Resource Center

The Transit Workforce Center is pleased to host a curated collection of publications and other materials to assist stakeholders engaged in transit workforce development. The Resource Center includes case studies, training materials, research reports, and other materials of interest, including publications produced by federal government agencies, transit organizations, and independent research entities. Resources may be filtered by topic, resource type, and transit mode. This TWC blog post explains how to use the Resource Center.

We are continuing to update the Resource Center regularly. Please contact us via the Request Help menu option if you would like assistance using the Resource Center or are looking for resources on a particular topic. We also welcome suggestions of topics or specific resources to add.

Content in external resources linked from the Resource Center is solely the responsibility of the resource authors and does not necessarily reflect the perspectives of or endorsement by the Transit Workforce Center.

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3 Ways to Make Bus Driving a Better Job

This report highlights ways that bus driving can be improved for workers to help increase retention and recruitment. The report explains three specific ways: redesigning the job for health and success, raising pay and creating opportunities for advancement, and making a more flexible schedule.

The National Campaign for Transit Justice

March 2024

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Intelligent Transport Podcast: Discussing the creation of ‘Mentors Moving Metro’

“Mentors Moving Metro” is a partnership between Metro and the Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU) Local 587 that will match experienced operators with new, part-time operators for six to 12 months. In this podcast discussion, Metro’s Director of Bus Operations, Phil DeVault, and transit operator and ATU member, Patrick Brady, talk about how “Mentors Moving Metro” is helping foster relationships and provide knowledge that can only come those who have been “in the seat.” They discussed the origins of the program, how mentors can be a morale boost for operators, and how it can foster greater interaction between operators and  management. They finished the podcast by discussing their vision on developing it from a mentorship program to an apprenticeship program for drivers joining Metro in the future.

Intelligent Transport

March 2024

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Joint Office of Energy and Transportation Workforce Development Resources

The Joint Office of Energy and Transportation (Joint Office) supports the deployment of low-no, convenient, and accessible transportation infrastructure. In addition to providing direct funding support for workforce development, the Joint Office has collated example resources to support workforce development activities for an electrified transportation system.

Joint Office of Energy and Transportation

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Transit Workforce Data Dashboard Webinar: Harnessing the Power of Data for Transit Workforce Development

TWC hosted a webinar titled “Transit Workforce Data Dashboard Webinar: Harnessing the Power of Data for Transit Workforce Development” on February 28, 2024. The Dashboard features innovative visualizations of transit and transportation workforce statistics and demographics from the National Transit Database (NTD) and Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).  It can be used to highlight key issues, like the high proportion of transit workers nearing retirement age, the potential for greater participation in key transportation occupations, and the need to hire extensively in the coming decade. A new interactive page launched in February, allowing users to filter NTD employment data by agency.

TWC demonstrated the full dashboard, discussed lessons learned from working with NTD and BLS data, and opened up a Q&A for participants to ask questions or share their unique data needs.

Transit Workforce Center

February 2024

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At the end of the webinar, TWC shared a survey to collect unique transit workforce data needs and feedback for potential additions to the Data Dashboard. The survey continues to accept responses and can be found below.

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Mental Health, Wellness, and Resilience for Transit System Workers

TCRP Research Report 245: Mental Health, Wellness, and Resilience for Transit System Workers provides a detailed summary of common factors that influence the mental health, well-being, and resiliency of frontline transit workers and includes a range of solutions that transit agencies can implement to address them. Findings were determined using a mix of research methods, including multiple interviews and focus groups with frontline employees, transit agency management, and union leadership at two different points in the project.

Transit Cooperative Research Program

February 2024

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Contributor(s): Sandy Brennan, Elias Frantz Orjuela, Kyle Hearing, Sofie Rhoads, Lori Zeller, Samantha G. Farris, Andrea Lubin, Soumitra S. Bhuyan, Lilly Derby, Koshy Koshy; Transit Cooperative Research Program; Transportation Research Board; National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine

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Transit, Belabored: Issues and Futures for California’s Frontline Transit Workforce

This report focuses on frontline transit workforce issues, including employee pay, issues before and after the COVID-19 pandemic, and the workforce shortage. The report is mainly about transit operators, but also touches on mechanics. It draws on quantitative and qualitative data, including wage data by agency and sector, contracts and agency documents, and interviews with union leaders, agency managers, and operators themselves.

Institute of Transportation Studies

February 2024

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De-Escalation Training Resource Directory

The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) has gathered these resources to support the transit industry in developing, implementing, and updating their training programs. The resources illustrate ways agencies throughout the transit industry are implementing de-escalation training.

Federal Transit Administration

February 2024

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Video on Low-No Bus Training

In this video, James Hall, Principal & Founder of ZEB Tech, and Bekhi Spika, Vice President & Chief Revenue Officer of Spika Design & Manufacturing, have a conversation about transitioning and training the transit workforce for low-no buses.

Spika Design & Manufacturing

February 2024

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