In the spirit of the It All Adds Up to Cleaner Air Air fall theme promoting alternate modes of transportation, we talked with Art Guzzetti, director of policy and advocacy for the American Public Transportation Association (APTA), about his organization and the work they do year round to promote transit and other alternate modes.

Q: What does APTA do to promote public transportation?

APTA is a nonprofit international association of over 1,500 public and private member organizations serving the public interest by providing safe, efficient and economical transit services and products. APTA's ongoing statistical analysis and policy research activities document the value of public transportation to America and its communities. Such information is made available to government officials, transit agencies, the media, Congress, public interest groups, and can be accessed through the APTA web site. APTA seeks to foster partnerships with both the governmental and private sectors in providing public education programs. Over the past several years APTA has launched a major initiative to raise public awareness about the benefits of public transportation. This initiative is known as Public Transportation Partnerships for Tomorrow, or PT2, and it has made tremendous strides in raising the bar for public transportation.

Q: What does APTA do to make public transportation more effective?

A: Conferences and training are us! APTA holds professional conferences and seminars that address a broad range of transportation issues throughout the year in all regions of the country. These conferences provide opportunities for transit professionals to address best practices, lessons learned, marketing and communications strategies, standards development and other topics that ensure our public transportation systems are operating safely and efficiently.

Q: How does APTA contribute to improving air quality?

A: APTA and its members contribute to the research and development of clean transportation technologies. Moreover, the use of transit itself can be an effective strategy to improve air quality, if used more fully … and it does so without government mandates or regulations. Transit can be especially efficient in high-density urban areas, where travel times are long due to traffic congestion. APTA is proud to be a partner with DOT, EPA, and other transportation, environmental, and health organizations in promoting transit and other environmentally sound transportation practices through It All Adds Up to Cleaner Air and the Alliance for Clean Air and Transportation.

Q: Have you noticed any consumer trends regarding public transportation?

A: Since the mid-1990's there generally has been an upward trend in public transportation ridership, with public transportation use growing by over 20% -- faster than vehicle miles traveled on our roadways and airline passenger miles logged over the same period. Trends are consistent and widespread for both rail and bus in big cities and small towns. The key is giving people a quality, dependable service they can choose.

Q: What challenges have you faced in promoting public transportation and what have you done to overcome them?

A: One of the biggest challenges continues to be community development/community design patterns that strongly favor automobile use. Indeed, many neighborhoods and shopping areas are designed specifically for automobiles, with little emphasis on the pedestrian or transit user. It is no surprise that transit has an uphill battle under such circumstances. The other challenge is the lack of a strong funding base for public transportation. Public transportation systems will not be able to meet the mobility demands of the communities they serve, and will not provide the environmentally-sensitive balance those communities so desperately need, without adequate investment. Reauthorization of the Transportation Improvement Act for the 21st Century (TEA 21) provides an opportunity to improve this situation.

Q: What recommendations do you have for smaller communities trying to promote public transportation?

A: Certainly, mobility options are needed in smaller communities. Transit agencies serve these communities through a range of options, such as smaller transit vehicles, depending on the characteristics of the community. APTA's PT2 initiative offers new tools for promoting such services. Another area where the transit industry is making good progress is in coordinating transportation services with community health and human service organizations. This is a way to assure efficiency and avoid duplication of effort by governmental programs that offer transportation services.