Fw: May Extra: Spring 2011 UPDATE Newsletter Now Available

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May Extra: Spring 2011 UPDATE Newsletter Now Available

May 2011

Dear Friend,

Welcome to Extra, Easter Seals Project ACTION's monthly

newsletter.

The news this month:

ESPA News

Spring 2011 Update Newsletter PDF Released

Find out the latest information on ESPA's current initiatives

and upcoming training events in the spring 2011 issue of the ESPA Update

newsletter. Check the Update for articles on a new health and transportation

study; the national Mobility Management Independent Living Coaches program;

ESPA's experience with hosting online dialogues; the announcement of the 2011

ATCI teams; June ADA paratransit training events; and ESPA's new

Spanish-language and Accessible Pathways products. Update is now available at

http://www.projectaction.org/ and will arrive soon in print in your postal

mailbox along with the ESPA 2010 Annual Accomplishments Report. This inaugural

report captures the past year's initiatives in the areas of training, technical

assistance, outreach and applied research, and documents your participation in

ESPA events.

Livable Communities Pocket Guide Focuses on the Benefits of

Accessible Pathways

Developed with assistance from the National Complete Streets

Coalition and the Pedestrian and Bicycle Information Center, the new Accessible

Pathways & Livable Communities Pocket Guide pulls together key recommendations

from all of these resources in one compact resource. Pathways that meet ADA

requirements, sidewalks, signage, marked walkways, shelters and other passenger

facilities make travel to and from public transportation feasible for many

people with disabilities, whether or not they use mobility devices. Public

transportation and disability advocates, planners, engineers, community

development professionals, travel trainers and mobility managers may find the

pocket guide a useful publication for raising awareness about and promoting

understanding of the connection between street access and transit accessibility.

Conference on Transportation for Individuals with Autism

On April 20, ESPA was honored to participate at the first-ever

Transportation Options for Individuals with Autism conference hosted by the

Center for Advanced Infrastructure and Transportation at Rutgers University.

Presenters included travel trainers; leaders from the autism advocacy community;

ESPA's Leary; transportation professionals from New Jersey, including Steve

Fittante, director of the Middlesex County Department of Transportation;

Walder Fiddle, founder and executive director of the Jordan Fiddle

Foundation; and Louis Hoffman, instructor and project manager for LIVE & MCTIP

programs. ESPA would like to especially thank and recognize Cecilia Feeley of

CAIT for initiating and planning this conference.

Upcoming Training

June is Paratransit Month at ESPA

During the month of June, ESPA training events will focus on

ADA complementary paratransit. Please join us for these free events:

a.. Excellence in Service for Paratransit Managers (10-week

course starting June 1)

b.. Selected Topics on Accessible Transportation:

Determining ADA Paratransit Eligibility: An Approach, Guidance and Training

Materials (two-part webinar, June 8 & 15 at 2 p.m. EDT both days)

c.. Promising Practices and Solutions in Accessible

Transportation: Paratransit Operations Q & A (A two-part pre-recorded

teleconference will be available as an audio recording or in text format between

June 1-22. A one-hour live teleconference with FTA staff will take place

June 22 at 2 p.m. EDT.)

ESPA Introduction to Travel Training Course in Chicago

Applications are being accepted for the Introduction to Travel

Training course scheduled for July 12-14 in Chicago, Illinois. This intensive,

three-day course is a free training initiative designed to help increase the

skills, knowledge and abilities of travel training professionals and includes

both classroom and field instruction. For questions, contact Kristi Ross at

(800) 659-6428 or itt@.... Application deadline: June 10.

Public Transit Intelligent Transportation Systems

Implementations Lessons Learned

On June 2 at 1 p.m., the Intelligent Transportation Systems

Professional Capacity Building Program of the U.S. Department of Transportation

will present a webinar on the implementation and operation of transit ITS

systems. This webinar will include a discussion of real-world experience with:

automatic vehicle location for fixed-route and paratransit services; computer

aided-dispatch; fixed-route and paratransit fleet management; and real-time

traveler information systems for fixed routes. Register online for the webinar.

New Grant Opportunities Announced

HUD Family Self-Sufficiency Grants Can Fund Mobility

Management

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development has

recently announced the availability of nearly $110 million to provide support

for individuals to get better connected with education, job training and

supportive services through a set of family self-sufficiency grants. Mobility

management is one method that can provide that important link. The grant

programs include: Housing Choice Voucher Family Self-Sufficiency (deadline: June

8), Public and Indian Housing Family Self-Sufficiency (deadline: June 29), and

Resident Opportunities and Self-Sufficiency (deadline: July 13).

HUD Webcast on Choice Neighborhoods

In a webcast on June 3 at 1 p.m. EST, HUD will discuss the

final Continuing Resolution for FY2011 Appropriations passed by Congress in

April that includes $100 million for Choice Neighborhoods and HOPE VI. Hosted by

Henriquez, assistant secretary for public and Indian housing, and Carol

Galante, deputy assistant secretary for multifamily housing, the webcast will

also provide information on HUD's FY2011 Planning Grant Competition. Please RSVP

and email your questions to choiceneighborhoods@... prior to the webcast.

HHS Announces Community Transformation Grants

On May 13, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

announced the opportunity for communities to apply for the Community

Transformation Grants-$102 million in capacity building and implementation

activities. This work, led by the Center for Disease Control, expands the

federal investment in prevention in states and communities across the U.S. and

is supported by the Affordable Care Act's Prevention and Public Health Fund. In

addition to smoke-free living, and active living and healthy eating, these new

grants will also focus on high-impact quality clinical and other preventive

services, social and emotional wellness, and healthy and safe physical

environments. Applications due: July 15.

Industry News

New Resource for Federal Procurement Documents

The National Rural Transit Assistance Program, which assists

communities with populations under 50,000, has recently released ProcurementPRO

1.1. This free, web-based application explains the steps needed to determine the

federal clauses and certifications that must be included in procurement

documents for a federally funded project, including those focused on people with

disabilities. The application also provides a document that includes all

supporting documentation required by the federal government. Checklists and

templates are provided so that managers can more easily understand the

procurement process.

No Change to U.S. DOT ADA Regulations for Service Animals and

Mobility Devices

The Federal Transportation Administration has released a

technical assistance note (Word) regarding service animals. The note states that

" the U.S. Department of Transportation has issued no changes to its ADA

regulations, which cover transportation provided by both the private and public

sector...Any amendments to the DOT ADA regulations would be announced in the

customary manner-through publication of rulemaking documents in the Federal

Register, with an effective date. Unless and until such documents are published,

the DOT regulations remain unchanged. "

Research

Complete Streets Policy Analysis Released

Complete Streets has released a new report, Complete Streets

Policy Analysis 2010: A story of growing strength, that rates the strength of

written Complete Streets policies and documents the tremendous growth in

adoption of policies across the U.S. Twenty-three states, Puerto Rico, and DC,

and more than 200 smaller jurisdictions now have Complete Streets policies to

ensure that future transportation investments provide safe options for everyone,

including people with disabilities.

TCRP Seeking Problem Statements

The Transit ative Research Program is seeking problem

statements for consideration for 2012. Submissions will help form the basis for

selection of the annual TCRP research program. For detailed information on

submitting problem statements and research topic areas, download the Problem

Statement Solicitation document (Word). For more information, contact

Jenks, secretary of the TCRP oversight and project selection

committee, at cjenks@.... Problem statements due: June 15.

TCRP Issues RFP for Use of Mobility Devices on Paratransit

Vehicles and Buses

In addition to requests for problem statements, TCRP has

issued a request for proposals to identify and assess the current and emerging

issues that limit the use of mobility devices in paratransit vehicles and buses.

The project will also guide development of options to assist transit systems,

manufacturers, and transit users in the implementation of accessible design and

accommodation solutions for the short and long term. Proposals due: June 21.

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on the website.

The electronic editions of the latest and archived issues of

Update, ESPA's biannual newsletter, are also available online. To be added to

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cooperative agreement with the U.S. Department of Transportation, Federal

Transit Administration, and is administered by Easter Seals, Inc. This document

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Seals nor the U.S. DOT, FTA assumes liability for its contents or use thereof.

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