Tuesday, May 12, 2009

Transportation Communications Newsletter

Tuesday, May 12, 2009 – ISSN 1529-1057

Register Now for ITS America’s 2009 Annual Meeting & Exposition, June 1-3, National Harbor, Maryland

Join U.S. Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood, U.S. Chief Technology Officer-designate Aneesh Chopra, Members of Congress, and other transportation, technology, business and policy leaders at ITS America’s 2009 Annual Meeting & Exposition – located just 15 minutes away from the nation’s capitol. If you are in the transportation industry, you cannot afford to miss this event. ITS America has put together an exciting program of nearly 100 educational and Congressional fact-finding sessions, opportunities to interact with members of Congress and senior government officials, 150,000 square feet of exhibits, tours of local ITS facilities and projects, a “City Streets” technology demonstration staged right outside of the convention center, and a closing reception and technology showcase in the new Capitol Hill Visitors Center. For more information on the program and to register, visit http://www.itsa.org/amregistration.html.


AVIATION

1) Transcript from Buffalo Crash Reveals Breakdown in Communication
Link to story in The Wall Street Journal:
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124212789938210353.html

2) AirTran to Offer Wi-Fi on All Flights
Link to story in USA Today:
http://www.usatoday.com/money/industries/travel/2009-05-11-airtran-flights-wifi_N.htm

3) A New Route to Easing Air Traffic Congestion
Link to story in The Wall Street Journal:
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124208754280908923.html

CARTOGRAPHY

4) Greece Bars Google's Street View Pending Details
Link to AFP story:
http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=CNG.35c2e98a13639c54adb496c3f97d16bf.21&show_article=1

5) Google Puts York, Maine Off the Map
Internet users who search for York via Google find, instead, references to Kennebunk.
Link to story in the York County Coast Star:
http://www.seacoastonline.com/articles/20090510-NEWS-905100343

GPS / NAVIGATION

6) Debate Heats Up Over Cancellation of GPS Backup System
Link to story on Nextgov:
http://www.nextgov.com/nextgov/ng_20090511_1364.php

ROADWAYS

7) Massachusetts Politicians Spending Millions of Stimulus $$ on Signs
Link to story and video report on WBZ-TV:
http://wbztv.com/local/route.128.signs.2.1007345.html

8) Florida International University Integrated Intelligent Transportation System Laboratory Helps Students Study Traffic Flows and Woes
Link to story in The Miami Herald:
http://www.miamiherald.com/news/breaking-news/story/1044048.html

9) There’s an (Electronic) Sign Post Up Ahead
Link to column in the Naples Daily News:
http://www.naplesnews.com/news/2009/may/11/brent-batten-theres-electronic-sign-post-ahead/

SAFETY / SECURITY

10) State: Pennsylvania DOT Endangers Public by Issuing Fake IDs
Link to story in The Philadelphia Inquirer:
http://www.philly.com/philly/news/breaking/20090512_Grand_Jury_finds_PennDOT_laxness_threatens_national_security.html

11) Mobile Computers Allowing Police in Wisconsin to Issue More Tickets
Link to story in the Journal Sentinel:
http://www.jsonline.com/watchdog/pi/44756612.html

TRANSIT

12) CTA Bus Tracker: E-Mail Alerts Coming for All Bus Routes
Link to story in the Chicago Tribune:
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/chi-cta-bus-tracker-12-may12,0,5939804.story

13) SUBWAY Monthly Newsletter to Debut
Link to further information and sign-up:
http://subwayblogger.com/2009/05/09/subway-monthly-newsletter/


News Releases
1) Wayne County Airport Authority Online Auction Site Takes Flight
2) Iridium OpenPort Completes Successful Sea Trials
3) New NOAA System Improves Safety and Efficiency of Ships in Lake Charles
4) ‘Eye On Your Metro Commute’ New Service Being Offered by King County Metro Transit
5) Navteq Unveils Content Showcase Beta at NAVTEQ.com
6) Ford Engineers Pit Shopping Carts, Water Cannons and Metal Whips Against New Safety Technologies


Upcoming Events
Preserving Our Highway Infrastructure Assets – August 4-7 – Orlando, Florida
http://www.irfnews.org/news-events/event-detail/preserving-our-highway-infrastructure-assets/


Today in Transportation History
1949 **60th anniversary** - The Berlin Blockade ended.
http://www.german-way.com/airlift.html

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Questions, comments about the TCN? Please write the editor, Bernie Wagenblast at i95berniew@aol.com.
© 2009 Bernie Wagenblast