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Mobility is core of ITD's mission, director explains

ITD Director Pam Lowe emphasized the evolving, multi-dimensional role transportation will play in Idaho’s future when she spoke this week at a public transportation conference in Boise.

It was a perfect venue to discuss the transportation department’s new mission statement: “Our mission. Your Mobility.”

Nearly 80 people gathered for “Mobility Idaho 2008” where ITD’s Division of Public Transportation introduced and discussed its new comprehensive transportation strategy – “Idaho’s Mobility and Access Pathway (IMAP).

The common denominator is “mobility.”

“ITD not only is more than highways, we want to be more than just about highways,” Lowe said. “This is reflected in our new mission of ‘Our Mission. Your Mobility.’ This mission does not place one mode of transportation above another, but instead recognizes that all modes need to work to achieve mobility."

She explained ITD’s vision that touches on four general themes: 1) Investing in our people; 2) Expanding and enhancing partnerships; 3) Leading through agency performance; and 4) Improving our customer service culture.

“We have four focus groups developing action plans in those four areas,” she explained. “The groups presented reports to the board at the April board meeting, and we are moving ahead with implementation of actions in all four areas. As we look at where we want to go with Public Transportation, and what we, as ITD want to achieve, there are ties to all four focus areas.”

Lowe said she indicated to Randy Kyrias, who was named Administrator of the Division of Public Transportation last fall, that Idaho “needed a plan” for public transportation.

“That was the only direction I have given him. And as you may already be aware… he has taken that one comment and turned it into a process and a method for building a statewide plan that we can support.”

The director said the Idaho Transportation Board reviewed the draft IMAP at its last meeting and offered enthusiastic support.

“A couple of key features about the Division of Public Transportation’s approach is that it will be heavily dependent on stakeholder leadership at the service-area level, and we envision wrapping local needs into the statewide plan. Ultimately, when we get this statewide plan done, we will have something that will help us make sure that:

We are not duplicating efforts
We are spending our limited money in the places and in ways that make the most sense, and
We invest in areas that lead us to where we want to be in the future

“I am convinced that we will overcome our challenges. I am pleased with what you are doing, and I think you are going the right direction… All of you, and this plan, have ITD’s full support,” she told the group.