Event Alert: Transportation Systems for Livable Communities Conference @ Washington, DC – Oct. 18-19, 2010

Posted by transportgooru on August 17, 2010 in Automotives, Energy, Environment, Events, Governance, Highways, Infrastructure, Pedestrian & Bicycles, Public Policy, Research, Society/Social Issues, Special Events, Transit, Travel

TRB is sponsoring the Transportation Systems for Livable Communities Conference on October 18-19, 2010, in Washington, D.C. The conference is being supported by the Research and Innovative Technology Administration. The livability concept embraces cognate notions such as sustainability, quality of life, the character of place, the health of communities, and more. The conference is designed to bring together researchers and practitioners interested in this topic and will provide a timely opportunity to share research results, explore practical challenges, and identify potentially promising directions for future research. Space for this confernece is limited. Early bird registration ends August 26, 2010.

Tags: livability, Livable communities, Research, Research and Innovative TEchnology Administration, RITA, Transportation Planning, Transportation Research Board, TRB, Washington D.C.

Event Alert – TRB ITS Committee Mid-Year Meeting and ITS JPO Evaluation Workshop — September 22, 2010 @Irvine, CA

Posted by transportgooru on July 30, 2010 in Automotives, Governance, Highways, ITS/Telematics, Infrastructure, Public Policy, Research, Safety, Special Events

This year’s ITS Committee mid-year workshop will focus on IntelliDrive(SM) and is planned for September 21-22 at the Beckman Center in Irvine, California. Visit the link above to register and reserve your hotel room. The deadline for reduced hotel rates is August 13.

Tags: AHB15, IBEC, IntelliDrive, Intelligent Transportation Systems, ITS, ITS Evaluation, TRB, TRB ITS Committee, United States Department of Transportation

Join a live chat with leadership for the Obama Administration’s Sustainable Communities Partnership – Thursday July 15, 2010

Posted by transportgooru on July 14, 2010 in Education, Energy, Environment, Events, Governance, Highways, Hybrids, Infrastructure, Public Policy, Research, Society/Social Issues, Special Events, Transit

[ July 15, 2010; 2:00 pm to 4:00 pm. ] On Thursday, July 15, the White House Office of Urban Affairs will host a live chat with the leadership of the Sustainable Communities Partnership, an agreement between HUD, Transportation, and EPA to coordinate federal housing, transportation, and environmental investments. Last month, the Partnership released a joint notice of funding availability — $35 million in TIGER II Planning grants and $40 million in Sustainable Community Challenge grants — for local planning activities that integrate transportation, housing, and economic development. And, HUD also announced $100 million in funding for Sustainable Communities Regional Planning grant program that will support regional planning efforts that integrate housing, land use, economic development, and transportation.

Tags: EPA, Executive Office of the President of the United States, Housing and Urban Development, land use, Obama Administration, Sustainable Communities Partnership., U.S. Department of Transortation, United States Environmental Protection Agency, Urban Planning, USDOT, White House, White House Office of Urban Affairs

Interesting observations from DC Digital Capital Week Event – Online Engagement for Sustainable Urban Mobility

Posted by transportgooru on June 16, 2010 in Automotives, Education, Energy, Environment, Gizmos News (via Gizmodo), Governance, ITS/Telematics, Infrastructure, Pedestrian & Bicycles, Public Policy, Society/Social Issues, Special Events, Transit, Travel

This was a great forum to share/listen best practices, lessons learned, failure stories and ideas of how to put theory into practice, as it relates to the following over-arching questions: What online tools exist in the D.C. area to make transportation more efficient, user-friendly and sustainable? What are some examples of Web-based innovation and collaboration in the D.C. transport sector? How can government, technology and civil society work together to improve the way we move around – by foot, by car, by bike, and by transit – in the nation’s capital?

Tags: DC, DCDOT, DDOT, Digital Capital Week, EMBARQ, Online Citizen Engagement, Open Data, OpenPlans, SeeClickFix, Social Media, Transportation, Washington DC, World Resources Institute, WRI

Event Alert: Get ready to rock your fashionable best – 2010 Seersucker Social @ June 12, 2010

Posted by transportgooru on May 24, 2010 in Environment, Events, Funny Stuff, Infrastructure, Pedestrian & Bicycles, Society/Social Issues, Special Events, Travel

[ June 12, 2010; 3:30 pm to 9:30 pm. ] The Seersucker Social, scheduled for Saturday June 12, is set to offer another delightful, unique and alternative entertainment experience by encouraging folks once again to mount their bicycles in high style. While the fall event called for tweed, seersucker has been selected as the ideal vintage fabric of choice to keep cool for the spring ride. Our event partner Hillwood Estate, Museum and Gardens will provide a fabulous dreamlike setting for the post-ride social.

Tags: Bicycles & Fashion, Biking, Biking in Washington, DC, Entertainment, The Seersucker Social

Do Your Bit to Reverse Climate Change Today! Blog Action Day 2009 – October 15, 2009

Posted by transportgooru on October 15, 2009 in Automotives, Energy, Environment, Governance, Hybrids, Infrastructure, Marine/Waterway, Opinion Columns, Pedestrian & Bicycles, Ports, Public Policy, Rail, Research, Society/Social Issues, Special Events, Transit, Travel

You may ask what difference does it make by simply dropping a blog post on Climate Change? The possibilities are endless. Your one post can inspire someone else to write about this issue. The more people write about, the more people will get to read, and thus we create an awareness about the on going problem. In the cacophony of today’s world, too many people have no time to even stop and think about this very important issue that threatens our very existence on this planet. If your blog can divert the attention of someone – a friend on Facebook, or a random reader from Timbuktu who has subscribed to your blog’s RSS – even for a moment and make them think how they have contributed to this generations effort to save the planet, you have done your bit. Trust me — that’s how we all make a difference in this world – in our own little ways.

Tags: Blog Action Day, climate change, Environment, Environmental Degradation, October 15, Planet Earth, Pollution

Event Alert: U.S.- India Aviation Partnership Summit — December 7-9, 2009 @ Washington, DC

Posted by transportgooru on October 6, 2009 in Aviation, Defense/Military, Economy, Environment, Finance, Governance, Infrastructure, Navigation, Public Policy, Research, Space, Special Events, Travel

To promote greater cooperation between the U.S. and Indian aviation sectors, the U.S. Trade and Development Agency (USTDA), in cooperation with the India Ministry of Civil Aviation, Directorate General of Civil Aviation, Airports Authority of India, U.S. Federal Aviation Administration, US. Transportation Security Administration, U.S.-India Aviation Cooperation Program, and the American Association of Airport Executives (AAAE)/International Association of Airport Executives (IAAE), is sponsoring the U.S.- India Aviation Partnership Summit. The event will take place December 7-9, 2009, at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center in Washington, D.C. The summit will include participation from India’s three key civil aviation agencies – Ministry of Civil Aviation, Directorate General of Civil Aviation and Airports Authority of India – key industry members in the aviation sector, the U.S. government (USTDA, DOT/FAA, TSA, Departments of State and Commerce), and select members of Congress.

Tags: Airports Authority of India, American Association of Airport Executives (AAAE), Aviation Summit, Directorate General of Civil Aviation, India, India Ministry of Civil Aviation, International Association of Airport Executives (IAAE), U.S. Federal Aviation Administration, U.S. Trade and Development Agency (USTDA), U.S.-India Aviation Cooperation Program, United States, US-India Aviation Partnership Summit, US. Transportation Security Administration

TransportGooru Exclusive: Thoughts & observations of Distracted Driving Summit Panelist, Mr. Rod McKenzie, CTO of Intelligent Transportation Society of America

Posted by transportgooru on October 5, 2009 in Automotives, Education, Governance, Law Enforcement/Legal, Public Policy, Research, Society/Social Issues, Special Events, Travel

Last week I had the honor of participating in the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Distracted Driving Summit. Our panel was focused on technology’s role in both preventing and contributing to distracted driving. I was accompanied by my other panelists in highlighting how technology can help address distracted driving, and must not be demonized in our efforts to end what Secretary LaHood described as an epidemic of driver distraction.

Tags: Distracted Driving Summit, Driver Distraction Accidents, Driving While Texting, DWT, Intelligent Transportation Systems, Invehicle Technologies, ITS, Safety Risks on Highways, Technology, Teen Drivers

“Edward Burtynsky: Oil” – Striking Photo Exhibit opens Saturday at Washington’s Corcoran Gallery of Art

Posted by transportgooru on October 3, 2009 in Automotives, Economy, Education, Energy, Environment, Freight, Highways, Hybrids, Infrastructure, Ports, Society/Social Issues, Special Events, Travel

The first exhibit of 56 large-scale color landscapes from Canadian photographer Edward Burtynsky chronicling the impact of oil made its debut Saturday at Washington’s Corcoran Gallery of Art — less than a block from the White House. The show, chronicling the world’s predominant energy source, can’t help carrying a political zing.

Tags: Corcoran Gallery of Art, Crude oil, Edward Burtynsky, Edward Burtynsky:Oil, Oil, Photo Exhibit, Photo Gallery

Do you know there are 10,466 streets named “Main” in the USofA? Mapping Main Street, a collaborative documentary project wants to document every one of them

Posted by transportgooru on August 26, 2009 in Economy, Finance, Infrastructure, Public Policy, Society/Social Issues, Special Events, Travel

When politicians and the media mention Main Street, they evoke one people and one place. But there are over 10,466 streets named Main in the United States, and they tell all kinds of stories. Once you start looking, you’ll notice Main Streets are everywhere and tell all kinds of stories. There’s a Main Street in San Luis, Arizona that dead-ends right into the Mexican border. The Main Street in Melvindale, Michigan runs through a trailer park in the shadows of Ford’s River Rouge plant, once the largest factory in the world. Main Street is small town and urban center; it is the thriving business district and the prostitution stroll; it is the places where we live, the places where we work, and sometimes, it is the places we have abandoned.

Tags: Collaborative Documentary, Main Street, Mapping Main Street, Mapping Main Street project