About LTAP/TTAP

Local Technical Assistance Program (LTAP) and Tribal Technical Assistance Program (TTAP)

Helping Transportation Workers Tap into Resources and Training 2001

"It is important that LTAP centers around the country are working with APWA chapters to create new training opportunities far less expensively." - Judith M. Mueller, President, American Public Works Association (APWA)

"LTAP centers are vital for delivering critical training for county engineers, highway superintendents, and road professionals. NACE would have no effective training programs without them. The bottom line is we need LTAP strong and active." - Anthony R. Giancola, Executive Director, National Association of County Engineers (NACE)

"State and local transportation agencies must keep strong lines of communication to conduct their business effectively. AASHTO recognizes the very important role that LTAP plays in maintaining these open lines of communication." - John Horsley, Executive Director, American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO)

LTAP customers benefit from partnerships

A Message from the National LTAP Association's Executive Committee

The national association representing LTAP and TTAP centers is pleased to present this progress report highlighting LTAP's successes, as well as its continuing challenges, in providing transportation training and technical assistance to local and tribal agencies and state DOTs. LTAP's success is founded on delivering tangible benefits to customers through training and technical assistance. LTAP centers respond to the specific transportation needs of their customers with efficient, cost-effective solutions.

Another reason for LTAP's success is our ongoing commitment to partnering. In 1998, after years of informal collaboration with many state DOTs, local public works chapters, and county associations, the National LTAP Association established formal agreements with AASHTO, APWA, and NACE. In addition, many LTAP centers have integrated their services with other transportation education efforts, such as four-year universities, two-year programs, and trade association curricula.

The goal of these relationships is to reduce duplication of services, share training costs and expertise, and provide optimum training and information to our customers. The net result is a better-informed and trained transportation workforce.

LTAP success stories are numerous (you'll learn about some of them in this report). Even so, LTAP is reaching only about a third of local governments. And the demand for LTAP services keeps growing! LTAP is committed to doing more. Creative partnering has provided LTAP a way of getting the most out of current resources. With critically needed additional support, LTAP will continue to improve its effectiveness, better serve its customers, and help them bridge the gap from problem to solution.

Who is served by LTAP?

Across the country, 38,000 local agencies - small and large cities, rural and urban counties, and tribal governments - maintain nearly three million miles of roads and some 299,000 bridges. LTAP's mission is to help these agencies tap into new technology, information, and training so they can operate more efficiently and safely. LTAP is a direct, hands-on method for moving innovative transportation technologies out of the lab, off the shelf, and into the hands of the people who maintain our local streets and roads:

public works directors and staff
city and county engineers
local highway safety officers
transportation planners
street and road maintenance superintendents and staff
certified technicians
skilled roadway laborers

LTAP was envisioned to serve local governments, but its services transcend agency boundaries. State DOTs, municipal planning organizations (MPOs), regional planning agencies (RPAs), and private consultants to local agencies also rely on LTAP resources.

Why is LTAP needed?

The days are long gone when local agencies can solve their transportation problems merely by paving more miles of road. Today's city, county, and tribal governments juggle a multitude of increasingly complex challenges:

enhancing roadway and work zone safety
ensuring traveler mobility in all kinds of weather and road work
providing safe and convenient facilities for pedestrians and bicyclists
managing increased congestion without building more roads
training a new workforce to replace a retiring one
targeting training to an increasingly integrated transportation workforce
complying with environmental laws and regulations like new storm water regulations
managing administrative issues like compliance with new governmental accounting standards
responding to the unique challenges of aging drivers
incorporating new technologies to work more efficiently

Local agencies face the dual challenge of meeting these growing needs with relatively flat, even shrinking, budgets. LTAP rapidly and inexpensively delivers training and technical assistance to connect customers with current advances in transportation technology.

Programs that solve problems

LTAP provides local agencies with a variety of tools - training events, technology transfer resources, and personalized assistance - for improving their transportation operations. Many state DOTs also benefit from LTAP services. Each LTAP center adapts its programs to address the unique challenges faced by the customers it serves.

Training is the heart of LTAP

According to city, county, and tribal agencies, significant training is needed in these areas:

safety
work zone traffic control
winter maintenance, including snow and ice control
signs and signals, including Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices (MUTCD) training
paved and unpaved road maintenance
planning and design
materials
equipment
environment
information management, including geographic information systems (GIS) applications
asset and pavement management systems
innovative finance and statewide planning

LTAP serves these and other training needs through workshops, road shows, demonstrations, computer training, distance learning, conference seminars, and courses in the field and classroom. LTAP centers provide more than 5,000 training events to over 135,000 participants annually. That's approximately 20 training events serving over 500 participants per day!

Training that's personalized

Each LTAP center customizes training for its particular customers. Many centers have achieved great success with programs like Roads Scholar and Safety Circuit Rider.

Roads Scholar

LTAP's Roads Scholar programs provide a curriculum of training to enable transportation workers to study road fundamentals, safety, drainage, snow and ice removal, and training management. The courses help the participants develop professionalism and advance in their careers. Roads Scholars are recognized for their training and expertise.

Safety Circuit Rider

Many transportation workers cannot attend training events because of the travel time and cost. LTAP's Safety Circuit Riders take safety training to local agencies with on-site workshops at convenient locations.

Getting resources to customers

Key transportation resources - technical information, research updates, legislative and regulatory news, and training opportunities - are delivered to local agencies through LTAP newsletters and publications.

Assistance is a phone call away

Individualized, personal service is a hallmark of LTAP. LTAP libraries respond to nearly 150,000 requests for manuals, reports, videos, and CD-ROMs annually. That's about 600 requests per day. In addition, LTAP centers provide direct technical information, problem solving, and referrals over 35,000 times annually. That's about 135 customers helped every day.

LTAP maximizes resources

Through innovative partnerships, each LTAP center matches every federal dollar it receives with local funds. LTAP center matching fund sources include:

state DOTs
universities
self-generated funds (such as course fees)
Section 402 Highway Safety Program funds
American Public Works Association state chapters
state contractors' associations
county associations
local government agencies
MPOs and RPAs
insurance cooperatives

Tribal Technical Assistance Program center funds are matched by the Bureau of Indian Affairs. LTAP centers also collaborate with other organizations to share resources and expertise, increase efficiency, and reduce duplication of services.

Reaching customers with targeted services

LTAP faces a major challenge: Due to limited resources, LTAP currently reaches only one-third of its target audience - 38,000 local and tribal agencies with transportation responsibilities.

Why aren't more transportation workers taking advantage of LTAP's services? There are two main reasons:

Many potential customers are unaware of LTAP.
Many local transportation workers cannot afford to travel far or be away for an extended time for training. With additional resources, LTAP can promote its services to a wider audience and deliver more customized, responsive training such as on-site workshops and distance learning.
Many of our tribal partners are so underfunded they can't even afford to travel to meetings and training events.

Deputy Secretary for Operations, Washington DOT - We'd like to see the Roads Scholar program taken to the next level. Our roads would be a lot safer if our local utilities were targeted for the Construction Zone Safety course. How can we get the word out to them? - LTAP Customer

Growing training needs and transportation demands

Another challenge awaits LTAP. It is projected that nearly half of the current transportation workforce may retire by year 2010. At the same time, our roadways are becoming more and more congested and the traveling public expects smooth, safe, and delay-free travel at all times.

LTAP can be a significant part of the solution by training new and current workers and assisting them in delivering a safe and efficient transportation system. LTAP is a reliable source for transportation information, training, and technical assistance - to local agencies, tribal governments, state DOTs, and many other customers. Through innovative partnerships, customized delivery mechanisms, and additional support, LTAP can rise to meet the needs and opportunities that await.

Contact your LTAP Center