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"In order to arrive at the optimal planning and project development decisions, it is important to involve as diverse a range of voices in the community as possible. By listening to affected communities, and understanding alternative viewpoints, the best decisions will be made. However, there are many challenges to meet in garnering diverse input..."
In order to arrive at the optimal planning and project development decisions, it is important to involve as diverse a range of voices in the community as possible. By listening to affected communities, and understanding alternative viewpoints, the best decisions will be made. However, there are many challenges to meet in garnering diverse input. Situational barriers such as meeting times and locations, and the need for child care exist. More difficult to overcome are differences in perception such as agency mistrust and a belief that all critical decisions have already been made. Public agencies must meet these challenges if they are to maintain their legitimacy, achieve their missions, and provide the best public service possible.
Several state and federal policies and regulations reinforce the need to reach out to segments of our community whose voices are not regularly heard in the transportation planning and decision-making process. As discussed, ISTEA requires that state transportation agencies have a public involvement process that seeks out and considers the needs of those traditionally underserved by existing transportation systems, such as low-income and minority households.
A Presidential Executive Order on Environmental Justice (EO 12898 Federal Actions to Address Environmental Justice in Minority Populations and Low-Income Populations), issued on February 11, 1994, also focuses federal agenciesﾒ attention on reaching out to certain segments of the community. This Executive Order requires each federal agency to achieve environmental justice by identifying and addressing, as appropriate, disproportionately high and adverse human health or environmental effects of its programs, policies, and activities on minority populations and low-income populations in the United States. Mn/DOT must comply with USDOTﾒs Final Order to Address
Environmental Justice in Minority Populations and Low-Income Populations, which specifically requires that "procedures shall be established, or expanded, as necessary, to provide meaningful opportunities for public involvement by members of minority and low-income populations during the planning, and development of programs, policies, and activities." Even though environmental justice concerns have been addressed through many federal mandates including Title VI of the Civil Rights Act and the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), serves to heighten the awareness and concern for identifying and addressing social and community impacts. Identifying community impacts is not a completely objective process because peoples' values and perspectives must be taken into consideration. These can only be discerned by active listening and respectful participation by all parties.
Mn/DOT has recently published guidance that details how we intend to accomplish the aims of the Executive Order on Environmental Justice. This is included as Appendix B to this document.
A useful resource for Mn/DOT planning and project development managers in
outreach efforts to the underserved communities identified in ISTEA and in the
Environmental Justice Executive Order is Mn/DOTs "Non-Traditional Transportation Stakeholder (NTTS)/Dialogue Project" Final Report and a companion handbook entitled "Methods and Approaches to Enhance Involvement in Non-Traditional Transportation Stakeholder Communities and Neighborhoods." The project was designed to help identify non-traditional transportation stakeholder groups (defined as people of color, low-income constituencies, the disabled community, neighborhood groups, and civic and cultural groups). The project was also intended to help build partnerships with non-traditional transportation stakeholders and learn more effective ways of involving all segments of the public. From the insights of that project came the methods and
approaches outlined in the handbook, including:
Improving access to the process;
How to approach non-traditional stakeholders;
Developing community profiles;
Techniques for improving access;
Providing opportunities for influence; and,
Conducting group facilitation meetings.
Another resource for planners and project managers is a manual prepared jointly by the USDOT and the National Transit Institute entitled "Public Involvement in Transportation Decisionmaking." The following information on reaching non-traditional stakeholders is excerpted from this source.
Some key steps to including traditionally underserved communities are to:
Determine if the community is, in fact, underrepresented or not participating;
Identify the barriers to participation;
Identify methods or activities to overcome barriers to participation.
When determining if a community is underrepresented or not participating you should, as a minimum, research and analyze the make-up of decision-making and advisory bodies to ensure that issues and concerns of the underserved community are reaching decisionmakers. Another task is to research the level of participation of the non-traditional stakeholders at hearings, public meetings, or other public forums and determine what percent of the attendees at the hearings and meetings are from these communities. Common barriers to participation include: culture, language, mobility and other disabilities, economic/income barriers, lack of full inclusion and opportunity for participation, mistrust of the system, and past discriminatory practices.
Methods to overcome these barriers follow:
Cultural Barriers
Identify and reach out to local community organizations and their leaders; and,
Research their culture, customs, language, and communication styles.
Language Barriers
Identify bilingual speakers;
Distribute multi-lingual notices, fact sheets, and newsletters; and,
Provide interpreters.
Mobility and Other Disabilities
Use accessible facilities for mobility impaired individuals;
Provide sign language interpreters for hearing impaired people at meetings;
Use telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD) to communicate via telephone with hearing impaired people; and,
Provide materials in large print, audio, Braille, and computer diskette formats for visually-impaired people.
Economic/Income Barriers
Schedule meetings or other face-to-face interactions at a time and place that accommodates participantsﾒ schedules so that schedule and travel constraints are minimized; and,
Consider financially subsidizing their participation, such as:
1. Transit fare
2. Child care
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