National RTAP eNews - November 25, 2020

eNews - November 25, 2020

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.

Upcoming National RTAP Transit Manager's Peer Roundtable

Join National RTAP staff and Review Board members on December 16, 2020, 2:00-3:00 PM ET for a Transit Managers Peer Roundtable to connect with your peers and discuss issues affecting your job, your agency, and your community.

Please register in advance and share what topics you are interested in. Topics may include technology, diversity/equity, COVID fatigue, microtransit, and electric vehicles.

2020 National RTAP Biennial Rural and Tribal Transit Managers Survey Report Published

Services supplied in 2020 Transit Managers Survey

National RTAP completed its biennial survey of rural and tribal transit managers in 2020. A summary of the survey data is provided. The report summarizes types of services provided, funding sources, use of technology in operations and compliance, training requirements, and the impact of COVID-19 on operations.

Featured Resource

Resources and Events

Webinar Recording Posted for What is Microtransit and How Can It Help Rural Mobility?

National RTAP held a webinar on November 18, 2020 about microtransit best practices. Panelists Rodger Lentz, Chief Planning and Development Officer for the City of Wilson, North Carolina, and Olivia Blahut, Partnerships Lead at Via Transportation, discussed a pilot program using app-enabled on-demand public transportation. View the webinar recording and slides.

The Impacts of the Legalization of Marijuana in Transit Operations Webinar Recording Posted

National RTAP, CALACT, and RIBTC hosted a webinar on The Impacts of the Legalization of Marijuana in Transit Operations on November 19, 2020 led by Sean Oswald of RLS & Associates. View the webinar recording and slides.

U.S. DOT and FTA Updates

FTA posted the most current 2019 National Transit Database (NTD) data. This data includes both urban and rural data. For rural data only, visit the Rural Integrated National Transit Database (iNTD), with data through 2018.

U.S. DOT's Accessible Transportation Technologies Research Initiative (ATTRI) Performance Metrics and Evaluation provides a framework that can be used to develop an evaluation of technology applications designed to remove barriers to transportation for people with visual, hearing, cognitive, and mobility disabilities. The document provides an appendix for activities including transit facilities, riding a vehicle, and transit payment.

FTA published the November 2020 Transit Safety and Oversight Spotlight newsletter. The issue introduces the U.S. DOT/FTA, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), Office of Public and Indian Housing (PIH) Partnership for COVID-19 Recovery to educate on eligible use of FTA-funded vehicles and encourage partnerships providing access to transportation, education, food, medical appointments, and other essential services during COVID-19 recovery.

FTA awarded $7.7 million in tribal transit grant awards to 25 Tribal governments to improve public transportation. The funding will enable Tribes to establish and expand new transit services, purchase new vehicles, develop transit plans, and build new transit facilities and bus stops.

National RTAP Welcomes New Staff Member

National RTAP extends a warm welcome to new eLearning Project Manager Scott Zadakis. Scott is responsible for eLearning product administration, outreach, and content development. To learn more about Scott or any of our staff, please visit our Staff web page.

National RTAP's Nelly Cubahiro Selected for SWTA's Next Generation Leaders Group

Southwest Transit Association (SWTA) launched a Next Generation Leaders Group to identify and develop new leaders in the transit industry and foster connections between them. Members will develop and present workshops, training, and networking events. National RTAP Executive Assistant Nelly Cubahiro was selected as a member.

Webinars and Training

National Aging and Disability Transportation Center (NADTC) recently offered an introductory course on cost allocation. The course is available at Cost Allocation: A Mini-Course for Human Service Transportation Providers. We also offer the course through National RTAP eLearning. Understanding the basics of cost allocation can help you use our Cost Allocation Calculator with confidence.

South West Transit Association (SWTA) Lead Trainer Walt Diangson and Bois Forte Public Transportation Manager Jennie Rowland will be presenting on Planning, Funding, Developing, Starting, and Sustaining a Tribal Transit System at the Intertribal Transportation Association (ITA) 2020 Virtual Meeting on December 8, 2020, 4:00-5:30 PM ET.

Publications

FHWA developed spreadsheet-based tools and webinar trainings to facilitate the calculation of air quality benefit data. Some modules included in the CMAQ Emissions Calculator Toolkit are transit bus service and fleet expansion, transit bus replacement, transit bus retrofits, vanpooling, and on-road alternative fuel vehicle fleet purchase.

Victoria Transport Policy Institute's Evaluating Transportation Equity Guidance for Incorporating Distributional Impacts in Transportation Planning provides guidance for evaluating transportation equity. It defines various types of equity and equity impacts and describes practical ways to incorporate equity evaluation and objectives in transportation planning.

New National RTAP GTFS Hot Topic Guide

National RTAP continues to update our Hot Topic Guides in our Find Anything Toolkit. Topics are chosen based on questions asked to our Resource Center over the past year and answers to our Transit Manager's Survey. Based on feedback received, we created a GTFS Hot Topic Guide. Resources include:

BTS's GTFS at the U.S. DOT webinar
Volpe Center's GTFS for Estimating Transit Ridership and Supporting Multimodal Performance Measures
CUTR's General Transit Feed Specification Best Practices
National RTAP GTFS Builder

Opportunities

Federal Emergency Management Administration (FEMA) seeks input on the Building Private-Public Partnerships Guide. They will host two webinars to discuss the guide and answer questions on December 1 and December 3, 2020.

Save the Date for our Next State RTAP Managers Peer Roundtable

Save the date for our State RTAP Manager's Peer Roundtable on January 12, 2021, 2:00-3:00 PM ET. Join National RTAP staff and fellow State RTAP Managers for an informal discussion about State RTAP program issues and trends. No need to pre-register, just join the Roundtable at the time of the meeting. RSVP for a calendar invite.

Join our #RuralTransitTraining Twitter Chat in January 2021

RSVP for a Rural Transit Training Twitter Chat on January 19, 2021, 2:00-3:00 PM ET. Share training topics, strategies, and techniques with RTAP managers and trainers. Moderators are Stephanie Lewis, Florida RTAP Project Manager, and Instructional Designer/Media Specialist, Center for Urban Transportation Research (CUTR), and Angie Jones, District Manager, Grant County Transportation District (People Mover).

Upcoming National RTAP Webinar: What's New in the Transit Manager's Toolkit

We're hosting a What's New in the Transit Manager's Toolkit webinar on January 26, 2021, 2:00-3:00 PM ET. We're updating the Toolkit with new content, resources, and sections, including Leading during a Crisis and Communicating with the Public. Join National RTAP Review Board members Julia Castillo, Laura Corff, and Shauna Miller for an introduction to the updated content. Register for the webinar.

National RTAP/CALACT/RIBTC Webinar on Financial Management and Indirect Cost Rates

Register for a webinar on Financial Management and Indirect Cost Rates hosted by RTAP, CALACT, and the RIBTC Conference Committee on January 12, 2021, 3:00-5:00 PM ET. Speaker Rich Garrity of RLS & Associates will discuss compliance elements from recent Office of Management and Budget (OMB) guidance relating to the management of FTA grants and the impact of the recent regulatory changes.

Calendar of Upcoming Events

All event times listed in Eastern Time. Subtract 1 hour for Central Time, 2 for Mountain Time, 3 for Pacific Time, 4 for Alaska, and 6 for Hawaii.

FEMA

Building Private-Public Partnerships Webinar 1

December 1, 2:00-3:00 PM