WVPTA 2026 Maintenance Training
Program Overview
The WVPTA Maintenance Training will be a 2½-day training session featuring a combination of classroom instruction, technical demonstrations, and peer collaboration designed specifically for public transit maintenance professionals.
The program will include multiple technical training sessions led by industry experts, along with a maintenance roundtable discussion where mechanics and maintenance staff can share common challenges, discuss solutions, and identify topics for future training.
Wednesday, April 8
Registration
8:30 a.m.
Maintenance Training
8:30 a.m. – 6:00 p.m.
Communications & Teamwork
9:00 a.m. – 10:30 a.m.
Improving communication within maintenance teams and transit operations
Greg White, TESCO / Jake Stewart
Charging Systems (Alternator & Battery)
10:30 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.
Kevin Hardesty, Gillig
Lunch Break
12:00 p.m. – 1:00 p.m.
FTA Facility & Bus Maintenance Requirements
1:00 p.m. – 2:00 p.m.
Overview of federal maintenance expectations and compliance standards
Dan Wagner, WVDOT
Basic AC – ABC’s of Air Conditioning
2:00 p.m. – 3:30 p.m.
Fundamentals of bus air conditioning systems and troubleshooting techniques
John Lucas
ADA Wheelchair Securement Systems
3:30 p.m. – 4:30 p.m.
Maintenance and service considerations for manual securement systems
Dennis Assaff, Louis Puga, Mike Laidlaw – QStraint
4:30 p.m. – 5:30 p.m.
Maintenance and service considerations for automatic securement systems
Dennis Assaff, Louis Puga, Mike Laidlaw – QStraint
Thursday, April 9
Maintenance Training
8:30 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
Bus Body Construction, Maintenance, and Testing
9:300 a.m. – 11:00 a.m.
Mark Husted, Forest River
Transign Troubleshooting and Programming
11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.
Jamie Lipka, Transign
Lunch Roundtable Discussion
12:00 p.m. – 1:00 p.m.
An open discussion where mechanics can talk through common maintenance issues, share solutions, and suggest ideas for future training topics
TESCO Presentation
1:00 p.m. – 2:30 p.m.
Jake Stewart. TESCO
Wheelchair Lift Maintenance and Safety
2:30 p.m. – 4:00 p.m.
Kevin Schindler, Braun
Electronics 101 (Tentative)
4:00 p.m. – 5:30 p.m.
Michael Lamb, MTEC
Friday, April 10
Maintenance Training
8:30 a.m. – Noon
Cummins Presentation
9:00 a.m. – 10:00 a.m.
Dustin Goscinski, Cummins
Please Note:
This agenda is tentative and subject to change as speakers finalize their schedules and additional sessions may be added. A final agenda will be provided to registered attendees prior to the event.
Accommodations
A block of rooms has been reserved at the Hampton Inn, located at 325 Granville Square, Morgantown, WV 26501. Room reservations will be made on your behalf, and confirmation information will be provided once the reservation has been secured.
The cost of the room will be covered as part of the training. However, if a reservation is cancelled after the hotel’s cancellation deadline or if the guest does not arrive, the individual will be responsible for the cost of the room.
Please indicate below if you have any special accommodation requests.