Hello newsletter readers,

There's a lot in store for June's newsletter, chock-full of information!

NCMM is proud to announce the release of our 2022 Community Mobility Design Challenge grant. The next selected cohort of communities from across the country will have the opportunity to work with NCMM to research local transportation barriers and create innovative mobility solutions with those who would be utilizing, and working with those who use, these mobility solutions.

We consider it a privilege to come and work with you in your community to solve local mobility issues. To date, NCMM has implemented its planning grants in 36 communities. Personally, I've enjoyed working in communities from Kansas, Iowa, and Virginia and my current work with two from the West coast, California and Washington. I am looking forward to working with the next slate of communities to improve mobility throughout theirs, as are my NCMM colleagues. You can find out more, like how to apply for the opportunity and how to register for our informational webinar, below.

Be well,

Kirby Wilhelm

(202) 489-6020

Here's the poll results regarding newsletter subscriber use of the Mobility Management Typology from May's Newsletter. 

The National Center for Mobility Management (NCMM), supported by the Federal Transit Administration, is now accepting applications for its Community Mobility Design Challenge 2022 grant. These grants will support communities in researching and creating innovative mobility solutions for community members who face transportation barriers in advancing their personal well-being. Grants of up to $25,000 will be available, as well as NCMM facilitation through the entire process. You can learn more about the grants and download the application here. The deadline for responses is July 15, 2022, 11:59 p.m., ET. Join us for a pre-application webinar on Thursday, June 23 at 1:00 p.m., ET. We will cover the key activities of the grant, review the application process, and discuss key elements of human-centered design. Register here.

Mobility Management is all about connections. Connecting to your community, partner organizations, and even other mobility managers gives us the opportunity to create better outcomes for the individuals we serve every day. A main goal of NCMM is to facilitates these connections, which is why we have created MyNCMM. MyNCMM is a new social network for Mobility Managers and our partners to connect, learn, and share ideas.

By creating an account, or updating your existing one on our website, you can start your journey with a MyNCMM account. Easily search for other mobility managers across the country to securely connect and chat all on our website. MyNCMM members can create and join groups based on topic and geography to ask questions and share promising practices. You can easily stay on top of everything NCMM, and your network of mobility managers has to offer, all in one place.

To join, head to NCMM's homepage and click Register in the upper right hand corner. If you already have an account with NCMM, simply update your profile in your account's settings. We look forward to connecting with you!

The Southwest Transit Association is holding their 2022 Summer University Conference in Northwest Arkansas from July 25 through July 27. NCMM and N-CATT have developed the Community Mobility track for the first day and the half of the conference; topics like micromobility, generating local match, and Mobility-as-a-Service will be covered, among others. You can learn more about the conference here.

NCMM is hosting a regional meeting for mobility managers / practitioners from Region VI states: Louisiana, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Texas, and New Mexico. The half-day meeting will occur on July 24, the day before SWTA's 2022 Summer University, in Northwest Arkansas. This informal meeting will allow attendees to share their successes and challenges in their work, with a brainstorming session to follow in which attendees will collectively tackle local challenges with NCMM facilitation. Those that attend will be eligible for a $500 travel stipend to help cover the costs of attending the meeting. The stipend will be provided after the meeting to all who participated. If you're working in mobility management from these states, and can commit to attending, please email Kirby Wilhelm by June 29.

NCMM held our 2022 Mobility Management Forum in Louisville, Ky., on Thursday, May 12, during CTAA's EXPO 2022. The Forum gave the opportunity for mobility managers to meet others from their FTA regions & learn skills and improve their knowledge on key mobility management topics. The forum sessions Making the Case with Data, Integrating Mobility Management into Your Community, and Funding Mobility Management Activities were held. You can find the recording and speaker slide-decks, on our Mobility Management Forum page. We're looking forward to gathering with you in-person again, next year in Oklahoma City during CTAA's EXPO 2023!

NCMM facilitated a one-day meeting with mobility management practitioners and their partners to try to solve a particular perplexing mobility issue that requires cross-agency coordination. The first community was in the Southern part of Mississippi with the "Southern Connect" group as they worked with NCMM on improving access to transportation resources utilizing technology. Participants discussed needs of the community, the resources that are available to them and strategized how they might collaborate and use technology to offer a more comprehensive and coordinated tool(s) to improve citizens connectivity to transportation. You can read more about the meeting here. NCMM looks forward to working next with King Co., Wash.!  

The National Center for Mobility Management (NCMM) produced some timely and important information briefs that can be freely downloaded from our website. We encourage NCMM audiences to use these publications in various ways such as to spark conversation with colleagues, examine your own practices, see additional technical assistance from your NCMM Regional Liaison to help you implement tenets of the brief, and to share additional examples of practices or strategies that reflect the recommendations in the brief. The three briefs are the Mobility Management Sustainability Assessment Tool (MM-SAT) Implementation Guide, Section 5310 Grant Funding: Connection with Mobility Management Information brief, and the Building a Mobility Management Network: Characteristics and Considerations brief. You can find out more about and download each of the briefs, on our Mobility Management in Practice Series page. 

Amy Conrick has been part of the National Center for Mobility Management since 2013 and has served as its director since 2019, guiding the activities of the center to promote cross-sector coordination that enhances transportation access for underserved populations. In her 16 years at the Community Transportation Assn. of America (CTAA), her home organization, she has worked as a presenter, trainer, facilitator, writer, and program manager in the fields of employment transportation, health care transportation, mobility management, and transportation innovation.

Read more about Amy here.

NCMM wants you to submit Promising Practices from your community! A database of current and recent mobility management practices from across the country is in the works, showcasing implemented programs and services that have introduced a new or enhanced method of delivering mobility management and improved people's ability to travel around their communities. If you're interested in sharing Promising Practices you know about, you can fill out the survey found here.

Mobility Management Connections (MMC) is a peer-to-peer learning platform organized and hosted by NCMM that enables mobility managers from all backgrounds to engage in coordination topics, information sharing, and mobility management strategies related to fostering transportation connections. MMC is free and open to all mobility management professionals. This community is for mobility management practitioners who are actively advancing mobility management in their communities, regions, and states. Any questions, please contact Enjoli Dixon.

Technology Summits: The National Center for Applied Transit Technology is excited to announce an opportunity for up to three direct recipients (state Departments of Transportation, Metropolitan Planning Organizations, Rural Planning Organizations, Tribal consortiums, or others) to hold Technology Summits with their small-urban, rural, and tribal agencies. This is an opportunity for agencies across the applicant's geography to bring in challenges they face and use those to work with their peers to collaborate on technology priorities and begin mapping out tech investments at the state level. Please submit your application in one document in PDF format to Marcela Moreno no later than 11:59 p.m. EDT, on July 12, 2022. Read more here.

Strategic Technology TA Teams (STTATs): The National Center for Applied Transit Technology (N-CATT) is now accepting applications for transit agencies to receive one-on-one technical assistance through the Center's Strategic Technology Technical Assistance Teams (STTATs). N-CATT will work with up to three transportation providers to navigate a technology challenge or opportunity that results in a useful starting product for the agency, such as an implementation plan or ready-to-go technology solicitation. Please submit your application in one document in PDF format to Marcela Moreno no later than 11:59 p.m. EDT, on July 12, 2022. Read more here.

National RTAP is hosting a #RuralTransitDay Twitter Chat on to be held on July 15, 2022 from 2:00-3:00 p.m., ET. It will be moderated by Stephanie Lewis, Florida RTAP, Marcela Moreno, National Center for Applied Transit Technology (N-CATT), Moira Moon, Colorado DOT, and National RTAP staff. If you would like to attend, please RSVP to info@nationalrtap.org.

The Public Outreach and Engagement Team (POET) at the Alan M. Voorhees Transportation Center at Rutgers University, under the Transportation Review Board's Transit Cooperative Research Program (TCRP), Project J-11, Quick-Response Research on Long Term Strategic Issues, is conducting an online survey for TASK 41: Pathways to Effective, Inclusive, and Equitable Virtual Public Engagement for Public Transportation. The survey aims to solicit information from agencies about their recent experiences conducting public involvement during the COVID-19 pandemic. You can find out more information about the survey here. Complete the survey here.

CMS has created a new website to feature its work in response to the December 2019 legislation that codified the Medicaid transportation benefit, commonly known as non-emergency medical transportation (NEMT). The new website discusses the legislated Assurance of Transportation Federal regulations and minimum requirements for NEMT drivers and providers/brokers. Recordings of the stakeholder listening sessions held by CMS in March-April 2022 can also be accessed from the site.

The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), Center for Substance Abuse Treatment (CSAT), is accepting applications for the fiscal year (FY) 2022 cohort of the State Opioid Response grant program. The purpose of this program is to address the opioid overdose crisis by providing resources to states and territories for increasing access to FDA-approved medications for the treatment of opioid use disorder (MOUD), and for supporting the continuum of prevention, harm reduction, treatment, and recovery support services for opioid use disorder (OUD) and other concurrent substance use disorders. The program's funds have been used in the past to support transportation networks to addiction treatment. The deadline is July 18. To find out how to apply, visit here.

The FTA has updated its Frequently Asked Questions on use of formula funds for operating expenses in response to the covid-19 pandemic. Although formula funds may not be used to reimburse COVID-19-related operating expenses at 100-percent federal share for activities occurring after Jan. 21, 2022, CARES, CRRSAA, and ARP funds remain available at 100-percent federal share for these operating expenses. FTA also updated 16 COVID-related FAQs.

Mobility Management News is the newsletter of the National Center for Mobility Management (NCMM), which is operated jointly by the Community Transportation Association, the American Public Transportation Association and Easter Seals under a cooperative agreement with the Federal Transit Administration.