ADA - Americans With Disabilities Act - Federal civil rights legislation for disabled persons passed in 1990; calls on public transit systems to make their services more fully accessible as well as to underwrite a parallel network of paratransit service.

APTA - American Public Transit Association  The national, nonprofit trade association representing the public transit industry.

ASR - alkali-silica reactivity.

ASTM - American Society for Testing and Materials.  An organization to establish test standards for materials, products, systems, and services for a wide range of industries.

ATRI - Alliance for Transportation Research Institute.

BRITE - Border Region Information on Transportation and the Environment.  BRITE is an online, fully-searchable annotated bibliography on transportation and the environment in the US–Mexico border region that was developed by the ATR Institute.

CRRAFT - Client Referral, Ridership, and Financial Tracking system.  A Web-based software program designed to integrate human service transportation referral with daily rural public transit operations.

CTAA - Community Transportation Association of America.  Bringing together community members to identify mobility challenges and design transit solutions since 1989.

CVISN - Commercial Vehicle Information Systems and Networks.  CVISN is the collection of state, federal and private sector information systems and communications networks that support commercial vehicle operations.

CVO - Commercial Vehicle Operations.  Includes all the operations associated with moving goods and passengers via commercial vehicles over the North American highway system and the activities necessary to regulate these operations.

DOT - Department of Transportation.  At the federal level, a cabinet agency with responsibility for highways, mass transit, aviation and ports; headed by the secretary of transportation. The DOT includes the FHWA , the FTA and the FAA, among others. There are also state DOTs.

DD - Developmental disability.

EBT - Electronic Benefits Transfer.  A debit card used to purchase products and services.

FHWA - Federal Highway Administration.  An agency within the U.S. Department of Transportation.

FTA - Federal Transit Administration.  An agency within the U.S. Department of Transportation.

GIS - Geographic Information System.  A computerized data management system designed to capture, store, retrieve, analyze, and report geographic and demographic information.

GPS - Global Positioning System.  A government-owned system of 24 earth orbiting satellites that transmit data to ground-based receivers. GPS provides extremely accurate latitude and longitude ground positions in WGS-84 coordinates.

GASF - Great American Station Foundation.  The Great American Station Foundation was created in 1996 to revitalize communities through new construction or conversion and restoration of existing rail passenger stations, and the possible conversion of historic non-railroad structures to active station use.

Intermodal - Those issues or activities which involve or affect more than one mode of transportation, including transportation connections, choices, cooperation and coordination of various modes. Also known as "multimodal".

ISTEA - Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act.  Pronounced "Ice Tea," this landmark $155 billion federal legislation signed into law in December 1991 calls for broad changes in the way transportation decisions are made. ISTEA emphasizes diversity and balance of modes, as well as the preservation of existing systems before construction of new facilities.

ITS - Intelligent Transportation Systems.

NMDOT - New Mexico Department of Transportation.  The state agency that operates New Mexico's transportation systems.  The New Mexico Department of Transportation's primary responsibility is to plan, build, and maintain a statewide transportation network which will serve the social and economic interest of our citizens in a productive, cost-effective innovative manner.

NMPTA - New Mexico Passenger Transportation Association.  Since 1987, the NMTPA has been the collective voice for New Mexico public transportation. Whether addressing rural transportation needs, providing training to its members, or building agreements among affected agencies, the NMPTA helps support the public transportation sector.

NMSHTD - New Mexico State Highway and Transportation Department.  Former name of the New Mexico Department of Transportation (NMDOT).  NMDOT became official on July 1, 2003.

NTS - National Transportation System.  An intermodal system consisting of all forms of transportation in a unified, interconnected manner to reduce energy consumption and air pollution while promoting economic development and supporting the Nation's preeminent position in international commerce. The NTS includes the National Highway System (NHS), public transportation and access to ports and airports.

PCC - Portland cement concrete

POE - Port of Entry.  A roadside site used to monitor and regulate trucks using state highways with respect to weight, size, safety and possibly weight distance taxation.

PQI - Pavement Quality Indicator

PTPB - Public Transportation Programs Bureau.  A bureau within the New Mexico Department of Transportation that oversees publicly funded transit programs in New Mexico.

RTAP - Rural Transit Assistance Program.  RTAP's goals are to identify and disseminate high quality information and training to rural transit operators who received federal funding and provide technical assistance services and materials to state programs.

Smart Card - Plastic cards with an embedded integrated circuit chip containing memory and microprocessor. 

STPP - Surface Transportation Policy Project.  A diverse coalition representing transportation, planning, architectural, energy, environmental and historic preservation interests whose goal is to develop a national transportation policy that, in its words, "better serves the environmental, social and economic interests of the nation." A key player in the crafting of ISTEA.

SVTC - South Valley Transportation Committee.  A coalition of small businesses and neighborhood associations in Albuquerque, New Mexico, organized to provide alternative transportation systems and develop smart growth policies for the area.  The SVTC has brought the issues of transportation to the forefront of land use, agricultural productivity, cultural preservation, educational opportunities, and small business development.

SWTA - South West Transit Association.  SWTA is a regional transit association representing: Arizona, Arkansas, Kansas, Louisiana, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Texas.  SWTA was formed in 1979 to represent transit agencies and others interested in public transit issues.

TANF - Temporary Assistance to Needy Families.  Program which was created by the Welfare Reform Law of 1996. TANF became effective July 1, 1997, and replaced what was then commonly known as welfare: Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC) and the Job Opportunities and Basic Skills Training (JOBS) programs. Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) provides assistance and work opportunities to needy families by granting states the federal funds and wide flexibility to develop and implement their own welfare programs.

TOD - Transit Oriented Development.  Transit Oriented Development focuses a mix of land-uses, such as residential, office, shopping, civic uses and entertainment within easy walking distance from a transit station (1/4 mi., 5-10 minutes). This mix of uses, combined with thoughtfully designed community spaces, plazas, etc., forms a vibrant village-like neighborhood where people can live, work and play. Such a village is compact in size, pedestrian-friendly in design, can be customized to offer a wide variety of housing options, with convenient access to services, jobs, and plenty of ways to get around.

TEA-21 - Transportation Efficiency Act for the 21st Century.  The TEA-21 was enacted June 9, 1998, as Public Law 105-178.  TEA-21 authorizes the Federal surface transportation programs for highways, highway safety, and transit for the 6-year period 1998-2003. 

TRAM - The online searchable database of the organizations, agencies and people that make up the many facets of the radioactive transportation process.  The TRAM database contains over 800 groups involved in the transportation of radioactive wastes and materials by their major work function, minor work function, geographical scope, and internal or external DOE status. (See T-REX)

TRB - Transportation Research Board.  Under direction of National Academy of Science’s National Research council, it stimulates, correlates and makes known the findings of transportation research. 

TRES - Transportation Resource Exchange Service.  An on-line, trans-border repository for transportation-related information and resources.  TRES provides on-line information to agencies and individuals involved in transportation research and program implementation in the U.S.-Mexico border region.

T-REX - Transportation Resource Exchange Center.  T-REX is a comprehensive Web site where you will find the answers to complex questions surrounding radioactive materials transportation. The T-REX Web site provides pertinent documents, databases, and links to the people, organizations, and programs that are involved in the transport of radioactive materials. 

T-REXDEX - The Transportation Resource Exchange Center Index.  The T-REXDEX is a searchable index of the documents in the T-REX Virtual Library. Over 2,000 documents are included in this database covering all facets of the transportation of radioactive materials process.

UNM - University of New Mexico.

VETD - Virtual Environment for Transportation Data.

WTW - Welfare-to-Work.  U.S. Department of Labor program designed to help the hardest to employ into the workforce.

wtw - welfare to work.  A generic term referring to welfare reform since 1996; under the program individuals who receive TANF benefits who are able to work must work.

wtwtrans-L - Electronic bulletin board for transportation-related information for TANF and WTW organizations.