About Us

The purpose of the Small Urban & Rural Transit Center (SURTC) is to increase the mobility of small urban and rural residents through improved public transportation.

This will be accomplished by providing transit stakeholders, users, providers, suppliers, and agencies, with the information, knowledge, and trained human capital that will allow them to take advantage of the latest technology, and better operation and management paradigms.

The objective of SURTC is to develop a Center of Excellence that will address the transportation needs of the public in small urban and rural locations.

Vision Statement

The vision of the SURTC is to develop a Center of Excellence that addresses the transportation needs of the public in small urban and rural locations.

Mission Statement

The mission of the SURTC is to be a research support and outreach center to assist small urban and rural transit systems and other transit entities by conducting relevant research and offering outreach and training. The Center will provide and facilitate the exchange of information. Special focus will be given to planning, operations, and technologies with an emphasis on "smart solutions" to problems.

As part of the mission, the SURTC will provide an environment to conduct research related to public transportation needs of rural and small urban locations, provide training (and certification) to the transit systems, and provide educational opportunities for transit system employees and individuals seeking to enter the transit field.

Goals

The specific goals of SURTC are:

Enhance public transportation systems in small urban and rural communities
Improve accessibility and mobility in small urban and rural communities
Foster and facilitate information exchange among transit stakeholders and decision-makers in public transportation
Contribute to the body of knowledge in transit

Geographic Scope

Map showing our geographic scope The geographic scope of the SURTC will include North Dakota, South Dakota, Montana, Wyoming, Utah, and Minnesota as funding will allow. Most of the cities within these states are categorized as rural or small urban. However, this preliminary defined geographic scope does not preclude us from working on national issues.

Relationship to UGPTI

SURTC is housed within the Upper Great Plains Transportation Institute (UGPTI) at North Dakota State University. The Institute provides transportation research, education, and service to the state of North Dakota as well as regionally, nationally, and internationally.

SURTC is an extension of UGPTI, focusing on public transportation and the mobility and accessability of residents of small urban and rural locations in the Upper Midwest.

For more information about UGPTI, visit their website:
www.ugpti.org

Alliances/Partnerships

SURTC has several alliances and partnerships within the transit industry. The alliances and partnerships will be both internal with UGPTI, as well as external with various transit organizations.