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On August 14, 2024, FTA published final updates to the Public Transportation Safety Certification Training Program (PTSCTP) regulation. The final rule maintains a uniform safety training curriculum and minimum requirements for SSOAs and safety professionals in rail transit agencies. This final rule is part of the Biden-Harris Administration’s continuous efforts and focus on keeping public transportation the safest mode of surface travel.
While the updates are primarily administrative, they will enable FTA to effectively monitor compliance with the regulation and improve existing processes to ease the burden on transit agencies and SSOAs to coordinate the training program requirements.
Register for the FTA Public Transportation Safety Certification Training Program webinar on September 5, 2024, at 2 p.m. ET.
In June 2024, FTA began a new cooperative agreement with Operation Lifesaver, Inc. (OLI) to provide technical assistance to state operation lifesaver programs, transit agencies and the general public regarding safety best practices to prevent fatalities and injuries at and around transit rail grade crossings. On July 1, 2024, OLI announced that the application period is open for its competitive Rail Transit Safety Education Grants. The grants offer a total of $190,000 in funding for transit agencies and government entities that provide transit service to conduct rail transit safety education and public awareness initiatives. Submit applications before the September 1, 2024, deadline. Grant awards will be announced by October 15, 2024. For additional details, contact Wende Corcoran at wcorcoran@oli.org.
After 60 years of improving American communities through public transportation, the FTA reflects on the history of the Federal transit program.
In 2021, the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, passed by Congress and signed by President Biden, marked the largest transit investment in American history – $108 billion over five years – helping transit providers expand service to reach more people, make communities safer, improve the rider experience and reduce the greenhouse gas emissions responsible for climate change. When Urban Mass Transportation Administration (UMTA) was established in 1964, it received $375 million in federal funds to support transit capital projects. Today, we manage a budget of $21 billion.
Together, we can make FTA better than ever, supporting programs that modernize transit, combat the climate crisis through low- and no-emission buses, improve access for people with disabilities, replace aging railcars, expand tribal transit, advance research and innovation, promote civil rights, and provide safety oversight.
FTA’s Drug and Alcohol Program has the authority and responsibility for issuing regulations to combat prohibited drug use and alcohol misuse in the transportation industry. The program issues a quarterly newsletter with updates on important topics for the industry. You can read the July 2024 Drug & Alcohol Regulation Update newsletter here.
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