Advisory Committee on Human Trafficking Releases Final Report

On July 2, the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Advisory Committee on Human Trafficking submitted its final report to the Department.

U.S. Department of Transportation Permanently Bans Commercial Drivers Convicted of Human Trafficking

On July 16, 2019, the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) announced a final rule that permanently bans drivers convicted of human trafficking from operating a commercial motor vehicle (CMV) for which a commercial driver’s license or a commercial learner’s permit is required.

Markwayne Mullin Writes Letter of Support for Alternative Fuels

Many thanks to Congressman Markwayne Mullin, R-OK 2nd District for supporting the Alternative Fuels Tax provision of the Tax Extender Bill.

How Can We Prevent Operator Assault?

“For us and for many of the people that we represent, the biggest concern right now is bus operators who are subject to assault on a regular basis. In fact, depending on how you define assault, it is so common that sometimes people don’t even report it, verbal assaults and being spat on are things that happen maybe daily – certainly weekly. So it’s difficult to determine what those numbers are, but as you get into more dangerous and severe types of assault, whether that’s brandishing a weapon or being sprayed with mace or actually being punched or physically assaulted. Those do get reported,” said Danaher.

Albuquerque and Former ART Electric Bus Company Reach Settlement

The city of Albuquerque is off the hook for paying more than $20 million to the maker of the flawed buses for its rapid transit route.

A year and a half since electric ART buses were supposed to start rolling on Central Avenue, federal court records show China-based electric bus company BYD and the city of Albuquerque have reached a settlement.

DART, Uber Offer New Mobility Options in Rowlett

Beginning Monday, June 3, Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART) customers in Rowlett can book an UberPool shared ride in addition to GoLink trips using GoPass®, DART’s all-in-one travel tool.

Why I wrote the Americans with Disabilities Act

The bill, a model for bipartisanship, addressed hideous discrimination faced by people with disabilities.

In January 1987, I sat down at a word processor in my small office at the National Council on Disability and began writing the first draft of a bill. NCD published my draft of the Americans with Disabilities Act bill in 1988; it was introduced in Congress with a few changes that same year, and provided the basis for the revised version that was signed into law July 26, 1990. On the ADA’s 25th anniversary, I want to tell the unlikely story of how this historic federal law came to be, and to reflect on what the law has accomplished.

Denver Transit Riders Can Now Purchase Tickets Through the Uber App

TD of Denver, Uber and Masabi have launched the first Uber Transit Ticketing, which allows users to plan and pay for trips from start to finish.

NCRTD Joins Transit Systems Nationwide for Get on Board for Public Transit:  Mayor Daniel Barrone Joins-In and Drives the Bus in Taos

On April 25, 2019, the North Central Regional Transit District (NCRTD) joined with other public transportation systems nationwide to participate in Get on Board for Public Transit Day.To help celebrate, Town of Taos’ Mayor and NCRTD Chair Daniel Barrone got behind the wheel and drove the RTD 340 Chile Line Red route through Taos greeting and surprising riders on the Blue Bus. “We want to encourage people from throughout the District to come out and ride public transit, today and every day,” commented Barrone. “Public transit builds community and often people find that once they try it, they see the benefits and continue to do so.”

Study Shows Public Transit Access Leads to Higher Employment, Lower Poverty

After being contracted by RTA in the summer of 2018, CSU researchers were tasked to quantify the annual economic impact that the RTA has on Cuyahoga County, in addition to measuring the economic benefit that RTA-related expenditures have on the local economy.

According to the study, the impact of public transit on Cuyahoga County property values is $2.2 billion with an estimated annual economic impact of $322 million.

TxDOT Joins Effort to End Human Trafficking

In a news release, TxDOT Executive Director, James Bass states, “Human trafficking is a horrific crime that knows no boundaries and, sadly, affects hundreds of thousands of women, children and men across our state and around the world.”

SWTA Signs Letter of Support: Nearly 700 Call on Congress to Reinstate Alternative Fuels Tax Credit

Washington, DC - On February 11th, nearly 700 users, retailers, customers, fleet managers, utilities and producers of clean alternative transportation fuels joined Natural Gas Vehicles for America (NGVAmerica) to call on Congress to act on a reinstatement of the Alternative Fuels Tax Credit (AFTC), which would offer $.50 per gasoline gallon equivalent (GGE) on certain transportation fuels.

Paul James Larrousse Unexpectedly Passes Away

SWTA is sad to announce, on Wednesday, November 14, 2018, Paul James Larrousse passed away at St. Peter’s University Hospital, New Brunswick. He was 64.

Ozark Regional Transit Awarded $2.9 Million Grant

Ozark Regional Transit has been officially notified that it has been awarded $2.9 million from a 5339 grant through the Federal Transit Administration. The proceeds are earmarked for bus facilities infrastructure investment programs.

Larry McNutt, Popular Transportation Industry Veteran, Passes Away

SWTA is sad to announce, Larry McNutt, Ricon Sales Manager, passed away suddenly last Friday, October 5, 2018. SWTA was informed by Bill Urian, who also referred to Larry as a great man, and stated, “He will be missed by many.”

FTA Will Award $366.2 Million in Grants to Improve Safety and Reliability

Read the attached chart to see which projects are being funded in the SWTA region!

Kristen Joyner Appointed to Serve on the Advisory Committee on Human Trafficking

​Kristen Joyner received a letter Wednesday, October 3, 2018, informing her she will serve on Secretary Elaine Chao’s Advisory Committee on Human Trafficking (ACHT).

FTA Announces Grant for Healthcare

FTA announced the availability of $6.3 million in competitive grant funds for transit coordination projects that improve access to healthcare. A Notice of Funding Opportunity is on display at the Federal Register.

FTA’s Access and Mobility Partnership Grants focus on transportation solutions to medical appointments and other non-emergency healthcare services. The grants will help improve options for people with limited transportation choices and bridge the gap between service providers in the transportation and health sectors.

The program supports the work of the inter-agency Coordinating Council on Access and Mobility (CCAM), which works to coordinate federal programs to improve access to jobs, schools, healthcare, and other opportunities.

Mountain Line Marks 18th Straight Year of Ridership Growth

Mountain Line is bucking the nationwide trend of declining bus ridership, registering another year of record ridership and surpassing Fiscal Year 2017 ridership by more than 17 percent.

SWTA Announces 31st Anniversary Spotlight Award Winners for Transit Marketing Excellence

The South West Transit Association (SWTA) announced its 31^ST Annual Spotlight Award winners during the Transit Marketing Workshop held at the Aloft Oklahoma City Downtown - Bricktown hotel.

The SPOTLIGHT Award is the oldest transit marketing and advertising award given in the United States and is awarded for excellence in a total transit marketing campaign with a “biggest-bang-for-the-buck” emphasis.

Legislative Agenda 2019-2020

In this Agenda, you will find the items the Members of the SWTA Nation believe are vital to the future of Excellence in Mobility.

FTA Apportionments

The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) has posted its annual apportionments online in 19 detailed tables.

SWTA Visits Delegation in Washington, DC

SWTA made its fourth visit to Washington, DC, to share good news stories with members of Congress about the excellent transit work being done in the SWTA Nation! I try to target different areas of the region, keeping a balance between Senate and House as well as sections of the region. The choice of who I visit is typically because there is targeted messaging or because a SWTA member has requested a visit or shared a story with us.

Congress Passes Continuing Resolution

By a vote of 72-26, the Senate passed a Continuing Resolution (CR; H.R. 5325) that funds federal government programs through December 9 at Fiscal Year (FY) 2016 levels. The House of Representatives passed the bill by a vote of 342-85. The President is expected to sign the bill before the new FY 2017 began on October 1.

SWTA’s Docket Submission to FTA’s NPRM Transit Agency Safety Plans

SWTA’s Docket Submission Included

Take the Mystery Out of Submitting Comments to the FTA Docket

A brief tutorial that will take the mystery out of submitting comments and give you a voice in the Federal government.

President Signs FAST Act Into Law

President Obama signed into law the FAST Act(Fixing America’s Surface Transportation), H.R. 22. There was no ceremony and no fanfare - just a simple statement from the White House that the President had signed the bill (which followed a presidential statement from earlier yesterday morning saying that the bill was “not perfect, but it is a commonsense compromise, and an important first step in the right direction”). The text of the enrolled bill as signed into law is here.

SWTA’s Letter to the Senate and House Conference Committee for the Surface Transportation Bill

​See Link

Capital Bus Investment Sorely Underfunded, Pick-Up Your Phone

The Surface Transportation Reauthorization Reform (STRR) Act is the House answer to a long-term transportation funding bill. This week the House Rules Committee will consider amendments to the bill. This is your opportunity to provide information that will help the House make the right decision about Capital Bus Investment.

SWTA Sends Letter on Behalf of Membership to Key Congressional Committee Staff Leaders

This letter is being sent on behalf of the 182 public transportation providers, businesses and members of the South West Transit Association, from the states of Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Kansas, Louisiana, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Texas.

APTA Alert: House Passes FY 2016 Transportation-HUD Appropriations Bill

Tuesday evening, the House of Representatives finished floor debate and passed, by a vote of 216- 210, the Fiscal Year (FY) 2016 Transportation, Housing and Urban Development and Related Agencies (THUD) Appropriations bill. The House voted on the first series of amendments to the bill last week, and completed amendments before voting for final passage late Tuesday night (June 9, 2015).

APTA Alert: Senate Passes Short-Term Authorization Extension

Early Saturday morning the Senate passed H.R. 2353, the Highway and Transportation Funding Act of 2015 by voice vote. This legislation extends the MAP-21 authorization from May 31 through July 31. The bill has now passed both chambers of Congress and is expected to be signed by the President this week.

Mayor of Oklahoma Stands Up for Transit in OpEd to NY Times

EVERY day, millions of Americans rely on a remarkable network of roads, bridges, subways, trains and buses to connect us to work, school and opportunity. But our transportation system, once the envy of the world, is in jeopardy.

In New York City, subways and buses are overcrowded and often unreliable, and roadways and bridges are in dire need of repair and rehabilitation. From the next phase of the Second Avenue subway to plans to connect the Metro-North Railroad to Pennsylvania Station, to the proposed new subway line under Utica Avenue in Brooklyn, there isn’t a short- or long-term expansion project that isn’t dependent on federal funding.

Letter to Transit Industry about Surface Transportation Lapse

Federal Transit Administration sent this bulletin at 05/12/2015 12:42 PM EDT

House Committee on Appropriations Releases the Transportation, Housing and Urban Development Bill

On Tuesday morning, 4/28, the House Committee on Appropriations released the draft Transportation, Housing and Urban Development (THUD) Appropriations bill for Fiscal Year (FY) 2016. This bill is scheduled to be brought before the THUD Subcommittee Wednesday morning for a markup. The measure appropriates discretionary spending totaling $55.3 billion, which is $1.5 billion above FY 2015 level, but $9.7 billion below the President’s budget request. With reduced offsets, however, the bill represents an actual increase of only $25 million above the current level.

Legislative Alert: U.S. DOT Secretary Foxx Releases Revised GROW AMERICA Act

By: APTA

On Monday, March 30th, U.S. Department of Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx unveiled a revised version of the GROW AMERICA Act, the Administration’s proposal for a multi-year surface transportation bill. As newly proposed, the GROW AMERICA Act would authorize a strong funding level of $478 billion over six years (as opposed to $302 billion over four years authorized in the previous version). As in the previous version, the Administration recommends that highway, transit, and passenger rail programs be funded through a restructured Transportation Trust Fund. Funding for that Trust Fund would be a combination of current Highway Trust Fund revenue supplemented by a 14 percent transition tax on the approximate $2 trillion of foreign earnings that U.S. companies have accumulated overseas (“repatriation”).

FY 2015 Apportionments and Allocations Now Available

FTA has now published its Fiscal Year 2015 Apportionments, Allocations, and Program Information, providing funding for FTA’s programs as authorized by MAP-21, pursuant to the FY 2015 Appropriations Act. For FTA’s formula assistance programs, the amounts apportioned are approximately 8/12th or $5.722 billion in contract authority at this time. The notice and apportionment tables are available at: http://www.fta.dot.gov/grants/12853.html

Appropriations Hearing on Administration Budget

​Legislative Alert from the American Public Transportation Association (APTA)

Second Surface Transportation Hearing Held by Transportation and Infrastructure Committee

Legislative Alert for the American Public Transportation Association (APTA)

Obama Signs $1.1 Trillion Government Spending BillSummaryofBills

The 114th Congress has been working to wrap up this year with a series of end-of-year bills. Some of those directly affect public transportation. A quick summary of two of those bills is provided.