Publications | CoordinateMNTransit.org

Home > Publications

Minnesota Council on Transportation Access publications

Newsletter
MCOTA's latest Annual Report (PDF; January 2020)
Strategic Plan 2020-2024 (PDF)
2018 Volunteer Driver Forum Summary (PDF)
Best Practices for Addressing Youth Employment and Training Transportation (PDF, 2018)
This MCOTA-sponsored study found that youth throughout Minnesota are likely to face employment transportation issues.
2018 Volunteer Driver Program Forum summary (PDF)
Summary and highlights from the May 2018 state-wide Volunteer Driver Program Forum, a day-long event that brought together those running volunteer driver programs and other stakeholders to share information to maintain and strengthen the programs.
Public/Private Partnerships in Transit: Case Studies and Analysis (PDF)
This study focuses on six public/private partnerships that involve transportation network companies (TNCs), such as Lyft and Uber.
Cost-Benefit Analysis of Volunteer Driver Programs: Minnesota Case Studies (PDF, 2017)
This study identifed the economic benefits of volunteer driver programs in Minnesota, using six volunteer driver programs as case studies.
Volunteer Driver Programs in Minnesota: Benefits and Barriers (PDF, 2017)
This study surveyed organizations that use volunteer drivers and the challenges and opportunities they face.
Common Standards for Reporting Financial Information for Transportation (PDF, 2015)
This study examined ways to standardize recordkeeping and reporting at the state level.
Vehicle Sharing Among Human Service Providers in Minnesota: Steps to Address Barriers (PDF, 2013)
A study on how vehicle sharing works and how it could be improved among human service providers in Minnesota.
NEMT Coordinators in Minnesota (PDF, 2013)
A study on how Minnesota counties use coordinators to deliver non-emergency medical transportation.
Calculating Benefits of Transit Coordination: Minnesota Case Studies (PDF, 2013)
An analysis of the economic costs and benefits of transit coordination strategies in Minnesota.
Synthesis of 2011 Greater Minnesota regional plans (PDF, 2012)
A summary of the 2011 local coordination plans in Greater Minnesota.
Successful Local Transportation Coordination Case Studies (PDF, 2011)
Highlights examples of various types of transportation coordination throughout the Minnesota.

Other publications

HCBS Provider Toolkit
Minnesota Department of Human Services, 2019
The home and community-based services (HCBS) provider toolkit contains frequently asked questions, guidance and examples of provider practices that support choice and autonomy for people who receive HCBS. The toolkit is designed to help providers generate ideas on how to better serve older adults and people with disabilities.

Governor’s Advisory Council on Connected and Automated Vehicles: CAV Executive Report (2018)

Shared Mobility and the Transformation of Public Transit (2016)

Transportation Research Board’s Transit Cooperative Research Program (TCRP) Report 188

Examines the relationship of public transportation (including paratransit and demand-responsive services) to shared modes, including bikesharing, carsharing, microtransit, and ridesourcing services provided by companies such as Uber and Lyft.

Rural Reality: City transit, rural transit (2016)

Center for Rural Policy and Development A fact sheet and article looking at the key facts about public transit in Minnesota, including potential impacts of the Olmstead Plan.

Transportation Disadvantaged Populations: Nonemergency Medical Transportation Not Well Coordinated, and Additional Federal Leadership Needed (2015)

U.S. Government Accountability Office, GAO-15-110

Forty-two programs across six federal departments—Agriculture, Education, Health and Human Services (HHS), Housing and Urban Development, Transportation (DOT), and Veterans Affairs (VA)—can provide funding for nonemergency medical transportation (NEMT) service, although NEMT is not their primary mission. Twenty-one of these programs, including Medicaid, are administered or overseen by HHS. GAO recommends that the Secretary of Transportation publish a new strategic plan, issue a cost-sharing policy, and address the challenges associated with coordinating Medicaid and VA NEMT programs with other federal NEMT programs.

Strategy Guide to Enable and Promote the Use of Fixed-Route Transit by People with Disabilities (2014)

Transportation Research Board’s Transit Cooperative Research Program (TCRP) Report 163

Designed to help transit agencies fulfill the primary goals of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA) by making mainstream fixed-route bus and rail systems accessible to and usable by individuals with disabilities. The focus of the Strategy Guide is to offer guidance on providing public services in the most integrated setting possible.

Community Tools to Improve Transportation Options for Veterans, Military Service Members, and Their Families (2014)

Transportation Research Board’s Transit Cooperative Research Program (TCRP) Report 164

Explores ways to enhance transportation options for veterans, military service members, and their families by building on the concepts of transportation coordination and mobility management.

Volunteer Transportation resource materials (2014)

From the National Volunteer Transportation Center

Evolving list of reports and fact sheets to facilitate volunteer transportation programs.

Sharing the Costs of Human Services Transportation (2011)

Transportation Research Board’s Transit Cooperative Research Program (TCRP) Report 144

Explores issues and potential solutions for identifying and sharing the cost of providing transportation services for access to community-based human services programs. The two-volume set examines current practices and offer strategies for collecting necessary data, addressing administrative and policy-related issues, and establishing cost allocation procedures.

State Human Service Transportation Coordinating Councils: An Overview and State Profiles (2010)

National Conference of State Legislatures

To better coordinate the transportation activities related to the provision of human services, many states have created state coordinating councils. This report gives a synopsis of how state coordinating councils operate, provides a 50-state quick reference table, and profiles the 26 existing state coordinating councils.

Policy Options to Improve Specialized Transportation (2010)

AARP Public Policy Institute

Download Report (180 KB PDF)
Key Characteristics of the FTA Specialized Transportation Programs (PDF Table, 49 KB)

Specialized transportation is vital to helping people with mobility limitations live as independently as possible. Authorization of the next surface transportation law provides an opportunity to improve specialized transportation services, particularly those funded by the Federal Transit Administration.

This report recommends that policymakers take steps to strengthen coordinated planning, increase support for mobility management, and improve data collection and reporting on these services.

Itasca County Area Transportation Study (2009)

University of Minnesota Center for Transportation Studies, CTS 09-28

A team of researchers from University of Minnesota's Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs and Center for Transportation Studies conducted a study evaluating the cost and ease of implementing a variety of options for people to travel within and outside Itasca County, Minnesota.

The county presents a challenge to transportation planners, as it is the 3rd largest in the state by land area, but one of the smallest in terms of population. To gain an understanding of the key transportation needs, we held a series of focus groups, listening sessions, and one-on-one interviews, and also conducted background research that included demographic analysis, mapping of the "mis-match" between the location of jobs and where the workers lived, and a national scan of best practices in providing rural transportation.

This work resulted in a number of recommendations ranging from improving bike routes and awareness of public transportation, to improving bus service linking Itasca County to Duluth and launching an online carpool service.

Preparing Coordinated Transportation Plans: A Guidebook for State Departments of Transportation (2009)

Transportation Research Board’s National Cooperative Highway Research Program (NCHRP) Research Results Digest 331

Explores existing coordinated planning processes within state departments of transportation (DOTs) that meet the Federal Transit Administration’s (FTA’s) requirements. The report also examines aspects of those processes that will be useful to other state DOTs and their planning partners as they develop or revise their own planning processes.

TRB Conference — Best Practices: Coordination of Transit, Regional Transportation Planning and Land Use (2007)

Contains presentations and related background material from the conference, held in Denver, Colorado on August 26-28, 2007.

Transportation Coordination Toolkit (2005)

The Toolkit, a result of the Minnesota Public Transit - Human Services Transportation Coordination Study, is a compilation of briefs on specific coordination topics that outline the issues and obstacles to coordination. As part of each discussion, best practices relating how issues were resolved and obstacles removed by other agencies are described. In addition, a list of useful resources is included.

Minnesota Public Transit - Human Services Transportation Coordination Study (2006)

The Minnesota Public Transit - Human Services Transportation Coordination Study is a study designed to help community transportation stakeholders develop a coordinated transportation network. The study was sponsored by the Minnesota Department of Transportation (Mn/DOT) in cooperation with the Metropolitan Council.

TRB’s Transit Cooperative Research Program (TCRP) Report 101: Toolkit for Rural Community Coordinated Transportation Services (2004)

Examines strategies and practices used to coordinate rural transportation services, and identifies model processes used for local coordination efforts in rural communities. A stand-alone executive summary of the report provides information, instructions, and lessons learned from rural communities that have implemented coordinated transportation services.