For those of you who enjoyed our February 2021 Relax Stress Management Workshop (and anyone who wants to relax), we are offering something very special on February 7, 2022, 2:00-3:00 PM ET. George Kinder finds creative inspiration from the solitude of living on the edge of a New England pond. Attuned to nature’s teachings, Kinder recorded its seasonal changes through poetry and photography in his book Reflections on Spectacle Pond. In this event, he offers an intimate window into the creative process with a poetry reading, photography slideshow, and discussion about meditation, nature, and inspiration. Register for the Workshop.

This webinar, on March 14, 2022, 2:00-3:00 PM ET, will provide an overview of the Building Better Bus Stops Resource Guide, highlight ways to incorporate transit in local plans and policies, build strategic partnerships to implement better bus stops, and provide insights and real-world examples of rural bus stop improvement projects. Panelists are Andy Batson. Chief, Planning and Project Delivery, Pennsylvania DOT - Bureau of Public Transportation; Natasha Manbeck, Senior Project Manager, McMahon Associates, Inc.; and Rich Schlameuss, Assistant Executive Director, Monroe County Transit Authority. Register for the webinar.

National RTAP and AASHTO Multi-State Transit Technical Assistance Program (MTAP) are hosting a Risky Business: Transit Insurance and Risk Management webinar on March 31, 2022 from 2:00-3:30 PM ET to provide training on two very important components of rural transit management: insurance and risk management. Participants will also learn about statewide insurance pools.

The webinar will be moderated by Mike Spadafore, Director of Mobility Management, Jayhawk Area Agency on Aging, and panelists are Jill Nagy, President and Managing Partner, Summers Nagy Law Offices; Brenda Schweitzer, Review Board Member, National RTAP; and Glen Griffin, Executive Director, Michigan Transit Pool (MTP). Register for the webinar.

A State RTAP Manager Peer Roundtable was held on January 18, 2022. Topics included heavy-duty bus procurement, fare-free service, asset tracking systems, new FMCSA CDL training requirements, and training on preparing for State Management Reviews. Read the roundtable summary.

Join us on February 17, 2022 from 11:00 AM-12:00 PM ET to discuss the Accidental Bus Driver by Tom Beaumont - a view from the bus driver's seat. The first half-hour of the meeting will be an introduction to the book by the author. During the second half-hour of the meeting, National RTAP staff will lead a group discussion. If you would like to borrow the book, please contact us.

National RTAP is continuing its annual update of Topic Guides, starting with the Alternative Fuels Topic Guide. New resources include:

Northwest Pennsylvania Mobility Alliance, Inc., in partnership with National RTAP, National Center for Applied Transit Technology (N-CATT), and PennTRAIN, will be hosting the Transit Knowledge Sharing Retreat in Erie, PA on June 15-16 2022. Topics will include mobility management, alternative fuels, transit's role in economic development, and more.

Our Directory of RTAP Managers has the capability of listing more than one RTAP Manager for each state. If your state has any additional RTAP Managers that should be added, please contact us.

A #MobilityManagementMatters Twitter Chat was held on January 19, 2022, moderated by Danny Schnathorst, Mobility Outreach Coordinator, HIRTA Public Transit. The chat focused on engaging communities, what mobility management looks like post-COVID, and more. Access the chat transcript and summary.

We will be holding a training webinar on the Transportation Technical Assistance Coordination Library (TACL) on February 22, 2022 from 2:00-3:00 PM ET. Three new resources were added to TACL in January:

Join your peers on March 16, 2:00-3:00 PM ET, for an Intercity Bus Peer Roundtable to discuss issues of interest to intercity bus stakeholders.