National RTAP eNews - February 21, 2019

eNews - February 21, 2019

National RTAP is a program of the Federal Transit Administration dedicated to creating rural and tribal transit solutions through free training materials, technical assistance, and partner collaboration.

One Week Left to Submit Your Presentation Proposals for th e 2019 National RTAP Conference

We've received outstanding session proposals for our 2019 Technical Assistance Conference in Portland, Oregon, September 15-18. If you haven't yet submitted your proposal, we want to hear from you. We're looking for presentations, workshops, and training on rural and tribal transit topics with a focus on innovation, best practices, and compliance. Submit your ideas through the Presentation Proposal Form by February 28.

New National RTAP Technical Brief on Plain Language for Rural Transit

Writing so all people understand is important for safety and operations. It is also the law. National RTAP's Plain Language for Rural Transit: Writing for Readability and Clarity Technical Brief, released in January 2019, explains Plain Language writing and how you can use it to make your writing simpler and better.

The brief is also written in plain language to serve as a model.

Featured Resource

Resources and Events

New ProcurementPRO 2.0 Demo Webinar Recorded

We've recorded our demo webinar for ProcurementPRO 2.0, released on February 14, 2019. The latest version is faster, allows you to fill out check lists and certifications online or once saved to your hard drive, and provides required federal clauses and certifications for procuring goods and services using federal funds. Access the recording, presentation slides and questions and answers.

U.S. DOT and FTA Updates

On February 5, 2019, U.S. DOT announced more than $60 million in funding for 32 University Transportation Centers around the country. Grants were authorized under the Fixing America’s Surface Transportation (FAST) Act.

FHWA and FTA extended the nomination period for the 2019 Transportation Planning Excellence Awards to March 1, 2019. The award recognizes outstanding initiatives across the country to develop, plan, and implement innovative transportation planning practices.

On February 27, 2:30-3:30 PM ET, U.S. DOT's ITS Joint Program Office will be hosting a webinar on

Preparing Students for Careers that Use New Transportation Technologies as part of the program's Professional Capacity Building Program. The webinar will provide a platform for students to share research findings.

U.S. DOT is reviewing its existing guidance documents to evaluate their continued necessity and determine whether they need to be updated or revised. They invite the public to identify and provide input on existing guidance documents that are good candidates for repeal, replacement, or modification. Comments should be received by April 8, 2019.

New Website Builder Website: CATA and Venango County Transit

CATA and Venango County Transit have a new website at that uses National RTAP's Website Builder application. The website lets passengers purchase bus passes and transit fares online and an app for passengers to use their smartphones for fares. The site also features a search engine, forms and photographs. CATA and Vernango County Manager and National RTAP Review Board Member Tim Geibel is working with PennDOT to enable the site to provide GTFS and real-time alerts.

Publications

TCRP's The Relationship Between Transit Asset Condition and Service Quality documents how to characterize service quality and demonstrates how this measure varies with changes in asset condition. It provides guidance on how asset condition and transit service quality relate in terms of investment prioritization.

BTS has published its 2018 Transportation Statistics Annual Report. This report provides data on many transit topics, including system resilience, safety, and environmental and economic impacts. This update also includes the first national update on local travel since 2009.

FHWA's Community Connections Innovations Handbook provides detailed information and examples on benefits of community connections projects, a toolbox of techniques, strategies, and approaches, steps for applying community connections and case studies of successful initiatives.

NCHRP's Updating Regional Transportation Planning and Modeling Tools to Address Impacts of Connected and Automated Vehicles provides guidelines for agencies to update their modeling and forecasting tools to address expected impacts of connected and automated vehicles on transportation supply, road capacity, and travel demand.

Involving Individuals with Visual Impairment in Project Decision-Making: A Survey of Practice is a Minnesota DOT synthesis that presents findings from surveys, a literature search and interviews. Practices included surveys, face-to-face meetings, behavioral research, outreach, focus groups, screen readers and simulating blindness in demonstrations.

Webinars and Training

NADTC has a number of free webinars planned this season.

Upcoming sessions include:

Transportation Needs and Assessment: Survey of Older Adults, People with Disabilities, and Caregivers
Every Ride Counts: NADTC's Information and Education Campaign

National RTAP Bloodborne Pathogens Topic Guide Updated

We've updated our Bloodborne Pathogens Topic Guide in February 2019. Helpful new resources include Texas Department of Insurance's 5 Tips When Working Around Bloodborne Pathogens and Oregon Occupational Safety and Health Bloodborne Pathogens web page

Opportunities

Nominations are open for Government Fleet's 2019 Public Fleet Manager of the Year. This award recognizes an individual who has gone above and beyond to lead his or her fleet to success. The last day to submit nominations is February 28.

TRB is conducting a survey on State Transportation Systems & Human Trafficking. They are asking participants to respond by February 28, 2019.

APTA is asking stakeholders about instances they found TCRP reports to be helpful. Individuals can use a form to describe how TCRP research has turned challenges into solutions.

TRB is seeking potential synthesis study topics as part of the upcoming activities of the Transit Cooperative Research Program (TCRP). The deadline for the upcoming submission cycle is March 15, 2019.

Legislation

The Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2019 was signed into law on February 15, 2019. The legislation includes $13.4 billion for public transportation and is $1.2 billion higher than FY 2019 FAST Act authorization levels.

Call for National RTAP Ambassadors

State RTAP Managers and National RTAP Review Board Members can represent National RTAP at state conferences and meetings throughout the year. Look at the bottom of our Review Board web page to see photos of some of our recent ambassadors. If you are planning on attending a conference or meeting and would like to host a table filled with National RTAP training books, brochures, and giveaways, email us at [email protected].

Calendar of Upcoming Events

NADTC

Introduction to Transportation Boot Camp Online Course

February 21 – March 1