The Regional Travel Options (RTO) grant program provides funding to support projects and programs that educate, encourage, and provide information to people in order to increase their use of travel options. Travel options include any mode of transportation besides driving alone –carpooling, vanpooling, riding transit, bicycling, walking, rolling, shared mobility and telecommuting.
Donor Name: Metro
State: Oregon
County: Clackamas County (OR), Multnomah County (OR) and Washington County (OR)
Type of Grant: Grant
Deadline: 03/31/2023
Details:
Metro’s Regional Travel Options (RTO) program supports the region’s goals of creating safe, vibrant, and livable communities by investing in efforts that increase access to travel options. In doing so, the program helps advance regional transportation goals including managing congestion, maintaining air quality, making the most of their transportation investments, and providing travel options equitably to communities throughout greater Portland. In addition to administering RTO grants, the RTO program provides policy guidance, research, regional coordination, technical assistance, and direct program administration.
The RTO Program centers its activities and resources on three key Program Areas: Commute, Safe Routes to School (SRTS), and Community:
Commute
Commute trip reduction programming is an important component of reducing greenhouse gas emissions and managing congestion during peak travel times. These programs focus on reducing single occupancy vehicle (SOV) trips to work and colleges or universities, with a particular emphasis on increasing economic opportunities to underserved communities. In the Metro region, that programming is delivered by a variety of transit providers, local jurisdictions, transportation management agencies (TMAs), non-profit organizations, and “in-house” transportation coordinators. Collectively, their work aims to ensure employers and schools are aware of the many commute benefits available to offer, and commuters are encouraged to use non-SOV modes.
Safe Routes to School (SRTS)
SRTS is a national effort to encourage students and families to walk and roll to school – whether by bike, bus, scooter, or mobility device. SRTS programs provide education and encouragement activities to help children and parents travel safely to and from school using these modes. They are a proven way to change travel behaviors and help people use active transportation options. SRTS programs can increase physical activity, reduce congestion, boost academic performance, improve health, save families money, and provide environmental benefits in an equitable way.
Community
Providing support for residents and families for trips outside of work and school is the core component of community-based travel options. Examples of programming to support these trips comes in the form of community walking and rolling events or campaigns, trip and route planning to-and-from key destinations, and increasing access to active transportation investments with outreach, engagement, and supportive infrastructure. This program area prioritizes addressing community-identified needs and barriers to travel options.
Purpose of the Program
RTO grant funds are primarily intended for the following purposes:
- Staff salaries for eligible programs (with the exception of grant categories in the Small Grants application track, which does not fund staff time).
- Non-capital materials and services directly related to and necessary for the RTO grantfunded program work. This includes consulting services, marketing and outreach materials, and incentives.
- Planning efforts to inform TDM programs and plans.
- Agency capacity building to develop new RTO program efforts at the local or community level.
- Participation in RTO-led initiatives and RTO stakeholder collaboration.
- Data collection and evaluation of RTO-funded program activities.
RTO Grant Requirements
All projects/programs must:
- Increase access to, and use of, travel options (biking, walking, shared mobility, public transit, telecommuting, carpool, and vanpool).
- Fit within either the Commute, Safe Routes to School or Community program area.
- Occur within the Portland Metropolitan Planning Area.
- Align with goals and objectives identified in the 2018 RTO Strategy and the 2018 Regional Transportation Plan.
All applicants must:
- Enter into a contractual agreement with Metro that specifies legal and contractual obligations. Once all parties sign the contract, funds become available for reimbursement.
- Deliver projects or programs within the agreed-upon scope of work (SOW), timeline, and budget.
- Provide a minimum match of 10.27% of the total project amount. RTO funds can pay up to 89.73% of project or program costs. Cash match (non-federal/non-Metro) or in-kind local match (donated product or volunteer time) is required. Funds from other Metro grants or federal sources cannot be applied towards the minimum match requirement.
- Follow federal procurement standards for all purchases above $10,000 and third-party contracting, as explained in FTA’s Third Party Contracting Guidance. Applicants should consider these procurement requirements while planning and budgeting for the project or program.
As RTO grants are reimbursement only, applicants must
- have up-front funding available and sufficient to cover the costs associated with delivering their grant. Metro cannot advance grant funds prior to work being done or other costs incurred.
- Submit invoices with supporting documentation each quarter for reimbursement (Exception: Small Grants Track submits one invoice for reimbursement).
- Submit progress reports using consistent agreed-upon reporting methods each quarter.
- Submit a separate final report at the end of the grant that summarizes the grant activity, results, and lessons learned. (Exception: Small Grants Track submits only one (final) report).
Eligibility Criteria
Government agencies, colleges, universities, public school districts or schools (K-12), and non-profit organizations are eligible to apply for an RTO grant. Private, for-profit organizations are not eligible to directly receive FTA grant funding.
For more information, visit Metro.
