http://www.ntoctalks.com/ The NTOC Talks site is intended to provide information and resources to transportation practitioners, coalition members, and the general public on current news, upcoming meetings, and available products and documents. en-usWed, 02 Jul 2008 08:45:40 EDTimages/NTOC_logo.gif Sponsored by the Transportation Research Board (TRB) Committee on Regional Transportation Systems Management and Operations (RTSM&O), the TRB National Workshop to Advance Regional Transportation Operations will take place December 10–12, 2008 in Washington, DC. This highly interactive workshop features prominent guest speakers and facilitated breakout group sessions to shape innovative models for making effective regional operations a reality in your region. You will have an opportunity to share with your peers and learn from national leaders in organizing, planning, implementing, and monitoring regional operations. This workshop brings together a mix of perspectives from planning, traffic engineering, transit, public safety, emergency preparedness, and others to offer a unique opportunity for you to gain insights on coordinating with a variety of players in the operations arena. An agenda, registration, and travel information will be available soon. Information also will be posted to the RTSM&O Committee Web site as it becomes available at http://rtsmo.cts.virginia.edu/. Sponsorship opportunities are available for this important meeting. For more information, please contact Rich Cunard, at RCunard@nas.edu or (202) 334-2965, or Wayne Berman at wayne.berman@dot.gov or (202) 366-4069. http://rtsmo.cts.virginia.edu/ 2008-07-02 08:45:40 The U.S. Department of Transportation (U.S. DOT) invites you to attend a series of Webinars showcasing the eight ICM Pioneer Sites and their results to date with the Integrated Corridor Management (ICM) initiative. These Webinars will cover topics such as: what is ICM?; the goal of ICM; the path to implement ICM; and where each ICM Pioneer Site is on this path. A discussion of the operational, institutional and technical aspects of the ICM system for each pioneer site. This will include an overview of the ICM concept of operations and system requirements specifications for each Pioneer Site Lessons learned from the Pioneer Sites. Each three-hour Webinar will feature presentations from two or more Pioneer Sites. Attendees will have the opportunity to ask questions and interact with the presenters. Attend one or attend all three depending on your schedule and your interests. To register, click on the links below. You must register for each Webinar individually. Registration is limited to the first 150 people, so register soon! Part One July 17, 2008 1:00 – 4:00 pm ET Featured Pioneer Sites: Minneapolis, MN; Houston , TX; San Diego, CA Register here: https://www.nhi.fhwa.dot.gov/resources/webconference/web_conf_learner_reg.aspx?webConfID=14349 Part Two July 22, 2008 1:00 – 4:00 pm ET Featured Pioneer Sites: Oakland, CA; Montgomery County, MD Register here: https://www.nhi.fhwa.dot.gov/resources/webconference/web_conf_learner_reg.aspx?webConfID=14350 Part Three July 24, 2008 2:00 – 5:00 pm ET Featured Pioneer Sites: Seattle, WA; San Antonio, TX; Dallas, TX Register here: https://www.nhi.fhwa.dot.gov/resources/webconference/web_conf_learner_reg.aspx?webConfID=14351 http://www.its.dot.gov/icms/icms_webinar.htm 2008-07-02 08:42:27 On August 17-19, rural transportation planners, state DOT officials and representatives of the nation's regional development organizations from across the nation will convene at the Holiday Inn and Suites in Duluth, Minnesota for the 2008 National Rural Transportation Peer Learning Conference. Sponsored by the National Association of Development Organizations (NADO) and the Development District Association of Appalachia (DDAA), along with many other partnering organizations, this year's event will feature mobile workshop tours of the North Shore Scenic Drive, Port of Duluth-Superior via boat, Duluth International Airport (including Cirrus Design) and Downtown Duluth via a special walking tour. The conference will also feature extensive peer networking and information exchanges, recognition of the 2008 NADO National Excellence in Regional Transportation Award winners, and numerous professional development training sessions. Register today! Just fill out the PDF registration form at http://www.nado.org/conferences/trans.php?con_id=82 and send with payment to NADO at 400 North Capitol Street, NW, Suite 390, Washington, DC 20001, or fax the form to 202.624.8813 and mail payment later. If you have any questions or need additional assistance, please contact NADO Transportation Program Manager Carrie Kissel at 202.624.8829 or email ckissel@nado.org. Additional information is available online through the link above. http://www.nado.org/conferences/trans.php?con_id=82 2008-07-02 08:41:31 Transpo 2008 will be here before you know it! The meeting will be held September 22-25 at the Rosen Centre Hotel in Orlando. There are still a few slots on the program, so if you have anything you would like to present, go to the Transpo Web site to submit an abstract. There are still booths available for vendors as well. Also, the early bird registration rate expires July 11, so register now! All of the conference information is available through the link above. http://itstranspo.org/ 2008-07-02 08:40:30 The spotlight theme for the 2009 TRB 88th Annual Meeting, January 11-15, 2009, in Washington, D.C., is Transportation, Energy and Climate Change. The theme recognizes that the dependence of the economy and lifestyles on existing sources of fuel—combined with rapidly rising prices and the desire for long-term energy security—has renewed interest in alternative fuels, increased domestic production and conservation. In addition, given the growing consensus associating global climate change with fossil fuel consumption, the theme addresses the transportation sector's contributions to climate change as well as the potential impacts of climate change on transportation systems. In addition to the general calls for papers produced by many of TRB's standing committees, the TRB Special Task Force on Climate Change and Energy in conjunction with the TRB Joint Subcommittee on Climate Change and the TRB Standing Committees on Energy, Alternative Fuels and Sustainability invite you to submit papers associated with the upcoming Annual Meeting's spotlight theme. Authors planning to submit papers receive password-controlled, limited Web access to individual papers published in the TRR since 1996. Access will be provided after submission of an abstract for a paper via the paper submission Web site. This feature allows authors access to some of the latest research in their areas of interest. Papers in non-PDF format must be submitted prior to 11:59 p.m. EDT Monday, July 28, 2008. Papers in PDF format must be submitted prior to 11:59 p.m. EDT Friday, August 1, 2008. All papers must be submitted via TRB's Paper Submission Web site through the link above. http://pressamp.trb.org/submissions/default.asp?event=445 2008-07-02 08:39:34 You are invited to submit a paper abstract or sponsored session to be considered for presentation at the Institute of Transportation Engineers (ITE) 2009 Technical Conference and Exhibit, 'Transportation Operations in Action,' or the ITE 2009Annual Meeting and Exhibit. Abstracts should be a maximum of 250 words. Papers chosen for the technical program and published on the conference/meeting compendium earn 10 professional development hours. The deadline for submittal is August 25, 2008. Suggested topics are available through the link above. http://www.ite.org/meetcon/abstract09.pdf 2008-07-02 08:38:52 ITE is offering the following upcoming Webinar: Fundamentals of Weather Management Web Seminar Date: August 21, 2008 Time: 12:00-1:30 p.m. ET Learning Objectives: At the conclusion of the Web seminar, participants will be able to: •Understand the magnitude of the weather/transportation problem •Recognize that weather-related traffic incidents can be managed •Become aware of types of management strategies that may be employed •Identify technologies that are available to support road weather management •Identify some actions that participants can take to address road weather incidents •Identify resources that are available for additional information For more information and to register, visit the link above. http://www.ite.org/education/webinars_weather.asp 2008-07-02 08:37:36 San Francisco Bay Area commuters will have access to cutting-edge real-time traffic, transit and road safety information as a result of a $12.4 million partnership announced today by the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) and California Department of Transportation (Caltrans). "America has the ability—right now—to radically change our driving experience using innovations that exist today," said Administrator Paul Brubaker of the U.S. DOT's Research and Innovative Technology Administration (RITA). "As one of the communities selected last August to participate in the Department's Urban Partnership program, San Francisco already has shown its commitment to using innovative approaches to reduce traffic congestion. Now, the Bay Area will become the site of one of the world's largest field-tests of Intelligent Transportation Systems technology. The award to Caltrans is part of the Department's new SafeTrip-21 initiative, which will test various ITS technology applications designed to reduce gridlock and traffic-related fatalities and injuries on America's roadways, and improve public transportation services. The SafeTrip-21 partnership will field test GPS-equipped cellular phones from up to 10,000 volunteer commuters and transit vehicles transmitting data from roads in a 200 mile radius to traffic management centers. The additional traffic information gathered by these "probes" will help all Bay Area commuters make intelligent travel choices and avoid congestion while driving to work or using local transit systems. SafeTrip-21 is working to develop a consumer friendly platform that brings together existing technologies including trip planning and traveler information; safety advisories; on-board displays of commuter rail and transit bus connections; electronic toll collection, and parking reservation and payment services. The partnership also will establish a national "test bed" to advance the development of a Vehicle Infrastructure Integration system, which uses WiFi and Dedicated Short Range Communications to alert drivers to unsafe conditions so they can avoid crashes before they happen. Multiple consumer electronic devices will be used including personal navigation devices, mobile phones, and a diverse set of communication technologies. In addition, an in-vehicle 'cradle' will provide a wireless interface to the Internet for virtually any mobile electronic device. http://www.dot.gov/affairs/rita0108.htm 2008-07-02 08:36:24 Washington's transportation leaders are preparing to unveil a system that would give Virginia, the District of Columbia, Maryland and Metro unprecedented access to each other's traffic and transit information, revolutionizing how the region communicates and responds to major disruptions. 'Almost every week we have new reminders that the region needs a more coordinated transportation response and public communication capability,' said David Snyder, vice chairman of the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments Transportation Planning Board, which is developing the new system. Officials said they hoped to have the program running in some form by December and in full form by July 2009. http://www.examiner.com/a-1450720~D_C__region_to_coordinate_on_traffic__transit_information.html 2008-07-02 08:35:32 General Motors Corp. and Carnegie Mellon University announced a new Collaborative Research Lab and a renewed commitment to work jointly on technologies that will accelerate the emerging field of autonomous driving—a family of electronics and software technologies that could influence the way drivers and their vehicles interact in the future. The GM-Carnegie Mellon Autonomous Driving Collaborative Research Lab is being established under the terms of a five-year, $5 million agreement. The lab will operate as an extension of GM's Global Research & Development network and will be located at Carnegie Mellon in Pittsburgh. Faculty from the university's School of Computer Science and College of Engineering will participate. http://www.cmu.edu/news/archive/2008/June/june19_gmautonomousdriving.shtml 2008-07-02 08:34:23 American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) President Pete Rahn is very concerned about what he describes as a 'cliff ahead' for transportation. In a candid one-on-one interview, Rahn assesses the future of transportation and the growing problem of traffic congestion in America. Rahn, who is also the Director of the Missouri Department of Transportation, offers a unique perspective on the challenges state DOTs are facing. 'We do not have the means today, with the resources that we have available to us, to reduce congestion and give back to people the time taken from them while they are tied up in traffic,' Rahn says. You can watch AASHTO President Pete Rahn's entire interview on YouTube through the link above. http://youtube.com/watch?v=zG5iLMYF3wA 2008-07-02 08:33:34 An estimated 380,000 thousand jobs and hundreds of construction projects are in jeopardy across the nation after Congress failed this week to fix a 3.3 billion dollar deficit in the Highway Trust Fund. The House and Senate dropped a provision from a three-month aviation tax extension bill that would have provided $8 billion to keep the nation's transportation account solvent. AASHTO Executive Director John Horsley expressed his strong disappointment saying, 'If members of Congress believe that this failure to act has no consequences, they're wrong.' Most states depend on federal funding to support transportation projects, but states won't know if their federal highway funding will be cut by 34 percent until their fiscal year begins. For many states, the fiscal year starts on July 1. This failure to act sets the stage for a last minute effort in late September to rescue America's Transportation Account. If that does not occur, the federal-aid highway program will be reduced by $13.5 and $20 billion. This loss would be another blow to the transportation industry, which is suffering from a stagnant economy, high fuel prices, inflationary pressures, and natural disasters. http://www.transportation.org/news/130.aspx 2008-07-02 08:32:57 ODOT has announced an invitation to bid for speeds and travel times using cell phone technology. Visit the link above for more information. http://www.dot.state.oh.us/CONTRACT/FTP/currbidPage3.html 2008-07-02 08:32:18 At a time of record-high gas prices and a corresponding surge in transit ridership, Americans are driving less for the sixth month in a row, highlighting the need to find a more sustainable and effective way to fund highway construction and maintenance, said U.S. Transportation Secretary Mary E. Peters. The Secretary said that Americans drove 1.4 billion fewer highway miles in April 2008 than at the same time a year earlier and 400 million miles less than in March of this year. She added that vehicle miles traveled (VMT) on all public roads for April 2008 fell 1.8 percent as compared with April 2007 travel. This marks a decline of nearly 20 billion miles traveled this year, and nearly 30 billion miles traveled since November. 'We're burning less fuel as energy costs change driving patterns, steer people toward more fuel efficient vehicles and encourage more to use transit. Which is exactly why we need a more effective funding source than the gas tax,' Secretary Peters said. The Secretary said as Americans drive less, the federal Highway Trust Fund receives less revenue from gasoline and diesel sales – 18.4 cents per gallon and 24.4 cents per gallon, respectively. The Secretary noted that data show midsize SUV sales were down last month 38 percent over May of last year; car sales, which had accounted for less than half of the industry volume in 2007, rose to 57 percent in May. She said past trends have shown Americans will continue to drive despite high gas prices, but will drive more fuel efficient vehicles consuming less fuel. 'History shows that we're going to continue to see congested roads while gas tax revenues decline even further,' she said. 'As positive as any move toward greater fuel efficiency is, we need to make sure we have the kind of sustainable funding measures in place to support needed highway and transit improvements well into the future,' said Acting Federal Highway Administrator Jim Ray. To review the FHWA's 'Traffic Volume Trends' reports, including that of April 2008, visit http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/ohim/tvtw/tvtpage.htm. http://www.dot.gov/affairs/dot8408.htm 2008-07-02 08:31:22 The Monroe County Department of Transportation (MCDOT) has built upon the success of its first computerized traffic signal system. The system has been operational since 1985. In the late 1990's the Department initiated a project to integrate Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) technologies into the traffic management infrastructure in an effort to improve operations throughout the City of Rochester and along the county's arterial roadways. The Regional Traffic Operations Center (RTOC) was opened in 2002 as a direct result of that effort. http://www.itsdocs.fhwa.dot.gov/JPODOCS//REPTS_TE/14416.htm 2008-07-02 08:30:17