American City and County

After more than 10 years of watching other public sector organizations undergo the process, the American Public Works Association (APWA) has developed their own accreditation program. The self-assessment phase can be treated simply as a checklist or as a major element in strategic planning. The second phase in gaining accreditation follows directly from the self-assessment. This improvement phase offers opportunities for the agency to form teams that will be involved in any decision-making. Improvements could include the development of new policies, procedures, and methods of operations, or the revision of old ones. The final phase involves an on-site evaluation by an outside group of APWA professionals, who review written records and policies; and interview staff, managers, elected officials, and community leaders. The evaluation groups also makes field observations. Initial accreditation is for a 3-year period, but annual updates are required to ensure continuing compliance. The organization's accreditation council is in the process of developing guidelines for reaccreditation.

B Sterling

The American city & county

ACCREDITATION: CERTIFYING PUBLIC WORKS EXCELLENCE

认证：确保公共工程卓越

The American Discovery Trail (ADT) is made up of new trails and portions of old ones to form a continuous line from Delaware to California. It is the outgrowth of an effort by Backpacker magazine and members of the American Hiking Society to create a nationwide trail system that they hoped would come to within 15 minutes of all U.S. residents. The ADT does not meet that ambitious criteria, but it does come to within 20 mi of 32 million residents. Despite the trail's varied attractions, the National Park Service determined that the ADT does not fit any of the criteria to be part of the National Trails system: scenic trails, which are located primarily in wilderness areas; and trails that follow paths with historic significance. The ADT uses some streets and sidewalks through urban and rural communities, and, although several historic trails are included in the ADT, they are only portions of it. Thus, the ADT Society is trying for the third time to amend the National Trails System Act to create a new category for discovery trails. The society is touting the ADT's recent designation by the U.S. Department of Transportation as one of 16 National Millennium Trails. Volunteers in each state along the trail are marking its course and creating detailed maps for travelers to follow from town to town. The ADT Society expects the final trail to span 6,500 mi through mountains, plains, forests, and deserts from sea to shining sea.

L Isaacs

BLAZING AMERICA'S NEW COAST-TO-COAST TRAIL

《点燃美国新横贯大陆步道》

Small and rural communities across the country are facing serious infrastructure challenges. That is the conclusion reached over the last 3 years by participants in two independent projects set up to address public works in those communities. The first project was the outgrowth of a discussion between leaders of the American Public Works Association (APWA) and officials of the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) that focused on the idea of holding a series of think tanks throughout the United States on the transportation challenges facing small and rural communities. The second project involved a series of meetings hosted by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, which formed a small systems working group under the auspices of the National Drinking Water Advisory Council to deal with the challenges to small and rural drinking water systems. The APWA/FHWA project focused on communities of less than 50,000. Communication--and the lack thereof--tended to be the overriding concern common to many of the discussions. The idea that rural communities need to work together under a new philosophy of mutual aid was another significant outcome of the discussions. Public works departments must develop strategies to increase awareness of the importance of public works and the need for infrastructure improvements.

Bruce Florquist

SMALL COMMUNITIES FACE BIG PUBLIC WORKS HEADACHES

小社区面临重大公共工程难题

Although bond insurance does not command the market it once did, local governments still are finding it a useful way to ensure that their projects will be built and their bonds paid. Insured municipal bonds helped Boston, Massachusetts, build its Deer Island sludge digester system as part of a project that is cleaning up Boston Harbor. San Francisco, California, is using insured bonds to complete a $2.4 billion expansion of its airport and build what will be the largest international terminal in the United States. Both international public finance and structured finance have grown and matured through the last 2 decades. As bond insurers have diversified into other areas, municipal finance has begun to play a less prominent role. Recently, insurers have begun to cover fewer new issues in the municipal market. The majority of the industry's portfolio of insurance tipped toward asset-backed transactions for the first time in 1999. Bond insurers have become more selective about deals, accounting for the drop in the proportion of insured. Municipal officials can expect to see a more careful bond insurance industry over the coming months.

N Cohen

SHIELDING LOCAL GOVERNMENT: A LOOK AT BOND INSURANCE

《保护地方政府：债券保险探析》

This article discusses the growing trend by cities and counties to redesign roads to make them more community and pedestrian friendly through incorporation of public places into road and transportation planning. The practice has been termed Context-Sensitive Design and is concerned with the manner in which streets and highways are routed through living spaces. Several tips for building context-sensitive roadways are listed, and examples of successful efforts across the U.S. are provided.

J Gavin

A ROAD RUNS THROUGH IT

一条路贯穿其中

Most city and county fleet managers are entering a third budgetary cycle highlighted with cuts to capital funds for vehicle replacement, as well as slashed operating expenses. This article highlights what fleet managers throughout the country are doing to maintain service levels without going over budget. Many are relying on a combination of thoroughly analyzing the size and capabilities of the fleet versus the demands of the various departments, buying quality merchandise and performing proper maintenance. One strategy is to buy more robust equipment, so the county can push a vehicle past nominal replacement cycles if needed. When it comes to maintenance, the focus for the city and county fleet managers is where to spend budget dollars over the life of the vehicle to reach the 10- or 12-year mark. Proper, consistent maintenance on such items as brakes, tires, the engine and the hydraulic systems on the body can allow vehicles to obtain a 10-year life, despite some metal fatigue on the chassis frame. On the other hand, extending preventive maintenance intervals also is a tactic worth considering.

Publication Information	Publisher: UBM Exhibition Singapore PTE LTD，Publishing cycle: ，Journal Type: journal，Open Access Journals: No
Basic data	Year of publication: 2008，Proportion of original research papers: 0.00%，Self Citation Rate:N.A.， Gold OA Rate: 0.00%

American City and County

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ACCREDITATION: CERTIFYING PUBLIC WORKS EXCELLENCE

BLAZING AMERICA'S NEW COAST-TO-COAST TRAIL

SMALL COMMUNITIES FACE BIG PUBLIC WORKS HEADACHES

SHIELDING LOCAL GOVERNMENT: A LOOK AT BOND INSURANCE

A ROAD RUNS THROUGH IT

Keeping the Wheels Turning

Keeping the Wheels Turning

Keeping the Wheels Turning

Keeping the Wheels Turning

Keeping the Wheels Turning

ISSN	0149-337X, 2161-9123
h-index	4