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FHWA Launches New Climate Change Website

http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/hep/climate

Category > Now Available: May 20, 2009 (FHWA) 

The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) has created a new Web site to provide information on FHWA research, publications and resources related to climate change science, policies and actions. Check out the new site at http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/hep/climate.

 Save the Date for the National Rural Transportation Conference

http://www.RuralTransportation.org/pages/page.asp?page_id=59355

Category > Opportunity: May 20, 2009 (NADO)

Plan now to attend the 2009 National Rural Transportation Peer Learning Conference, to be held October 28-30, 2009 in Savannah, Georgia.  This year’s conference will feature mobile workshops, peer training and networking opportunities specifically designed for rural and small metropolitan regions. 

Training sessions will cover such policy and technical issues as transportation and economic development, land use, climate change, relationships with state departments of transportation and other planning partners, planning for regional transit and coordinated human services transportation, GIS and technology applications, safety planning, freight and intermodal transportation, finance and other topics. 

National Association of Development Organizations (NADO) member organizations are encouraged to submit abstracts of presentations online until May 30, 2009 at http://www.zoomerang.com/Survey/?p=WEB228TVR2RJRU. 

This year’s conference will also include special networking and learning events held jointly with the Association of Metropolitan Planning Organizations (AMPO) Annual Conference. This will provide an opportunity to share practices with transportation professionals from medium and large metropolitan regions as well as rural and small metropolitan regions.

For more information, contact NADO Program Manager Carrie Kissel at ckissel@nado.org or 202-624-8829.  For more details on the conference, visit http://www.RuralTransportation.org/pages/page.asp?page_id=59355.

 NADO and AMPO to Offer Climate Change Webinar

http://www.ruraltransportation.org/pages/page.asp?page_id=69578

Category > Opportunity: May 20, 2009 (AMPO)

Save the date for the upcoming Webinar entitled “Climate Change Is Heating Up: The Latest Information and Resources for Transportation Planning Agencies in Rural, Small- and Medium-sized Regions,” which will take place on Thursday, May 21, 2:00-3:30 p.m.  This Webinar will be offered free of charge, and AICP Certification Maintenance credits may be offered to attendees.

The Webinar will feature presentations by Cindy Burbank, National Planning and Environment Practice Leader for PB Americas, and Harrison Rue, Principal for ICF International. Burbank and Rue will provide an overview of climate change information and its relationship to transportation planning, discuss potential regulatory and legislative issues, economic impacts and prospects for addressing climate change, opportunities to adapt to and mitigate climate change and provide additional resources.

For more information and to register, visit http://www.ruraltransportation.org/pages/page.asp?page_id=69578.

This Webinar is supported in part by the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) under Agreement No. DTFH61-06-H-00029. Any opinions, findings and conclusions or recommendations in this publication are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the view of FHWA.

 T3 Webinar: Next Generation 9-1-1 (NG 9-1-1) Summit for Large Cities 

http://www.pcb.its.dot.gov/t3/s090521_nxtgen.asp

Category > Opportunity: May 20, 2009 (JPO)

This Talking Technology and Transportation (T3) Webinar will take place on May 21, 2009, from 10:30-11:30 a.m. ET. This Webinar will provide a briefing on the status of the NG 9-1-1 Initiative and other development efforts and describe the transition to the National E-911 Implementation Coordination Office that is currently underway.

T3 Webinars are sponsored by the ITS Professional Capacity Building Program at the U.S. Department of Transportation’s ITS Joint Program Office. For more information and to register, click on the link above.

T3 Webinar: Minneapolis I-35 Bridge Collapse – A Major Emergency Incident

http://www.pcb.its.dot.gov/t3/s090603_tsagi35.asp

Category > Opportunity: May 20, 2009 (JPO)

This T3 Webinar will take place on  June 3, 2009, from 2:00-5:30 p.m. ET. Within a workshop setting, Transportation Safety Advancement Group members and other public safety professionals review actual public safety related events or incidents for the purpose of identifying management strategies and technology-based applications and corresponding successes, failures and lessons-learned. This Webinar will review the 2007 I-35 (MN) Bridge Collapse.

Case Studies Workshop presenters walk the audience through the tragic events of the day, focusing on 9-1-1 operations, Police, Fire and EMS response, as well as the Emergency Operations Center (EOC) activation and management. Presenters will share lessons learned and highlight the performance of the Minneapolis 911 Center, of local emergency responders and of operations strategies and technologies at the time of and responding to the incident.

T3 Webinars are sponsored by the ITS Professional Capacity Building Program at the U.S. Department of Transportation’s ITS Joint Program Office. For more information and to register, click on the link above.

Public and Private Sector Leaders Call for Deployment of Intelligent Systems and Technologies

http://www.itsa.org/itsa/files/pdf/ITSAmericaAuthorizationProposal-FINAL.pdf

Category > Breaking News: May 20, 2009 (ITS America)

 A coalition of transportation and technology leaders – including state and local officials, industry and academic leaders and prominent stakeholder organizations – is calling on Congress to focus federal funding in the surface transportation authorization bill on the deployment of smart technologies and innovative solutions in order to create a performance-driven, intermodal transportation system that is safer, cleaner, more efficient and more financially sustainable for communities, businesses and the traveling public.

“As a result of successful research initiatives and private sector innovation, technologies are here today which can help increase safety, reduce congestion and emissions, boost competitiveness, improve system performance, and create more livable and sustainable communities,” the coalition wrote today to House transportation leaders. “While a continued and strengthened research role is still needed, it is critical that state and local agencies and private sector partners make better use of technology to modernize today’s infrastructure and optimize existing capacity, while building smart and efficient roads, bridges, transit systems, and multimodal transportation options for tomorrow’s transportation users.” 

ITS America’s complete authorization recommendations are available here: http://www.itsa.org/itsa/files/pdf/ITSAmericaAuthorizationProposal-FINAL.pdf.

Rough Roads Costing Motorists Hundreds More Per Year

http://news.transportation.org/press_release.aspx?Action=ViewNews&NewsID=231

Category > Now Available: May 20, 2009 (AASHTO)

Driving on rough roads costs the average American motorist approximately $400 a year in extra vehicle operating costs. Drivers living in urban areas with populations over 250,000 are paying upwards of $750 more annually because of accelerated vehicle deterioration, increased maintenance, additional fuel consumption, and tire wear caused by poor road conditions.

Rough Roads Ahead: Fix Them Now or Pay for It Later, a report released by the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) and TRIP, reports that one-third of the nation’s major highways, including Interstates, freeways, and major roads, are in poor or mediocre condition. Roads in urban areas, which carry 66 percent of the traffic, are in much worse shape.

The full report is available at http://roughroads.transportation.org, along with charts, photographs, and examples from states working to improve their highway systems. Rough Roads is part of Are We There Yet? We Can Be!, AASHTO’s effort to build awareness and support for the nation’s transportation system.

 Secretary LaHood: TIGER Discretionary Grants Will Target Major-Impact Transportation Projects, Job Creation

http://www.dot.gov/affairs/2009/dot6909.htm

Category > Breaking News: May 20, 2009 (U.S. DOT)

 U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood announced the availability of $1.5 billion in TIGER (Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery) Discretionary Grants for capital investment in surface transportation projects. Grants will be awarded on a competitive basis to projects that have a significant impact on the nation, a region or metropolitan area and can create jobs and benefit economically distressed areas.

“TIGER discretionary funding will open up the door to many new innovative and cutting-edge transportation projects,” said Secretary LaHood. “This is exciting news and I believe that these projects will promote greater mobility, a cleaner environment and more livable communities.”

The grants can range from $20 million up to $300 million to support high impact transportation projects. Secretary LaHood can waive the minimum grant requirement for beneficial projects in smaller cities, regions or states. The U.S. Department of Transportation will require rigorous economic justifications for projects over $100 million. To ensure responsible spending, the department will require all fund recipients to report on their activities on a routine basis.

Applications for TIGER discretionary grants must be submitted by September 15, 2009, from state and local governments, including U.S. territories, tribal governments, transit agencies, port authorities and others. Comments on the criteria must be received by June 1, 2009. The Federal Register notice can be accessed by clicking here: http://edocket.access.gpo.gov/2009/pdf/E9-11542.pdf.

2010 TRB 89th Annual Meeting and Transportation Research Record: Calls for Papers

http://www.trb.org/news/blurb_detail.asp?id=10343

Category > Opportunity: May 20, 2009 (TRB)

Transportation Research Board standing committees have issued more than 40 calls for papers for the TRB 89th Annual Meeting, January 10-14, 2010, in Washington, D.C, and the Transportation Research Record: Journal of the Transportation Research Board (TRR). While papers addressing any relevant aspect of transportation research will be considered, some committees are soliciting papers in specific subject areas to help potential authors identify topics for their papers. Committees will be producing calls for papers through June, so authors should visit this site periodically.

The calls for papers can be sorted by major subject area, title, or sponsoring committee. Solicited and unsolicited papers for presentation and/or publication as part of the 89th TRB Annual Meeting and the TRR must be submitted directly to TRB via the online paper submission Web site by August 1, 2009. The paper submission Web site will open in June. By late October, TRB communicates the results of the initial review to the corresponding author indicated on the paper submission form.

Register Now for IBTTA’s Upcoming Meeting – Incident Management, Safety and Security, July 19-21, 2009, Denver, CO

http://www.ibtta.org/Events/eventdetail.cfm?ItemNumber=3857

Category > Opportunity: May 20, 2009 (IBTTA)

Join the International Bridge, Tunnel and Turnpike Association (IBTTA) in Denver, CO to learn about best practices from around the world in Incident Management and Emergency Response. Sessions will explore the most effective tools and communication methods available to promote toll facility safety and security; maintain operations in the face of disruption; and effectively communicate with customers during all phases of an incident, from prevention to recovery. Other topics include crisis management during special events, Post Traumatic Distress Disorder and psychological impacts to employees, the role of engineering and maintenance in prevention and safety, and business continuity during disasters. Visit the link above to view the preliminary agenda and register today!

ITS JPO Lesson of the Month

http://www.itslessons.its.dot.gov/its/benecost.nsf/WhatNewLessons?OpenForm&Seq=1&type=Lessons

Category > Now Available: May 20, 2009 (JPO)

 The ITS JPO Lesson of the Month for May 2009 is, “Use a common Concept of Operations for evacuation operations that clarifies stakeholder roles and defines coordination activities for all operational phases of the evacuation.” This lesson discusses the usefulness of a shared transportation operations plan in emergency evacuations with advance notice. To read the lesson, click on the link above.

Upcoming ITE Webinars

http://www.ite.org/education/clearinghouse/

Category > Opportunity: May 20, 2009 (ITE)

The Institute of Transportation Engineers is offering the following upcoming Webinars:

Access Management at Intersections Part II

http://www.ite.org/education/webinars_accesste.asp#ACCESS_PART_II

Background: Building from the “Access Management at Intersections Part I” web seminar, this web seminar will highlight major classifications of access management techniques at intersections, such as objective of separating conflicts, geometric access management and operational techniques.

Date: Tuesday, May 26, 2009

Time: 3:00 p.m. – 4:30 p.m. Eastern

Traffic Signal Operations Specialist® (TSOS) Refresher Courses

http://www.ite.org/education/webinars_tsos.asp#TSOSSuite

Background: The suite of courses includes five (5) learning modules on traffic signal control, signal design and installation, signal phasing and timing, signal system timing and operations and signal operations and safety review. See individual modules below for course details and learning objectives.

Dates: Thursdays, May 28- June 25, 2009 (Modules 1-5 )

Time: 3:00 p.m. – 4:30 p.m. Eastern

Professional Traffic Operations Engineer® (PTOE) Refresher Courses

http://www.ite.org/education/webinars_ptoe.asp#PTOE__SUITE

Background: The suite of courses includes five (5) learning modules on traffic engineering studies, traffic operations analysis, operational effects of geometric design, traffic safety and traffic control devices. See individual modules below for course details and learning objectives.

Dates: Tuesdays, June 2-30, 2009 (Modules 1-5)

Time: 12:00 p.m. – 1:30 p.m. Eastern

Traffic Operations Practitioner Specialist® (TOPS) Refresher Courses

http://www.ite.org/education/webinars_tops.asp#Suite%20REFRESHER

Background: The suite of courses includes six (6) learning modules on traffic operations studies, traffic devices, elements of design, traffic safety, incident management and transportation management. See individual modules below for course details and learning objectives.

Dates: Wednesday, August 19 – September 23, 2009 (Modules 1-6 )

Time: 12:00 p.m. – 1:30 p.m. Eastern

FHWA Exploratory Advanced Research Program: Broad Agency Announcement

http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/advancedresearch/index.cfm

Category > Opportunity: May 20, 2009 (FHWA)

 The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) Exploratory Advanced Research Program has posted its spring Broad Agency Announcement covering 12 topics in four focus areas: nanoscale research; concepts for integrated highway safety and systems operations; new technologies and advanced policies for energy and resource conservation systems; and macro, mega and national scale modeling systems. Proposals are due Wednesday, June 24, 2009. Please see http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/advancedresearch/index.cfm.

Tuesday, May 19, 2009 – ISSN 1529-1057

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Registration Still Open for ITS America’s 2009 Annual Meeting & Exposition, June 1-3, National Harbor, Maryland 

Join U.S. Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood, 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

) Boeing’s Ambitions Crushed Its Wi-Fi Project, Paving Way for Small Competitor

Link to column in the Chicago Tribune:

http://www.chicagotribune.com/business/columnists/chi-tue-greising-aircell-boeing-may19,0,6380328.column

) Dallas/Fort Worth Airport Launches Mobile Phone Web Site

Link to story in The Dallas Morning News:

http://aviationblog.dallasnews.com/archives/2009/05/dfw-airport-launches-mobile-ph.html

CARTOGRAPHY

) Google Street View Trike Captures the Roads Less Driven

Link to story in Wired:

http://www.wired.com/autopia/2009/05/google-street-view-trike-captures-the-roads-less-driven/

OTHER

) Miserable Commute? It’s Time to Vent

Web site created by Transportation for America wants an improved transportation system.

Link to column in the Detroit Free Press:

http://www.freep.com/article/20090519/COL12/90519018

Link to My Commute Sucks:  http://www.mycommutesucks.org/

RAILROADS

) Web-Only Rail Discounts Condemned in UK

It is ‘unacceptable’ that low-cost rail fares are easily available only to those with Internet access, MPs say.

Link to BBC News story:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/8056021.stm

Link to report from the House of Commons Public Accounts Committee:

http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200809/cmselect/cmpubacc/191/191.pdf

SAFETY / SECURITY

) Airport Security Questioned

Privacy advocates: suspend ‘virtual strip search.’

Link to story and video on KMGH-TV:

http://www.thedenverchannel.com/news/19499650/detail.html

Link to further information from the Electronic Privacy Information Center:

http://epic.org/privacy/airtravel/backscatter/

TRANSIT

) DC Metro ‘Flight Attendant’ Provides Safety Tips in Video

Link to story in Metro Magazine:

http://www.metro-magazine.com/News/Story/2009/05/D-C-Metro-flight-attendant-provides-safety-tips-in-video.aspx

Link to video: 

http://www.metro-magazine.com/MetroTV/?id=445BB529-D7A6-4A8E-99B5-DD5134199BB5&CategoryID=1017

) Feasibility Study on the Use of Personal GPS Devices in Paratransit

Link to report from the Federal Transit Administration:

http://www.fta.dot.gov/documents/TRANSPO_Feasibility_GPS_Paratransit_Final.pdf

News Releases

1) The European Payments Council and GlobalPlatform Sign MOU to Align Mobile Contactless Technology

Job Posting

 –  Transportation Specialist – Federal Highway Administration – Washington, DC

http://tinyurl.com/pmc8fm

Upcoming Events

The Great American Trucking Show – August 20-22 – Dallas

http://www.gatsonline.com/

Today in Transportation History

1934 **75^th anniversary** – Police and striking Teamsters battled in Minneapolis during a general strike as a truck was attempting to unload.

http://www.mnhs.org/library/tips/history_topics/81truckersstrike.html

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

The Transportation Communications Newsletter is published electronically Monday through Friday. 

To subscribe send an e-mail to:  TCNL-subscribe@googlegroups.com

To unsubscribe send an e-mail to:  TCNL-unsubscribe@googlegroups.com

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

Questions, comments about the TCN?  Please write the editor, Bernie Wagenblast ati95berniew@aol.com.   

© 2009 Bernie Wagenblast

(Source: TeslaMotors@Twitter)

Looks like the German automaker, Daimler AG (maker of Mercedes vehicles) strongly feels about the growth of electric vehicles in the market.  Early this morning TransportGooru received the hot alert from Tesla’s Tweet that Daimler has acquired 10% of the company.   Sweet Deal!!! It will be a great & mutually beneficial relationship for both parties as it not only provides the much needed financial capital for Tesla, it  also allows for collaborative development of technologies that will be deployed in the future platforms manufactured by either company. 

• German automaker acquires nearly 10 percent of one of the leading electric vehicle companies

• Automakers agreed to cooperate in battery systems, electric drive systems and vehicle projects

The press release on Tesla’s Website is here for you to read..

May 19, 2009 

STUTTGART, Germany, and SAN CARLOS, Calif.

– Daimler AG has acquired an equity stake of nearly 10 percent of Tesla Motors Inc. This investment deepens the relationship between the inventor of the automobile and the newest member of the global auto industry. Tesla is the only production automaker selling a highway capable electric vehicle in North America and Europe.

The two companies have already been working closely to integrate Tesla’s lithium-ion battery packs and charging electronics into the first 1,000 units of Daimler’s electric smart car. In order to benefit from each other’s know-how, the investment enables the partners to collaborate even more closely on the development of battery systems, electric drive systems and in individual vehicle projects.

“Our strategic partnership is an important step to accelerate the commercialization of electric drives globally,” said Dr. Thomas Weber, Member of the Board of Daimler AG, responsible for Group Research and Mercedes-Benz Cars Development. “As a young and dynamic company, Tesla stands for visionary power and pioneering spirit. Together with Daimler’s 120 years of experience in the automotive sector this collaboration is a unique combination of two companies’ strengths. This marks another important milestone in Daimler’s strategy for sustainable mobility.”

“Daimler has set the benchmark for engineering excellence and vehicle quality for more than a century. It is an honor and a powerful endorsement of our technology that Daimler would choose to invest in and partner with Tesla,” said Tesla Chairman, CEO and Product Architect Elon Musk. “Daimler is also on the leading edge in the field of sustainable mobility. Among others the lithium-ion pouch-cell battery developed by Daimler and especially designed for automotive applications is of interest to us. We are looking forward to a strategic cooperation in a number of areas including leveraging Daimler’s engineering, production and supply chain expertise. This will accelerate bringing our Tesla Model S to production and ensure that it is a superlative vehicle on all levels.”

Together on the road to electro-mobility

As part of the collaboration, Prof. Herbert Kohler, Vice President E-Drive and Future Mobility at Daimler AG, will take a seat on Tesla’s board of directors. 

This long-term partnership with Tesla complements Daimler’s multi-facetted strategy to advance the electrification of the automobile.

Daimler is also moving forward the industrialization of lithium-ion technology. In March, the company founded the Deutsche Accumotive GmbH, a joint venture with Evonik Industries AG. As a result, Daimler is the first vehicle manufacturer worldwide that develops, produces and markets batteries for automotive applications. This is based on a Daimler stockholding in Li-Tec, the German specialist for lithium-ion battery cells.

100 smart electric cars have already been undergoing large-scale trials in London since 2007. These electric vehicles are being tested in day-to-day assignments by fleet operators and private customers.

Later this year the smart assembly plant in Hambach, France, will start production of up to 1,000 units of the second-generation smart fortwo with electric drive, which will initially be used for mobility projects such as e-mobility Berlin or e-mobility Italy. This year Daimler is also starting small-series production of the Mercedes-Benz B-Class with a fuel cell drive system. In 2010 the company will introduce its first battery-powered Mercedes-Benz. As of 2012, Daimler plans to equip all smart and Mercedes-Benz electric vehicles with own produced lithium-ion batteries.

In 2004, Tesla began development of its first electric vehicle, the Roadster, which remains the only highway capable EV for sale in North America or Europe. The Tesla Roadster is the first production battery electric vehicle to travel more than 200 miles per charge and the first US- and EU-certified lithium-ion battery electric vehicle. This green supercar accelerates from 0 to 60 mph in 3.9 seconds yet gets the equivalent of 256 miles per gallon. The Roadster, which travels an estimated 244 miles per charge with zero tailpipe emissions, is the first production vehicle to break the historical compromise between automobile performance and efficiency.

 

The Tesla Model S builds upon the success of the Tesla Roadster by leveraging its technology into the world’s first fully electric sedan. Based in Silicon Valley, Tesla unveiled the Model S in March and plans to produce it in California starting in late 2011.

Monday, May 18, 2009 – ISSN 1529-1057

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Join the International Road Federation (IRF) and learn about the latest international best practices in Pavement Preservation at a newly developed international seminar “Preserving our Highway Infrastructure Assets: Affordable, Safer, and Environmentally Friendly Pavement Preservation Practices”“ August 4-7, 2009 Orlando, Fl. The workshop will focus on key issues such as the role of new materials and technologies for pavement preservation, new funding strategies and contracting models to sustain pavement preservation, and latest pavement management tools.

 

The seminar’s approach is truly global, due to its cast of international speakers including experts from the World Bank Group, U.S. FHWA, Colas (France), University of Texas El Paso (USA), Nippo Corporation (Japan), FDOT, CECA ARKEMA (France) Rubber Pavements Association (USA), and the Shell (Netherlands). Register Today!

CAMERAS

1) Traffic Camera Ban Fails in Louisiana

Link to story on WAFB-TV:

http://www.wafb.com/Global/story.asp?S=10382118&nav=menu57_2

2) Seventeen Cameras to Monitor Shanghai Taxi Drivers

Link to story in the Shanghai Daily:

http://www.shanghaidaily.com/sp/article/2009/200905/20090516/article_401016.htm

GPS / NAVIGATION

3) GPS Upgrade Behind Schedule and Over Budget

Link to CNET News story:

http://news.cnet.com/8301-13639_3-10243477-42.html

ROADWAYS

4) Rest Stop Hellos Get a Goodbye from South Dakota

Nonprofit groups no longer can host events at interstate rest stops after officials with the state DOT decided they are too much hassle.

Link to story in the Argus Leader:

http://www.argusleader.com/article/20090518/NEWS/905180330

5) Experimental Safety Sign Going Up on Wisconsin Highway

Link to story from KUWS Radio:

http://www.businessnorth.com/kuws.asp?RID=2936

6) Technology Could Stop Speeding and Crashes

Link to story in The Sunday Times:

http://technology.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/tech_and_web/article6294866.ece

SAFETY / SECURITY

7) TSA Improves Program to Check Airline Passengers Against Terrorist List

Link to story on Nextgov:

http://www.nextgov.com/nextgov/ng_20090518_1856.php

8) Tennessee Enacts Texting-Behind-the-Wheel Law

Link to story in The Tennessean:

http://www.tennessean.com/article/20090516/NEWS0201/905160328/1009/NEWS02/Tennessee+enacts+texting-behind-the-wheel+law

9) Indiana Teens Ready to Mute the Ban on Driving with Cell Phones

Link to story in The Indianapolis Star:

http://www.indystar.com/article/20090518/NEWS0501/905180345/1008/LOCAL19/Teens+ready+to+mute+the+ban+on+driving+with+cell+phones

TRAVELER INFORMATION / TRANSPORTATION MANAGEMENT

10) Former Dash Executive Raised $3 Million for Driver-Centric iPhone App

Link to story in GPS Business News:

http://www.gpsbusinessnews.com/Former-Dash-exec-raised-$3M-for-driver-centric-iPhone-App_a1523.html

News Releases

1) Automakers Strive to Add Content Without Clutter

Upcoming Events

Mid-Continent Transportation Symposium 2009 – August 20-21 – Ames, Iowa

http://www.intrans.iastate.edu/events/midcon2009/index.htm

Today in Transportation History

1969 **40^th anniversary** – Apollo 10 was launched.

http://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/planetary/lunar/apollo10info.html

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

The Transportation Communications Newsletter is published electronically Monday through Friday. 

To subscribe send an e-mail to:  TCNL-subscribe@googlegroups.com

To unsubscribe send an e-mail to:  TCNL-unsubscribe@googlegroups.com

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

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

© 2009 Bernie Wagenblast

(Source: Wired & TimesOnline, UK)

The tightwads at Ryanair have found yet another fee to foist upon customers already nickeled and dimed to death.

The airline widely renowned for being the cheapest thing going says it will start charging passengers £5 ($7.50) for the privilege of printing their boarding passes at home. It’s the latest brilliant idea from the folks who earlier this year suggested charging passengers to use lavatories. What makes this idea so absurd is it replaces Ryanair’s previous practice of offering free online ticketing as an alternative to checking in at the ticket counter – which costs you £10. Leave it to Ryanair to sell the new fee as a way to save money.

“For some passengers, yes, the price has gone up,” spokesman Stephen McNamara told the Times of London. said. “But for those used to paying the £10 airport check-in fee, the price has actually gone down.”

Unless you can’t print out your boarding card. Or you lose it. Then you’re looking at a £40 fee.

The airline says anyone who doesn’t have a printer should get a friend to print the pass for them or go to an Internet cafe in order to avoid a £40 fee.

“Online check-in is the future,” McNamara said, according to the Times. “My mother doesn’t have a computer, but would a person without an ATM card have been allowed to hold up the automation of the banking system?”

Ryanair’s move comes as the European Union forces the airline to be more honest in disclosing some of the fees and taxes it slaps on every ticket. Many of them are impossible to avoid, but Ryanair doesn’t make that clear when advertising its super-cheap fares. The Independent notes Ryanair will tack a £10 fee onto its “free” tickets if they’re purchased with normal credit or debit cards, but it doesn’t disclose that charge in the initial price. Combine that with other stealth fees and your free Ryanair flight can end up costing as much as £80 ($120).

According to the EU, the days of the £1 flight that ends up costing £59.99 after the taxes, fees, check-in and baggage charges are over — for half the airlines identified, anyway — and the opt-in boxes for extras such as insurance and priority boarding are no longer ready-ticked. In theory, consumers should see all taxes, fees and other compulsory charges at the beginning of the booking process and not on the bottom line.

“It is unacceptable that one in three consumers going to book a plane ticket online is being ripped off, misled or confused,” said the EU’s commissioner, for consumer protection, Meglena Kuneva. “There are serious and persistent problems with ticket sales throughout the airline industry as a whole. My message to industry is clear: act now or we will act.”

(Source: Wired & The New Zealand Herald)

Love is in the air — Air New Zealand, that is. The Kiwi carrier has launched Matchmaking Flight to bring lonely travelers together. After all, what better way to get to know The One than sharing a 13-hour flight on your first date?

If you aren’t up for a blind date, you can try meeting that special someone on the airline’s Matchmaking Flight website, a social networking where passenger can meet and interact in the safety of cyberspace before meeting at the terminal. That could keep you from getting matched with that sketchy guy in Seat 35B who keeps mentioning the mile-high club.

In a new venture, coined “love at first flight”, the airline says it is aiming to help single Americans find New Zealand dates with a themed flight headed for a dual hemisphere singles party.

It’s almost a given that the first flight will depart from Los Angeles International Airport on Oct. 13. The journey of love, which is an enticing overnight flight, begins with a pre-flight party at the Air New Zealand Lounge. What happens next is up to you. Upon landing, passengers will dance away their jet lag at the Grand Matchmaking Ball at Auckland’s SkyCity Grand hotel. The whole package starts at $780 per person.

Register on the website and you can look for love in categories that include American boyfriend, Canadian girlfriend, Kiwi friend, and, our favorite, “business contact. The airline says 75 people have signed up. They’re about evenly split between North Americans and Kiwis. Men and women are also equally represented. Air New Zealand hopes passengers will be in a romantic mood just thinking about their destination.

(Source: Wall Street Journal & Politico via Yahoo)

WASHINGTON — The Obama administration plans to order auto makers to increase the overall fuel economy of automobiles sold in the U.S. to 35 miles per gallon by 2016, four years faster than current federal law requires, people familiar with the matter said Monday.

The move is part of a broader overhaul of fuel economy rules aimed at cutting greenhouse-gas emissions.

The Obama administration is expected to announce a plan to revamp federal vehicle fuel-efficiency standards to bring them into harmony with the goals of a California greenhouse-gas law. The Environmental Protection Agency and the Department of Transportation will jointly raise fuel-economy standards and reduce greenhouse-gas pollution under the plan.

Separately, auto makers have agreed to drop litigation challenging the legality of state-level curbs on tailpipe emissions of greenhouse gases, people familiar with the matter said.

An announcement of the agreement is expected Tuesday, with representatives of several large auto companies, including General Motors Corp. Chief Executive Fritz Henderson, and the president of United Auto Workers, Ron Gettelfinger, planning to participate, people familiar with the matter said.

The agreement worked out by aides to President Barack Obama represents a partial victory for the auto industry. The industry will be able to operate under a single national standard on fuel economy, rather than multiple regimes at the federal and state levels. Auto makers have long opposed California’s tailpipe emissions program as tantamount to state-level regulation of fuel economy, traditionally a federal responsibility.

But the standards will require huge investments by auto makers to remake their U.S. fleets so that they have roughly the same overall efficiency as vehicles they now sell in Europe, where gasoline is two to three times more expensive as in the U.S. By moving the 35 mpg requirement to 2016 from 2020, the administration is stepping up the pressure on the industry to overhaul its product lineup faster. It typically takes three to four years for auto makers to design and bring a new vehicle to market.

Auto executives are flying into Washington from around the world for the White House announcement.   California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, a Republican, is expected to attend, the sources said.

The CAFE standard was established by Congress in 1975 in response to the Arab Oil embargo.   A 2007 energy law requires auto makers to boost the average fuel economy of their vehicle fleets to at least 35 miles per gallon by 2020, a 40% increase from the roughly 25 mpg standard for the current fleet.  Last summer, the Transportation Department estimated that requiring auto makers to achieve 31.6 mpg by 2015 would cost the industry $46.7 billion, a sum the agency said would make it among the most expensive rule makings in U.S. history.

“This rule will be a down payment on a broader and sustained effort to reduce our dependence on foreign oil,” he said. “Going forward, my administration will work on a bipartisan basis in Washington and with industry partners across the country to forge a comprehensive approach that makes our economy stronger and our nation more secure.”

According to two industry officials familiar with the plan, mileage standards would rise slowly at first — from a combined requirement of 27.3 miles per gallon for cars and trucks in 2011 — and faster approaching roughly 35 miles per gallon in 2016. That would give auto makers more time to adjust — and collect credits if they can manage to exceed earlier targets — before the steeper increases kick in.

It is unclear how quickly the EPA and the Transportation Department’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration will be able to make a formal proposal for curbing emissions and boosting fuel economy. The EPA on Monday was holding a public hearing on its proposal to find that greenhouse gases endanger public health, the first step toward regulating them.

(Source: Timesonline, UK & Autocar, UK)

A £2,000-a-car scrappage scheme aimed at kick-starting Britain’s depressed motor industry has hit trouble after a dispute between car companies and the Government over costs.

Manufacturers, including Ford and Honda, have told dealers not to register any new vehicles under the scheme, which is starting today.

Consumers are being offered £2,000 towards a new car if they trade in a motor that is at least ten years old.

The car companies said that they were seeking “clarification” from the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform (BERR) over “administrative” details.

The Government insisted that it had been clear on details of the scheme, under which manufacturers would pay £1,000 and the Government £1,000 towards the cost of the incentive.

However, the car manufacturers want dealers to share the cost.

The eleventh-hour hitch will come as a huge embarrassment to the Prime Minister, who had heavily promoted the “bangers for cash” scheme as the route to revitalising Britain’s depressed motor industry.

Gordon Brown and Lord Mandelson, the Business Secretary, visited a Nissan dealership today to talk to consumers signing up to the scheme.

Mr Brown said the £300 million project would prove “very popular” and “a great help to the British car industry.” It would help the economy to “move forward,” he said.

A BERR spokesman said: “Thirty-eight manufacturers have signed contracts with the Department which set out clearly that manufacturers provide £1,000 and the Government matches it.

“We understand several dealers are unhappy about the idea they should share the costs. The Government also needs to ensure VAT is paid in accordance with the scheme.”

Though the scheme was revealed in the Budget the final details emerged only at a meeting on Thursday, manufacturers said.

However, President of the AA Edmund King has pointed out that the £2000 incentive can be used as a deposit to help car buyers get finance. He added that the scheme would “transform the chances of survival in a crash for thousands of car owners” whose current old cars offer substantially less protection than newer models.

But Friends of the Earth executive director Andy Atkins said the scrappage scheme was “a lost opportunity”.

“A well-designed scheme could have played a limited role in cutting emissions from our roads,” he said. “But, unlike some other countries, the UK scheme doesn’t prevent motorists part-exchanging an old, small model for a brand-new gas guzzler.”

Business secretary Peter Mandelson visited a car dealership today to launch the scheme and said there has been a positive response from the industry.

“I am delighted by the response of the motor industry. Thirty-eight companies have signed up – all the major UK car manufacturers and a number of other companies. This means more choice for consumers and a boost for British brands. 



“The scheme has been met with a flood of enquiries from customers. It will provide a boost to the industry and kick-start sales.” 



The confirmed list of manufacturers who have signed up to take part are: Allied Vehicles, Bentley, BMW, Chevrolet, Citroen, Daihatsu, FIAT, Ford, Honda, Hyundai, Isuzu, Jaguar, Kia, Land Rover, London Taxis International, Mazda, Mercedes Benz, MG Motor, Mitsubishi, Nissan, Perodua, Peugeot, Porsche, Proton, Renault, Rolls Royce, SAAB, SECMA UK, Subaru, Suzuki, Toyota, Vauxhall, Volkswagen, Volvo, Koelliker UK Ltd, Iveco Ltd, Chrysler and Renault Trucks UK Ltd.

(Source: Autobloggreen) & HyNor)

As the US government is cutting down its funding and research/deployment interest in Hydrogen-based transportation systens, Norway is thinking the exact opposite.  In an all out push, Norway is moving ahead with the deployment of a 580 kilometer highway peppered with hydrogen fueling stations.  One of the biggest questions surrounding hydrogen-powered vehicles right now is where to find an appropriate hydrogen pump, and looks like Norway has moved to answer that question by opening it up its first hydrogen highway.

This hydrogen highway is part of Norway’s HyNor project and stretches for 580 kilometers from Oslo on the eastern coast to Stavanger on the western North Sea coast. So far, the route consists of 12 hydrogen pumps, which is apparently sufficient to allow the Mazdas to be refueled along the way.

It is worth something and appropriate to mention a recent New York Times article titled “Norway Thrives by Going against the tide“, which articulates how Norway’s investment decisions for its future saved its economy from going bust, while the recession monster is shaking up the financial foundations of many Western economies, including those of US and UK.  The article points out “With a quirky contrariness as deeply etched in the national character as the fjords carved into its rugged landscape, Norway has thrived by going its own way. When others splurged, it saved. When others sought to limit the role of government, Norway strengthened its cradle-to-grave welfare state. And in the midst of the worst global downturn since the Depression, Norway’s economy grew last year by just under 3 percent. The government enjoys a budget surplus of 11 percent and its ledger is entirely free of debt.”

If the above mentioned investment decision is a good indicator to go by, Norways decision to invest in a hydrogen based transportation future seems foretelling and something worth noting, especially for the United States which just dealt a blow to hydrogen research by cutting down the investment.   The HyNor website notes the following: The HyNor Partnership and StatoilHydro are pleased to announce the official opening of the Norwegian hydrogen highway, HyNor, on 11 May 2009 at StatoilHydro’s new hydrogen station at Økern in Oslo. HyNor was opened by Norway’s Minister of Transport and Communications, Liv Signe Navarsete. H.R.H. Crown Prince Haakon of Norway joined the first stage of the EVS Viking Rally, from Oslo to Lier, together with internationally renowned race car driver Henning Solberg. The governing mayor of Oslo, Erling Lae, opened StatoilHydro’s new hydrogen service station at Økern, and Navarsete opened the hydrogen station at StatoilHydro’s service station in Lier.

The first hydrogen station was opened at Forus in Stavanger in 2006, the second in Porsgrunn in 2007, and now the two new stations are open in Oslo and Lier. HyNor has some 50 partners and manages a fleet of more than 50 hydrogen vehicles made by Mazda, Toyota and Think.

“We are very pleased to open up this hydrogen infrastructure for testing and demonstrating hydrogen cars. By doing this, we nurture our ambition to help implement hydrogen as a fuel in the transport sector,” says Anne Marit Hansen, Chairman of the board in HyNor. 

The EVS Viking Rally vehicles are the first to drive the Norwegian hydrogen highway. The rally commences with H.R.H. Crown Prince Haakon racing together with the famous Norwegian race car star Henning Solberg. 14 hydrogen vehicles, two plug in hybrid cars and 14 battery electric vehicles are starting in Oslo and will reach the beginning of the EVS (Electrical Vehicle Symposium) 24 in Stavanger on 13 May. Events will take place along the way in Porsgrunn, Grimstad, Arendal, Kristiansand, Lyngdal and Egersund. Another 10 battery electric vehicles will join the rally in Egersund. 

This is reportedly the first integrated network of hydrogen pumps in the world, and it’s a creation of Norway’s StatoilHydro, the company that installed the underlying structure as well. Future plans call for the highway to extend into the rest of Scandinavia, as shown in the map to the right. Afterward, the alliance intends to extend into Germany. For your information, Mazda has shipped the first Hydrogen RX8 REs to Norway, indicator of a strong response to the government’s interest in Hydrogen vehicles.  

Note:  A related article from NY Times articulates how California’s efforts to build a similar Hydrogen Highway has fallen behind. One of the leading investors in Hydrogen fuel research was the State of California.  Soon after Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger (R) took office in 2003, he set in motion a campaign promise to build, by 2010, a “hydrogen highway” composed of 150 to 200 fueling stations spaced every 20 miles along California’s major highways.  In spite of the great interest, the hydrogen infrastructure has not expanded much since its inception.   the program has fallen short of expectations. With less than 10 months until the end of the decade, 24 hydrogen fueling stations are operating in California, most of them near Los Angeles.State officials say all this is part of what they now view, in the words of ARB spokesman Dimitri Stanich, as a “retooled” hydrogen highway.

“It’s very much alive,” Stanich said of the program. “This vision is still there. It’s just being groomed.”

As stimulus spending on highways and bridges ramps up, Senate Democrats submitted legislation Thursday that suggests the nation’s transportation policy is headed for a major overhaul, with a strong emphasis on reducing automobile use and carbon emissions and boosting public transit, inter-city rail and rail freight service.

 Sen. John D. Rockefeller IV (D-W.Va.), chairman of the Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee, and Sen. Frank Lautenberg (D-N.J.) introduced legislation that they say lays out the guidelines of what they expect the next five-year federal transportation spending plan to accomplish. Their goal is to influence the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, which is responsible for drafting the spending plan. The House plan is expected in early June, and the bill is due for reauthorization this fall.  The Rockefeller-Lautenberg marker, which got some early love from the Washington Post, states that the next federal transportation bill should accomplish the following:

• Reduce national per-capita motor vehicle miles traveled on an annual basis;
• Cut national motor vehicle-related fatalities in half by 2030;
• Cut national surface transportation-generated carbon emissions by 40 percent by 2030;
• Reduce surface transportation delays per capita on an annual basis; 
• Get 20 percent more critical surface-transportation assets into a state of good repair by 2030;
• Increase the total usage of public transit, intercity passenger rail and non-motorized transport on an annual basis.

The focus for those trying to ascertain the administration’s transportation agenda has since turned to the five-year bill, which is expected to cost at least $400 billion. One big question is how the government plans to fund transportation spending, with revenue from the gas tax increasingly falling short. The new Senate bill does not address that problem.

Another big question is how much the bill will provide for public transportation. As it now stands, 80 percent of federal transportation money goes to highways. But David Goldberg, an official with the advocacy group Transportation for America, said Congress and the White House are sending signs that the new plan could represent a major break. The White House has already said it hopes to spend $1 billion per year on high-speed rail.