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| Volume 16, Issue 3 | Fall 2004 |
Transportation Coordination Joan CampbellSouth Central Adult Service Council Valley City, ND At the recent DTA annual meeting held in Sioux Falls, Gary Hegland from the Small Urban & Rural Transit Center (SURTC) presented a session on transportation coordination. One of the areas I found most interesting was the differences and similarities in the provision of services within North Dakota's eight planning regions. Gary conducted focus groups throughout the state. Attending the group meetings were representatives from city/county agencies, school bus companies, senior service providers, park districts, etc. What was evident in Gary's presentation was the problem of providing transit services to the rural population in all eight regions. In one region there was no rural transportation services and in others the services were limited to once-a-month trips into a larger service area. Other issues addressed were the coordination between entities in some regions. Employees needing rides to the job site were unable to coordinate rides because of fragmented services. Lack of public awareness of services available was also an issue addressed in the focus groups. How to get the word out to the general public on the benefits of utilizing public transit was also discussed. In conclusion, North Dakota has a large number of buses, vans, school buses, nursing home vehicles and general public disability vehicles that provide transportation to a select segment of the population. However, there are many gaps that need to be filled to provide services to all those in need. This is where the coordination of transportation services should begin. How to Effectively Influence Congress and the State Legislature without Leaving HomePaul Beddoe, associate director of the National Association of Counties, came to the DTA meeting to share low-cost methods of keeping the state and federal legislators well-informed about transit issues. He said the first step is to prepare ourselves, transit operators, by knowing:
The conferees were introduced to a new term, "kitchen cabinet." The kitchen cabinet is made up of people who we know well and trust; to share our transit story with others. It's very important to build personal relationships with friends of transit as well as the legislators; including their chief of staff, schedulers, and legislative directors (both in Washington and at the state level). Beddoe encouraged transit operators to attend legislators' public meetings and invite them to transit meetings. Make contact with them at home as much as possible rather than in Washington. Since 9/11, mail has been the least-effective method of contacting your legislatures, Beddoe says. Other options are telephoning, faxing, and e-mailing. Be brief, cover only one subject per message. Try to get diversity. In other words, get people from other industries to share support of your endeavors with the congressional delegations. When you call to talk to the congressman be willing to talk to the staff; it can pay dividends and builds relationships. The staff brief and do research for the congressman so it is important that they know about transit. If you have the opportunity to give testimony at any field hearings take advantage of it. A hearing is a procedure for developing a record from which to develop pros and cons to an issue. It is important to have supporting statements on your issues at these events. Some important lobbying axioms:
Beddoe's closing remark was that "you really can make a difference and effectively influence Congress or your state legislature from your home or office. It's the new trend in lobbying, be a part of it!" For more information go to www.naco.org. The Congressional Delegation on the WebNorth Dakota:Byron Dorgan • http://dorgan.senate.gov/
South Dakota:John Thune • www.johnthune.com
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