Webinars
National Roadway Safety Strategy for Rural Communities
March 29, 2022
The National Roadway Safety Strategy (NRSS) outlines the U.S. Department of Transportation’s comprehensive approach to significantly reducing the number of serious injuries and deaths that occur on our Nation’s highways, roads, and streets. This represents the first step toward an ambitious long-term goal of reaching zero roadway fatalities.
The Department hosted a webinar to showcase rural safety practitioners implementing effective safety strategies that advance the NRSS in rural communities. Speakers from Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service and Humboldt County, CA Public Works shared their stories and best practices for attendees to consider adapting in their own communities.
Charging Forward: A Toolkit for Planning and Funding Rural Electric Mobility Infrastructure
February 9, 2022
The Rural EV Infrastructure Toolkit helps ensure that all Americans have the opportunity to benefit from the lower operating costs, reduced maintenance needs, and improved performance of electric vehicles (EV) and electric mobility infrastructure. Any rural entity—such as an individual property owner or business, a town, a Tribe, or a planning agency—can use the toolkit to identify key project partners and available funding or financing to help make their project a reality. The toolkit includes various EV infrastructure planning tools, as well as a comprehensive list of relevant Federal funding programs and initial points of contact.
Learn About TACL! The Transportation Technical Assistance Coordination Library
August 11, 2021
The Transportation Technical Assistance Coordination Library (TACL) provides a sustainable methodology and platform for access and findability of rural and tribal transit coordination resources across a diverse range of transportation technical assistance centers and the Federal Transit Administration (FTA). Find out more about TACL and learn how to search this database of transportation coordination resources during this training session. Participants in this webinar found out about TACL and learn how to search this database of rural and tribal transportation coordination resources during this training session.
ROUTES Webinar - TIFIA Rural Projects Initiative
February 24, 2021
The Department of Transportation’s Build America Bureau provides loans in support of a variety of transportation projects across the nation. Traditionally, these loans have been used for larger projects in urbanized, metropolitan areas. In 2018 the Bureau took steps to make Transportation Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (TIFIA) financing more accessible to small communities through the Rural Project Initiative. This initiative places an emphasis on rural America’s transportation needs and offers substantial benefits and savings for projects in rural areas. Eligible projects are able to borrow up to 49% of a project's cost at 1/2 of the U.S. Treasury rate, both of which are unique benefits to this program.
Benefit Cost Analysis (BCA) for Rural Projects
December 16, 2020
Benefit Cost Analyses (BCAs) are required for most discretionary grants at USDOT, and can be one of the most challenging parts of the application. BCA is a systematic process for identifying, quantifying, and comparing expected benefits and costs of a potential infrastructure project. The information provided in the applicants’ BCAs will be evaluated by USDOT and used to help ensure that the available funding under the programs is devoted to projects that provide substantial economic benefits to users and the nation as a whole, relative to the resources required to implement those projects. This webinar provides an overview of what BCAs are and what USDOT is looking for in grant applications, data resources that applicants can use to develop BCAs for their projects, and examples of how a BCA can be approached.