Bureau of Land Management Alternative Transportation Systems Inventory Report

摘要

The U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI) engaged the Volpe National Transportation Systems Center (Volpe Center) to provide program and project support to the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) for alternative transportation planning and program development. A key objective of the alternative transportation technical assistance is to enable consistent, comprehensive planning and assessment of transportation systems and a more systematic identification and prioritization of transportation needs. The Alternative Transportations Systems (ATS) Inventory Report is a foundational step in providing the necessary technical assistance to BLM for its alternative transportation planning. The inventory was designed to achieve the following objectives: Identify ATS that are currently operating within or serving BLM lands Identify operational and financial attributes of existing ATS Identify the elements that contribute to the success of existing ATS Identify areas of strong potential for future ATS on BLM lands Identify sites with greatest immediate potential to submit Paul S. Sarbanes Transit in the Parks (TRIP) Program grant applications The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) sponsors the Paul S. Sarbanes TRIP Program. The TRIP Program provides approximately $27 million annually to fund planning and implementation projects for ATS in federally-owned parks and public lands. ATS include not only vans and shuttle services but also connections to regional transit systems, regular sightseeing tours, and nonmotorized connections for transportation purposes. While BLM is eligible to apply for these grant funds, the agency has traditionally submitted very few applications over the programs four-year history, which may be due to field office staff members who were unaware of the grant program or who did not believe that their sites were compatible with ATS.