Community Engagement Plan - Updated January 2021

The Centre Area Transportation Authority (CATA) acknowledges that public participation is an integral part of the transportation planning process, and welcomes feedback, comments and suggestions from its customers and the general public.

 

In accordance with Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Centre Area Transportation (CATA) is committed to providing transportation services without regard to race, color or national origin, to assuring that no individual or group is discriminated against on those bases, and affording all individuals, including those from minority and Limited English Proficiency (LEP) communities, full and fair participation in decisions affecting transportation services.  This plan will guide CATA in offering early and continuous opportunities for the public to be involved in the identification of social, economic, and environmental impacts of proposed transportation decisions.

 

CATA accepts public input and conducts public outreach in several forums, as noted below:

 

• CATA Community Input Meetings:  CATA holds community input meetings annually for its CATABUS fixed route service / CATAGO! microtransit service (combined) and CATARIDE demand responsive service.  These are advertised through a press release, posters in vehicles and in the CATA Customer Service Center, CATA website and social media announcements, in the “CATAlog” monthly e-newsletter, and distributed to CATA’s Limited English Proficiency (LEP) support organization list.  If deemed appropriate, print display ads in local media such as the Centre Daily Times, the Daily Collegian, and the Centre County Gazette will be utilized.

 

To specifically engage Limited English Proficiency (LEP) populations in this process, community input meeting notices will be made available in Chinese on demand.  These notices can be translated directly for the client using the Google Translate function of CATA’s website, or will be made available to the client by CATA staff via the same method.  Moreover, meeting presentation materials can be made available in Chinese if requested at least five days prior to the meeting.

 

• CATA Customer Service Center:  Staff at CATA’s Customer Service Center accept comments and suggestions during business hours via telephone, email, and in person.  Moreover, to engage Limited English Proficiency (LEP) populations, documents and notices will be made available in Chinese on demand.  These documents and notices can be translated directly for the client using the Google Translate function of CATA’s website, or will be made available to the client by CATA staff via the same method.

 

• Comment & Suggestion Brochures:  Comment and suggestion brochures are available on all CATA vehicles, and completed brochures may be mailed to, or dropped off at, CATA’s Customer Service Center.  To engage Limited English Proficiency (LEP) populations, such brochures can be translated directly for the client using the Google Translate function of CATA’s website, or will be made available to the client by CATA staff via the same method.

 

• Customer Satisfaction Surveys:  CATA conducts, through a third-party vendor, customer satisfaction surveys every three years, as required by the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT).  These surveys are randomly distributed on-board routes, and are available on the CATA website.

 

Additional monthly and/or quarterly surveys are conducted when appropriate, and distributed via the CATA website, CATA’s mobile myStop app, and social media.

 

To engage Limited English Proficiency (LEP) populations, surveys and related announcements can be translated directly for the client using the Google Translate function of CATA’s website or social media pages, or will be made available to the client by CATA staff via the same method.

 

• Public Hearings:  It is the policy of CATA to provide opportunity for public comment on fare increases and significant service level changes.  This opportunity will be provided for any proposed changes in trip frequency, routing or boarding locations, and related passenger access conditions that staff and/or the CATA Board of Directors consider significant.

 

See CATA’s Public Hearing Policy for additional information on these meetings.

 

• Planning Document Development:  To facilitate citizen involvement in the development of the Long-Range Transportation Plan (LRTP), Transportation Improvement Program (TIP), and Coordinated Plan, the Centre County Metropolitan Planning Organization (CCMPO) follows a Public Participation Plan which requires that proposed plans and programs be made available for public review during a thirty (30) day comment period.  The CCMPO also holds a public hearing during the comment period.  An extensive list of “interested parties” has been developed, and the various entities are notified when plans and programs are being prepared.  CATA participates jointly with the CCMPO in TIP development, and also in its public hearings.

 

Additionally, the CCMPO maintains its own program to address Environmental Justice and Title VI regulations, and to prevent or mitigate adverse impacts to areas with concentrations of low income, minority, and LEP populations.  Concentrations of low-income and minority households have been identified and mapped based on 2010 US Census and ACS data and other information provided by local agencies and organizations, and a program to communicate with citizens in those areas about plans and programs is also maintained.

 

• Regular and Special Board of Directors Meetings:  The CATA Board of Directors holds regular meetings at 4pm on the fourth Monday of each month at the CATA administrative offices.  This location is accessible to mobility devices and persons with disabilities, and lies adjacent to CATA bus routes.

 

Each meeting is open to the public and includes a time to receive public comment at the beginning of the meeting, unless otherwise determined by the presiding officer.  Additional meetings take place as special board meetings or work sessions, which also include an opportunity for public comment.

 

The dates of the regular Board meetings are advertised in print in the Centre Daily Times each January, and are posted on the CATA website; special meetings and work sessions are publicized in the Centre Daily Times, at the CATA Customer Service Center, and on the CATA website.  To specifically engage Limited English Proficiency (LEP) populations in this process, Board meeting notices can be translated directly for the client using the Google Translate function of CATA’s website, or will be made available to the client by CATA staff via the same method.  Moreover, meeting presentation materials can be made available in Chinese if requested at least five days prior to the meeting.

 

• Social Media:  Input and comments may be submitted by the public on any of CATA’s social media platforms.  Moreover, these pages are used to convey critical service information in a timely fashion.  To engage Limited English Proficiency (LEP) populations, each includes an embedded translation function.

 

CATA Community Engagement Plan (PDF)