VITRAN MISSION STATEMENT
The mission of the Virgin Islands Department of Public Works (VIDPW), Division of Transportation is to oversee and promote public transit as a viable transportation option within the Territory. VITRAN, the Territory’s public transit system, aims to connect riders to a multimodal, surface and water transit system allowing for technologically advanced, safe, *reliable *and *affordable * connections to employment, education, healthcare and other essential or leisure services.
VIDPW aims to better serve the public through continuous improvements to the transit system ensuring the safety of our clients, accessibility and supporting the economic progress and energy efficiency of the U.S. Virgin Islands as a whole.
Division of Public Transportation Mission Statement
The mission of the Division of Public Transportation is to promote public transit as a viable transportation option in the Territory. The Division was created to maintain and improve public transportation services in the U. S. Virgin Islands. The Division has responsibility for transportation planning, highway research, planning oversight of the Virgin Islands Public Transit System (VITRAN) Public Parking Lots, and all traffic control devices to include pavement markings, traffic signs and the traffic signal control systems.
The Office of Public Transportation, a component of the Division, has been designated as the grant recipient for the Territory’s Federal Transit Administration (FTA) Urbanized Area Formula (UAF) Grant Program administered by the Federal Transit Administration.
Federal Transit Administration DBE Goal Methodology
In accordance with the requirements of 49 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 26, THE VIRGIN ISLANDS DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC WORKS DBE PROGRAM has developed a proposed Overall Goal for FY 2018-2020 on all Federal Transit Administration financially assisted projects within the Department. The DBE Program covers federally assisted projects in the territory (St. Croix, St. Thomas and St. John)
Drug & Alcohol Free Workplace
The Government of the Virgin Islands, Department of Public Works provides public transportation and paratransit services for the residents of St. Thomas, St. John, and St. Croix. Part of the mission of the Department is to ensure that this service is delivered safely, efficiently, and effectively by establishing a drug and alcohol-free workplace environment, and to ensure that the workplace remains free from the effects of drugs and alcohol in order to promote the health and safety of employees and the general public. In keeping with this mission, VITRAN declares that the unlawful manufacture, distribution, disposing, possession, or use of controlled substances or misuse of alcohol is prohibited for all employees.
The unlawful manufacture, dispensing, possession, or use of a controlled substance is prohibited in the workplace.
As a condition of employment employees must abide by all the terms of the Drug-Free Workplace policy.
If convicted of a drug statute violation occurring in the workplace, employees must report such violation to the Department of Public Works in writing no later than five (5) days after such conviction.
Drug & Alcohol Policy
The purpose of this policy is to establish guidelines to maintain a drug and alcohol-free workplace in compliance with the Drug-Free Workplace Act of 1988 and the Omnibus Transportation Employee Testing Act of 1991. This policy is intended to comply with all applicable Federal regulations governing workplace anti-drug and alcohol programs in the transit industry.
Specifically, the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) of the U.S. Department of Transportation has published 49 CFR Part 655, that mandates urine drug testing and breath alcohol testing for safety-sensitive positions and prohibits performance of safety-sensitive functions when there is a positive test result or when an employee has refused to submit to a required test. The U. S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) has also published 49 CFR Part 40, that describes the employer’s role and responsibility related to this regulation, the drug and alcohol testing process, and defines DOT’s return-to-duty process when an employee has tested positive or refused to submit to a required test.