Advisory Board
Meeting Minutes (Sept. 25, 2006)

Attendees

Advisory Board Members:

• Alan Abeson, Easter Seals Project ACTION
• Julia Bommelman, Metropolitan Area Transit - Fargo
• Pam Boswell, American Public Transportation Association
• Bruce Fuchs, North Dakota Department of Transportation
• Gene Griffin, Upper Great Plains Transportation Institute
• Lyn Hellegaard, Montana Transit Association
• Ron Hynes, representing Barbara Sisson, Federal Transit Administration
• Sara Janes, representing Rich Douglas, Wyoming DOT
• Rex Knowlton, representing Dale Marsico, Community Transportation Association of America
• Ryan Marshall, Utah Urban and Rural Specialized Transportation Association
• Pam Ternes, Standing Rock Public Transportation

SURTC Staff:

• Gary Hegland, Training Coordinator and Associate Research Fellow
• Jill Hough, Director
• Carol Wright, Associate Director of Outreach & Training
• Jon Mielke, Associate Research Fellow
• Jim Miller, Faculty Associate
• Del Peterson, Associate Research Fellow
• David Ripplinger, Associate Research Fellow
• Xinyu (Jason) Cao, Associate Research Fellow
• Kathryn Harrington-Hughes, Associate Research Fellow

Guests:

• Jim Moench, North Dakota Disabilities Advocacy Consortium
• Todd Beutler, Logan District Transit, Logan, UT

Welcome and Introductions

Jill Hough, SURTC Director

Greetings from Upper Great Plains Transportation Institute

Gene Griffin, Director

Gene described the necessity of mobility in a successful society and the importance of the work being done by those in the transit industry. He expressed his hope that the meeting and its outcome would aid in this effort.

SURTC Update

Ms. Hough began by welcoming the advisory board members and guests.

A presentation updating the advisory board on the accomplishments of SURTC since the last annual meeting as well as reviewing the Center's vision and goals was presented.

SURTC has added two staff members: Xinyu (Jason) Cao and Carol Wright. Kathryn Harrington-Hughes is now also working for UGPTI and is available to work on SURTC projects.

In the past year, SURTC has completed research on ridership satisfaction, commuter van pool, tribal transit development planning, state management planning, demographics, express bus feasibility, the role of gender in time allocation, and examining the travel choice of low-income and aging people. Research in progress includes transportation of small urban and rural elderly women, school bus routing, the definition of small urban and rural, an industry study of small transit vehicles, the longitudinal behavior of college students, and the role of transit access on housing selection.

In the spring, SURTC delivered an undergraduate/graduate course in public transportation. The bus shelter design project is continuing with the shelters currently being constructed. A transit satisfaction survey was developed in conjunction with a psychology research methods class at NDSU.

Training sessions of human resource management, fundraising and local match, school transportation efficiency, and PASS training have been provided. A survey of transit manager training needs was also conducted. SURTC continues to maintain the regional RTAP library and SURTC website and discussion board. It publishes two newsletters each year.

SURTC held a strategic planning meeting in August. Work resulting from the meeting will be presented later today for comment.

National Perspective

Ron Hynes, Deputy Associate Administrator, Federal Transit Administration

The new FTA administrator, Jim Simpson, was confirmed in mid-August. Prior to his confirmation there were a number of changes in leadership following the departure of Jenna Dorn for the World Bank. Mary Peters is expected to be confirmed as the new Transportation Secretary shortly.

FTA is working on addressing the $49 million hydrogen fueling research requirements required by SAFETEA-LU. Given the absence of funding for oversight on the part of FTA, reorganization has occurred.

Mike Baltes has been hired by the Joint Programs Office. The TRI-20 opening is expected to be filled soon. The individual hired will oversee UTC and rail projects. Barbara Sisson continues her service on active status as a captain in the Navy Reserve.

Work is continuing on implementing SAFTETEA-LU. Work on the alternate fuels report is adding an emphasis on economic issues in addition to the environmental concerns stipulated by the legislation.

A UTC outreach meeting was held in Denver. A meeting will likely be held in San Jose in conjunction with the APTA annual conference. A meeting may also be held in Birmingham.

FTA has contracted with Battelle to aid FTA in its strategic planning.

Due to budgetary concerns, limits on travel in the future are being considered. The '08 budget is being formulated and the '07 budget is all but complete.

Ron commented positively on SURTC's deliverables and reporting.

Pam Boswell, American Public Transportation Association

Pam indicated the one thing she appreciated most is that she can always count on SURTC.

Pam thanked David Ripplinger of SURTC for his presentation at the Campus Transit meeting in March.

Ridership is up nationwide, especially in small urban and rural communities.

APTA is pursuing three initiatives:

1. Standards: they began with commuter rail and are now working on rail and bus. The impacts of a national fare card could be positive and far-reaching. A handout describing APTA standards' efforts was provided.
2. Emergency response and preparation: especially with Katrina, the importance of an inventory of assets and predefined procedures has increased.
3. Coordination: APTA led stakeholder and coalition building exercises for the Mobility Services for All Americans (MSAA) program, including one held at the Rural ITS meeting in August.

APTA is continuing to provide local coalition building grants aimed at helping communities identify successful strategies for advocating for transit. Information is available and a handout was provided to meeting participants. The next round of applications may be submitted beginning next June.

Rex Knowlton, on behalf of the Community Transportation Association of America

CTAA's annual board meeting was held Sunday, Sept. 24. Issues on the agenda included the next round of reauthorization; charter bus regulations; Medicare, Medicaid, and Veterans' transportation; and coordination.

Comments on various parts of SAFETEA-LU are being prepared.

Non-emergency transportation (Medicare) will again be on the agenda after the 2008 election.

Alan Abeson, Easter Seals Project Action

Easter Seals has begun work on its new project, the National Center for Senior Transportation, which complements its current program. A draft brochure was provided to meeting participants.

Project Action will be holding a Mobility Planning Services Institute next May. Twenty groups of four to five individuals will be invited to generate service plans. They will be provided monies to put the plan into action when returning home. CTAA has offered a similar program in the past and has partnered with Project Action by providing information.

Project Action's 'People on the Move' train-the-trainer program is being held about five times per year. A new travel training curriculum has nearly been completed.

Project Action is producing materials for Department of Labor One-Stop Centers.

Project Action is working to ensure that it coordinates with the many other technical assistance programs that exist.

Project Action is working on holding joint training with SURTC.

A consensus conference to identify the needs of paratransit managers was held.

Project Action continues to serve as a clearinghouse for information, especially through its website, www.projectaction.org.

A FAQ on issues regarding service animals was recently completed.

Gene asked panel members what they thought it would take to get a 'good' reauthorization. Rex responded that a continuation of momentum was needed, especially at the grassroots level. Pam added that there may need to be a change in where financing will come from. Al commented on the increase in ridership, success in local referendums, and the identified need as playing key roles.

Results from SURTC's Strategic Planning Meeting

SURTC team members presented recommended concepts to the board based on ideas generated and prioritized at SURTC's advisory board meeting held in August.

Recommended Concept: Research, Del Peterson

SURTC should continue focusing on its niche of small urban and rural transit research. Local studies should have national application when practical. Gaps in research should be identified. Possible research areas to be studied include low-density urban areas, the influence of energy costs on ridership, and performance measurement. A balance between applied and academic research best meets SURTC's mission.

SURTC needs to nurture its existing relationships and increase its presence in APTA and CTAA committees.

SURTC will utilize the latest communication technology including the Transportation Learning Network, video streaming, and the web. There is a need for a two-way communication of research needs and capabilities.

It is recommended that SURTC have a staff of the size necessary to get the job done. Graduate students often have a role to play. SURTC should retain its focus on its regional area and pursue applicable national interest projects when beneficial.

Recommended Concept: Education, David Ripplinger

Education is differentiated from training as being a service that is delivered within the context of an institution of higher learning.

The educational needs of transit managers vary by their stage in career and the type and size of their operation.

The competencies of mid-career managers are more applied in focus, while traditional students will benefit from a broader breadth and depth of material covered.

The core competencies for both mid-career and career-start managers were presented.

The delivery and outcome of educational programs differ among managers. Some will benefit from distance education, some from executive education, and others from traditional university study.

There is a need for a transit textbook. It should draw on expertise from across the industry. The book should serve as a textbook for students and a handbook for those in the field.

Recommended Concept: Outreach & Training, Carol Wright

SURTC identified transit training needs by conducting a survey of transit managers in its six state regions. The top driver training needs were defensive driving, PASS, first aid/blood borne pathogens/CPR, and handling difficult passengers. The top manager training needs were ADA requirements, ADA rights/responsibilities of providers, ADA rights/responsibilities of customers, and delivering customer service. The majority of respondents indicated that they were willing to travel up to 120 miles to attend training.

SURTC should be the "go-to" resource for small urban and rural training needs by both developing and conducting its own training and by facilitating other training opportunities.

SURTC needs to increase outreach efforts to state transit associations and continue to participate in national conferences. SURTC should continue to maintain membership in and serve on committees for APTA and CTAA. It should maintain and expand collaborative efforts with NTI, state DOTs, Easter Seals Project Action, TSI, APTA, national RTAP, national TTAP, tribal colleges, TRB/TCRP, and CTAA.

SURTC has prioritized the delivery of an Introduction to Transit Management and Advanced Management Training courses to meet the needs of those individuals who are new to and those who have experience in managing transit properties.

Travel training and workshops on ADA, coordination, and emotional intelligence are also being considered.

Research Comments

Alan Abeson inquired as to where academic research ideas come from. Jill stated that they often come from the applied side. Jason noted that in university settings, master's students are often provided ideas, while doctoral students identify research topics themselves.

Gene presented a framework of identifying research topics. This would include placing topics along a continuum from applied to academic research.

Jim Moench mentioned that the process of identifying research areas should be formal.

Jim Miller raised the process used by MPC to prioritize research areas, and that this might be valuable to SURTC.

Ryan Marshall noted that he would like to see additional SURTC work conducted in Utah.

Jill commented on using TCRP problem statements that are not funded as potential research topics.

Group Discussion of Definition of "Rural"

David Ripplinger presented the motivation for and results of SURTC's Definition of Rural project. The result is a dichotomous classification that indexes a county on its urban population and rural population density. Comments were then invited.

Alan Abeson noted that certain populations including seniors have disproportionate transportation needs, and that this might be valuable to address.

Jon Mielke noted that continued work would be similar to that used in the state mobility plan where community transportation needs are based on its demographic makeup. David Ripplinger stated that this was a future research possibility.

Jim Miller mentioned that the intent shouldn't be to have the work meet the needs of transit development. David agreed and referred back to language from the FTA Strategic Plan that initiated the study.

Advisory Board Member Comments

Lyn Hellegaard noted that there appeared to be a discrepancy between the Training & Outreach and the Research components of SURTC with respect to the national vs. regional scope. Jill stated that this was not the intended message, and that this will be clarified in future work.

Sara Janes mentioned that she would like to see an expanded relationship with state DOTs to assist DOTs in marketing SURTC services to local providers.

Bruce Fuchs stated that it is important for SURTC to develop relationships with DOTs and state transit associations. The relationships should be one-on-one.

Rex Knowlton noted that SURTC should work to constantly stay abreast of the work of other research organizations and universities including that at Penn State and the University of Vermont. The SURTC website is very good, and efforts should be made to maintain its value. The definition of rural study is good and, in its current form, captures the necessary point. The education group should also include competencies in public speaking and public relations/media savvy.

Ron Hynes stated that work on the definition of rural should be presented to additional groups and feedback collected.

Pam Boswell encouraged peer-to-peer exchange.

Al Abeson asked if the core competencies in the education concept were ranked. David stated that they were not. He asked that customer understanding be added to the list (combining the two existing customer competencies). Al noted that strategic duplication should be avoided when possible, but it isn't always achievable. Guidance must come from the board.

Pam Ternes noted the importance of marketing and pointed out that properly targeting riders is more cost-effective.

Julie Bommelman stated that the influence of energy prices on ridership was of interest. Political savvy should be added to the core competencies list. ADA/travel training would be beneficial.

Jim Moench stated that homeland security efforts to inventory the locations of individuals are important. David mentioned that SURTC currently employs a student assistant who will be pursuing a Ph.D. in Emergency Management and be focusing on public transportation issues in her dissertation.

Todd Beutler thanked SURTC for the invitation to attend and stated that he was pleased with the work that has been done, and the strategic plan that was presented.

Ryan Marshall thought that a competency regarding how government works should be included. He felt that the definition of rural work was good in its current form. Ryan also noted that a template to manage performance outcomes would be valuable.

Lyn Hellegaard mentioned that an online dictionary/glossary would be beneficial.

Jason asked Julie about fixed-route determination and land-use. Julie stated that in Fargo transit is considered during the process. A greater concern is the placement of group homes with no regard to transit service until after development.

Closing

Jill thanked all in attendance for their attendance and valuable comments.