DVRPC News: April 2011

DVRPC News: The Newsletter of the Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission

Volume 32, Issue 6
April 2011

 

Register Now to Trade In Your Old Lawn Mower

red lawnmower Residents in southeastern Pennsylvania will have an opportunity to get rid of their old, gasoline-powered lawn mowers and purchase environmentally friendly, discounted electric or battery-powered mowers at an event on Saturday, May 7 in Springfield Township, Montgomery County.

Hosted by the Air Quality Partnership (AQP), the event will run from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. in the Springfield Township High School parking lot at 1801 East Paper Mill Road, Erdenheim, PA.

Interested residents are required to pre-register at www.airqualitypartnership.org. The first 140 registrants will receive a $50 voucher toward a new, electric or battery-powered lawn mower. Black and Decker will be on-site, giving up to an additional 30% off to those who purchase a mower at the event. Participants must trade in an old mower in order to receive the voucher and discount. Registration will close at 250 participants.

The AQP is partnering with Sustainable Waste Solutions to haul away the old mowers. All mowers must be drained of fluids before drop-off. A list of county hazardous waste days can be found at www.airqualitypartnership.org.

AQP is a DVRPC program that educates residents about the dangerous effects of ground-level ozone, and provides air quality forecasts to the public. Gas-powered lawn mowers are a major contributor to ground-level ozone, and purchasing an electric mower is just one way the public can help the environment. To sign-up for air quality forecasts and alerts, and for tips on how to reduce air pollution, visit the newly redesigned website, www.airqualitypartnership.org.

 

Regional Excellence Awards to Be Announced Later This Year

DVRPC logo In the past, DVRPC has held an annual Celebration of Regional Excellence dinner, which brought together over 300 stakeholders and planning partners to present the Regional Excellence Awards and announce the recipient of the John J. Coscia Scholarship. DVRPC has made the difficult decision not to host an annual dinner this year. The changing economy and new priorities are an indication to us that this time and money can be better spent in other areas.

We do plan, however, to continue to honor the individuals, organizations, governments, and businesses that have contributed to moving the Delaware Valley toward a progressive and economically sound future. We will be announcing the Regional Excellence Award recipients later in the year.

You can directly contribute to the John J. Coscia Scholarship Fund, which has been established at the University of Pennsylvania. Checks can be made payable to the Trustees of the University of Pennsylvania and note that they are for the John Coscia Scholarship Fund. Please have all checks sent to: Suzann Morris, Assistant Director for Development and Alumni Relations, University of Pennsylvania School of Design, 102 Meyerson Hall, 210 South 34th Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104.

Please contact Candace Snyder, DVRPC Public Affairs Director, at 215-238-2875 or public_affairs@dvrpc.org, with any questions.

 

DVRPC Awards $6.4 Million for Transportation Services for Low Income, Reverse Commuters

woman on wheelchair lift To provide access to jobs for low-income workers and reverse commuters, DVRPC has approved approximately $6.4 million in funding for the Job Access and Reverse Commute (JARC) program in southeastern Pennsylvania as part of the Coordinated Human Services Transportation Planning (CHSTP) efforts.

The JARC program is intended to help fund transportation services and supportive activities that facilitate access to jobs for welfare recipients, lower income persons, and reverse commuters. It supplements the region's public transportation system, such as expanding early morning and evening services and providing shuttles connecting transit stations to employment sites.

The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) provides almost $2.2 million in grant funds for Pennsylvania counties in the DVRPC region, while close to $4.3 million is provided by the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT). These resources will fund the 28 recommended Pennsylvania JARC projects through Fiscal Year 2012.

To receive a list of the funded projects or for more information, contact Meghan Weir, Transportation Planner, at 215-238-2832 or mweir@dvrpc.org. For more information about CHSTP work at DVRPC, visit www.dvrpc.org/CoordinatedHumanServices/.

 

DVRPC Map Wins National GIS Award

Isochrones map showing Transit Accessibility DVRPC won first place in the map contest at the GIS-T symposium, with a poster titled, "Accessibility for Alternative Locations Derived from Google Transit Feeds." The maps featured on the poster show transit accessibility in Greater Philadelphia. Isochrones, the color-coded areas that show travel times from Center City, were created in VISUM, the software used for DVPRC's regional forecasting model.

For more information, contact Drashti Joshi, Transportation Engineer, at 215-238-2944 or djoshi@dvrpc.org.