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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Mental Health Resources for Transit Workers

The Federal Transit Administration has aggregated the mental health resources to support transit industry workers during challenging times. Topics include suicide prevention, active shooter preparedness, mental health first aid, and more.

U.S. Department of Tranportation, Federal Transit Administration

December 2023

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Air Quality in Transit Buses

This report provides a summary from a TRB Transit Cooperative Research Program (TCRP) Insight Event about the air quality in transit buses, particularly since the start of the pandemic. Since then, an increased understanding of infectious disease in confined spaces and the role of droplets and particles in transmission has been increasingly important to the bus industry. At this event, senior transportation executives; representatives from federal, state, and local government; and representatives from technology, consulting, academia, and engineering to discuss opportunities and the challenges of implementing air quality control in buses.

Transportation Research Board

May 2023

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Contributor(s): National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine; Transportation Research BoardTransit Cooperative Research Program; Laura Williams

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Procedures for Transportation Workplace Drug and Alcohol Testing Programs: Addition of Oral Fluid Specimen Testing for Drugs

This rule amends the U.S. Department of Transportation’s regulated industry drug testing program to include oral fluid testing. This additional methodology for drug testing will give employers a choice that will help combat employee cheating on urine drug tests and provide a less intrusive means of achieving the safety goals of the program.

Department of Transportation

May 2023

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Transit Workforce Shortage: Synthesis Report and Toolkit

The Transit Workforce Shortage Study builds a framework for APTA, its members, and its partner organizations to better understand the workforce shortage’s causes and provides best practices for recruiting, hiring, and retaining transit operations workers.

American Public Transportation Association

March 2023

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APTA’s Transit Workforce Shortage Study combines information from a survey of public transit workers and interviews with public transportation agencies to provide insight into ways to address the national shortage of transit workers. The report provides information on actions agencies have taken to address the workforce shortage, and the toolkit provides step-by-step answers to workforce shortage scenarios agencies are facing every day.

This report builds on findings from the first interim report.

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Improving the Safety, Health, and Productivity of Transit Operators Through Adequate Restroom Access

This report presents a catalog of good practices, tools, and resources that provide a foundation for implementable strategies to improve restroom access, primarily for transit vehicle operators. The report compiles research from 100 transit agencies on current and best practices; the impact of restroom access on health, safety, and operations, and lessons learned.

Transit Cooperative Research Program

October 2022

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A toolbox accompanying the report includes helpful resources such as restroom inventory, planning, and cost estimation tools, as well as templates for restroom access policies and contract language.

Contributor(s): National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine; Transportation Research BoardTransit Cooperative Research Program; Robin Mary Gillespie, City University of New York; RLS & Associates Robbie Sarles

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Improving the Health and Safety of Transit Workers with Corresponding Impacts on the Bottom Line

Transit workers experience more health and safety problems than the general workforce, primarily as a result of a combination of physical demands, environmental factors, and stresses related to their jobs. In response, TCRP Research Report 217 focuses on the prevalence of these conditions, costs associated with these conditions, and statistical analysis of data on participation in and the results of health and wellness promotion programs.

Transit Cooperative Research Board

December 2020

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Transit workers experience more health and safety problems than the general workforce, primarily as a result of a combination of physical demands, environmental factors, and stresses related to their jobs. In response, TCRP Research Report 217 focuses on the prevalence of these conditions, costs associated with these conditions, and statistical analysis of data on participation in and the results of health and wellness promotion programs.

Contributor(s): National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine; Transportation Research BoardTransit Cooperative Research Program; Jennifer Stoloff, Frankie Clogston, Fred Bellemore, Cynthia Khan, Jeff Pongsiri, Timothy Beggs, Econometrica, Inc.; Xinge Wang, Karitsa Holdzkom, Transportation Learning Center

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Not Just an Ache: Examining the Rate of Musculoskeletal Pain in City Bus Drivers

This paper examines the rates of musculoskeletal discomfort in a sample of 957 city bus drivers at King County Metro. The researchers conducted a survey demonstrate that city bus drivers experience very high rates of musculoskeletal pain in at least one area of the body. The paper includes policy recommendations, such as the provision of active-suspension seats in the agency’s fleet of buses and better placement of key controls in the drivers’ workstation, as well as considerations for further investigation.

Mineta Transportation Institute

November 2018

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Developing Best-Practice Guidelines for Improving Bus Operator Health and Retention

This TCRP report addresses some of the health and safety issues common throughout the transit industry, and describes approaches that transit organizations in the United States and Canada have taken to address health problems faced by transit employees. The report is supplemented by a presentation, Making the Case for Transit Workplace Health Protection and Promotion, and an Excel worksheet, Transit Operator Workplace Health Protection and Promotion Planning, Evaluation, and ROI Template, that may assist transit agencies with implementing and carrying out transit-specific programs to protect the health of bus operators and other employees.

Transit Cooperative Research Program

August 2014

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