Expanding the Transportation Workforce in Local Agencies: Awareness Building Activities and Development of the Training Course Roadmap for Future Civil Technicians

Project summary:

Many local public works agencies find themselves in a similar situation. They have an approved construction program and constituents knocking on the door demanding improvement to their agency's transportation system--but they do not have enough qualified staff to deliver the work. The agency has the budget to hire the right person for the job, but positions remain open for long-periods of time, and often times are never filled. Frustration builds, agencies remain understaffed, and maintenance and construction projects get delayed--none of which are ideal conditions. The ultimate goal of this project was to help fill those open positions within local agency transportation departments. Through both an awareness-building campaign, and the development of a training course roadmap (a checklist outlining suggested training courses new hires should complete during their first months on the job), our aim is to expand the number of people applying for jobs within local agency transportation departments. Products developed in this project are available online: Expanding the Transportation Workforce: Tools for Local Agencies.