Annual public transportation summit allows group to accelerate

Staffers from ITD’s Public Transportation Office (ITD-PT) “Accelerated into the Fast Lane” at the annual summit in Boise August 21-23. The event built on the previous year’s summit and harnessed that forward momentum for nearly 100 participants — a 50% increase in attendance from last year’s event.

Public Transportation Manager Kim McGourty opened the summit by emphasizing the importance of growing Idaho’s transit network, partnering with the business community to boost economic development, and focusing on public transportation safety both from a national perspective and at the local level. 

"The annual summit was a huge success this year, thanks to all the hard work our team and the public transportation community put into it,” said Shauna Miller, Grants and Contracts Officer with ITD-PT and this year’s summit coordinator. “They were instrumental in facilitating peer-to-peer networking and collaborating on topics that impact all aspects of the public transportation world.”

ITD-PT members discussed upcoming one-time capital funding applications, as well as safety, planning, civil rights, and procurement throughout the two-and-a-half day summit. They also brought in trainings from multiple nationally recognized associations.

Robbie Sarles with RLS Associates addressed Drug and Alcohol Programs and ADA Issues within transit agencies. Robert Lynch with the Small Urban and Rural Transit Center presented on Financial Management and an overview of the Federal Transit Administration. The Community Transportation Association of America was represented by Chris Zeilinger, who put on a half-day procurement workshop.

"The summit provided an opportunity to come together and share best practices, learn, and to build partnerships,” Miller added. “We were extremely proud to see the level of engagement from our participants, and look forward to seeing the take-aways from this summit put in to practice.”

Those with questions about the summit can contact Miller at 334-8533, or Shauna.Miller@itd.idaho.gov.

 

 

Published 09-14-18