Wednesday, August 27, 2008

Transportation Communications Newsletter

Wednesday, August 27, 2008 -- ISSN 1529-1057

Register Now for IBTTA's 76th Annual Meeting and Exhibition – Early Bird Discount Extended to September 5th

Registration is now open for IBTTA’s 76th Annual Meeting & Exhibition, Connecting, People, Places & Ideas, September 20-24, 2008, in Baltimore, Maryland. Join IBTTA for the most significant gathering of toll industry professionals and business partners in the world. Register by September 5th and receive a $100 discount off your registration fee. More than 1,000 delegates from 25 countries on six continents will converge on Baltimore's Waterfront to examine best practices and critical innovations in toll industry finance, marketing, technology, customer service, environmental stewardship, operations, maintenance, and related issues. This meeting is hosted by the Maryland Transportation Authority. Registration cut-off for this meeting is September 5, 2008. For more information, visit IBTTA's website and register online today! www.IBTTA.org.


AVIATION

1) In-Flight Internet Service Comes with New Porn Monitors: Flight Attendants
Link to Fox News story:
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,410282,00.html

2) Aircell Signs Up Fourth Airline for Wi-Fi Service
Link to story in InformationWeek:
http://www.informationweek.com/news/services/data/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=210200880

3) You Can Make VOIP Calls on Airplanes. Joy.
Link to commentary in BusinessWeek:
http://www.businessweek.com/lifestyle/travelers_check/archives/2008/08/you_can_make_vo.html

GPS / NAVIGATION

4) Blaupunkt TravelPilot GPS Features Video Overlay
Unit offers real-time video navigation and traffic sign recognition.
Link to CNET News review and video:
http://reviews.cnet.com/8301-13746_7-10026527-48.html

MARITIME

5) Gulf of Maine Buoy Weather Network Experiences a Funding Shortfall
Link to AP story:
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/M/ME_OCEAN_BUOYS_NHOL-?SITE=NHCON&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT
Link to Gulf of Maine Ocean Observing System: http://www.gomoos.org

TRANSIT

6) Orange County Transportation Authority Gets Federal Grant to Put Cameras on Buses
Pilot program will allow live monitoring from police vehicles.
Link to story in the Los Angeles Times:
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-cameras27-2008aug27,0,2939872.story
Link to OCTA news release:
http://www.octa.net/press_082108.aspx

TRAVELER INFORMATION / TRANSPORTATION MANAGEMENT

7) EU Project Promises Safer Traffic
Link to IDG News Service story:
http://www.pcworld.com/businesscenter/article/150394/eu_project_promises_safer_traffic.html

VEHICLES

8) Put a PC in Your Car
Link to story in Personal Computer World:
http://www.pcw.co.uk/personal-computer-world/features/2224489/give-pc-wheels-4067053


News Releases
1) Steering Toward Smarter Travel Choices – Over £7m to be invested in adapting and developing technology to help people to make better travel choices
2) Jupiter Shines at the 2008 Olympics
3) In-Flight Wi-Fi Brings Wi-Fi TV Internet TV Stations to Airline Passengers
4) US DOT Awards $14.7 Million for Rural Roads Safety
5) Dial Directions Gives Evite Guests a Voice-Activated Mobile Service for Directions
5) TransCore Launches CabLink, Next Generation Satellite-Based In-Cab Communications, Telematics, and Engine Performance Monitoring Unit
7) Inrix and Beat the Traffic Bring Cutting-Edge Traffic Reports to TV Broadcast Stations Across the Country
8) Garmin Expands Affordable nüvi 2x5 Series, Offering Hands-Free Calling and Lifetime Traffic Alerts


Upcoming Events
Final FeedMAP Workshop – October 9 – Trento, Italy
http://www.ertico.com/download/feedmap_documents/Agenda.pdf


Today in Transportation History
1962 – Mariner II was launched on a flight to Venus.
http://www.nytimes.com/learning/general/onthisday/big/0827.html#article

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© 2008 Bernie Wagenblast