Ambassadors

February's ambassador blogs hold a treasure trove of information about developments across the country. Here are some highlights; visit the NRC website for these informative monthly updates.

Beverly Ward - Region I Ambassador blog
Bev brings news of New Hampshire's regional efforts to create transportation options and to expand and improve opportunities for public involvement in transportation planning.

Barb Singleton - Region X Ambassador blog
Barb writes about statewide coordination in Alaska, specifically the Coordinated Transportation Task Force, its responsibilities and consensus on recommendations for state-level coordination.

James McLary - Region II Ambassador blog
James shares his knowledge about Medicaid and its related transportation program, the difficulty of coordinating that transportation with other transportation services, and an example that demonstrates that coordination is possible.

Margi Ness - Region VII Ambassador blog
Margi announces a Nebraska coordination success story and how federal officials are noticing local livability and coordination efforts. At the other end of the spectrum, Margi discusses the start of a senior transportation coordination effort in Shawnee County.

Events

National Transit Institute (NTI)
NTI has upcoming classes on rural transportation technology. Please note that NTI classes fill up. Courses on mobility management and ADA paratransit eligibility are full well in advance.

Association for Travel Instruction (ATI)
ATI's annual conference - Aug, 12-14, 2011 in Philadelphia. ATI is calling for presentation proposals, including such topics as marketing travel instruction programs, travel training at community colleges, ADA paratransit certification, travel instruction for senior citizens, discussing travel instruction with parents, caretakers, educators, and job coaches, developing and maintaining program partnerships, and funding.

Out in the Field - Stories of Our Ambassadors

One of my resolutions this year is to take the time once a month to look at each of the ambassador blogs and write about some of the highlights. Last year, I improved to the rate of reading the blogs about once every two months, so this small change will not be burdensome and I expect to feel that much closer to the people and organizations that our ambassadors serve each day.

Highlights for January

Dave Cyra - Region IX Ambassador blog
This month Dave writes about a California partnership for procurement of equipment. These details will be useful for transit managers and procurement staff.

Roland Mross - Region V Ambassador blog
Roland finds a coordination success story 40 miles east of Columbus, OH, in Licking County. The partnership includes human services, transit and emergency management. Roland says:

They are guided by the principle that if nothing is attempted, nothing is gained. During my visit, the key components of what we have stressed for successful coordination were clearly evident. Initiative, leadership, trust, sharing, and a clear focus on serving the citizens.

JoAnn Hutchinson - Region IV Ambassador blog
JoAnn reminds us of the wealth of resources available at the websites of the National Resource Center and United We Ride. These two sites offer information on everything from mobility management to technical assistance to transportation for vulnerable individuals.

Explaining Transportation Service Realities

NRC Director Chis Zeilinger is sharing his insights in a monthly message. These are well worth reading, and I am not saying that because I am an NRC staff member. Chris has decades of experience in DC and in the field. From up close and through the lens of legislation and regulation, Chris sees the realities of coordination and partnerships and how to start and nurture productive conversations.

Ambassador Blog Round Up

I keep coming back to the ambassador blogs for two reasons: (1) to learn what the ambassadors see happening around the country, and (2) to increase my knowledge of technical assistance through the ideas and information that the ambassadors write about. I recommend that everyone periodically read all the blogs, but here is what I found particularly instructive this month.

If you are unfamiliar with the ambassador program and the individual ambassadors, visit the ambassador home page of the NRC website. There are also links to archives of each ambassador's blog.

Jim McLary - Region II Ambassador blog
Jim writes this summer about the importance of taxi service and an accessible taxi coming to market this October. He believes that with accessible taxis we will have a model for universal design in this mode of transportation so critical to people with disabilities and small communities.

Rex Knowlton - Region III Ambassador blog
One of Rex's pieces of information had to do with the University of Virgina's new TDM policy. U-VA took the position that it not only needed to reduce the number of student and staff single occupancy vehicles coming to campus each day, but that it had to do so in a flexible and user-friendly way. Very interesting from a mobility management perspective.

Roland Mross - Region V Ambassador blog
Roland writes about non-emergency medical transportation for people with serious health conditions and the need to bring medical care providers to the coordination table. He describes the discussion leading to this conclusion in one Ohio region.

Margi Ness - Region VII Ambassador blog
Margi has instituted monthly regional conference calls. After the first call she formed "a committee with one person from each state to help plan the calls and work on the continuing dialogue" as well as offer different informed perspectives. Margi's first call featured mobility managers and mobility management resources.

Jeanne Erickson - Region VIII Ambassador blog
Jeanne writes about the success of All Points Transit in Montrose, Colo. and how leadership, coordination and smart utilization of funding has led to a tremendous increase in the number of rides.

Ambassador Blogs

Okay, we all know that not every second of work is a productive one. Studies show that the mind needs to wander, that doodling can be productive and that intermittent short rests (even napping) are healthy strategies.

Where am I going with this? I have a productive way for you to waste a little time, and really, while it is passive, you might gain quite a bit.

Write this on your Calendar

Ambassador blogs are a monthly cornucopia of what is going on in public and human services transportation around the country - what are the issues in coordination, veterans mobility, medical and senior transportation, and much more. While I can do a monthly roundup of highlights, I really do think that reading the blogs is a high-benefit twenty minutes that you will spend each month.

Just to tempt you, here are July's highlights.

Highlights for July

Ambassador Dan Dirks discusses the effect of the oil spill on a transit agency in Mississippi.

Ambassador Roland Mross writes about tax revenue declines and decreased transit funding in Indiana.

Ambassador Jo Ann Hutchinson beams her spotlight on travel training for students with disabilities and Mississippi's collaborative planning process.

Ambassador Rex Knowlton has used the very moving words from a letter he received from a grateful parent about the life-changing success that travel training has brought to her and her daughter.

The ambassador blogs are linked from each ambassador's page, accessible from the NRC's homepage at www.NRCtransportation.org.