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Covers how to manage roadway excavations by contractors and utilities through local ordinances, permits, fees, specifications, and inspection.
8 a.m. - noon Sept. 14
Work Zone (Temporary) Traffic Control
Teaches proper work zone set-up, traffic control devices, and flagging procedures.
8 a.m. - noon Sept. 21 Road Safety Audit
Presents how to conduct a road safety audit for improving overall safety on local roads.
8 a.m. - noon Sept. 22
Equipment & Worker Safety
Provides an understanding of common safety factors and practices associated with crack sealing, mowing, trench excavation, chainsaw use, and snow plowing.
8 a.m. - noon Sept. 29
Speed Limits and Speed Management
Covers how to study a road segment for speed issues and determine changes in speed limit postings.
8 a.m. - noon Oct. 1
Traffic Calming
Covers how municipalities can establish a rational traffic calming program for their roadways.
8 a.m. - noon Oct. 15
Seal Coat
Covers how to properly plan and execute a seal coat operation.
8 a.m. - noon Oct. 20
Active Transportation
Examines standards for walking/biking facilities and how to develop an active transportation plan.
8 a.m. - noon Oct. 22
Pedestrians and Crosswalks
Examines guidelines and programs for improving pedestrian safety.
8 a.m. - noon Oct. 27
Principles of Paving
Covers the planning, placement, and inspection of asphalt paving operations.
8 a.m. - 11 a.m. Oct. 28-29
Conducting Sign Retroreflectivity Inspections
Covers how to comply with rules on traffic sign maintenance, asset management, and retroreflectivity.
8 a.m. - noon Oct. 30
Stormwater Facility Operation and Maintenance
Presents regulations and requirements for effective operation and maintenance of stormwater management facilities.
8 a.m. - noon Nov. 3
Curves on Local Roads
Presents information about curve safety and the application of warning signs for curved segments of local roads.
8 a.m. - noon Nov. 6
Asset Management
Explores a variety of asset management systems and approaches and helps municipal officials determine the right level for their needs.
8 a.m. - noon Nov. 10
8 a.m. - noon Dec. 8
Unpaved and Gravel Roads
Presents basic maintenance practices for unpaved and gravel roads, including the use of blading, reshaping, regraveling, and dust control.
8 a.m. - noon Nov. 13
Introduction to Traffic Studies
Presents how to conduct basic engineering and traffic studies.
8 a.m. - noon Nov. 24
Safe Driver
Presents how to develop safe driving behaviors and awareness.
8 a.m. - noon Dec. 9
Pavement Markings
Covers the purpose, installation, and maintenance of pavement markings.
8 a.m. - noon Dec. 15
Local Road Safety Plans
Teaches how to develop a local road safety plan for identifying, analyzing, and prioritizing safety improvements.
8 a.m. - noon Dec. 16
If you need assistance with registration, please contact LTAP at LTAP@state.pa.us or call 1-800-FOR-LTAP. If the website says the class is full and you are interested in the virtual course, please email LTAP@state.pa.us. Classes will be added if there is a demand for the course.
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Flagger Training
Please be reminded that PennDOT regulations require that "all flaggers at a minimum shall have training as per the most current version of Publication 408, Section 901.3 Flagger Training." If your crew members haven't received training, or are due for recertification, consider taking advantage of the PennDOT Mandated Flagger Training workshops coordinated by PSATS. Flagger Training is geared toward individuals who have flagging responsibilities on ANY ROAD OPEN TO THE PUBLIC.
Instructor-led and on-demand virtual Flagger Training can be found on the PSATS website.
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Environmentally Sensitive Maintenance Training
The Penn State Center for Dirt and Gravel Roads Studies conducts Environmentally Sensitive Maintenance (ESM) training focused on providing the knowledge and tools necessary for road owners to maintain roads in a more cost-efficient and environmentally sensitive manner. The course is free to municipal, county, and state agencies involved with PA's Dirt and Gravel Road Program. Course certification is required in order to be eligible to apply for PA Dirt, Gravel, and Low Volume Road Program grant funds.
In-person ESM training in 2020 is condensed to 8 hours and held in one full-day session. There are three more in-person classes scheduled this year. In addition, the Center has modified the ESM training into a shorter version for remote delivery. This online training will be live and will run from 8 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. on two consecutive days. To register for in-person or remote ESM training, visit: https://www.dirtandgravel.psu.edu
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Pennsylvania One Call Webinars
The Pennsylvania One Call System coordinates free training on responsibilities that municipalities, designers, excavators, and project owners have in preventing damage to underground facilities. Training webinars cover such topics as:
- Complex Projects
- PA Act 287 for the Locator
- PA Act 287 for the Excavator
- Coordinate PA
- Member Mapping
- One Call Web Products and Services
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LTAP Virtual Drop-in Sessions
LTAP Virtual Drop-ins are centered on various safety and maintenance topics. These sessions are not virtual classes - they are informal one-hour live sessions focused on networking and sharing information with other municipal roadway personnel. Whether you're new to the virtual world or have lots of experience, you will enjoy meeting up online with LTAP staff and other municipal staff to learn and discuss information critical to your job.
Upcoming Virtual Drop-in Sessions:
- Safety Tips for Flagging - Sept. 3; register here
- COVID-19 and Special Events on State Routes - Sept. 17; register here
- Salt Brine - Oct. 2; register here
- Speed Limits - Nov. 5; register here
- Accident Reporting for CDL and non-CDL Drivers - Dec. 3; register here
- Sign Inventory Management - Dec. 17; register here
Each of the above sessions will occur from noon to 1:00 p.m. Archived virtual drop-in sessions and handouts from previously held drop-ins are available here. There is also a link under "Bulletin Board" on the LTAP homepage.
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LTAP Webinars
PennDOT LTAP holds regular hour-long webinars on timely road safety and maintenance topics.
Upcoming webinars
- ABC's of Asset Management - Sept. 24 or 25
- Municipal Responsibilities on State Roads - Nov. 19 or 20
- Emergency Preparedness from a Road Crew Perspective - Dec. 11 or 12
These webinars are free, but you must register to access them.
To register for upcoming webinars or view recorded webinars, visit the PennDOT LTAP website: gis.penndot.gov/ltap
Recorded webinars include: ADA Transition Plans; Curves on Local Roads; Crosswalks; GRS Bridges; Bidding; Speed Limits on Local Roads; Stop Signs; PA Crash Information Tool; Truck Restrictions; Crosswalks; GRS Bridges; Principles of Paving; and Roadside Safety Features.
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Municipal Guide to LED Street Lighting Conversion
Leotek Electronics has prepared a Municipal Guide to LED Street Lighting Conversion to cover the essentials of the retrofit process and fundamentals of creating a well-informed streetlight specification. It is intended to be a practical step-by-step guide for individuals responsible for municipal street lighting, helping to save energy and reduce maintenance costs. For more information and to receive a copy of the guide, visit: https://leotek.com/request-guide/#
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Roads Scholar Options
Municipal employees can pursue Roads Scholar designations through LTAP. Students that attend and pass the quizzes for 10 approved courses within a 3-year period will achieve Roads Scholar I; students that attend and pass the quizzes for 8 approved courses will achieve Roads Scholar II. Certified Roads Scholars are educated on up-to-date maintenance and safety topics, helping them become even more valuable members of their municipal team. Please consider signing up for the Roads Scholar Program at your next LTAP class.
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Other LTAP Services
Technical Assistance: Technical assistance on road maintenance and safety issues is available from an LTAP expert in person, over the phone, or by email - all at no cost to municipalities. The LTAP technical experts can provide guidance to handle issues such as drainage, posting of traffic signs, intersection improvements, collecting traffic data, calibrating road equipment, dust control, and much more. Simply call 1-800-FOR-LTAP and they will have a specialist contact you.
Road Shows: If there is a course you want to hold in your municipality, LTAP can do a Road Show. They will bring the course directly to you. Call 1-800-FOR-LTAP to find out more about this service.
Library Materials: You may request library materials and various publications. Visit gis.penndot.gov/ltap to create an account and request resources.
All LTAP services are free to municipalities.
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Course Descriptions for Scheduled LTAP Classes in September/October
ACTIVE TRANSPORTATION (Half Day)
This course discusses the latest research and guidelines for nonmotorized transportation modes. Many communities in Pennsylvania are encouraging more active transportation (walking, cycling, etc.) to enhance their community and foster healthy lifestyles. Corresponding to this encouragement of active transportation, communities are looking to develop active transportation plans to help create more facilities such as bicycle paths, sidewalks, trails, greenways, etc. This course will examine the safety and standards for these facilities, as well as how to develop an active transportation plan. The course will also highlight successful examples of local plans, practices, and policies in Pennsylvania.
Intended Audience: Local officials responsible for the planning, design, and implementation of bicycle, greenways, trails and related facilities. This includes municipal managers, elected officials, public works directors, roadmasters, and code enforcement officers.
CONDUCTING SIGN RETROREFLECTIVITY INSPECTIONS (Half Day)
The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) has established new rules about traffic sign maintenance, asset management, and retroreflectivity standards. This course will instruct municipal staff on these requirements, reinforce the value of a useful traffic sign asset management system, and demonstrate the tools and techniques available for measuring traffic sign retroreflectivity. Further, the course will present the concepts of luminance and retroreflectivity, providing a foundation for understanding the value of certain testing and measuring methods. Intended Audience: Local government officials responsible for installation, maintenance, and inspection of traffic signs, roadway safety, and asset management. This includes traffic technicians, public works directors, supervisors, roadmasters, and crew responsible for traffic signs.
EQUIPMENT & WORKER SAFETY (Half Day)
This course provides a basic understanding of common safety factors and practices associated with public works road maintenance operations. Specific operations discussed include trench excavation, crack sealing with hot asphalt, mowing and chain saw use, as well as winter maintenance. It provides an overview of why accidents happen and how to protect personnel through the use of personal protective equipment. Workplace awareness is stressed with emphasis on chemical safety, environmental hazards and vehicle and equipment safety issues. The importance of having a formal safety program in place and how to establish an effective program is discussed.
Intended Audience: Individuals who are performing maintenance, construction, or traffic control on municipal roadways, including: roadmasters, crew foremen, equipment operators and laborers. Others who would benefit from this course include municipal managers and elected officials to understand the importance and for budgeting purposes.
MANAGING UTILITY CUTS (Half Day)
This course covers the management of roadway excavations by contractors and utilities through local ordinances, permits, fees, specifications and inspection. It compares local ordinances with state procedures for state roads. It also discusses PA One Call, trenching and shoring, work zone traffic control, and liability. Intended Audience: Individuals who are involved in the ordinance, permitting, and monitoring process to effectively manage utility excavations on locally owned roads and streets, including: elected officials, public works directors, road masters, foremen, and select crew members.
PEDESTRIANS AND CROSSWALKS (Half Day)
The purpose of this course is to review and understand the needs of pedestrians in the modern transportation environment. The course will review national and Pennsylvania pedestrian safety data, pedestrian mobility characteristics, and pedestrian behaviors. It will also examine federal and state guidelines for pedestrian facilities, including sidewalks, crosswalks, and other features. Finally, the course will review Federal Highway Administration and PennDOT programs to improve pedestrian safety and discuss how to implement those elements locally. Workshop activities will encourage participants to improve pedestrian safety, support walking activities in communities, determine when and how to mark crosswalks, improve the visibility of pedestrian facilities, and make physical road improvements for pedestrian safety. Intended Audience: This course is intended for local officials responsible for the planning, design, and implementation of pedestrian facilities. This includes municipal managers, elected officials, public works directors, roadmasters, and code enforcement officers.
PRINCIPLES OF PAVING (Half Day)
This course is for municipal employees who are involved in the planning, inspecting, and placement of asphalt paving operations. The course will provide the information needed to properly plan and monitor an asphalt paving project. Basic knowledge of asphalt materials and construction specifications will be provided based on national and state guidelines. The importance of proper roadway preparation to obtain a long-lasting product will be discussed followed by a basic discussion of the delivery, placement, and compaction process in paving operations. Intended Audience: Public Works employees who are involved in asphalt paving, particularly roadmasters, field technicians, and equipment operators. Others who would benefit from this course include inspectors and street supervisors involved in monitoring asphalt paving projects for local governments.
ROAD SAFETY AUDIT (Half Day)
Municipal officials who want to improve the overall safety of their roads will find the Road Safety Audit (RSA) is a good tool for meeting their goals. Conducted through a formal process, an RSA ends with a report and plan to improve safety for all road users. These audits can be completed quickly in the hopes of identifying potential safety issues before crashes occur. Municipalities may conduct road safety audits on existing roads and intersections or during any phase of project development, from planning and preliminary engineering through design and construction.
Intended Audience: Local government officials responsible for the installation, maintenance, and inspection of traffic signs, roadway safety, and asset management. This includes traffic technicians, public works directors, supervisors, roadmasters, and crews responsible for traffic signs.
SEAL COAT (Half Day)
This course presents information necessary for the proper planning and execution of a seal coat operation. This pavement preservation technique is often used by local government agencies to extend the useful life of their roadways. The various types of seal coat operations will be included. The participants will be able to identify typical roadway distress that can be addressed by the use of a liquid bituminous seal coat. The latest materials, equipment, and techniques available for performing this operation will be presented. The process to ensure correct aggregate and liquid bituminous material selection will be reviewed. Equipment calibration requirements and the operational sequence will be presented to assist the participants in ensuring a quality product is obtained.
Intended Audience: Local government officials responsible for asset management, project planning, and inspection of seal coat projects, as well as the crews performing this work. This includes public works directors, supervisors, roadmasters, foremen and equipment operators.
SPEED LIMITS AND SPEED MANAGEMENT (Half Day)
This course focuses on the investigation and decision-making processes associated with managing vehicular speed. The participants will: Review speed safety statistics and how to identify problem areas, discuss how to study a roadway segment for speed issues and determine changes in speed limit postings, recognize common safety issues and learn to apply proven mitigation measures. Intended Audience: Local government officials responsible for the installation, maintenance, and inspection of traffic signs, roadway safety, and asset management. This includes traffic technicians, public works directors, supervisors, roadmasters, and crew responsible for traffic signs.
TRAFFIC CALMING (Half Day)
This course introduces an engineering tool whose purpose is to address excessive traffic speed and/or cut-through traffic on residential streets. The course provides information that can help municipalities establish a rational traffic calming program for their roadways. Detailing information in PennDOT's Publication 383, Pennsylvania's Traffic Calming Handbook, the course defines traffic calming, describes various traffic calming devices, outlines potential positive and negative impacts on a neighborhood, and reviews a sample traffic calming program. It also investigates related issues, such as impacts of traffic calming devices on liability, roadway maintenance, and emergency service. Participants perform case studies, applying traffic calming measures to address traffic concerns. Intended Audience: Individuals who receive complaints about speeding and cut through traffic and want to respond appropriately to address these problems, including: law enforcement personnel municipal managers, elected officials, planners, roadmasters, and street superintendents. Engineers are welcome to attend, but the focus is on the non-engineer.
WORK ZONE (TEMPORARY) TRAFFIC CONTROL (Half Day)
This course identifies work zone set-up requirements, traffic control devices, and flagging procedures through a review of the regulations in PennDOT Publication 213, Temporary Traffic Control Guidelines, and the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices (MUTCD). The course covers development of traffic control plans, use of typical layout figures from the publication, and inspection of established work zones. The course emphasizes teaching work zone traffic control guidelines and set-ups for typical municipal work, from grading a gravel road to painting crosswalk lines to repairing pavement.
Intended Audience: Individuals performing maintenance, construction, or traffic control on municipal roadways including: public works employees, roadmasters and street superintendents. Others who would benefit from this course include law enforcement personnel (for enforcement purposes), municipal managers and elected officials (to understand the importance and for budgeting purposes). Engineers are welcome to attend, but the focus is on the non-engineer. Handouts: Attendees should bring a copy of PennDOT Publication 213 - Temporary Traffic Control Guidelines (June 2014 edition) to the class. Note: This is not a flagger certification workshop.
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Contact Information
For more information, questions or to register for classes, please contact Steve Herman, SEDA-COG Principal Program Analyst, at 570-524-4491 or email sherman@seda-cog.org. Information is also available at gis.penndot.gov/ltap.
SEDA-COG staff will soon be requesting LTAP classes for spring 2021. Feel free to share your training needs or requests for classes.
If your municipality is not receiving occasional LTAP class updates and announcements via email, please send Steve Herman your email address.
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Pennsylvania's Local Technical Assistance Program is dedicated to transferring transportation technology through training, technical assistance, and other customer services to municipal elected officials and their staff.
SEDA-COG would be willing to work with municipalities and county associations to sponsor roadway technology or product demonstration showcases. If interested, please contact Steve Herman to discuss further.
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Please post for all municipal officials and road crews.
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SEDA-Council of Governments | sherman@seda-cog.org | 570-524-4491
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