Transportation Communications Newsletter: June 2011

Thursday, June 30, 2011

Transportation Communications Newsletter

Thursday, June 30, 2011 – ISSN 1529-1057

CITE Offers FREE Certificate Programs to New students in July…that’s right, free!

Any one of CITE’s three online certificate programs can be obtained during this FREE offer: Traffic Engineering and Operations, ITS Systems or ITS Project Management. New students, Act NOW! Don’t miss the opportunity to receive this well-regarded training, a $625 value! All course materials are on-line; register using Sponsor Code TBN0711 http://www.citeconsortium.org/registration.html. Restrictions apply; click here for details.

Questions, please contact Denise Twisdale (mztwiz@umd.edu) or Kathy Frankle (kfrankle@umd.edu).

AVIATION

1) Air Congestion Good News for Some in the Middle East

Air traffic woes could be boon to aerospace companies hoping to sell high-tech solutions.

Link to article in The National:

http://www.thenational.ae/thenationalconversation/industry-insights/aviation/congestion-good-news-for-some-in-the-middle-east

ELECTRONIC TOLLING

2) With New Jersey Turnpike Change, E-ZPass Disparities Grow

Link to article in The Philadelphia Inquirer:

http://www.philly.com/philly/news/local/124760268.html

GPS / NAVIGATION

3) LightSquared Submits GPS Report to FCC

Link to Reuters article:

http://af.reuters.com/article/burundiNews/idAFN1E75T0FF20110630

4) LightSquared Goes Global; GLONASS, Galileo May be at Risk, Too

Link to article in GPS World:

http://www.gpsworld.com/gnss-system/lightsquared-goes-global-glonass-galileo-may-be-risk-too-11822

5) Mitsubishi's New Car Navigation System Lets You Record or Watch Shows While Driving

Link to article on Ubergizmo:

http://www.ubergizmo.com/2011/06/mitsubishis-new-car-navigation-system-lets-you-record-or-watch-shows-while-driving/

Link to news release from Mitsubishi:

http://www.mitsubishielectric.co.jp/news/2011/0630-b.html (in Japanese)

PARKING

6) Technology and Parking: What's Next?

Link to article in Parking Today:

http://www.parkingtoday.com/s_article.php?id=325

RAILROADS

7) The Chunnel is Far More Than Eurostar

A look behind the scenes of the rail tunnel and its control center.

Link to article and video on CNET:

http://news.cnet.com/8301-13772_3-20075549-52/the-chunnel-is-far-more-than-eurostar

ROADWAYS

8) Welsh Government Signs 'Intelligent Transport Systems' Deal

Link to article in The Guardian:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/government-computing-network/2011/jun/30/welsh-government-transport-systems-contract-amey-scott-wilson

Link to news release from the Welsh Government:

http://wales.gov.uk/newsroom/transport/2011/110629amey/?lang=en&status=closed

SAFETY / SECURITY

9) Latest Issue of SOL eMagazine Online

Publication from project to improve road safety in Central Europe.

Link to magazine:

http://www.sol-project.eu/index.php?id=2586&ID1=2586

TRANSIT

10) Boston T Encourages Riders to Tweet Reports of Broken Air Conditioning

Link to article in the Boston Herald:

http://news.bostonherald.com/news/regional/view/2011_0630headlinegoes_in_heat_of_the_moment_twitter_is_fast_t_fix/

TRAVELER INFORMATION / TRANSPORTATION MANAGEMENT

11) Los Angeles Police Department Asks Celebrities to Tweet Out Word on I-405 Closure

Link to article in the Los Angeles Times:

http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-405-celebrities-20110630,0,5171533.story

12) Traffic Reports Aplenty, but Which to Rely On?

Link to column from The Dallas Morning News:

http://www.mspnews.com/news/2011/06/30/5607567.htm

VEHICLES

13) Bill Would Allow Ads on New Jersey DOT Vehicles

Link to article in the Gloucester County Times:

http://www.nj.com/gloucester-county/index.ssf/2011/06/bill_would_allow_ads_on_new_je.html

News Releases

1) GEWI Technology – LHW for Safer Roads

2) National City, California is First on the Scene When It Comes to Saving Lives with Revolutionary Traffic Signal Technology

3) IIHS: Most Drivers Favor Red-Light Cameras, New Survey of 14 Big US Cities Finds

4) American Airlines Debuts Apps for BlackBerry and Windows Smartphone – Expands Mobile Boarding Pass, Instant Text Message Notification Options

5) Signs and Markings Critical to Leap in Road Safety

6) New Weymouth, UK Bus Shelters to Provide Real-Time Information

7) ShipCarsNow Launches New Mobile App for Auto Transport

Upcoming Events

National Transportation Public Affairs Workshop – August 15-18 – Des Moines, Iowa

http://www.iowadot.gov/ntpaw2011

Today in Transportation History

1971 **40^th anniversary** The three cosmonauts aboard Soyuz 11 were killed when their capsule decompressed during re-entry.

http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,903011,00.html

======================================================================

The Transportation Communications Newsletter is published electronically Monday through Friday.

To subscribe (for free) or unsubscribe, please contact me at bernie@bwcommunications.net.

TCN archives: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/transport-communications

Become a TCN fan on Facebook!

Questions, comments about the TCN? Please write the editor, Bernie Wagenblast at bernie@bwcommunications.net.

Wednesday, June 29, 2011

Transportation Communications Newsletter

Wednesday, June 29, 2011 – ISSN 1529-1057

AVIATION

1) Weather Cams Installed at California Airport – Said to be First in Lower 48 States

Link to article in the Times-Standard:

http://www.times-standard.com/ci_18375040

2) NextGen Benefits are Coming, Slowly but Surely

Link to article in Aviation International News:

http://www.ainonline.com/news/single-news-page/article/nextgen-benefits-are-coming-slowly-but-surely-30386/

3) The Dark Side of NextGen

Link to article in Aviation International News:

http://www.ainonline.com/news/single-news-page/article/the-dark-side-of-nextgen-30440/

4) Airports Take Off on Twitter – A Perfect Match or a Passing Fad?

Link to column in Airport Business:

http://www.airportbusiness.com/web/online/The-New-Airport-Marketing/AIRPORTS--TAKE-OFF-ON-TWITTER---A-PERFECT-MATCH-OR-PASSING-FAD/23$44865

CAMERAS

5) Police Access City Cameras from Laptops and Smartphones

Link to article in Government Technology:

http://www.govtech.com/public-safety/Police-Access-City-Cameras-Laptops-Smartphones.html

6) Made in Pennsylvania, Illegal in Pennsylvania

Company manufactures products which conceal license plates from cameras.

Link to story and video on WHP-TV:

http://www.whptv.com/news/local/story/Made-in-Pa-illegal-in-Pa/FXREOZI5_k-3dPa_1uIvVg.cspx

CARTOGRAPHY

7) Designer Gives London Tube Map a Makeover

Link to article on Rail.co:

http://www.rail.co/2011/06/28/designer-gives-london-tube-map-a-makeover/

ELECTRONIC TOLLING

8) 'Clean-Fuel' Cars in Utah to Get High-Tech Toll Stickers

Link to article in The Salt Lake Tribune:

http://www.sltrib.com/sltrib/politics/52098889-90/clean-fuel-decal-plates.html.csp

OTHER

9) Indiana Bureau of Motor Vehicles Sent 58,600 Postcards with Wrong First Names

Link to article in The Indianapolis Star:

http://www.indystar.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2011110628010

10) State DOTs Embrace Technology

Link to article in Constructech:

http://www.constructech.com/news/articles/article.aspx?article_id=8895

11) Promo for ITS World Congress in Orlando

Link to video:

https://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=10100443702787952

RAILROADS

12) Railspeak Should be Terminated

Train and station announcements offer a relentless barrage of drivel in a language all their own.

Link to blog in The Guardian:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/mind-your-language/2011/jun/26/railspeak-terminated-train-station-language

ROADWAYS

13) Fort Myers, Florida Pulls the Plug on Electronic Traffic Sign

State fails to secure city permit for project.

Link to article in The News-Press:

http://www.news-press.com/article/20110629/NEWS0110/106290370/0/NEWS01/Fort-Myers-pulls-plug-electronic-traffic-sign

SAFETY / SECURITY

14) Red Lights in Japan

Nation is rolling out Driving Safety Support System to make red lights and stop signs safer.

Link to editorial on The Truth About Cars:

http://www.thetruthaboutcars.com/category/news-blog/safety-2/

TRANSIT

15) Calgary Transit Orders 'Get Off the Bus' Ads Pulled from Bus Benches

Link to story and video on Global Calgary:

http://www.globaltvcalgary.com/Calgary+Transit+orders+local+registry+pull/5019668/story.html

16) Tesco Builds Virtual Supermarkets in South Korean Train Stations

Link to article and video in The Telegraph:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/mobile-phones/8601147/Tesco-builds-virtual-shops-for-Korean-commuters.html

17) Utah's TRAX Replacing Broken Electronic Sign System

Link to article in The Salt Lake Tribune:

http://www.sltrib.com/sltrib/politics/52099333-90/signs-carpenter-cost-stations.html.csp

TRAVELER INFORMATION / TRANSPORTATION MANAGEMENT

18) New Delhi Cops Want Control of Intelligent Signaling

Link to article in The Times of India:

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/delhi/Cops-want-control-of-intelligent-signalling/articleshow/9029566.cms

VEHICLES

19) Who Will be the Chief Information Officer for Your New Car?

Link to blog in NEMA Currents:

http://blog.nema.org/blogs/currents/archive/2011/06/20/who-will-be-the-chief-information-officer-for-your-new-car.aspx

News Releases

1) LiveTV Announces Plans for 'Global LiveTV' Television for Aviation

2) FMCSA Seeks Public Comment on Strategic Plan to Improve Truck and Bus Safety

3) Saab AB to Acquire Sensis Corporation

4) Toyota Develops Navigation System Compatible with Vehicle-Infrastructure Cooperative Safety System

5) Confused.com Designs New Pothole Warning Sign

Job Postings

- Computer Engineer – Research and Innovative Technology Administration – Cambridge, Massachusetts

http://goo.gl/3cq3o

Upcoming Events

Airport Facilities Management Conference – August 10-12 – Salt Lake City, Utah

http://events.aaae.org/sites/110805/index.cfm

Today in Transportation History

1891 **120^th anniversary** The Ottawa Electric Street Railway began operation.

http://www.octranspo1.com/about-octranspo/history_looking_back

1956 **55^th anniversary** US President Dwight Eisenhower signed the Federal Aid Highway Act of 1956, creating the interstate highway system.

http://eisenhower.archives.gov/Research/Digital_Documents/InterstateHighways/InterstateHighwaysdocuments.html

======================================================================

The Transportation Communications Newsletter is published electronically Monday through Friday.

To subscribe (for free) or unsubscribe, please contact me at bernie@bwcommunications.net.

TCN archives: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/transport-communications

Become a TCN fan on Facebook!

Questions, comments about the TCN? Please write the editor, Bernie Wagenblast at bernie@bwcommunications.net.

Tuesday, June 28, 2011

Transportation Communications Newsletter

Tuesday, June 28, 2011 – ISSN 1529-1057

Countdown to IBTTA Transportation Finance and Policy Summit – July 17-19, 2011 in Baltimore, MD – Hotel Deadline Extended to July 1^st

Hosted by the Maryland Transportation Authority, this Summit will feature interactive sessions covering the full range of issues affecting transportation finance, policy and funding from the action of central banks and congressional reauthorization to regulations affecting TIFIA and other credit assistance programs. Featured speakers include Ray Sheppach, Professor of Practice of Public Policy, Frank Batten School of Leadership and Public Policy, University of Virginia and Senior Fellow for Economic Policy, Miller Center of Public Affairs; Beverley Swaim-Staley, Secretary, Maryland DOT; and Jack Basso, Director of Program Finance and Management, AASHTO and Commissioner of the Maryland Transportation Authority. This meeting will include a technical tour of the new Intercounty Connector, ceremony recognizing Mary Turkington, Kansas Turnpike Authority Chairman, as an IBTTA Honorary Member, and an evening event at Oriole Park at Camden Yards (Orioles vs. Red Sox). Registration deadline is July 9^th. Visit www.IBTTA.org/BALTIMORE to register and learn about sponsorship opportunities. To view IBTTA’s entire 2011 Education Series, click here.

AVIATION

1) FAA Outlines Paths to In-Flight iPad Operations

Link to article in Aviation International News:

http://www.ainonline.com/news/single-news-page/article/faa-outlines-paths-to-in-flight-ipad-operations-30444/

2) FAA Keeps Tower Markings 'Voluntary'

Link to article on AVweb:

http://www.avweb.com/avwebflash/news/FAAKeepsTowerMarkingsVoluntary_204883-1.html

3) Twitter is Handy Tool for Airline Passengers

Link to story on CNN:

http://articles.cnn.com/2011-06-27/travel/airlines.twitter.service_1_social-media-airline-jetblue

4) Why Airlines Should Think More Like Apple

Link to commentary on Tnooz:

http://www.tnooz.com/2011/06/28/news/cloud

CAMERAS

5) Red-Light Camera Backlash. Are They Causing Accidents?

Link to story and video ABC's World News Tonight:

http://abcnews.go.com/US/red-light-camera-backlash-cameras-causing-accidents/story?id=13925887

6) Novel Testing Device Boosts Traffic Surveillance

Link to article in VTT Impulse:

http://goo.gl/RrZ0o (page 64)

ELECTRONIC TOLLING

7) Is the E-ZPass Box a Trojan Horse for Privacy Invasions?

Link to article on AOL Autos:

http://autos.aol.com/article/e-zpass-privacy-invasion/

PEDESTRIANS

8) New York City DOT Reveals New Street Signs for Disoriented Tourists and Locals

Link to article in the Daily News:

http://www.nydailynews.com/ny_local/2011/06/28/2011-06-28_lost_in_concrete_jungle_dot_seeks_better_street_signs_for_disoriented_tourists__.html

Link to news release from NYC DOT:

http://www.nyc.gov/html/dot/html/pr2011/pr11_54.shtml

PUBLIC INFORMATION / EDUCATION

9) National Group Wants Public to Lobby for Better, Safer Transportation

Link to story and audio report on West Virginia Public Broadcasting:

http://www.wvpubcast.org/newsarticle.aspx?id=20760

RAILROADS

10) Latest Issue of Signal, Newsletter of the European Rail Traffic Management System

Link to newsletter:

http://ec.europa.eu/transport/rail/interoperability/ertms/doc/022_signal_2011_06_en.pdf

SAFETY / SECURITY

11) Evacuation Plans Age as Population Near Nuclear Plants Soars

Link to article in USA Today:

http://www.usatoday.com/money/industries/energy/2011-06-27-nuclear-population-nukes_n.htm

12) An Intelligent Watchful Eye On Us All

New camera surveillance technology helps capture potential terrorists.

Link to article in VTT Impulse:

http://goo.gl/RrZ0o (page 42)

TELEMATICS

13) Staying Connected on the Go

Thailand could use new technology to make commuting more productive.

Link to article in The Nation:

http://www.nationmultimedia.com/2011/06/28/technology/Staying-Connected-on-the-Go-30158910.html

14) Eyes on the Road

Telematic features provide information but can be distracting.

Link to article in Gambit:

http://www.bestofneworleans.com/gambit/eyes-on-the-road/Content?oid=1825764

VEHICLES

15) Georgia's 'In God We Trust' License Plate Causes Ruckus

Link to article in the Atlanta Business Chronicle:

http://www.bizjournals.com/atlanta/morning_call/2011/06/gas-in-god-we-trust-license-plate.html

WEATHER

16) Weather Service Explores New Ways to Communicate Weather Risk

Link to article in USA Today:

http://content.usatoday.com/communities/sciencefair/post/2011/06/communicating-weather-risk-national-weather-service-hurricane-warnings/1

News Releases

1) ITS America Assumes Leadership Role in International Committee for ITS Standards

2) Toyota Announces National Expansion of Safety Program for African American and Hispanic Families

3) Traveller Information Services Association and EasyWay Sign MOU at the European ITS Congress

4) Continental Support the TISA and EasyWay Cooperation with In-Vehicle Devices

Upcoming Events

Transportation & Infrastructure Summit and Global High-Speed Rail Forum – August 9-12 – Irving, Texas

http://www.transportationsummit.com/

Today in Transportation History

1886 **125^th anniversary** The Pacific Express, the first transcontinental train of the Canadian Pacific Railway, departed for its first journey from Montreal to Port Moody.

http://trains-worldexpresses.com/100/121.htm

======================================================================

The Transportation Communications Newsletter is published electronically Monday through Friday.

To subscribe (for free) or unsubscribe, please contact me at bernie@bwcommunications.net.

TCN archives: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/transport-communications

Become a TCN fan on Facebook!

Questions, comments about the TCN? Please write the editor, Bernie Wagenblast at bernie@bwcommunications.net.