Small Urban and Rural Center on Mobility

Posts for "2021"

SURCOM Presented Research at International Conference on Transport and Health

SURCOM researcher Jeremy Mattson presented results at the International Conference on Transport and Health (ICTH) on June 29 regarding the benefits that rural and small urban transit systems provide by improving access to health care. This virtual conference focused on transport systems and health impacts. Jeremy Mattson's presentation was based on research conducted for the Minnesota Department of Transportation that measured the benefits of rural and small urban transit services in Greater Minnesota. This research, which was published in April 2020, showed that the benefits of providing transit in Greater Minnesota exceed the costs of providing it. The benefits from improving access to health care was found to be the most significant contributor. Visit the link below for the report, summary documents, and a video summary.

Report: Measuring the Economic Benefits of Rural and Small Urban Transit Services in Greater Minnesota

All ICTH sessions were recorded and are available to anyone registered through August 30, 2021. Registration is still available at the link below for those who would like access to the recordings.

Registration for Recorded Sessions: International Conference on Transport & Health

Research Report – An Analysis of the Costs and Benefits of Providing Increased Mobility to Reduce Social Isolation Among America's Aging Population

A study published by SURCOM analyzes the costs and benefits of providing greater mobility to socially isolated aging Americans. The number of Americans age 65 and older is projected to nearly double from 52 million in 2018 to 95 million by 2060, and the 65-and-older age group's share of the total population will rise from 16% to 23% (US Census 2018). Also, average U.S. life expectancy increased from 68 years in 1950 to 78.6 years in 2017, in large part due to the reduction in mortality at older ages.

The objective of this research was to quantify the cost of providing greater mobility through public transportation to aging adults in small urban and rural communities to lower social isolation. This was compared with the increased medical spending due to current levels of isolation.

Results for the states studied showed that from three to 10 trips per month could be provided to an isolated individual at a lower cost than the extra medical costs due to isolation. Also, an extra 25 to approximately 80 miles of service can be provided to an isolated aging adult per month for the states studied. Finally, from two to six hours of service can be provided to an isolated aging adult per month at costs equal to or less than the monthly medical costs due to isolation.

The full report and executive summary can be found at the link below:

An Analysis of the Costs and Benefits of Providing Increased Mobility to Reduce Social Isolation Among America's Aging Population

For more details, contact Del Peterson at Del.Peterson@ndsu.edu.

2021 Rural Transit Fact Book Released

SURCOM has published an updated edition of the Rural Transit Fact Book. This publication is intended to serve as a national resource for statistics and information on rural transit in America. The Fact Book includes rural demographic and travel behavior data as well as financial, operating, and fleet statistics and performance measures for agencies receiving Section 5311 funding. In addition to national level data, statistics are presented by state, FTA region, tribe, and mode, as well as other agency characteristics.

The Rural Transit Fact Book presents data from the National Transit Database (NTD) and rural demographic and travel data from the American Community Survey and the National Household Travel Survey.

The publication can be downloaded at the SURCOM website. For more information, contact Jeremy Mattson at jeremy.w.mattson@ndsu.edu.

4-Part eLearning Series: Human Resources

SURCOM has created a series of short, 10-minute eLearning courses to assist small urban, rural and tribal transit managers in navigating several common transit human resource challenges. As agencies continue to hire and train new employees for the future, effectively managing the “people side” of their business becomes more and more critical. This series of “HR Short” courses is available at SURCOM's eLearning webpage:

HR Short – Interview Questions: Hiring great employees can be a challenge. Asking the right questions during the selection process is critical to vetting the best candidates. This short course looks at how to develop great transit, mobility and transportation centric interview questions.

HR Short – Onboarding: The first day for a new transit employee can be both exciting and scary. The best way to get our new team member off to a great start is a robust onboarding experience. Follow along as we look at how to create a successful start to a long career in the transportation industry.

HR Short – Performance Appraisals: Sometimes considered a management chore or burden, the performance appraisal may be the most important tool in the human resource toolbox. Being thoughtful and meticulous about the process can result in a positive experience for both the employee and supervisor.

HR Short – Employee Recognition: Another important component of the “people-side” of our business is employee recognition. Often overlooked, recognizing great performance helps build employee retention and can have a side benefit of boosting employee morale. Get some fresh ideas by viewing this eLearning course.

To view these courses at no cost, go to SURCOM's eLearning page. If you currently have a National Rural Transit Assistance Program eLearning account, enter your username and password to view these and other SURCOM courses. If you don’t have an eLearning account, you will be given the opportunity to register and create an account when you click on any SURCOM course.

New Project to Address COVID-19's Effect on Rural Veteran Mobility

The current pandemic has affected the lives of all Americans. Rural communities are particularly vulnerable due to lacking mobility services and the great distances one must travel for healthcare and other needs. Research by SURCOM will consider the effect of COVID-19 on rural veteran mobility. Nearly five million veterans live in these rural communities, representing 57% of VA health care enrollees (MOAA 2020). COVID-19 cases and deaths among rural veterans have increased at a faster rate compared to veterans in urban areas according to Johns Hopkins (2020). They also found that delayed COVID-19 testing contributed to a higher rate of cases in rural areas compared to urban areas.

The main objective of this research is to identify veterans affected by COVID-19 who have mobility needs living in rural areas and to quantify the cost of transportation options for meeting these needs. Secondary objectives will include analyzing the role of telehealth and how the pandemic has affected mobility and isolation among veterans in rural America.

For more information about this project, contact Del Peterson at del.peterson@ndsu.edu.

New Project to Study Impacts of Bicycle Infrastructure

New research by SURCOM will explore the impacts that investments in bicycle infrastructure have on bicycle use. In recent years, cities across the country have been designing new bicycle facilities, or making improvements to existing ones, to provide additional transportation options to residents and encourage increased bicycling. Types of bicycle facilities include shared lane markings, striped paved shoulders, bike lanes, buffered bike lanes, sidepaths, bicycle boulevards, cycle tracks, and multi-use trails. Planners need to know if investments in bicycle facilities have had the desired effect and which characteristics are most successful in encouraging bicycle use. Knowledge of how street network design and the built environment affect bicycle use is also important.

Objectives of this recently launched study are to estimate the relationships between bicycle facility characteristics and bicycle usage and to determine the importance of street design characteristics and the built environment. Understanding these relationships is important for cities that want to encourage increased bicycle use. It will also show if bicyclists are using roadway design features that are meant to accommodate bicyclists. One of the challenges for research on bicycle use is a lack of bike count data. This study will take advantage of crowdsourced bicycle use data collected from Strava Metro, using Fargo-Moorhead as the study area.

For more information about the project, contact Jeremy Mattson at jeremy.w.mattson@ndsu.edu.

SURCOM Launches eLearning Library

SURCOM is excited to offer an eLearning library of instructional courses tailored specifically for small urban, rural and tribal transit operators. eLearning, or electronic learning, is the delivery of traditional training through digital resources. SURCOM has created a group of interactive courses integrating sound, music, video, pictures and quiz opportunities to help the learner stay engaged and interested. Courses range in length from 10-60 minutes. 60 minute courses include a Certificate of Completion upon successful completion of the training. Courses are designed for learners at all levels of transit development. Front-line staff, drivers, administration and transit managers will find valuable information on a variety of important subjects.

SURCOM has partnered with the National Rural Transit Assistance Program (National RTAP) to provide a portal to offer these courses at no cost. Learners will be required to register and create a quick profile for access to the eLearning library. Learners can take the self-guided courses and access other training materials, and managers can obtain reports to document employee training. Courses are regularly updated and new courses are added as they are developed. Visit the SURCOM eLearning webpage to see the current list of available courses and to register at the National RTAP portal

For more information, contact Rob Lynch, SURCOM training coordinator, at rob.lynch@ndsu.edu.

SURCOM Producing Videos for Research Projects

SURCOM has begun recording short video summaries for recently completed research projects. These videos are typically about 5 to 7 minutes in length and provide a brief, non-technical overview of the research projects. SURCOM will continue producing these videos for all future projects. These videos can be found along with the completed research reports and executive summaries on the SURCOM website. They can also be found on UGPTI's YouTube channel.

Over the past year, SURCOM has also participated in webinars and virtual conferences, and recordings from some of those events are available online. Recordings can be found at the links below.

Session on Rural and Tribal Transit – 2020 National Shared Mobility Summit – SURCOM researcher Ranjit Godavarthy moderated this session and gave a presentation on Opportunities for DOTs and others to Encourage Shared Use Mobility Practices in Rural Areas.

LRTP Future of Transportation Technology Forum – This webinar was hosted last year by the Nebraska DOT. SURCOM researcher Jeremy Mattson participated in the webinar by presenting research on a cost-benefit analysis of rural and small urban transit.

Rural Transit During Crisis – SURCOM training coordinator Rob Lynch participated in this session at the 2020 National Transportation in Indian Country Conference. He gave a presentation on Crisis Management for Small Urban, Rural and Tribal Transit Agencies

2020 NDDOT Local Government Virtual Summit – Jeremy Mattson participated in this event hosted by the North Dakota DOT. He presented results from two studies. One study analyzed the benefits of transit services in Greater Minnesota and the other assessed mobility options in the state of North Dakota.

Transportation and Equity – SURCOM director Jill Hough participated in this panel hosted by Mobility21.

Research Report – Risk Perception of Bicycle/Scooter Riders Risky Behaviors

SURCOM recently published a report that looks at the risky bicycle and scooter behaviors of adults in the United States. Two separate surveys were administered. Participants were asked to rate the severity and frequency of 20 risky behaviors of riders on five-point Likert scales. A risk matrix was built based on the magnitude and frequency of each risk, and ordered logistic regression was applied to identify significant factors. Age and income are significant factors shared between both survey groups. Education level and living in urban areas are two statistically significant factors explaining the different risky behaviors with bicycles or scooters. In general, the survey results show that participants perceive there is a low risk associated with reckless behaviors. The findings offer insight for developing new enforcement policies and safety education programs to enhance scooter/bicycle sharing programs and provide a safe environment for all road users.

The full report can be found at the link below:

Risk Perception of Bicycle/Scooter Riders Risky Behaviors

For more information, contact Jill Hough at jill.hough@ndsu.edu

Research Report – State of Good Repair Predictive Model for Small Urban and Rural Transit System's Rolling Stock Assets

In a newly published study, SURCOM has developed a model to predict the retirement years for small urban and rural transit vehicles. Achieving and maintaining public transportation rolling stock in a state of good repair is very crucial to providing safe and reliable services to riders. SURCOM developed an intelligent predictive model for analyzing the rolling stock for small urban and rural transit systems. The model determines current conditions, predicts when vehicles need to be replaced or rehabilitated, and estimates the funding needed to replace vehicles in future years to maintain a state of good repair. This simple predictive model could be a valuable resource for maintaining state of good repair and prioritizing capital needs for replacement and rehabilitation.

The full report and a video summary can be found at the link below:

State of Good Repair Predictive Model for Small Urban and Rural Transit System's Rolling Stock Assets

For more information, contact Dilip Mistry at dilip.mistry@ndsu.edu.