Successful applicants for the inclusive planning projects will involve participants, as well as other key stakeholders, in their programs. Awards will be made through a competitive process to the most qualified applicants who are able to demonstrate experience with engaging and empowering older adults and people with disabilities, including people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, in coordinated transportation system planning. The application must cover how consumer engagement will be institutionalized in local coordinated transportation planning, program development and service delivery. Recipients will be expected to share their practices at the national level through the program’s Knowledge Sharing Network and its website.

The Strengthening Inclusive Coordinated Transportation Partnerships to Promote Community Living project is funded by the U.S. Administration for Community Living and is administered by the Community Transportation Association of America in partnership with Easter Seals, The National Association of Area Agencies on Aging and Westat.

Qualified organizations are encouraged to apply by March 20, 2013 and can find the full Request for Proposals here transitplanning4all.org. For all questions related to the Request for Proposal, please contact Virginia Dize at the National Association of Area Agencies on Aging (202) 719-8889 or by email at transitplanning4all@ctaa.org.  A teleconference for interested applicants will be held on March 5, 2013 at 2 p.m. Eastern Time. Call in #: 1-800-245-1683. Pass code: 267438.

A total of $1 million is available for an estimated 3 – 7 projects.  Proposals from regional transportation planning organizations (RTPOs or RPOs), MPOs, local governments, state agencies, consulting teams, universities, or consortia of agencies may apply to test the use of TCAPP in a planning activity, and a state DOT must be involved in some level.  Technical support will be available through separate SHRP 2 project to assist pilot sites with implementing TCAPP.  Click here for more information, or contact David Plazak at dplazak@nas.edu or 202.334.1834.

The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) has released a request for applications (RFA) for the “Off Hours Freight Delivery Pilot Project,” which is directed at reducing congestion in small and medium-sized urban areas.  A total of $450,000 in funding is available, with a maximum award of $150,000 with a 50 percent cost share. 

Working with the Environmental Protection Agency, the pilot will look at how truck deliveries made outside of peak and rush hours - when there is less traffic on the highways—can save time and money for freight carriers, improve air quality and create more sustainable and livable cities. The FHWA anticipates the funding will be used to help businesses retool their operations to accommodate shipments during off hours and distributors reconfigure routes and supply chains. While transportation agencies are eligible to apply for the grants, FHWA encourages them to partner with businesses involved in freight movement.

Projects are intended to improve freight flows and have positive impacts on air quality, environmental justice, sustainability and livability or urban areas.  FHWA has engaged contractor support to assist awardees with a webpage and print publications to facilitate outreach to public and private sector stakeholders to implement the program.  Applications are due July 13, 2012, and questions about the RFA must be submitted by June 28, 2012 to Eric Robinson (202.366.5507, eric.robinson@dot.gov) or Carl Rodriguez (202.366.4240, carl.rodriguez@dot.gov).  The solicitation is posted at www.grants.gov. For the RFA, visit www.nado.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/off-peak-delivery-RFA.pdf.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has announced the availability of $70 million to improve the health of small communities across the nation through the Community Transformation Grant (CTG) program. Grants will be awarded to governmental agencies and non-governmental organizations across a variety of sectors, including transportation, housing, education, and public health.

The CTG Small Communities program targets intervention populations of up to 500,000 in neighborhoods, school districts, villages, towns, cities, and counties in order to increase opportunities for people to make healthful choices and improve health.  CDC expects to make 25 to 50 competitive grant awards under the CTG Small Communities Program, with successful applicants announced in September 2012. The awards are one-time funding with a two year project period.

The grantees will work toward one or more of the following outcome measures: changes in weight, proper nutrition, physical activity, tobacco use and social and emotional well-being, and must align with the five priority areas of the CTG Program: (1) tobacco-free living; (2) active living and healthy eating; (3) evidence-based quality clinical and other preventive services, specifically prevention and control of high blood pressure and high cholesterol; (4) social and emotional wellness, such as facilitating early identification of mental health needs and access to quality services, especially for people with chronic conditions; and (5) healthy and safe physical environments. 

The official funding opportunity announcement can be found at www.Grants.gov. The letters of intent must be submitted by June 18, 2012, and the application deadline is July 31, 2012, 5 p.m. EDT. To learn more about the Community Transformation Grant program, including a list of the current awardees, please visit www.cdc.gov/communitytransformation.

On March 20, the Transportation Research Board released two RFPs for pilot projects to test planning tools developed through the Strategic Highway Research Program (SHRP 2).  These RFPs will fund pilot tests of the two largest SHRP 2 Capacity products:

• Transportation for Communities-Advancing Projects through Partnerships (TCAPP), a web-based guide to conducting collaborative transportation planning and project development (project C33)
• Transportation Project Impact Case Studies (T-PICS), a web-based economic impacts assessment tool (project C39)

Regional development organizations, rural planning organizations, and metropolitan planning organizations are among the entities eligible to apply for funds (requiring no match) to apply these new tools to their transportation planning work.  NADO members can also consider applying with partners, such as neighboring regions, state DOTs, university centers, or other entities.

TRB will conduct a free webinar on Tuesday, March 27, 2012, from 1-2:30 p.m. EDT to provide information about the RFPs to prospective bidders and answer questions. Webinar registration is online on the following page.  Questions about the webinar should be directed to Lisa Marflak at lmarflak@nas.edu.

Questions about the projects and RFPs should be directed to David Plazak at dplazak@nas.edu.

The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) will hold a webinar on Tuesday, March 6 at 2 p.m. (EST) for agencies intending to apply for the Veterans’ Transportation and Community Living Initiative (VTCLI).  This webinar may fill quickly, so register early at http://vtcli2.eventbrite.com.  The session will be recorded. 

The deadline to apply for this round of the VTCLI grant competition is April 19. For more information, visit www.fta.dot.gov/veterans.

Proposals must be submitted through grants.gov by April 19, 2012.  For full details, see the Federal Register notice here.  For information, visit http://www.fta.dot.gov/veterans, email VeteransTransportation@dot.gov or contact Erik Weber at 202.366.0705.

The DOT pre-application system will open on or before February 13.  Applicants are strongly encouraged to submit pre-applications and applications in advance of the application deadlines. The deadline for pre-applications is February 20, 2012 and the deadline for final applications is March 19, 2012.  Click here (PDF) for the Federal Register Notice.  Additional information is available on the TIGER program is available on the DOT website at http://www.dot.gov/tiger/.

• Peer-mobility management and employment
• Mobility management in rural/frontier areas that have limited transportation options
• Holistic models that integrate mobility management within current practices, including options counseling, information and assistance and/or case management
• Mobility management applied to the family of senior transportation options

The NCST expects to award 8 grants (2 in each of the categories listed above) for a maximum of $50,000. Matching funds are not required. Grantees will be expected to complete their work in 9-12 months.  The focus of all the grants is on older adults, although projects may also target adults with disabilities.  A focus on culturally and ethnically diverse older adults is strongly encouraged. Applications are due Friday, December 23.

Agencies interested in applying can participate in a conference call on Thursday, December 8 for more information on the application process and selection criteria.  Please visit the NCST website to find the request for proposal and application.  Questions should be directed to Lynn Winchell-Mendy at 202.872.0888 or lwinchellmendy@n4a.org.

On July 1 at 2:00 p.m., the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) will hold a special webinar on the National Infrastructure Investments (TIGER II Discretionary Grants) and Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Community Challenge Planning Grants.  The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) and HUD have issued a joint solicitation for the two planning grant programs in order to better align transportation, housing, economic development, and land use planning and to improve linkages between the agencies’ programs.

Webinar speakers will include: 

• Beth Osborne, USDOT Deputy Assistant Secretary for Transportation Policy
• Shelley Poticha, Director for the HUD Office of Sustainable Housing and Communities
• Representatives of the Federal Highway Administration, Federal Transit Administration, Federal Railroad Administration and Maritime Administration

The presenters will discuss the program, selection criteria, evaluations and application process for TIGER II Planning Grants and HUD Community Challenge Planning Grants.  

Space is limited, and registration is required.  Register online at http://www.ops.fhwa.dot.gov/freight/fpd/talking_freight/index.htm.

Attendees are encouraged to send any pre-seminar questions you have to freight@dot.gov by 5:00 p.m. EDT, Monday, June 28th.  The pre-seminar questions will be addressed first.  You will also be able to ask questions during the seminar.

The webinar is being held as a special session of FHWA’s monthly Talking Freight webinar series.  If you have any questions about the seminar, please contact Jennifer Symoun, SAIC, 703.676.6849 or jennifer.e.symoun@saic.com.

The Departments of Transportation (DOT) and Housing and Urban Development (HUD) have announced the availability of $75 million in funding—$35 million in TIGER (Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery) II Planning Grants and $40 million in Sustainable Community Challenge Planning Grants—for localized planning activities that integrate transportation, housing and economic development.

TIGER II Planning Grants may be used to plan, prepare or design surface transportation projects that would be eligible for funding under the TIGER II Discretionary Grant program (for more information about the TIGER II Program, go to http://www.dot.gov/docs/TIGER_II_Discretionary_Grant_Program_Final_Notice_1_June_2010.pdf.) These projects include highways, bridges, transit, railways, ports and bicycle and pedestrian facilities. 

HUD’s Sustainable Communities funding will target urban and community planning projects that foster reform and reduce barriers to achieving affordable, sustainable communities.  This includes amending or replacing local master plans, zoning codes and building codes either on a jurisdiction-wide basis or in a specific neighborhood to promote mixed-use development, affordable housing and the re-use of older buildings for new purposes with the goal of promoting sustainability at the local level. 

Please note the Community Challenge Planning Grant Program differs from HUD’s Sustainable Communities Regional Planning Grant Program. The Community Challenge Planning Grant Program focuses on individual jurisdictions and more localized planning, while the Regional Planning Program is designed to support regional planning efforts.  HUD will publish a separate NOFA for the Sustainable Communities Regional Planning Grant Program.

Under this program, DOT and HUD will make joint awards as well as individual TIGER II Planning Grants and Sustainable Community Challenge Grants.  For both grants, there is no minimum grant size, but the maximum grant size is $3 million.

Pre-applications are due July 21 and final applications are due August 23. Applications must be submitted through Grants.gov.  Eligibility is limited to state and local governments, transit agencies, port authorities, metropolitan planning organizations (MPOs), other political subdivisions of state or local governments and multi-state or multijurisdictional groupings. 

For more information go to: http://www.dot.gov/livability/source/FINAL%20Joint%20Planning%20NOFA%20061810.pdf.