Using the Federal Transportation Law to Meeting the Mobility Needs of Your Community: Report on Workshop Discssions, Findings and Next Steps -- describes key findings from the STPP Partners workshop series, which were held in seven locations from January - June 2006.

In the first six months of 2006, the Surface Transportation Policy Partnership (STPP) conducted seven workshops on how to use the federal surface transportation law to expand transit, increase pedestrian and bicycle travel, improve the safety of all system users, and conform transportation investments to the context of various communities. The workshops, held in seven cities in different regions of the country, were structured to give the more than 700 participants the insights and face-to-face opportunities to learn more about the federal transportation law and forge strategic partnerships to help them make progress on needed transportation improvements in their communities, regions and states.

The plenary discussions and action-step sessions that took place during the seven workshops revealed a number of overarching themes. These themes appeared to resonate with the broad array of transportation professionals, advocates, and other participants from urban, rural, suburban, and exurban areas. Among the most noteworthy:

• A variety of audiences need education and training about the nature of our transportation issues and ways to build broad-based support for change;
• Broad and deep alliances are critical to expanding travel choices - transit, walking, bicycling, intercity rail, and ridesharing;
• Finding successful ways to integrate transportation, land use, and community development is a priority;
• Citizens want agencies to involve them in transportation decisions affecting their communities; and
• A more transparent, user-friendly description of funding availability and eligibility will help the public achieve more travel choices.
  

This report serves as a companion to the publication From the Margins to the Mainstream: A Guide to Transportation Opportunities in Your Community. This publication recounts discussions and findings from a series of seven workshops. The findings in this report are derived from a review of workshop notes, workshop evaluations, and conversations among participants and organizers.

External Links:

More Information: www.transact.org/PDFs/margins2006/stppnov7_workshoprpt.pdf

Further Reading:

Using the Federal Transportation Law to Meeting the Mobility Needs of Your Community: Report on Workshop Discssions, Findings and Next Steps