SURTC to Participate in National Conference on Rural Public and Intercity Bus Transportation

SURTC staff will be heavily involved in the 20th National Conference on Rural Public and Intercity Bus Transportation, held October 14-17 in Salt Lake City, UT. This conference, held every two years, focuses on the latest in best practice and current research in rural public and intercity bus transportation.

Director Jill Hough is serving on the conference planning committee and will moderate and participate in a session on transit workforce development. Keven Anderson, training coordinator, will also participate in that session. Hough’s presentation is titled “Mentoring the Next Generation of Public Transit Workers” and Anderson’s is “Succession Planning and Mentorship.”

Carol Wright, associate director of training and outreach, will present “Addressing Language Barriers for Passengers, Drivers, and Dispatchers” in a session on effective communications for rural transportation, and she will present “Development and Assessment of Agency Policies and Practices for Civil Rights” in a session on civil rights. Wright and Anderson will also team to make a presentation on tribal transit.

Researchers Jeremy Mattson and Del Peterson will be participating in a session on how technology is improving operations. Mattson will present results from a study on the use of alternative fuels and hybrid vehicles by small urban and rural transit systems, and Peterson will present research on the use of effortless passenger identification systems.

Peterson and Mattson will also give a presentation, titled “Transit, Technology & Public Participation,” that will present findings from research on the use of new technologies to improve public participation in transit planning. This session focuses on how technology is facilitating dialogue between providers and the community.

Visit the conference website for more information.