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National RTAP Peer Call: Special Topics in Procurement - RFPs for IT

Have you been through a procurement for IT or is your agency looking to procure technology soon? If so, join us for this Special Topics in Procurement Peer Call on Wednesday, May 18th 2:30-3:30pm ET. 

Potential discussion questions: 
  • How do you decide what you want to procure? If not familiar with your options, how do you spec it and write the RFP? 
  • Where can you get good information on available technology? 
  • What is the most common procurement that you see for IT and what are the most common problems? 
  • Do you have strategies to share with other states or local systems? 
Register now to hear from your peers, as well as Mike LaBello of Main Street Connections, and contribute to the discussion of procurement for IT. Any questions you have in advance can be sent to info@nationalrtap.org.
Federal Transit Administration and US DOT Updates

US DOT released a helpful informal What Employers Need to Know About Monitoring Collection Sites brochure to make it easier to understand how to monitor their drug and alcohol testing sites.

FTA's Mobility on Demand Sandbox Demonstration Program NOFO for $8 million in funding is now available. Learn more on the project Homepage or from the Federal Register.

Transit Safety and Oversight released the May Spotlight, a monthly newsletter on topics affecting the public transportation industry.

US DOT announced their Every Place Counts Design Challenge, to raise awareness about existing transportation infrastructure barriers and identify innovative solutions to reconnect communities to jobs, healthcare, education, and other essential services. An informational webinar will be on Wednesday, May 18th from 3-4pm ET.

FTA funding proposals for the Tribal Transit Program Funding Opportunity, Low-No Emissions programs and Buses and Bus Facilities are due by tomorrow, May 13th.

Proposals for FTA's $5.3 million in Rides to Wellness Demonstration and Innovative Coordinated Access and Mobility Grants are due May 31st. Proposers must be states, tribes, or designated/direct 5311, 5310, or 5307 recipients and must be the lead of a local consortium of stakeholders from transportation, healthcare, human service or other sectors. Read this FAQ for more.

Join the national online dialogue to help update FTA's Best Practices Procurement Manual. Share your challenges, concerns, tips, and lessons learned regarding FTA procurement. Open until May 20th.
Resources and News

Opportunities

FMCSA is requesting comments for it's Beyond Compliance program which examines voluntary efforts by transit agencies in implementing best practices or new technologies which surpass regulatory requirements.

FMCSA announced it is considering a rulemaking requiring states to establish a program for annual inspections of commercial motor vehicles designed or used to transport passengers. Read the Federal Register announcement and add your comments. 

TRB will hold a webinar on Thursday, May 26 at 2:00-3:30 pm ET on NCHRP Report 814. The webinar will examine how the tools may help agencies evaluate and improve their data quality and management to ensure their data supports decision making.

FHWA announced the establishment of a negotiated rulemaking committee to develop a proposed rule for the Tribal Transportation Self-Governance Program, required by the FAST Act. Comments and nominations from tribes for the committee are due June 9.

LTAP announces their 2016 Build a Better Mousetrap National Competition, highlighting solutions to everyday issues that local and tribal transportation workers and other LTAP/TTAP clients encounter.

Publications

NCHRP released State DOTs Connecting Specialized Transportation Users and Rides, a two-part report. Part One provides resources for agencies and Part Two is a toolkit for state DOTs.

TCRP Synthesis 122: Transit Supportive Parking Policies and Programs documents transit agency parking policies and parking management at transit stations.

News

The National Aging and Disability Transportation Center's (NADTC) new website is now live! Check out the helpful resources, trainings, and services of FTA's newest technical assistance center.

Metro Magazine has a great article featuring a multi-modal partnership between Oregon DOT, Zipcar, and Amtrak. 

ATT claims that anti-texting laws do have a measurable impact on reducing distracted driving citing their own internal data. 

Wired magazine released an article linking increased speed limits to a variety of negative outcomes.
May 12th, 2016
Events
National RTAP
Peer Call: Procurement
May 18
2:30-3:30pm

CTAA
2016 Expo
May 22-27
Portland, OR

NTI
Transit Academy
June 6-10

FPTA/FDOT/CUTR
Professional Development Workshop
June 6-8

NTI
TCRP Report 169: Developing Best-Practice Guidelines for Improving Bus Operator Health and Retention
June 7
2:00-3:30pm

NADO
National Regional Transportation Conference
June 13-15
Chattanooga, TN
Conference

National RTAP
Procurement 101
June 15
2:30-3:30pm

LTAP/TTAP
2016 National Conference
July 18-21
Madison, WI

CTAA
Small Urban Network (SUN) Conference 
Denver, CO
August 10-12
Conference

TRB
National Conference on Rural Public and Intercity Bus
October 2-5
Asheville, NC

For a listing of all National RTAP and other national events, view our Calendar. If you'd like to submit an event, please email info@nationalrtap.org.

All event times listed as Eastern Time
Resource Spotlight
Don't have your route and schedule data in GTFS?

Check out National RTAP's new Why GTFS? Technical Brief, or dive right in with our free GTFS Builder software!
National RTAP is a program of the Federal Transit Administration dedicated to creating rural and Tribal transit solutions through technical assistance, partner collaboration and FREE training materials.

Contact us:
Main: 5 Wheeling Avenue, Woburn, MA 01801, 888-589-6821
Washington, D.C.: 50 F Street NW, Suite 7020, Washington, DC 20001