Federal funding is helping Wisconsin to create a Tribal Technical Assistance Program (TTAP) Center for 65 tribal nations across 30 states. The Traffic Operations and Safety Laboratory (TOPS Lab) at UW–Madison received the two-year, $625,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation. The Wisconsin Department of Transportation (WisDOT) will work through the TTAP Center to support transportation investments on tribal lands and other tribal initiatives related to training, technical assistance, and technology services.
The TTAP Center better equips tribal nations and WisDOT to work collaboratively on transportation investments on tribal lands. WisDOT’s Tribal Affairs program initiative works exclusively on tribal relations and all transportation-related issues affecting tribal communities. Some examples include:
- Dual-language highway signs: Five tribes in Wisconsin now have dual-language road signs on their tribal lands. These signs welcome travelers to tribal communities in English and native languages.
- WisDOT Region Tribal Liaisons: Liaisons serve as the first point of contact for all transportation issues impacting tribal communities and strive to develop trusting and mutually respectful relationships.
- Tribal Historic Preservation Project: This was created to strengthen tribal participation in WisDOT programming and projects with a focus on historic preservation and environmental issues.
- Inter-Tribal Task Force: This is a policy advisory group regarding any transportation related matters that may impact tribal communities.
- Tribal Labor Advisory Committee: The committee aims to develop strategies to enhance Native American job opportunities on state and federal highway projects, as well as other transportation projects, by offering training, job matching, placement, and ongoing technical support.
- Tribal Transportation Conference: The annual tribal transportation conference features presentations on safety, business and labor, cultural and environmental, and general transportation programs. The conference brings together industry, tribal, federal, and state officials.
Upon renewal by the Federal Highway Administration, the UW–Madison TOPS Lab could receive $300,000 each year for three years to continue the work of the TTAP Center. Due to the large geographic service area, UW–Madison has partnered with Lac Courte Oreilles Ojibwe University and New York State Local Technical Assistance Program Center housed at Cornell University.
