ABOUT THE TRANSPORTATION CAPACITY BUILDING PEER PROGRAM

Transportation Planning Peer Programs	Definitions
Peer Exchange	A Peer Exchange is designed to be responsive to the individual expressed needs of customers, involving small-group discussion of a specific issue. Generally, a customer contacts FHWA/FTA to request technical assistance on an institutional/policy planning issue. One or more peers are selected by the requesting customer based on good practices in the particular desired planning topic/area. A site visit takes place focused on the identified issue or problem at a location of mutual agreement.
Peer Roundtable	A Peer Roundtable is designed as a one-day program where implementers of innovative practices and/or recognized national experts are invited to participate in an expert peer panel or "roundtable" discussion to share solution-based and noteworthy practices in topic areas of transportation planning. This type of program could take place at national workshops, conferences, and forums and will typically be part of an overall program agenda where the participants will gain knowledge from peers as well as invited experts. Conference registration is not an eligible expense.
Peer Workshop	A Peer Workshop is designed as an instructional learning tool to assist customers in learning how to apply specific planning tools based upon other peer experiences. In this scenario, peer experts instruct other peers in a workshop format on specific effective techniques and tools to be used in transportation planning. This type of program may take place at a national workshop, symposium, or conference or as a stand-alone activity. Conference registration is not an eligible expense.

PURPOSE

• Assist agencies and planning partners with transportation planning issues by providing a forum for healthy dialogue exchange.
• Facilitate dialogue on crosscutting transportation planning issues that will be of relevance to agencies and other stakeholders in the transportation planning process.

Examples of crosscutting issues may include:

• Financial Planning/Fiscal Constraint
• Land Use and Transportation
• Public Involvement
• Management and Operations
• Rural Transportation Planning
• Freight
• Safety and Planning

 GET INVOLVED - APPLY

APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS

The following criteria must be met for acceptance into the Peer Program:

• Assistance must be initiated by a representative of State or local government, transit operator, MPO, Regional Planning Organization, or tribal government;
• Assistance must be requested by a FHWA Division and or FTA Regional Office on behalf of a State or local government, transit operator, MPO, Regional Planning Organization, or tribal government;
• Appropriate FHWA Division and FTA Regional Offices must concur that assistance in the requested area/s is warranted.

All applicants must complete the following application form and forward it to the appropriate FHWA Division and/or FTA Regional office for submittal to the FHWA/FTA Peer Program Coordinators.

All applicants must fully complete the following application form at least three to four months in advance of the desired peer program date and forward it to the appropriate FHWA Division and/ or FTA Regional office for submittal to the FHWA/FTA Peer Program Coordinators.

MEETING DOCUMENTATION

A staff member of the U.S. DOT Volpe National Transportation Systems Center in Cambridge, MA (Volpe Center) is available to attend Peer Program activities to document the site visit assistance process and outcomes, and to provide feedback on shared solution-based practices and noteworthy experiences. The Volpe Center will also participate in discussions to create the agenda for the Peer Programs in order to incorporate background information into the documentation. Draft documentation of specific Peer Programs will be distributed to all Peer Program participants for review, clarification, and editing before a final document is published. The final documentation will be made available on the Transportation Planning Capacity Building Program website in order for other organizations to benefit from the Peer Program.

TRAVEL REIMBURSEMENT INFORMATION FOR NON-FEDERAL PARTICIPANTS

For selected Peer Program participants, reimbursements for travel-related expenses associated with the Peer Program event will be provided in accordance with the policies and procedures followed by federal employees. Detailed travel reimbursement instructions and request forms will be distributed to Peer Program participants approximately six weeks prior to the event. A Travel Coordinator the US DOT Volpe Center in Cambridge, MA will handle the travel reimbursement process and can be consulted for travel-related questions.

The participants noted in the application and selected for reimbursement must have their attendance confirmed by the host agency before including them in the application. All participants being reimbursed must agree to submit personal information (e.g., social security number and checking account number). The U.S. Treasury Department requires that this information be submitted in order to receive reimbursement. See the Treasury website for more information.

Peer Program funds will only pay for travel costs for non-Federal facilitators. Consultant fees and compensation is the responsibility of the applicant or the requestor. Other costs that cannot be covered by Peer Program funds include host agency or other participants’ staff time, food, or materials.

• Completing requested paperwork that will be emailed to the traveler weeks prior to each event. Due to the lengthy approval process, these forms need to be returned within five business days.
• Contacting SATO Travel, with the assistance of the Travel Coordinator, to make individual flight arrangements for government-authorized travel. Any flight arrangements not made through SATO will not be able to reimbursed.
• Making individual hotel reservations per the travel reimbursement instructions, which will be emailed to Peer Program participants by the Travel Coordinator.
• Providing SATO Travel with the participant’s Travel Authorization number, when issued, and verifying ticket information prior to tickets being issued.

• Transportation to and from the meeting site, including, car rental, personal vehicle mileage, and taxi. SATO Travel will charge airfare expenses to the US DOT Volpe Center as part of the reimbursement agreement.
• Room and tax at the hotel. Peer Program participants are required to stay at hotels that offer the "Government Rate." At the time when the reservation is made, please verify that the hotel can provide the "Government Rate."
• In lieu of direct reimbursement for meal expenses, Peer Program participants will receive the government per diem. If, for example, the government per diem of the city visited is $42 per day, the Peer Program participant will receive 75 percent of the per diem, or $31.50, on the first and last days of travel, and 100 percent of the per diem for days in between.
• The Travel Coordinator will provide Peer Program participants with the government per diem rate and hotel rate for the location to be visited.

• After the Peer Program event, the traveler will submit the Federal Travel voucher along with receipts. Federal Travel vouchers will be emailed to each participant one week prior to the event.
• All required receipts must be attached to the Travel Reimbursement Form, including transportation, lodging, and the SATO invoice emailed to participants. In accordance with federal procedures, expenses over $75 that are not accompanied by a receipt cannot be reimbursed.
• Fax the completed travel form and receipts to your Travel Coordinator at 617.494.2569. Mail the completed travel form and receipts to: Conference Services (DTS-930) US DOT Volpe Center, 55 Broadway, Cambridge, MA 02142. The original forms and receipts must be received via mail before they can be processed.
• The Volpe Center will process the travel voucher and deposit the reimbursement funds into participants’ bank accounts directly. It may take approximately two to three weeks once the original forms and receipts are received at the Volpe Center.

Every attempt will be made to meet each request. However, available funding will ultimately decide the specific format that the Transportation Planning Capacity Building Program can offer. Attempts to minimize costs are appreciated.

APPLICATION CHECKLIST

 PEER PROGRAM RESULTS - REPORTS

Category	Reports
Funding Issues
Disadvantaged Business Enterprises
Financial Management
Grants
Communities
Americans with Disabilities Act
Community Design
Community Impact Assessment
Health & Human Services
Human Environment
Job Access
Public Involvement
Title VI / Environmental Justice
Natural & Cultural Resources
Air Quality
Linking Planning and NEPA
Natural Environment
NEPA
Noise
Operations
Design
Freight in Planning
General
ITS
Performance Measures
Transit Ridership
Planning Process
Land Use & Transportation
Statewide Planning
Metropolitan Planning
Rural & Small Community Planning
Tribal Planning
Planning Fundamentals
Planning & Programming
Smart Growth
Related Areas
Public Affairs
Real Estate
Security & Safety
General
Safety Conscious Planning
Tools
Data Resources
GIS
Modeling

Funding Issues

Contracting & Procurement

Disadvataged Business Enterprises

Financial Management

• Denver, CO (December 9-11, 2002)
  Best Practices of Planning Partnerships
• Vail, CO (July 18, 2001)
  Cooperative Revenue Forecasting and Annual Listings of Projects

Grants

Communities

Americans with Disabilities Act

Community Design

Community Impact Assessment

• Indianapolis, Indiana (September 8-9, 2003)
  Community Impact Assessment Peer Forum

Health & Human Services

• Austin, TX (May 23, 2002)
  Partnerships Between Public Transit and MPOs in Job Access and Health and Human Services Transportation
• Portland, OR (January 22, 2004)
  Integrating Health and Physical Activity Goals Into Transportation Planning: Building the Capacity of Planners and Practitioners Proceedings of the Portland Roundtable

Human Environment

Job Access

Public Involvement

• Albany, NY (June 13-15, 2001)
  Noteworthy Practices of Capital District Transportation Committee (CDTC)
• Melbourne and Orlando, FL (April 30-May 2, 2002)
  Techniques for Public Involvement

Title VI / Environmental Justice

• Atlanta, GA (May 5, 2004)
  Identifying and Engaging Low Literacy and Limited English Proficiency populations in the Transportation Decisionmaking Process

Natural Environment

Air Quality

• Houston, TX (December 3-4, 2003)
  Upcoming Transition to the New 8-Hour Ozone Air Quality Standard

Linking Planning and NEPA

• Raleigh, NC (December 15-17, 2003)
  North Carolina Peer Exchange to Improve Environmental processes

Natural Environment

NEPA

Noise

Operations

Design

Freight in Planning

• Philadelphia, PA (July 8 - 9, 2003)

Freight and the Planning Process

General

• Washington, DC (November 27, 2001)

Management and Operations
This report summarizes the results of an AMPO-sponsored meeting on how to better incorporate system management and operations (M&O;) considerations into the transportation planning process.

ITS

Performance Measures

• Washington, D.C. (October 7-9, 2003)
  The Roundtable on System Performance Measurement in Statewide and Metropolitan Transportation Planning was held October 7-9, 2003. The U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) Office of the Secretary, Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), and Federal Transit Administration (FTA) sponsored the roundtable. The roundtable brought together national experts to discuss lessons learned in practical applications of transportation performance measures for systems planning and the role of measures in the decision-making process.

Transit Ridership

• Baltimore, MD (June 13, 2002)

Enhancing Transit's Role in Transportation Decision Making

Planning Process

Land Use & Transportation

• Tucson, AZ (March 24-25, 2003)

Land Use Models in Transportation Planning

Statewide Planning

• FHWA Iowa Division (September 11-13, 2001)

Multi-State Transportation Planning

Metropolitan Planning

• Philadelphia, PA (April 8, 2004 and June 16, 2004)
  A Two-Phase Peer-to-Peer Roundtable on Potential Transit Projects in the Nine-County Philadelphia Region
• Michigan/Pennsylvania (September 24-26, 2002)
  HPMS Workshop: Building Partnerships with Metropolitan Planning Organizations

Rural & Small Community Planning

• Fort Smith, AR (April 21- 23, 2004)
  Best Practices for Small and Medium Sized Metropolitan Planning Organizations
• Hagerstown, MD (September 24-25, 2003)

Solution to Rural Issues Through Partnerships: A Community-Centered Approach Transportation Solutions for Rural Communities

• Indianapolis, IN (August 1, 2003)
  Institutions, Processes, and Practices for Transportation Planning in Rural Areas


• Philadelphia, PA (May 19, 2003)
  Rural Public Transportation's Role in the Planning Process
  at Community Transportation Association of America (CTAA) EXPO 2003

Tribal Planning

• Albuquerque, New Mexico (March 2, 2004)

National Tribal Roads Conference Peer Workshop for Tribal Transit Service Development

Planning Fundamentals

Planning & Programming

• El Paso, TX (September 23-24, 2002)

Border Crossings and Bi-National Transportation Planning and Coordination
• Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (June 24, 2003)

National Association of Regional Councils (NARC), Annual Meeting Hosted in conjunction with the National Association of Regional Councils (NARC), this Peer Open Forum offered an opportunity for an exchange of information and ideas on the topics of 1) innovative technologies for public involvement, 2) the composition of boards and committees of planning organizations, and 3) the connections between transportation policies and land use planning.
• Salt Lake City, UT (March 2-4, 2004) and
  Whatcom County, WA (March 15-18, 2004)

Preparing for the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympic Games

Smart Growth

Related Areas

Public Affairs

Real Estate

Security & Safety

General

Safety Conscious Planning

Tools

Data Resources

GIS

Modeling

 PEER PROGRAM RESULTS - PRODUCTS

 UPCOMING & RECENT EVENTS

 OTHER PEER PROGRAMS

Freight Peer-to-Peer Program - Builds on the existing Freight Planning Peer Exchange LISTSERV by placing practitioners and experts in contact with one another to tackle specific issues. This next phase will include a new database containing resumes of freight experts, travel resources to facilitate face-to-face meetings, and management support to help organize and facilitate fruitful sessions.

ITS Peer-to-Peer Program - The Intelligent Transportation Peer-to-Peer Program is a Federal Highway Administration, Federal Transit Administration, and Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration Technical Assistance Program that provides public sector transportation stakeholders with a convenient method to tap into the growing knowledge base of ITS experience receive short-term assistance.

TMIP Peer Review Program - The Travel Model Improvement Program (TMIP) offers a peer review program focused on forecasting and data collection procedures to assist with model development and improvement efforts. TMIP supports peer reviews by funding travel, lodging and per diem for site visit(s) by peer review panel members. TMIP can also assist in the selection of peer review panel members and can help document the review, if requested, by the sponsoring agency. TMIP also periodically holds forums where experts in a particular area share ideas and discuss an emerging technical issue.

 KEY PEER PROGRAM CONTACTS