Texas Transit Association Statewide Training Initiative

TTA is now expanding access to educational resources by launching a Statewide training initiative covering the many obstacles that transit staff face, including funding, procurement, and regulatory compliance. This training opportunity is made possible with a grant through TxDOT.

To administer this program, TTA will work closely with Easterseals, which has over 34 years of experience developing and implementing training programs and workshops for rural, suburban, and urban transit agencies. This training curriculum will be designed and delivered to be relevant to transit providers at various levels of management, accounting, and procurement professionals, front-line supervisors, dispatchers/ call center staff, and drivers. It will incorporate best practices from both the public and the private sector.

All courses, workshops, and webinars, in-person or virtual, are designed to be interactive and participatory. These courses will be offered to Transit agencies in Texas at no cost, but space is limited, so make sure that you and your staff don’t miss out on this great opportunity.

TTA’s Upcoming Courses


Don’t Miss Pre-Conference Workshops on Sunday, March 17, 2024 –  limited space

Pre-conference sessions are offered on Sunday, March 17, 2024 at the Henry B. González Convention Center at no cost, but due to limited seating, you must indicate which sessions you will be attending by registering below.

Email Laura@TxTransit.org if you have questions.

These courses are offered to transit agencies in Texas at no cost by grant funding through TxDOT.

Register Today!

  • GTFS Builder Workshop to meet new NTD Reporting Requirements, Marcy Jaffe, National RTAP, and James P. Cardenas, TTI (1:00 pm – 5:00 pm) Note: You will need to bring your laptop

With most recent NTD reporting that includes generating current trip plan data for all fixed and deviated fixed reporters the time is right to ease trip planning. Trip plan data is also known as the General Transit Feed Specification (GTFS). Is your GTFS up-to-date? GTFS makes trip planning a few clicks on a phone or map – without needing multiple printed schedules. GTFS can be generated with free tools in Excel using GTFS Builder from the National Rural Transit Assistance Program (National RTAP). To be able to fully engage in our hands-on training, all attendees will need to have their computer set-up and ready to maximize this in-person, hands-on training. This training will assist you in meeting the new NTD requirements for publishing and hosting the GTFS zipped data files.

Register Today!

  • Procurement Workshop: With a focus on Technology/Equipment Procurements – Carol Wright Kenderdine, Easter Seals (No vendors please) (1:00 pm – 4:00 pm)

Do you have new software, hardware, buses, or other equipment that is working well for you at your agency? Have you switched your vehicles from diesel/gasoline to another fuel source? Have you recently taken on a building project and are willing to share tips on how to make the process as smooth as possible?
Are you looking for new software, hardware, buses, equipment or trying to decide whether to convert all or part of your fleet to a new fuel source? Are you getting ready for a capital-building project? Would you like to talk to a fellow transit agency to get advice and improve your learning curve?
This afternoon session is designed to bring transit agencies together to share ideas and experiences. There will be plenty of time to move between individual subject areas and take part in the ones that are most meaningful to you. We have asked that no vendors or their representatives attend. This is meant to be an open and frank exchange between transit systems.
Please plan to join us if you have ideas to share or questions to ask!

  • Planning Micro Transit Services, Will Rodman, TTI (1:00 pm – 4:00 pm)

This workshop will focus on planning considerations and successful examples of microtransit and other (exclusive ride) on-demand services for the general public that are provided or subsidized by transit agencies.

Workshop Structure: The workshop will be designed as follows:

    • Background findings on microtransit design from TTI research
    • Four panel members from four Texas transit agencies will present how they have implemented microtransit. The presentation will include the motivations for implementing the service, implementation issues, marketing operational issues, successes vs. goals and lessons learned. (Time will be left for questions)

Register Today!

Breakout sessions and Workshops


April

These courses are offered to transit agencies in Texas at no cost by grant funding through TxDOT.

Title: Equity in Action: Navigating Title VI, DBE, and EEO – in-person workshop 

Date/Time:

Day 1: April 10, 2024 from 8:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. Central

Day 2: April 11, 2024 from 8:30 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.

Location: Brazos Transit,  2117 Nuches Ln. Bryan, TX 77803

Instructor: Amy Crossin, RLS & Associates

Registration Link: 

Description: Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, 42 U.S.C. § 2000d et seq., was enacted as part of the landmark Civil Rights Act of 1964. It prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, and national origin in programs and activities receiving federal financial assistance. This one and one-half day course covers the overall Title VI requirements, including Equal Employment Opportunities (EEO), Disadvantaged Business Enterprises (DBE), and Limited English Proficiency (LEP) requirements as they relate to the provision of public transportation services.

Title VI: The Title VI topic will provide an introduction to Title VI, the framework for the requirements, and how to implement a Title VI program and policy. The training will encompass the requirements for providing language assistance to limited English proficient (LEP) individuals, public outreach, complaint procedures, reporting and documentation, and staff training and awareness.

Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE): FTA Section 5311 Subrecipients are required to comply with the applicable provisions of the U.S. Department of Transportation (US DOT) regulations 49 CFR Part 26, as revised. This three-hour portion of the training will contain a review of the regulation, the thresholds for determining when a DBE Program is required, the components of such a program (eg. policy, good-faith effort, identifying and certified DBEs, etc.), required DBE contract language, the establishment of DBE goals, DBE reporting, and other applicable requirements.

Equal Employment Opportunities (EEO): The Federal Transit Administration enforces EEO requirements for recipients of federal assistance to ensure nondiscrimination in employment practices. Key points covered in the training include fairness, equity, and inclusivity in the workforce and contracting practices to promote the benefits of federally funded transit programs to all members of the community.

Note that the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) requirements, because of their complexity, are covered only broadly in this workshop.


Title: Fundamentals of Project Management – webinar

Date/Time: April 17, 2024, 1:00 – 2:30 p.m. Central

Instructor: Jeremy Johnson-Miller, Easterseals

Registration Link:

Description: This webinar is designed to provide transit professionals with the essential knowledge and skills required to manage complex projects. The training will cover the fundamentals of project management, including project planning, budgeting, and stakeholder engagement. Participants will also have the opportunity to learn about the latest tools and techniques for project management, as well as best practices for delivering projects on time and within budget. By the end of the workshop, attendees will have a solid understanding of project management principles and be better equipped to manage transit projects successfully.


Title: Microtransit as a Part of an Integrated Transit System – virtual two day workshop

Date/Time: April 23-24, 2024, 1:00 – 3:00 p.m. Central

Instructor: A.T. Stoddard, LSC Transportation Consultants

Registration Link:

Description: Microtransit is often promoted as a service to solve many of the challenges faced by public transit systems. In this seminar, participants will be introduced to the concept of microtransit to understand what it is, how it operates, and some of the benefits and limitations of microtransit. Specific topics to be covered include:

  • Characteristics of microtransit
  • Factors to consider for implementation of microtransit
  • Estimating potential demand
  • Performance characteristics
  • Cost of microtransit
  • In-house or contract operations
  • Integration with complementary paratransit service
  • Integration with fixed-route service
  • Presenting the case for or against microtransit
  • Examples of microtransit implementation

 

 


Recordings of past Webinars

De-Escalation Training – Recording of Webinar

Project Management – Recording of Webinar

Conflict Resolution – Recording of Webinar

Human Resources webinar – Recording of Webinar

Public Engagement webinar – Recording of Webinar

Empowering Mobility Managers to Lead webinar – Recording of Webinar

ADA: Hot Topics webinar – Recording of Webinar

TxDOT Semi-Annual Transit Operators Business Meeting, January 24, 2024

Managing the Homeless with Crowdsourced Incident Reporting Sponsored by ELERTS – Recording of Webinar, February 1, 2024

ELERTS SEPTA Homeless Vulnerable webinar – Presentation

COTA Homeless and Vulnerable PUBLIC SAFETY PROGRAMS – Presentation

 

 

 


Agencies interested in hosting future training classes can contact Laura@TxTransit.org for details.

  • Host agencies are expected to provide the following:
  • Training Room with a projector that can accommodate up to 35 individuals classroom style.
  • Refreshments and coffee for morning and afternoon breaks.
  • Please note that the training location must be in close proximity to dining establishments to allow participants to leave and return within one hour.
  • Host agencies may also provide lunch if there are no dining establishments nearby.
  • The host agency is encouraged to offer tours of their facility.