Transit mega projects are unique, expensive, and often funded by a mix of federal grants and state and local funding. Federal agencies have specific legal requirements, including specific legal provisions to include in contracts and intergovernmental agreements, and provide valuable advice for managing and coordinating such projects. The TRB Transit Cooperative Research Program's TCRP Legal Research Digest 60: Transit Mega Projects: Legal Issues includes lessons learned (successful and unsuccessful) from...

The nation’s 6,800 plus public transportation agencies need to have access to a program that can provide authoritatively researched, specific studies of legal issues and problems having national significance and application to the public transportation industry. Some legal issues and problems are unique to transit agencies. The TRB Transit Cooperative Research Program's TCRP Legal Research Digest 59: Legal Issues and Emerging Technologies provides transportation attorneys with guidance and resources to a...

Compliance with transit-equipment and operations guidelines, FTA financing initiatives, private-sector programs, and labor or environmental standards relating to transit operations are some of the legal issues and problems unique to transit agencies. The TRB Transit Cooperative Research Program's TCRP Legal Research Digest 58: Policing and Public Transportation provides a comprehensive analysis of constitutional issues and summarizes current laws and practices that apply to policing by public transportat...

In the United States, transit oriented development (TOD) is now recognized as a critical element in the planning, development, and execution of transit projects. Recent legislation has been designed to streamline the approval processes for new transportation projects, focus more on safety, and establish new programs to advance critical freight projects. The TRB Transit Cooperative Research Program's TCRP Legal Research Digest 56: Joint Development Agreements Using FTA Funds or FTA-Funded Assets aims to c...

The condition of the transportation infrastructure in the United States is an issue of national importance. State departments of transportation and transit agencies face tough choices as they make decisions about how and when to keep their assets safely open to the public. The TRB Transit Cooperative Research Program and National Cooperative Highway Research Program's  TCRP Legal Research Digest 57/NCHRP Legal Research Digest 84: Fix It, Sign It or Close It: State of Good Repair in an Era of Budget ...

Tax Increment Financing (TIF) is a public financing method that some local governments and transportation agencies may use to capture a portion of additional property (or sales) tax revenues that result when public investments cause property values (or total sales revenues) to increase. TIF is an increasingly important source of funds for transportation projects, and it has the potential to be a key part of project financing. The TRB Transit Cooperative Research Program's TCRP Legal Research Digest 55: T...

TRB's Transit Cooperative Research Program (TCRP) Legal Research Digest 54: Impacts of the Americans with Disabilities Act on Transit Agency Liability explores the types of Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) requirements and legal claims against transit agencies. The ADA has transformed U.S. transit agencies, which now have sophis­ticated programs to address a wide variety of accessibility  goals in such areas as the design of transit stations, bus and rail vehicle design, media stop announcement...

TRB's Transit Cooperative Research Program (TCRP) Legal Research Digest 53: Legal Considerations in Relationships Between Transit Agencies and Ridesourcing Service Providers explores the efforts made by public transit agencies to provide on-demand services to the public. It also provides transit agencies with legal guidance for considering whether to enter into relationships with ridesourcing service providers (RSPs). The report includes a description of ridesourcing services in the United States, state ...

TRB's Transit Cooperative Research Program (TCRP) Legal Research Digest 52: Legal Implications of Video Surveillance on Transit Systems explores the use of video surveilance systems on buses, trains, and stations. The widespread use of such video surveillance systems has generated numerous legal issues, such as a system’s ability to utilize video to discipline union and non-union employees, safety issues associated with such use, public access to such video, and retention policies regarding video, among ...

TRB's Transit Cooperative Research Program (TCRP) Legal Research Digest 51: Technology Contracting for Transit Projects examines issues that transit attorneys should be aware of when drafting technology contracts. It addresses how provisions differ depending on the nature of the contract, the type of technology being procured, and whether the system is controlled internally or externally by the agency. Specific focus is given to cloud computing as an alternative delivery mode, and indemnification. This d...