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From the Executive Director's Desk
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It's July! I am excited for my first ACT International Conference!
This is an amazingly unique conference. Hundreds of us will converge on Baltimore, July 26-29, with diverse expertise and wide range of differing transportation experiences. ACT is at the forefront of mobility and whether you are commuting by bus, train, ridesharing, cycling, walking, or teleworking, we are all working to improve our world by contributing to energy independence, improved air quality, sustainability, urban mobility, reduced congestion, and healthier living.
Your participation in the education sessions is an essential value of this conference. The demands of the commuter continue to evolve and it is our job to satisfy their needs. The sessions and conversations are opportunities to help each other find solutions, develop partnerships, and integrate services to improve upon the problems we all face in this critical area. We are confident that your presence will generate many fresh and useful ideas.
This year's Conference program offers the "outsiders" needs for transportation. From keynote speaker Andrew Evans, National Geographic's "Digital Nomad," narrating his global travels using only public transport, to Edward Gabriel, Principle Deputy Assistant Secretary at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, talking about transportation as one of four community lifeline infrastructure functions, we are highlighting the essential services transportation provides to sustain and connect communities.
Whether you are new to the ACT Conference (like me) or a long-time attendee, prepare to hear great presentations, learn from proven performances and experiences, engage in thought provoking conversations and enjoy your time celebrating our 30th anniversary with your friends.
Bill Anderson
Executive Director, ACT
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Cheaper Conference Rate--ACT NOW!
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You can save $50 off the on-site rate for the 2015 ACT International Conference if you register by July 11 (note the new date).
The ACT 2015 International Conference, to be held in Baltimore, July 26-29, is the one place you will find dozens of targeted educational sessions, hundreds of subject matter experts, and first-rate industry partners who are committed to assisting you in meeting your organization's goals.
Check out the full educational program here. And register today!
Professional Development Opportunities
Before the Opening Ceremonies to the ACT 2015 International Conference, you have two opportunities learn new professional skills and advance you career - Sponsored by TDMI
9 a.m. - noon: Pre-Conference Training Program
Introduction to Social Marketing for TDM Professionals
Or
Change Agent 101: Bringing TDM to Organizations through Change Management
2 - 5 p.m.: Pre-Conference Training Program
Developing Creative Thinking Skills for TDM Professionals
Or
What New Across the Pond? European TDM Initiatives That Could Help You!
Separate Conference fees apply - Register Today
Second Event Hotel Added
The room block at the Hyatt Regency has closed. While rooms are still available at the Hyatt (at a non-Conference rate), you have a second option to stay at the Royal Sonesta Harbor Court Baltimore for $179 per night. Special rate at the second hotel ends on July 8.
Royal Sonesta Harbor Court Baltimore
550 Light Street
Baltimore, MD 21202
Tel: 1.410.234.0550
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Transportation Techies Meetup
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Calling all transportation coders in the Baltimore region: we're having our first Transportation Techies  meetup in Charm City in conjunction with the 2015 ACT International Conference. (You do not need to register for the conference in order to attend our meetup.) Doors open at 6 p.m. on Monday, July 27 with pizza and drinks courtesy of our sponsor, Arlington, VA's Mobility Lab. Presentations start at 6:30 p.m.
See the agenda here!
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Call for Nominations: Chapter Directors
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ACT's annual national elections process kicks off today, beginning with this call for nominations. If you are an ACT member, you are invited to nominate yourself to represent your Chapter as a member of the ACT Board of Directors. (Officers and At-Large Directors will be elected next year.)
First: Please read the call for nominations memo from Elections Committee Chair Peggy Schwartz that describes the required official election procedures and schedule. Click here for a PDF copy of this memo.
Second: Complete and sign the Conflict of Interest Statement (pages 9-10 of the memo) and fax it to ACT headquarters at 703-566-2267 before submitting your online self-nomination.
Third: Familiarize yourself with ACT's Policies & Proceduresand Bylaws. (You'll also find links to both PDF documents here on the Board of Directors page under "Governing Documents".)
Fourth: Complete this online Self-Nomination Form and Candidate Qualification Statement no later than 11:59 p.m. EDT, Monday, July 13, 2015, in order to be accepted.
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 Developing a Reliable and Innovative Vision for the Economy the (DRIVE) Act
Updates by Jason Pavluchuk
Last week, the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee took action on the Developing a Reliable and Innovative Vision for the Economy the (DRIVE) Act. ACT commends Senator Inhofe (R-OK) and Senator Boxer (D-CA) on the introduction and subsequent mark-up of this act. These actions represent an important first step in securing a long-term transportation that will allow us as a nation to create a 21st century transportation network.
While the DRIVE Act is not perfect, it does take additional steps to modernize our transportation system and will help expand options for commuters. Among other key provisions, it will:
- Increase highway spending from $37.8 billion in FY 2015 to $45.5 billion in FY 2021, with increases of roughly $2 billion each year and total spending of $257.5 billion on federal aid highway programs during the six-year life of the bill.
- Continue to fund core highway programs during six years, specifically:
- $143.5 billion for the National Highway Performance Program.
- $64.5 billion for the Surface Transportation Program.
- $12 billion for the Highway Safety Improvement Program.
- $14.6 billion for the Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality Improvement Program.
- Authorize $72.5 million per year for the University Transportation Centers (UTC) program.
- Establish:
- The National Freight Program funded at $13.4 billion during six years.
- An Achievement in Transportation for Performance and Innovation competitive grant program to reward states and MPOs that meet or exceed performance metrics. The bill authorizes $150 million per year for the program, of which no more than $15 million may be allocated per grant recipient.
- The Assistance for Major Projects (AMP) program providing between $300 million and $450 million annually for the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) to award grants for critical surface transportation infrastructure mega-projects of national significance.
- A new Transportation Innovation title with funding set-aside for pilots and deployment projects.
ACT Executive Director Bill Anderson said:
I appreciate and support Chairman Inhofe (R-OK), Ranking Member Boxer (D-CA) and all of the members of the Senate Environment & Public Working (EPW) Committee involved with the introduction of the DRIVE Act. With just a few weeks left before the Highway Trust Fund is scheduled to go broke, the action taken to advance reauthorization could not be timelier.
The DRIVE Act would enable advancing our independent, stovepiped transportation system to a more modern transportation system that would offer greater connectivity and reliability for commuters. ACT is very pleased with the Committee action to increase funding for core formula programs, specifically the Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality programs.
We also are supportive of the changes made to the research program that will allow for open competition and the deployment of innovative technologies.
This is just a starting point for commuter mobility. We look forward to working with Senator Inhofe, Senator Boxer and other committees of jurisdiction to create legislation that will modernize and optimize a reliable integrated transportation system.
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Chesapeake Chapter Offering Conference Scholarships
Hoping to attend the ACT 2015 International Conference but need some help covering expenses? The Chesapeake Chapter is offering scholarship assistance to members. Apply today and be part of the premier learning event for TDM professionals. Download the PDF application here .
SEACT 2015 Bill Mustard Scholarships
As part of our ongoing efforts to increase professional development opportunities for members, SEACT awarded two $650 Bill Mustard Scholarships to applicants for the 2015 ACT International Conference in Baltimore. The scholarships can be used toward registration or travel fees. This year's winners are:
- Alexa Powell, TDM planner, Piedmont Authority for Regional Transportation (PART), Greensboro, N.C.
- Len Cone, Chapel Hill TDM outreach coordinator, Town of Chapel Hill, N.C.
Congratulations; see you in Baltimore!!
SEACT Member News
National Center for Transit Research Awarded Patent
The United States Patent Office recently awarded Patent No. 9,047,384, System and Method for Automatically Determining Purpose Information for Travel Behavior to a team of researchers from the National Center for Transit Research ( www.nctr.usf.edu) and College of Computer Science and Engineering at the University of South Florida. The patent is for an automated trip-purpose detection method that utilizes GPS Data collected by GPS-enabled devices. The GPS data is compared against a GIS map to obtain various spatial and location characteristics of the surrounding area. This information is then used to derive a traveler's trip purpose. In a preferred embodiment, the inventive method is implemented automatically without any needed manipulation of GIS data. Additionally, the method integrates location information as defined by the user for critical locations such as home and work. These personalized locations allow the method to immediately identify the two most common types of trips: work-related trips and trips returning home. More information about the patent may be found at http://tinyurl.com/ntfjkf5Â
The patented method will minimize the burden on the individual carrying a mobile device like a cell phone by eliminating the need to record the trip purpose at the end of each link of a trip. It will allow transit and TDM professionals to assess mode use, trip purposes, travel paths, and opportunities for trip chaining to provide personalized feedback to commuters to affect behavior to reduce vehicle miles of travel and vehicle trips.
For more information, please contact Sean Barbeau, PhD at barbeau@cutr.usf.edu.
Cascade Chapter Member News
Washington rolls out a low-income fare program
King County Metro Transit, Seattle, Wash., rolled out a low-income fare program called ORCA Lift several weeks ago. The program provides a discounted transit fare for those whose income is 200 percent or less than the federal poverty level. At the end of the first quarter of operation, more than 10,000 people signed up. The program is built on a very successful partnership between the Transit Agency and the Department of Public Health Seattle-King County. NBC News' "Meet the Press" featured the ORCA LIFT program. Carol Merrill, ACT Cascade chapter president, is the project manager for this program and will be presenting its story at the ACT International Conference in July.
Learn more here.
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Beyond Traffic: US DOT's 30-Year Framework for the Future
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Beyond Traffic is an invitation to the American public-including the users, developers, owners, and operators of the transportation network and the policy officials who shape it-to have a frank conversation about the shape, size, and condition of that system and how it will meet the needs and goals of our nation for decades to come.
Read the draft framework here.
Improving Transportation Systems Management and Operations: Capability Maturity Model Workshop White Papers
These white papers focuses on the six critical dimensions of capability identified in the SHRP2 research as necessary to support effective Transportation Systems Management and Operations (TSM&O). They summarize the TSM&O state-of-the-practice in each dimension based on the workshops and subsequent implementation plans developed at 23 sites selected by FHWA and AASHTO as part of the second Strategic Highway Research Program (SHRP2) Implementation Assistance Program.
Read the White Papers here.
Incorporating Travel-Time Reliability into the Congestion Management Process (CMP): A Primer Incorporating Travel-Time Reliability into the Congestion Management Process (CMP): A Primer provides guidance and potential opportunities for using products developed through the SHRP 2 Reliability focus area. The Primer has been developed, in part, to support and advance the Congestion Management Process (CMP) and the Planning for Operations program as part of the metropolitan transportation planning process. (Publication number: FHWA-HOP-14-034) Read the Full Report Here.
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A Fix for New York's Infrastructure Straitjacket
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By Michael Likosky
New York's Cuomo administration has a strategy in place for modernizing and globalizing the city. It addresses New York's disconnectedness in three important ways to make it easier to move human capital, goods and services into and out of the city, and to regionalize our economy:
- Attract investment into New York City.
- Export more goods.
- Regionalization.
One opportunity yet to be realized, though, is the creation of a New York City manufacturing zone. We bemoan the exodus of manufacturing and similar industries as our ideas economy swamps all else. Fashion designers create their products in the city but often must ship their designs abroad to have prototypes produced, for example. While we do have the M1, M2, and M3 zones for light and industrial manufacturing within the city, they are not of the scale necessary to meet the manufacturing needs of our economy.
Read the full article at Crain's New York Business
Transit Advisory Board Approves Recommending Sales Tax
By Kesley Ryan
Wichitans are one step closer to being asked to pay a sales tax to support the city's struggling transit system.
Transit advisory board members have voted to recommend a one-tenth of a cent sales tax to the Wichita City Council as it considers what to do about a $2 million shortfall the bus system will face next year.
Read the full article at The Wichita Eagle
Bridj Set to Launch in Washington, D.C.
By Matt McFarland
Commuters in the Washington, D.C., area will have another transit option this spring when Bridj launches in our nation's capital. The Boston start-up offers point-to-point bus service. Its data science team crunches everything from census data to social media posts to figure out where a city has the biggest need for better bus service.
It says it has cut some Boston commute times on public transit in half by offering strategic service. It's currently unclear where Bridj will focus its service in the D.C. area. The start-up is encouraging interested customers to request specific routes on its website.
Read the full article at the Washington Post.
Hydrogen-Powered Tram Developed in China
Dialogue on AENews
In an effort to reduce China's harmful and plentiful greenhouse gas emissions, Chinese company Sifang (a subsidiary of China South Rail Corporation) has developed the world's first hydrogen powered tram. The tram took two years of research and development to complete, and will be powered entirely by hydrogen fuel cells. Since this is a tram and not a train, the top speed will only be 70 kilometers per hour and it will be used in urban areas only. It is designed to carry 380 passengers.
Watch and discuss the report at AENews.com.
Amazon's 'Treasure Truck' Combines Flash Sales and Storefronts
Article from Transport Topics, American Trucking Association
Amazon.com Inc. unveiled June 25 the Treasure Truck, which carries paddle boards, porterhouse steaks and other discounted items that people can buy online and pick up when the vehicle is nearby. Amazon's mobile app will tell shoppers what's on the truck each day and list pickup times and locations in Seattle, where the company is based.
Read the full article here.
Fear of Longer Commutes Puts Pressure on U.S. Cities to Act
Article by Joan Lowy and Justin Pritchard, The Associated Press
"If we don't change, in 2045, the transportation system that powered our rise as a nation will instead slow us down," the Department of Transportation said in a report earlier this year titled "Beyond Traffic."
"Transit systems will be so backed up that riders will wonder not just when they will get to work, but if they will get there at all," the report said. "At the airports, and on the highway, every day will be like Thanksgiving is today."
The projections were based on a population increase of 70 million people and a 45 percent increase in the nation's volume of freight.
That prediction has opened a growing divide between cities such as L.A. that have been making huge investments in new transit options and other regions that have been unable or unwilling to get ahead of the crisis, including the fast-growing South and Southwest.
Read the full article on the Los Angeles Daily News .
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Blow Your Trumpet 
You won an award? Your organization received a grant? You solved a problem that has long vexed the TDM world? Why keep it a secret? Please add ACT to your press list and email us your news. A short paragraph is plenty; we'll follow up with you if we need more details. Just email us at info@actweb.org with "Member News" in the subject line.
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