DVRPC News: May 2014

Volume 35, Issue 10
May 2014

Ozone Season Begins: Here's What You Need to Know

Article 1 While spring means beautiful sunny days and warm weather, it also brings increased ground-level ozone. The Air Quality Partnership (AQP), a program of DVRPC, educates residents about the ill effects of ground-level ozone and provides air quality forecasts to the public. This week marks the start of the AQP's ozone season, which runs through September.

Residents of the region can take charge of their respiratory health by receiving alerts when air pollution is at unhealthy levels and taking steps to mitigate their exposure. Email alerts in Greater Philadelphia are sent out by AQP through a national system called Enviroflash. Now through the end of May, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is running the Enviroflash Challenge to encourage people to sign up. The region with the most subscribers wins! To sign up for air quality alerts, visit www.airqualitypartnership.org. Daily air quality forecasts and helpful tips are also available on the website or by calling 1-800-872-7261.

AQP has also developed an interactive workbook, Where's Mike?, geared toward students in third through fifth grades, to assist local organizations and teachers in educating children about air quality and its impacts on their health. It includes activities such as identifying sources of air pollution, solving basic math problems, and observing and recording air quality conditions using the daily air quality forecast. AQP collaborated with a steering committee consisting of educators, health, and air quality professionals to ensure the workbook met Pennsylvania state educational standards for Environment and Ecology and Health, Safety, and Physical Education. The workbook and teacher's guide, which are printable and compatible with SMART boards, are available online at www.airqualitypartnership.org. Contact Sean Greene at 215-238-2860 or sgreene@dvrpc.org if your organization is interested in receiving printed copies of the workbook.

Free Online Courses Now Available Through the PA OBTT Program

Article 2 We are pleased to announce that registration is now open for the Pennsylvania Online Broadband & Technology Training (OBTT) Program – FREE online courses available anytime, anywhere! The PA OBTT course library was designed with small businesses, local governments, and nonprofits in mind. With more than 100 FREE courses to choose from, there is something new for nearly everyone to explore. Course topics include Online Marketing; Website Development; Cloud Computing; Quickbooks; Microsoft Applications like Word, Excel, Outlook, PowerPoint and Access; Business Skills; Project Management; and more. A complete course listing and registration information are available at www.paobtt.com or by contacting Jane Meconi at 215-592-1800 or public_affairs@dvrpc.org.

Ride, Record, and Reimagine Your Routes with CyclePhilly, a New Bike Route Mapping App

Article 3 You can help improve bicycle facilities in Greater Philadelphia, thanks to a new mobile app called CyclePhilly. The app records cyclist biking habits such as route and time traveled, as well as the purpose of the trip. Your route is then linked to a map that shows the bike patterns of all participants. The data provides an additional resource for local planners and agencies in an effort to understand bicycle trends, routes, and trip purposes, implement better bicycle facilities, and connect the region's trail network, known as The Circuit. The app was developed by volunteers with Code for Philly, a branch of Code for America, in partnership with DVRPC, the City of Philadelphia, the Bicycle Coalition of Greater Philadelphia, and SEPTA. It is the first bike route mapping mobile application for the Philadelphia area.

The CyclePhilly app is available for free in the Apple App Store and Google Play Store. Celebrate National Bike to Work Week, May 12-16, by downloading the app and providing valuable input to your community.

Learn more at www.cyclephilly.org.

Rhode Island Joins DVRPC for a Three-Day Peer-to-Peer Exchange Focusing on Freight

Article 4 DVRPC hosted the State of Rhode Island's Statewide Planning Program on April 14-16 to share best practices, successes, challenges, and lessons learned in the practice of freight planning. The exchange was part of the Federal Highway Administration's (FHWA's) Freight Peer-to-Peer Exchange Program (P2P), which aims to bring together freight transportation experts with public sector professionals, and provide technical assistance to enhance planning knowledge and skills. Since both Rhode Island and Greater Philadelphia are key regions on the United States' Northeast Corridor, they sought this exchange to learn from each other as they identify projects for programming, increase local municipal involvement and understanding of freight, and provide opportunities for multijurisdictional and regional coordination on freight issues.

The peer exchange, which focused specifically on engaging the private sector, included tours of two port facilities and a roundtable with staff from DVRPC, Rhode Island, FHWA, and the MPOs for the Baltimore, Washington, D.C., Wilmington, and New Jersey metropolitan areas. Rhode Island had the opportunity to meet with Pennsylvania and New Jersey DOTs, and private sector representatives, such as freight carriers and shippers. The three-day exchange wrapped up with a meeting of DVRPC's Goods Movement Task Force that gave the guests an inside look into freight planning in Greater Philadelphia.

DVRPC Public Participation Task Force Tours SEPTA Operations Center

Photo Credit: Todd Baylson

Transportation Operations is a critical element to keeping the Philadelphia region moving. DVRPC Public Participation Task Force members recently had the opportunity to visit SEPTA's Operations Center. This behind-the-scenes tour allowed members to see how SEPTA keeps its multi-modal fleet on track and on the street.

Visit our website to learn more about the Public Participation Task Force.

New Funding Programs in Pennsylvania

Article 6 Three new funding programs are now available from the Pennsylvania Commonwealth Financing Authority (CFA) and the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development (DCED). The Greenways, Trails, and Recreation Program (GTRP) and two Multimodal Transportation Funds (MTF) distribute funds for bicycle trails, streetscape improvements, ports, rail, freight, and much more. More open programs can be found on the CFA's website.

Greenways, Trails, and Recreation Program (GTRP)

Pennsylvania Act 13 of 2012 allocates funds for planning, acquisition, development, rehabilitation and repair of greenways, recreational trails, open space, parks and beautification projects using the Greenways, Trails and Recreation Program (GTRP).

Uses: Acquisition, Planning, Development, Rehabilitation and Improvement of public parks, indoor and outdoor recreation facilities, trails, greenways, and watershed implementation projects.

Administration: The program will be administered by the Department of Community and Economic Development (DCED) under the direction of the Commonwealth Financing Authority (CFA).

Funding: Grants shall not exceed a total of $250,000 for any project. Projects require a 15% local cash match of the total project cost or cash equivalents for the appraised value of real estate.

Eligibility: Municipalities, Councils of Governments, Non-profits, Institution of Higher Education, Watershed Organization, For-Profit Businesses

The application deadline for the program is July 21, 2014.

Website: www.newpa.com/find-and-apply-for-funding/funding-and-program-finder/greenways-trails-and-recreation-program-gtrp
Guidance: www.newpa.com/sites/default/files/uploads/GreenwaysTrailsRecreation_Guidelines-2014.pdf [pdf]

DCED Multimodal Transportation Fund (MTF)

The Multimodal Transportation Fund provides grants to encourage economic development and ensure that a safe and reliable system of transportation is available to the residents of the commonwealth.

Uses: Funds may be used for the development, rehabilitation and enhancement of transportation assets to existing communities, streetscape, lighting, sidewalk enhancement, pedestrian safety, connectivity of transportation assets and transit-oriented development.

Administration: The program will be jointly administered by the Department of Community and Economic Development (DCED) and PennDOT, under the direction of the Commonwealth Financing Authority (CFA).

Funding: Grants are available for projects with a total cost of $100,000 or more. Grants shall not exceed $3,000,000 for any project. Financial assistance under the Multimodal Transportation Fund shall be matched by local funding in an amount not less than 30% of the non-federal share of the project costs.

Eligibility: Municipalities, Councils of Governments, Businesses, Economic Development Organizations, Public Transportation Agencies, Ports, Airports, and Freight Railroads.

The application deadline for the program is June 20, 2014 for consideration at the September 9, 2014 CFA board meeting.

Website: www.newpa.com/find-and-apply-for-funding/funding-and-program-finder/multimodal-transportation-fund
Guidance: www.newpa.com/sites/default/files/uploads/MultimodalTransportationFund_Guidelines2014.pdf [pdf]

PennDOT Multimodal Transportation Fund (MTF)

The Multimodal Transportation Fund provides grants to encourage economic development and ensure that a safe and reliable system of transportation is available to the residents of the commonwealth.

Administration: PennDOT will administer activities directly initiated or undertaken by it in accordance with the program.

Eligibility: Municipalities, Councils of Governments, Businesses/non-profits, Economic Development Organizations, Public Transportation Agencies, Ports, Airports, and Freight Railroads.

The application deadline for the program is June 30, 2014.

Website: www.dot.state.pa.us/internet/web.nsf/Multimodal?OpenFrameSet
Guidance: ftp.dot.state.pa.us/public/Bureaus/Press/MTF_Guidelines_for_PennDOT_multimodal.pdf [pdf]

Get Involved This Month

Article 7 DVRPC's Environmental Justice (EJ) Work Group is convening on the morning of May 8th for a brainstorming workshop on Future Scenario Planning. The EJ Work Group is an ad hoc committee that meets on an as-needed basis to inform environmental justice considerations in DVRPC's work. The meeting will be held at DVRPC's offices from 9:00 – 10:30 a.m., with breakfast at 8:45 a.m. Please join us to add your input to a future vision that is a step toward developing DVRPC's next long-range plan.

Additionally, the Public Participation Task Force (PPTF) will be hosting Paul Jargowsky, Ph.D. at 6:00 P.M. on Thursday, May 15 in DVRPC's Conference Center. The PPTF is inviting speakers throughout the year to discuss a range of topics that impact the greater Philadelphia region. Dr. Jargowsky is a Professor of Public Policy at Rutgers- Camden and the Director of the Center for Urban Research and Urban Education and his presentation will address regional inequality and poverty issues.

Please RSVP to Jane Meconi at public_affairs@dvrpc.org or 215-592-1800 to reserve your spot at either of these events.