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Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission
Bureau of Archives and History
Pennsylvania State Archives


RG-52

Records of the DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Series Descriptions

Secretary

The Secretary of Transportation is responsible for the development, maintenance and operation of a balanced transportation system that includes highways, mass transit, rail service, aviation and various forms of assistance to municipalities.

 

Deputy Secretary for Administration

The responsibilities of the Deputy Secretary include personnel, finance, contract administration, purchasing, information services, and the IT Program Office, the Center for Performance Excellence, the Tourism Services Office, and the Bureau of Equal Employment Opportunity. In providing these support services to the Department, the deputate is responsible for managing resources, monitoring spending, and ensuring that management and productivity controls are in place to maximize departmental operations.

The Deputy Secretary is directly responsible for the Bureaus of Fiscal Management, Information Systems, Equal Opportunity, Office Services, Personnel and Operations Review Group.

 

Deputy Secretary for Aviation and Rail Freight


This deputate was established by Act 1982-66. The Deputy Secretary oversees the administration of financial assistance grants and technical assistance totaling over $60 million annually, to manage 134 public use aviation facilities and 67 regional and shortline railroad operators for maintenance and construction. Bureaus directly responsible to the Deputy Secretary include the Bureau of Aviation and the Bureau of Rail Freight, Ports and Waterways.

Minutes of the Pennsylvania Aeronautics Commission,
1943-1970.
(2 cartons)

{series #52.3} [Holdings]

Arranged chronologically by date of meeting.

A record of the meetings of the Pennsylvania Aeronautics Commission that was created in 1943 to promote and regulate aeronautics in the Commonwealth. The commission was abolished in 1970 and its powers and duties were transferred to the Department of Transportation. The minutes generally provide the names and titles of persons in attendance, the report of the executive director on staff activities and the status of airports licensed or closed, a progress report on the Federal/State Aid Airport Construction Program, an enforcement and accident investigation statistical summary, a listing of requests and resolutions for the approval of airport sites, a listing of requests and approval resolutions for money to be expended as the state share in the federal aid airport program, and a financial statement of the appropriations and expenditures of the commission.

Pennsylvania Aeronautics Commission Reports,
1943-1959.
(1 box)

{series #52.4} [Holdings]

Arranged chronologically by date of report.

Primarily annual and biennial reports of the Pennsylvania Aeronautics Commission. Also included are annual reports of the enforcement and accident division; a report on the accomplishments of the Pennsylvania Aeronautics Commission, 1943-1951; a report on the accomplishments of the Aeronautics Commission during Governor Duff's Administration; a 1949 statistical report; and a publication titled "A Great Step Forward in Civil Aviation", published in 1955, 1956, and 1959, which provide a history of the commission from 1943 until the date of publication. The reports generally provide information including a list of commission officials; a sketch on the creation, organization, and powers of the commission; and narrative and statistical information relating to the activities of the commission concerning airport construction, airport licensing and inspection, airport safety improvement, enforcement and accident investigation, air navigational aids, civil defense, public relations, aviation education, the air search and rescue program, state owned aircraft, and the Harrisburg State Airport.

Pennsylvania Aeronautics Commission Subject Files,
1941, 1943-1961.
(1 box and 1 carton)

{series #52.5} [Holdings]

Arranged alphabetically by subject.

Alphabetical subject files of the Pennsylvania Aeronautical Commission. Consists primarily of correspondence and reports relating to the activities of the commission, but also includes a commission administrative history, an air search and rescue procedure manual, committee reports and transcripts of the airport use panel, maps, newspaper clippings, a photograph, press releases, and publications. Topics highlighted include the Abolishment of State Aeronautics Commissions, Air Transport Requirements of Pennsylvania, Airport construction allocations, the Airport Safety Improvement Program, cases before the Civil Aeronautics Board, the Federal Aid Airport Program, history of the Aeronautics Commission, and individual Airports such as Centerville, Coatesville, Delaware County, Middletown, North Philadelphia, Philipsburg, Pottstown, State College, and Wings.

Deputy Secretary for Highway Administration

The Deputy Secretary is responsible for oversight of maintenance, operations, design and construction of Pennsylvania’s Highways and Bridges. This deputate includes the bureaus of Design; Construction and Materials; Maintenance and Operations; Environmental Quality; Highway Safety and Traffic Engineering; the 11 engineering districts and county maintenance offices.

 

Deputy Secretary for Local and Area Transportation

The Deputy Secretary oversees the functions and duties regarding services to municipalities; local and public transportation; planning, development and funding of local and public transportation; and environmental design improvement of transportation services. This office was organized in 1970 when the Department was created. Bureaus in this deputate include the bureau of Public Transportation and Municipal Services.

Local and Area Transportation Program Files,
1970-1984.
(116 cartons)

{series #52.1} [Holdings]

Grouped according to general, aviation or railroad topics, and thereafter arranged alphabetically by subject.

Series contains subject files from the office of the Deputy Secretary for Local and Area Transportation relating to Departmental programs in the Bureau of Aviation, Bureau of Mass Transit Systems, Bureau of Municipal Services and the Navigation Office for the Delaware River. The general alphabetical file includes reports, studies, news clippings and correspondence between the Deputy Secretary and federal, state, and local officials concerning public transportation issues. Often found in these files are correspondence, memoranda and reports relating to Departmental operations (staffing, organization, budgeting, goals and objectives), as well as the minutes of staff meetings held by the Secretary of Transportation. Specialized subject files contain correspondence, memoranda and reports concerned directly with railroad and aviation issues, such as construction, service, routes, and facilities.
**Unprocessed materials in this series include: accession #2086, 1983 (7 cartons), accession #2115, 1984 (6 cartons)**

Meeting Files of the Technical Advisory Committee on Highway Plans and the Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission,
1972-1974.
(1 carton)

{series #52.2} [Holdings]

Arranged chronologically by date of meeting.

A record of the joint meetings of the Technical Advisory Committee on Highway Plans and the Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission. Information provided by the minutes includes the date, time and location of the meeting; a list of members and visitors present; and a synopsis of topics discussed and actions taken during meetings. Generally, topics of discussion include highway and public transportation projects, commute travel times, parking analysis, and air quality standards. Documents accompanying the minutes include agendas, staff reviews of projects, correspondence, studies, and reports.



Deputy Secretary for Planning

The Deputy Secretary is in charge of PennDOT's Office of Planning, which is responsible for statewide transportation planning and programming activities and for developing and managing the Commonwealth's multi-modal Twelve Year Transportation Programfor highways and bridges, airports, rail lines and mass transit systems. The Center also conducts related coordination activities with local governments on program issues. Bureaus in this deputate include the Center for Program Development and Management, and the Bureau of Planning and Research.

Twelve Year Transportation Program Files,
1976, 1984-1996.
(36 cartons, 1 box)

{series #52.6} [Holdings]

Unarranged

Series contains the "Twelve Year Transportation Program for Highways" and the "Twelve Year Transportation Program for Public Transportation and Airport Development," which are the official documents listing the transportation projects to be undertaken by the Department during the twelve year period from July 1, 1976 through June 30, 1988. Development of the twelve year transportation program is a requirement of Act 120 of 1970. Functionally, the transportation program report for highways is a detailed listing of top priority highway construction projects planned for implementation over the twelve year period. The twelve year transportation program report for public transportation and airport development is a companion document that reflects the Department's deep involvement in "non-highway" transportation. It contains a similar detailed listing of projected improvements in public transportation and airports.
**Unprocessed materials in this series include: accession #2499, 1984-1996 (2 cartons), accession #3022, 1986-1988 (3 cartons), accession #2785, 1987 (5 cartons), accession #3255, 1989 (4 cartons) and accession #4235, 1993 (22 cartons)**

Hazardous Materials Transportation Advisory Committee

The Hazardous Substance Transportation Board was established in 1970 as part of Act 120 which created the Department of Transportation. The powers and duties of the Board were to classify hazardous substances and to prescribe regulations for the transportation of hazardous substances on highways in the Commonwealth. The Board was replaced in 1984 by the Hazardous Materials Transportation Advisory Committee.

Minutes of the Hazardous Substance Transportation Board,
1965-1978.
(1 carton).

{series #52.7} [Holdings]

Arranged chronologically by date of meeting.

A record of the meetings of the Hazardous Substances Transportation Board that prescribes regulations for the transportation of hazardous substances and provides for the investigation of accidents involving hazardous substance haulers. The minutes generally provide the names of the Board members and staff present, a report of counsel, committee reports, and a brief synopsis of discussions during the meeting. The Committee reports concern the fire school, training for highway emergencies involving hazardous substances, updating and recodification of Hazardous Substance Transportation Board regulations, and accidents involving hazardous substances. Discussions relate to the labeling of containers holding hazardous materials, truck weight restrictions, a table of forbidden hazardous materials, the transportation of asbestos, safety and health standards, commercial detonators and detonating primers, highway routing of radioactive materials, and related safety topics and procedures.


State Transportation Commission

The State Transportation Commission was formed in 1970 as part of Act 120 which created the Department of Transportation. The Commission is vested with the responsibilities to gather and study information relating to the needs of highway construction or reconstruction, rapid transit, railroad, mass transportation facilities and services, and aviation and airport facilities and services, to determine the need and the recommended order of priority for their construction or reconstruction. Recommendations from the Commission are coordinated with the plans of local instrumentalities such as regional and county planning commissions. Biennially, the Commission recommends a 12-year transportation program to the Governor, the General Assembly and the Secretary of Transportation for their consideration.

Records of the State Highway and Bridge Authority, State Highway Commission, State Transportation Commission, and Transportation Advisory Committee,
1949-2002.
(32 cartons, 13 volumes, 32 microfilm rolls)

{series #52.8} [Holdings]

Microfilmed in random order.

Indexed externally, chronologically by database listing date.

The microfilm contains records such as agendas, public hearings, minutes, resolutions, reports, annual reports and testimony of the above organizations. The database listing shows title of the Commission, Authority or Committee ("pressfilename"); the type of records, such as minutes or agenda ("doctype"); date of the document ("docdate"); where the item was distributed from ("distloc"); what the document covered ("subject"); the date the item was indexed on the database ("indexdat"); the roll number the document is on ("roll") and the frame number the document first appears on ("frame"). "Pressrelease" is also listed as a field, but not used. Acronyms that appear are State Highway and Bridge Authority (SHBA) and Pennsylvania Transportation Assistance Authority (PTAA).
**Unprocessed materials in this series include: accession #2584, 1952-1968 (13 volumes), accession #3666, 1958-1986 (2 cartons), accession #2500, 1984-1985 (1 carton), accession #3256, 1986-1989 (1 carton), accession #5159, 1977-2002 (28 cartons)**

PA State Archives Hours, Directions, & Fees Research Topics Finding Aids for Collections Land Records