HOW WE HELPED
McCormick Taylor created the online Resource Center for NJDOT Local Aid which they maintain and aid NJDOT in providing technical assistance. This website, njdotlocalaidrc.com, provides users with the latest grant opportunities and announcements, information on major access permits and outdoor advertising, holds up-to-date forms, manuals, educational resources, and highlights successful projects. McCormick Taylor uses their staff’s full breath of talent to assist with this project. It involves McCormick Taylor’s engineers, planners, web developers, communication specialists, GIS professionals, and graphic designers.
To assist LPAs, the McCormick Taylor team created and monitors both a phone hotline and email account designed to answer questions in a timely manner. NJDOT has granted the project team allowance to respond on their behalf. The McCormick Taylor team strives to respond to any inquiry within 24 hours. McCormick Taylor fields inquiries regarding project status, grant applications, project delivery process, IT concerns, and technical assistance.
To further the communication and local connection effort, McCormick Taylor developed the NJDOT Local Aid Resource Center branding and presence on Facebook, X (formerly Twitter), LinkedIn, Instagram, and YouTube. The selection of platforms was based on NJDOT’s information along with the platform’s popularity, audience base, and functionality. Social media promotion effectively built awareness and developed an online following for the Resource Center. The goals of these accounts are to distribute the latest news in a fast and quick way to followers, promote the website content and NJDOT Local Aid’s priorities, and to create awareness of the Resource Center and its many benefits. McCormick Taylor creates the graphics, develops posts, and manages all accounts.
To date, McCormick Taylor has developed over 30 videos to connect with LPAs. The Resource Center team created promotional videos to explain the purpose behind the Resource Center, share best practice examples from across the state, and create professional training videos that assist users in administrative processes and break down complicated technical requirements. Video production has included storyboarding, interviews with local officials, shooting b-roll footage, developing graphics, and editing the video.
The McCormick Taylor team also utilizes their GIS capabilities to create maps and tools for LPAs to utilize. The McCormick Taylor team has mapped the statewide Transit Villages, created a free map maker tool for LPA use in grant applications, developed StoryMaps about successful trail projects, and has created an Equity tool for NJDOT’s internal use.
In 2021, NJDOT undertook a large process change and converted their submissions from paper to an electronic system called Project Management and Reporting System (PMRS). The McCormick Taylor team created the website of tools, conducted live trainings over 800 municipal officials, and responds to questions regarding PMRS. In conjunction with the shift to PMRS, the McCormick Taylor team has trained the LPA engineers and other project team members on how to utilize Bluebeam, a necessary program for PMRS users.
The McCormick Taylor team also attends and plans many in-person events. The team planned the Local Aid Listening Session with over 200 attendees, organizes the booth annually for the New Jersey League of Municipalities conference, attends conferences such as the NJ Complete Streets and Safety Summit, and has participated in presentations and presentation prep for conferences such as the TransAction and NJ Redevelopment and Planning Conference.
To date, the McCormick Taylor team has worked with the City of Trenton, City of Pleasantville, City of Newark, and Atlantic City to progress many of their outstanding Municipal Aid projects. They have participated in NJ Local Technical Assistance Program (NJ LTPA) trainings, conducted personalized phone calls to all municipalities to remind them about the Municipal Aid grant deadline, and conducted over 200 pre-application meetings for the Safe Routes to School and Transportation Alternatives Set-Aside program. In the pre-application meetings, the McCormick Taylor team uses their technical knowledge to assist municipalities one to one by providing application and project guidance, reviewing project documentation, and educating each municipality about the grant programs.
