Authors: David Finegold, Marc Robbins, Lionel Galway

Date of Publication:  1998

Sponsoring Agency:  U.S. Department of Transportation, Federal Transit Administration in cooperation with the Transit Development Corporation

Abstract:

This report presents guidelines on evaluating and implementing strategies to improve
the skills of the transit industry’s maintenance workforce in order to keep pace with evolving technology. This report will be of interest to transit decision makers, maintenance managers, organized labor, vendors, human resources departments, and training personnel. The report is intended to help maintenance departments develop highly skilled, high-performance work organizations.

The accelerating pace of technological change and new government regulations are creating a new set of demands on transit maintenance organizations. The 1990 Americans with Disabilities Act mandated near-universal access to public transportation for passengers with disabilities. The Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990 set in motion stringent requirements on bus emissions. As a consequence, industry maintenance practices, collective bargaining agreements, work rules, training programs, management systems, and workers’ skills are not consistent with technological requirements. This has resulted in a knowledge gap, which undermines the industry’s ability to provide cost-effective, reliable service.
 

No. of Pages:  61