia.gov by May 1.

AASHTO is taking applications through April 6 from state DOTs to compete in America's Transportation Awards. This annual award to recognize state project achievements  includes a $10,000 prize to donate to a charity or scholarship of choice.
Upcoming National RTAP Q&A Webinar on 2019 Technical Assistance Conference Local Host RFP
 
We will be holding a Q&A Webinar on April 2 at 2:00 PM ET to answer questions about the 2019 National RTAP Technical Assistance Conference Local Host Request for Proposals. The target audience for the webinar is State DOT Staff and State and Regional Transit Associations.  If you'd like to have a copy of the RFP, please contact  conference@nationalrtap.org .
Updated Transit Asset Management Topic Guide

National RTAP updated our  Transit Asset Management Topic Guide  in February 2018.  We've included sample TAM plans, including from WSDOT, and National Transit Institute (NTI) archived webinars on Transit Asset Management.
Welcome to the New NH State RTAP Manager 

National RTAP welcomes New Hampshire RTAP's Claire Oswald as the newest State RTAP Manager.  New Hampshire RTAP also has a new website that includes newsletters and a compliance section with policies.  Find out more about Claire and all the State RTAP Managers at National RTAP's Directory of State RTAP Managers .
Research Using National RTAP Resources

Many researchers and authors have used National RTAP tools and resources in their publications. We've listed some examples on our About Us page, such as  A qualitative analysis of bus simulator training on transit incidents: A case study in Florida.  If you are interested in using our resources in your upcoming research publication, please contact us at info@nationalrtap.org .
Look for us at these upcoming conferences!
  • CalACT Spring Conference, Newport Beach, CA, April 3-6  
  • AzTA/ADOT Conference, Tuscon, AZ, April 8-10
  • Ohio Public Transit Association Annual Conference, Columbus, OH, April 9-11
  • MassDOT Innovation & Mobility Exchange, Worcester, MA, April 10-11
  • Wisconsin DOT Inter-Tribal Task Force Transit Peer Exchange, Hayward, WI, April 19 (presenting remotely)
  • CT RTAP Spring Conference, Newington, CT, April 25
  • Michigan Rural Transportation Managers Workshop, Mount Pleasant, MI, April 25-26
  • Utah Urban & Rural Transportation Association (URSTA), Brian Head, UT, May 10-11
  • Montana Transit Association Spring Conference, Bozeman, MT, May 21-25
  • Virginia Transit Conference, Richmond, VA, May 22-23
  • CTAA EXPO, Pittsburgh, PA, June 10-14
  • WY Public Transit Conference, Riverton, WY, June 19-21
  • Tri-State Transit Conference, North Conway, NH, Sept 12-14
  • National Transportation in Indian Country Conference, Duluth, MN, September 17-20
  • Tri-State Transit Conference, North Conway, NH, Sept 12-14
  • National Conference on Rural Public & Intercity Bus Transportation (RIBTC), Breckenridge, CO, Sep. 30-Oct. 3
March 22, 2018
Events
Q'Straint
Mobility Device Securement Training
March 22, 12-1 PM

NTI
Orientation to Transit Procurement
Culver City, CA
March 26-30

NTI
Knowledge Management Resource to Support Strategic Workforce Development for Transit Agencies
March 27, 2-3:30 PM

NTI
Disadvantaged Business Enterprise
Stockton, CA
March 27-29

FTA
TAM Webinar: Major Capital Replacements
March 28, 2-3 PM

NTI
Risk Assessment for Transit Capital Projects
Oakland, CA
March 28-29

American Society on Aging, American Planning Association and AARP
Livable Communities for All Ages Sum
San Francisco, CA
March 29

NTI
Fare Policy
Seattle, WA
March 29-30

National RTAP
2019 Conference Local Host RFP Q&A #2
April 2, 2:00 PM 

Denver Regional Mobility and Access Council
Compassion Fatigue Awareness for Transportation Providers Training
Denver, CO
April 3, 9:30-11:30 AM
Contact:  Carol Buchanan

CalACT
Spring Conference 
Newport Beach, CA
April 3-6

ESPA
Implementing Conditional Eligibility for ADA Complementary Paratransit Trip-by-Trip
April 4, 2 PM

NTI
Project Management for Transit Professionals  
April 4-5
Houston, TX
Training

NTI
Transportation Planning Process
Philadelphia, PA
April 4-5
AzTA/ADOT
Statewide Transit Conference
Tucson, AZ
April 8-10

OPTA
Ohio Needs Transit Conference
April 9-11
Columbus, OH

National RTAP
Moving from Demand Response to Deviated Fixed Route Service
April 18, 2-3:30 PM

NTI
Implementing Rural Transit Technology 
April 19-20
Denver, CO

Connecticut RTAP
Spring Conference
Newington, CT
April 25
Contact: Michele Brooks

VTA
Virginia Transit Conference
Richmond, VA
May 22-23
 
National RTAP 
Cost Allocation 101
June 6, 2-3:30 PM ET
Webinar
S ave the date

CTAA 
Expo 2018
Pittsburgh, PA
June 10-14

RIBTC
National Conference on Rural Public & Intercity Bus Transportation
Sept 30-Oct 3
Breckenridge, CO
Conference

For a listing of all National RTAP and other national events, view our  Calendar . To submit an event, email 
 info@nationalrtap.org.

All event times listed as Eastern Time
Resource Spotlight
Roles and Responsibilities of Rural Transit Managers

This National RTAP training module helps managers achieve cooperation, teamwork, better attitudes, and effective results in leading their rural transit agency. We  reprinted the module in 2018 with updates to resources in the bibliography.
National RTAP is a program of the Federal Transit Administration dedicated to creating rural and Tribal transit solutions through technical assistance, partner collaboration and FREE training materials.

Contact us:
Main:  5 Wheeling Avenue, Woburn, MA 01801, 888-589-6821
Washington, D.C.:  718 7th Street NW , Washington, DC 20001