The 2008 Transportation and University Communities Conference, sponsored by APTA and scheduled April 5 to 8 in Reno, Nev., will provide university transportation officials with the opportunity to network with colleagues from around the country and to hear about the latest developments in marketing, sustainability, safety and security, partnerships, and emergency preparedness and response. The conference will be hosted by the Regional Transportation Commission of Washoe County (RTC) and the University of Nevada, Reno. 

One of the general sessions will discuss the development of the RTC’s Wolf Pass program, which allows University of Nevada students to buy a school-year transit pass for $75. Other topics that will be explored include UPASS programs; partnerships between universities and local institutions on such issues as parking, tolls, fare technology and land use; the challenges of providing transportation in small university towns; and a discussion of the lessons learned by transit officials from the massacre at Virginia Tech last April.  

The conference will also feature a technical tour of the RTC’s Centennial Plaza, a transit center under construction in nearby Sparks. The $22.3 million center, scheduled to open later this year, provides insights into green building design and technology.  

For more information about the conference, visit www.apta.com/conferences_calendar/univ/