National RTAP, AASHTO MTAP, and NADTC are hosting a Risky Business II: Insurance for Nonprofits and Small Transit Agencies webinar on December 14, 2022 from 2:00-3:00 PM ET.

This webinar will provide nonprofit organizations that offer transportation and small public transit agencies with information and tips about insuring their assets. Participants will also learn about volunteer insurance and insurance pools for small organizations. The webinar panelists are Madelyn Carlson, CEO, People for People; Sarah McDonnell, Director, Non Profit Insurance Program (NPIP); and William Henry, Vice President, Volunteers Insurance Service Association, Inc.

Our National RTAP Technical Brief, Tribal Transportation: Issues and Successful Models, raises some of the important issues faced by Tribes in implementing and managing transportation services, such as funding, reporting, and coordination, and provides several case studies of successful Tribal transportation programs. The brief was released in 2006 as American Indian Transportation: Issues and Successful Models, and updated in 2022, with new data, updated case studies, and expanded information on how Tribal transit programs can coordinate with other organizations.

FTA has been unable to identify any manufacturer of non-ADA-accessible vans or minivans that fully comply with Buy America and has issued a partial, time-limited, general nonavailability waiver from the requirements of Buy America, effective October 25, 2022, expiring in 2 years or upon publication of a rescission notice if FTA determines that a fully Buy America-compliant vehicle has become available, whichever occurs first.

The FTA Coordinating Council on Access and Mobility (CCAM) adopted the 2023-2026 CCAM Strategic Plan on October 27, 2022. The plan prioritizes expanding safe access to transit, providing affordable mobility options, and sets a framework for collaboration among CCAM grantees at all levels and across jurisdictions.

FTA's October 2022 Transit Safety and Oversight Spotlight Newsletter provides guidance on Employee Safety Reporting Programs (ESRP) and provides a link to recent and historical FTA conference presentations on safety.

FTA provides an Agency Safety Plan Directory. Transit agencies can use these publicly available ASPs as a resource to help with their own ASP.

FTA published a Dear Colleague letter announcing a temporary 24-month waiver of FTA’s minimum life extension requirement for medium size, light-duty transit buses, known as cutaways, and smaller vehicle rebuilds initiated over the next two years when using FTA funds. The waiver grants a minimum useful life extension of 2-4 years.

FTA announced the calendar year 2023 drug and alcohol random testing rates for specific recipients of FTA financial assistance, effective January 1, 2023. The minimum random drug testing rate will remain at 50% and the random alcohol testing rate will remain at 10%.

FTA published a Grant Application Checklist for a Strong Transportation Workforce and Labor Plan. The checklist provides information on the components of an ideal plan. The checklist is furnished to spark thoughts and ideas that applicants may want to share.

Easterseals Project Action (ESPA) now offers a comprehensive certification program for mobility management professionals, at all experience levels, with a Certified Mobility Manager (CMM) credential. ESPA also now offers a Certified Volunteer Transportation Manager Program.

The Shared-Use Mobility Center (SUMC) is holding its Second Mobility Innovation Collaborative Workshop in Memphis, TN on November 16-17, 2022. The MIC Workshop is an interactive event to discuss key technical issues on mobility innovation with experts, meet peer mobility innovators from around the country, and share lessons learned from pilot projects.

The Transit Workforce Center (TWC) and the National Transit Institute (NTI) are co-sponsoring the Making Connections 2022: The National Transit Workforce Conference in Washington, D.C. on December 13-14, 2022. Discussions and sessions at this year’s conference will include recruitment and retention, training, mentoring and apprenticeships, new technologies, preparing today’s and tomorrow's workforce, and advancing diversity, equity, inclusion, and access.

The National Highway Institute offers free Web-based training on Understanding Past, Current and Future Climate Conditions. This course provides an introduction to future projections of precipitation, temperature, and sea levels, basic scientific principles, and an overview of the potential impacts of these changes on transportation facilities.

The National Aging and Disability Transportation Center (NADTC) is hosting a DEI Lunch & Learn - Language Matters on December 7, 2022 from 12:00-1:00 PM ET. Jess Mauer, Executive Director of the Maine Council on Aging, will be discussing the importance of using language that is sensitive to diverse populations when doing outreach and advertising transportation programs and supports.

TCRP's Uses of Social Media in Public Transportation updates its 2012 Synthesis to explore the use of social media among transit agencies. It documents innovative and effective practices, such as issuing real-time service alerts and considering social media as a revenue-generating resource.

National Aging and Disability Transportation Center's (NADTC) article on Rural Transportation provides case studies on agencies that coordinate transportation to cross jurisdictional boundaries and cover vast distances, such as the Berkshire Regional Planning Commission (BRPC) and Capacity Builders.

National Center for Mobility Management's (NCMM) Health Care Providers Working to Streamline Transportation Services for Patients blog post describes clinics that offer free transportation services to better serve their patients and partnerships that allow health care providers to enhance transportation services.

National Aging and Disability Transportation Center (NADTC) developed a new Every Ride Counts Volunteer Driver Campaign to help volunteer transportation programs recruit volunteer drivers. The materials include flyers, postcards, social media graphics, and a toolkit.

The Brookings Institute provides an interactive Breaking down the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act public resource tool to study IIJA’s contents. They arranged the IIJA’s programs by topics and sub-topics, the primary federal agency, and likely spending levels. They have also subdivided programs by formula or competitive status and whether or not the program is new and provided raw data.

The Native Land Digital Map shows worldwide Native territories, languages, and treaties. Users can search or click on the territories on the map to find associated websites, related maps, and resources.

Iowa DOT's Mobile Architecture for Communications Handling (MACH) software is a next-generation 3CS (Collaborative Command and Control Software) application. With MACH, agencies are able to cooperate during daily activities and emergency events.

Micromobility Industries launched the first annual Rider's Choice Awards, where voters can select their favorite shared mobility operator, ebike company, mapping tool, and many other categories.

The Environmental Protection Agency posted a Request for Information: Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund (RFI GHGRF), which provides competitive funding for financial and technical assistance to enable zero-emission technologies and projects that reduce or avoid greenhouse gas emissions and criteria air pollution, including in low-income and disadvantaged communities. EPA invites the public to comment on the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund program design and implementation.

The Aging and Disability Business Institute is seeking applicants through November 21, 2022 for its new Network Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Learning Collaborative. Up to 12 networks of Area Agencies on Aging (AAAs) and/or community-based organizations (CBOs) will be selected to participate in this leading-edge collaborative to build and strengthen their network’s diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) strategies and practices.

The Aging and Disability Business Institute is also seeking applicants through November 21, 2022 for its new 2023 Building Accountability for Health Equity: A Learning Collaborative for AAAs. This program will provide up to 12 Area Agencies on Aging (AAAs) with the knowledge and skills necessary to strengthen and sustain institutional accountability for health equity.

The Sage Equity Innovation Lab is a new microgrant program developed to transfer power and resources to community-based projects led by and supporting LGBTQ+ elders across the country. It is a one-year program consisting of unrestricted small grants of up to $5,000. Grant applications close mid-November 2022.

The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Supportive Services for Veteran Families Program offers funding for nonprofit organizations that provide supportive services for very low-income veterans and their families, including transportation. The application deadline is February 10, 2023.

The U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities (BRIC) grant program will give states, local communities, tribes, and territories funding to address future risks to natural disasters, including ones involving: wildfires, drought, hurricanes, earthquakes, extreme heat, and flooding. Applications are being accepted through January 27, 2023.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is proposing to establish the methodology for allocating and phasing down hydrofluorocarbon (HCF) production and consumption allowances for the calendar years 2024 through 2028. HFCs are used in air conditioning in vehicles. Comments are due on December 19, 2022.

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) issued 3 notices asking for comments on aspects of extensions and enhancements of energy tax benefits in the Inflation Reduction Act: 1. qualified commercial clean vehicles provisions and the alternative fuel vehicle refueling property, 2. credit for carbon capture, and 3. production of clean hydrogen and the clean fuel production credit. Feedback is due by December 3, 2022.

November 9-10

San Francisco, CA, November 9-10

Fleet Forward Conference / Fleet Safety Conference

Santa Clara, CA, November 9 - 11

November 10, 3:00-4:30 PM

November 15, 10:30 AM - 1:30 PM

November 15, 12:00-2:00 PM

November 15, 1:00-2:00 PM

St. Petersburg, FL, November 15-16

November 16, 12:00-3:00 PM

November 16, 11:00 AM - 5:30 PM

November 16, 12:00-1:00 PM

November 16, 2:30-3:30 PM

Memphis, TN, November 16-17

November 17, 12:00-1:30 PM

November 17, 12:00-1:00 PM

November 17, 1:00-2:00 PM

November 17, 2:00 PM

November 17, 3:00-4:00 PM

November 21, 2:00 PM

November 29, 1:00-2:30 PM

Washington, DC, November 29 - December 1

Washington, DC, November 30 - December 1

November 30, 2:00-3:30 PM

Columbus, GA, November 30 - December 2

December 3, 2:00 PM

Phoenix, AZ, December 4-7

Las Vegas, NV, December 6-8

December 7, 12:00-1:00 PM

December 9, 12:00-1:00 PM

December 9, 2:00 PM

December 12, 1:00-2:30 PM

December 13, 1:00-2:00 PM

Washington, D.C., December 13-14

December 14, 2:00-3:00 PM

Washington, DC, January 8-12

January 9, 2:00-3:00 PM

Orlando, FL, January 11-14

January 24, 2:00-3:00 PM

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