Rural Transit Assistance Program

State Rural Transit Assistance Program training and technical assistance

WSDOT’s Public Transportation Division provides resources for training and technical assistance to rural transportation providers through RTAP.

Training

Training courses for rural transportation providers are currently developed and facilitated by WSDOT, Washington State Transit Insurance Pool, Community Transportation Association Northwest, and Washington State Transit Association.

WSDOT's Public Transportation Division directly provides training to agencies and organizations interested in applying for state and federal grants, managing their WSDOT grant, and more.

Technical assistance

The types of technical assistance WSDOT provides include but are not limited to:

• Researching and answering specific subject-matter questions.
• Interpreting policy guidelines and providing policy templates.
• Providing on-site or virtual presentations on a variety of topics and issues.

Peer review program

RTAP is available to all rural transportation providers in Washington state. Funds may be available to cover the cost incurred by the rural agency for the peer review. Potential recommendations during the review could relate to safety and training, maintenance shop efficiency, or revisions to the organizational chart and job descriptions. The peer review can focus on the entire agency or one element of an agency. A rural agency initiates the request, which includes a specific problem statement, for a peer review by WSDOT's Public Transportation Division.

RTAP scholarships

WSDOT administers RTAP scholarships to help cover registration and travel expenses for training courses, workshops, and conferences for rural transportation providers. Refer to the RTAP scholarship application form (PDF 99KB) for more information about the scholarship program.

Eligibility for a RTAP training scholarship

Eligibility requires the following:

• Must be a rural Washington transit agency, rural Washington tribe, or Washington nonprofit special needs transportation and mobility management provider serving rural areas. Urban and small-urban agencies are ineligible
• The training or conference must benefit your agency by supporting grant compliance, increasing knowledge of best practices and peer resources, or improving the efficiency and/or effectiveness of operations
• The organization has a financial need for assistance
• The scholarship application must be signed by an executive officer of the agency and received by WSDOT at least 30 days prior to the event
• A copy of an approved WSDOT expense worksheet must be signed by WSDOT prior to the training

WSDOT's RTAP manager reviews each application and awards the scholarships based on the following criteria:

• Justification for financial need and anticipated value to the agency and relevance of the training to your responsibilities at your agency
• Award limitations:
  • Maximum of 10 scholarships to any one agency per fiscal year
  • Maximum of two individuals from a single agency per training opportunity
• Availability of funds in the scholarship program budget

Exceptions to these limits and maximum funding are at the discretion of WSDOT's RTAP manager and must be applied for in writing at the time the scholarships are requested.

Training scholarship qualifications for reimbursement

We will provide scholarships to reimburse the traveler or agency for the following expenses:

• In-state training or conference registration and/or tuition (note: out-of-state requests are considered on a case-by-case basis and in coordination with your regional community liaison)
• Travel costs such as airfare, mileage (calculated at the state's rate from residence or workstation, whichever is closer), parking, ferry or toll fare, and ground transportation such as taxi or bus fare
• Government-rate accommodations (rate plus taxes and fees)

However, scholarships may not be used for meal reimbursement.

Available funding

RTAP will reimburse for approved scholarships based on these guidelines:

• Eligible costs up to $600 are reimbursed at 100 percent.
• Costs beyond $600 will be reimbursed at 50 percent up to a total award of $1,000.
• Total reimbursement will not exceed $1,000 per scholarship. All costs beyond that are the responsibility of the recipient's agency/organization.

Sign up for grant updates

To stay informed about WSDOT public transportation grants, you can register in GovDelivery.