< Back to Session View 

A History of the Local Technical Assistance Program (LTAP)

Date and Time: Tuesday, July 25: 10:30 AM - 12:00 PM
Location: Grand Ballroom A

 

Lead Presenter: David Orr

Director, Cornell University Local Roads Program

Speaker Biography

David P. Orr, PE, PhD. is Director / Senior Engineer for the Cornell University Local Roads Program, the New York State LTAP Center. With over 30 years in the local highway community, David has experiences covering the gamut from the field to the office and from storms to sunny days. He has a broad range of expertise and experience in highway engineering and construction, including design, inspection, project management, purchasing, budgeting and supervision.

David’s time at Cornell is split between extension and research with a focus on low volume roads and seasonal effects on pavements. He interacts with local, state and national partners and works closely with CLRP customers and provides technical assistance to highway and public works officials in New York State. He was the 2018-2019 President of NLTAPA, the association of 52 LTAP & TTAP Centers located across the county. Before joining the Program, he worked for eight years at the Yates County Highway Department. He is a licensed professional engineer in New York State and has Ph.D. on local roads from Cornell University.

Co-Authors 

Presentation Description/Paper Summary

Local highway and public works agencies manage most of the road milage throughout the United States and despite this vast responsibility, the men and women working within these agencies often have very little formal education or training outside of learning on the job. As the nation’s road system grew, it became apparent that local roads agencies would need some access to training, education, and technical assistance. Today, these services are provided by Local Technical Assistance Program (LTAP) Centers located in every state, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, with an additional Tribal Technical Assistance Program (TTAP) serving U.S. tribal lands. By serving local roads workers and managers on the ground with low-cost, highly accessible training, LTAP centers provide an essential public service to agencies with little access to workforce development and support opportunities.

By examining the history leading up to the creation of today's LTAP program, we can understand how support for the management and maintenance workforce of the national local roads system has evolved and why it is vital to continue that support. This historical survey also explores the positive value that LTAP centers, and the support programs predating them, bring to the largest jurisdictional sector of U.S. roads. By coordinating with major research universities, state DOTs, the Federal Highway Administration, and numerous industry groups, LTAP centers can deliver benefits to local transportation professionals at a lower cost than any other comparable option.

Presentation File

Poster