Milestones:

• Barry Cotton passed away.

• Wayne Hewes has left Franconia for Waterville Valley .

• Meghan Murphy has joined Goffstown as the Town Engineer.

• Keith Weed has left the town of Claremont and is the new Road Agent in Charlestown .

Websites:

UNH T2 Center: http://www.t2.unh.edu

Traffic Safety Showcase

Funds Available for Travel

In the 1990s the Mendocino County Engineer addressed a high accident rate on his hilly, coastal California roads. He and several staff members surveyed the signs and pavement markings of the heaviest traveled roads. They then installed many new signs and pavement markings.

Several years later, they found that crashes on those roads decreased by 42%. On the rest of the network, accidents had increased 26%. They expanded the surveys to the remaining two-thirds of Mendocino County’s roads. Again, accident rates decreased.

Mendocino County will share program details in a Traffic Safety Review (TSR) Showcase in Ukiah CA on September 28-29, 2004. It will include visits to field sites of improved roads. Staff will mark original conditions to show reasons for corrective measures. Participants will develop skills to conduct TSRs. In groups they will conduct reviews and recommend corrections, and share conclusions with all participants. They will also receive post-showcase support.

Through FHWA, the UNH T² Center has arranged for reimbursement of the registration fee and all travel costs for two people from NH municipalities. The travel expenses include airfare, ground transportation in NH and in CA, hotel, meals, and federally allowed incidentals. If interested, please contact Kathy at the Center.

Grants can become a steady source of funding for municipalities as many local governments suffer from budgetary woes and grants are an attractive option. To improve the chance to receive funds, follow these tips:

• Hire a consultant to analyze business process as grant reviewers can quickly spot ill-conceived projects.

• Ensure the proposal meets the eligibility guidelines.

• Read the application carefully. Often applicants are rejected because the form is completed incorrectly.

• Most grants include a checklist. Read it carefully. If there isn’t a checklist, create one.

• Watch for unannounced changes in grant eligibility guidelines. Even a minor change could have major consequences.

• Visit the grant’s website to obtain grant informa­tion.

• Talk to sponsors and representatives, especially if the application has been turned down. They can help with future submissions.

• Attend grant workshops for valuable “how to” information and the chance to talk with grant program decision-makers.

Source:

American City and County, Vol. 118, No. 10, page 22