News
Small Jammers Present Big Problems for GPS
This is a key year for Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS): satellites are being launched in Europe with the Galileo system, in Russia with the Global Navigation Satellite System (GLONASS), and in China with the Compass/Beidou system, reported Karen Van Dyke, Principle Technical Advisor for Global Positioning Systems (GPS) at the Volpe Center and Director of the Office of Positioning, Navigation, and Timing at the U.S. DOT's Research and Innovative Technology Administration. Some estimates venture that there are more than one billion users of GPS worldwide, Van Dyke said.
However, an item that sells for as little as $30 has already caused big problems for this rapidly growing technology and highlights the vulnerability of GPS. Sold as "privacy detectors," GPS jammers block GPS civil frequencies and are often used by drivers of company or fleet vehicles to prevent tracking, said Van Dyke, who spoke at the Volpe Center on September 27 during Transportation Trajectories, a new dialogue on advancing transportation innovation for the public good. Although GPS jammers are illegal to use in the United States, these low-powered, readily available devices are finding a growing market here and recently caused a stir at New Jersey's Newark Liberty International Airport.
A little over a year ago, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) was testing and evaluating a new GPS-based landing system at Newark Airport and discovered disruptions at the reference receivers. It took the FAA and the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) months to discover the source of the interference: a driver on the nearby New Jersey Turnpike was passing by daily with an inexpensive GPS jammer in his truck, said Van Dyke.
"They're prevalent and it's a very difficult problem," said Van Dyke, noting that the GPS-based landing system at Newark still has not gone operational.
These GPS jammers are just one of a number of types of intentional and unintentional interferences that challenge existing and emerging satellite navigation systems. "As we move to more dependence on GPS and GNSS, we do need to be careful to not become too over-reliant on the technology," Van Dyke cautioned. "If we're going to integrate use of them into safety-of-life systems, we need to make sure that they have accuracy, availability, [and] integrity."
(Added 10/31/2011)
Volpe Welcomes French Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) Delegation
Last week Volpe Center Associate Administrator and Director Robert Johns welcomed a French delegation which specializes in Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) relating to vehicles, onboard electronic systems, safety, radio-frequency identification, and transportation mapping. Their mission was sponsored by one of the four major automotive clusters in France, as well as the French Ministry which supports collaborative research and partnership. The delegation—over 20 in number—included a consortium of sixteen top French ITS companies, automotive clusters and research laboratories. Molly A. Swart, Senior Trade Advisor— Automotive, French Embassy Trade Office—Ubifrance—served as delegation liaison. Ubifrance is the French agency for international business development and comes under the aegis of France's Ministry for the Economy, Industry and Employment. Timothy Klein, Senior Policy Advisor for the U.S. Department of Transportation's Research and Innovative Technology Administration in Washington, D.C., also participated in the meeting.
Wassim Najm, PhD., Chief of the Volpe Center's Advanced Vehicle Technology Division, presented on the Volpe Center's motor vehicle safety research with a focus on crash avoidance, pre-crash sensing applications, crashworthiness, and the safety/reliability of automotive electronic controls. During his presentation, Dr. Najm highlighted the Volpe Center's support to the ITS Joint Program Office on the Safety Pilot Program—a field test and evaluation to assess the capabilities of current vehicle-to-vehicle and vehicle-to-infrastructure technologies through the deployment of these technologies in a large scale field test. Dr. Najm also discussed the Volpe Center's work with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and U.S.-based automakers to evaluate the potential of emerging pedestrian crash avoidance mitigation (PCAM) systems. PCAM systems include forward-facing radar designed to sense pedestrians in both low-speed and high-speed incursions. The exchange provided an excellent opportunity for Volpe Center experts and delegation participants to share information on advancements in ITS research.
(Added 10/27/2011)
Straight from the Source with Max Donath, PhD
Straight from the Source
an innovation information exchange for the transportation community
Reducing road fatalities by focusing on human centered systems: Augmented reality allows us to see and feel the road
Our objective is to increase the driver's situation awareness through the use of improved sensing and human machine interfaces, taking advantage wherever possible of the driver's intuitive response
Max Donath, PhD
Director Intelligent Transportation Systems Institute University of Minnesota
About the Source: Max Donath, PhD
Max Donath is a Professor of Mechanical Engineering and Director of the Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) Institute at the University of Minnesota. The Institute's activities are focused on human-centered systems for enhancing the safety and mobility of road-and transit-based transportation. The ITS Institute, under his direction since 1997, pursues research in the areas of human performance and behavior, driver interfaces, sensors, vehicle and traffic controls, communications, and traffic modeling and simulation—developing new approaches for confronting difficult transportation issues.
Professor Donath's most recent research efforts have been directed toward the application of sensors and control systems to reduce driver error and the resulting road fatalities. The focus of his research can be grouped into four areas: (a) improved georeferenced location sensing ("which lane" and "where in lane" vehicle position), (b) collision avoidance and active safety, (c) novel human interfaces for providing improved situation awareness to the driver and pedestrian, and (d) reducing teen driver fatal crashes.
A driver-assistive system developed by the Intelligent Vehicles Lab at the Institute has been operational in Thompson Pass in Alaska since 2003. The system integrates high-accuracy differential GPS, radar, and a head-up display, providing visual, haptic, and tactile feedback that allows drivers to perform high-priority snow clearance tasks while operating under difficult visibility conditions. A similar technology was deployed in 2010 on ten buses in passenger service as part of a BRT system allowing drivers to bypass congestion by driving along a narrow shoulder with only a decimeter to spare. Dr. Donath also leads a major effort with the support of the USDOT and Mn/DOT to reduce fatalities and crashes at rural unsignalized intersections by using innovative sensing techniques and human interfaces to help drivers (especially older ones) decide when it is NOT safe to enter a high-speed intersection. This new system is presently deployed at four intersections as part of a three-year field operational test.
Dr. Donath has been on the faculty at the University of Minnesota since he received his Ph.D. from MIT in 1978.
When:
Tuesday, November 1, 2011
12 noon to 12:30 p.m.
Where:
Volpe Center
55 Broadway, Cambridge, MA
Management Information Center 1, Building 1, 12th floor
This event is also available via webinar:
When the event begins, to view the slideshow, go to www.webmeeting.att.com and log in with the meeting number and code below.
Meeting number: 8773361839
Code: 2996006
To connect for the audio conference, the information is the same:
Call-in number: 877-336-1839
Code: 2996006
For further information contact: Ellen Bell, Director of Strategic Initiatives for Research and Innovation: ellen.bell@dot.gov; 617.494.2491
The Volpe Center is committed to providing equal access to these sessions for all participants. If you need alternative formats or services, please contact Patricia Gordon, Reasonable Accommodation Coordinator, at Ext. 3938 so that services may be coordinated.
* The views of this presenter do not necessarily reflect the views of the U.S. Department of Transportation.
(Added 10/27/2011)
Transportation Safety Requires Vigilance, an Open Mind
Twenty-six years ago, before becoming a safety inspector for the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), David Soucie discovered first-hand the danger in placing monetary priorities above safety.
As maintenance director at the time for a Colorado emergency medical helicopter company, Soucie had been asked by several of his pilots to equip their aircraft with wire strike kits—safety equipment that cuts through wires in the event of a collision with power or telephone lines. However, calculating the cost of the kits against the company's budget, Soucie rejected the purchase. Then on Christmas Eve 1985, company pilot Mike Myers was lifting off in a remote region in Utah after responding to a medical emergency when the wind changed and sent his Bell helicopter adrift into a power line. The wire cut through the chopper's windshield—and into Myers, who died the next day.
"In today's world, we can quantify just about anything we want to quantify," said Soucie, adding that he had looked at the potential return on investment when weighing the safety purchase. "It didn't work because Mike Meyers is dead."
Soucie spoke about the incident during a Sept. 13 "Straight from the Source" presentation at the John A. Volpe National Transportation Systems Center to highlight what he calls "risk IQ," which relates to how an organization measures its own safety culture. Having worked as an aviation safety inspector and accident investigator, among other roles, for the FAA from 1990 to 2006, Soucie has made it his mission to improve aviation safety—something he writes about in his newly published memoir, Why Planes Crash: An Accident Investigator's Fight for Safe Skies.
During his talk, Soucie challenged listeners to examine their thinking about safety, saying that many organizations fail to even recognize risks or hazards. Organizations can become complacent if they do not recognize changes in their environment, which includes recognizing potential threats as well as opportunities, he said. There is also danger in becoming over reliant on institutionalized behavior and in placing other priorities above safety.
It is important for institutions to repair the way they think about risk by raising their awareness, Soucie said. This involves realizing the way that they think about hazards and recognizing changes in the environment. Organizations should also analyze how they make decisions and consider all alternatives and opportunities where safety is concerned.
Regina Houston, Chief of the Volpe Center's Aviation Safety Management Division, worked with Soucie when he was an aviation inspector for the FAA and thinks that he carries a good message in challenging people to think about safety in a different way. "We at Volpe in transportation have a real opportunity to truly make a difference, and what a shame it would be if we didn't open our minds when thinking about safety," Houston said.
Please visit Straight from the Source for more information about David Soucie and other participants in this speaker series.
(Added 10/25/2011)
Transportation Trajectories with Kevin Gay
Transportation Trajectories with Kevin Gay
Featuring Volpe Center experts, Transportation Trajectories is a new dialogue on advancing transportation innovation for the public good.
You are cordially invited to join us in person or via webinar for our next Transportation Trajectories conversation. Join us as Volpe Center staff describe their work, share their knowledge of the transportation enterprise, and respond to questions from participants.
About the Event
Safety Pilot—The World's Most Extensive Real World Deployment of Connected Vehicle Safety
With Kevin Gay
Senior Operations Research Analyst
And Safety Pilot Program Team Member
Advanced Transportation Technologies Center
Tuesday, October 25, 2011
12:00 noon - 12:30 p.m.
Volpe Center
55 Broadway, Kendall Square
Cambridge, Massachusetts
Background information
The Connected Vehicle Safety Pilot Program is part of a major scientific research program run jointly by the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) and its research and development partners in private industry. The Connected Vehicle Safety Research Program supports the development of safety applications based on vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) and vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I) communications systems, using dedicated short-range communications (DSRC) technology. The Safety Pilot is designed to determine the effectiveness of these safety applications at reducing crashes and to show how real-world drivers will respond to these safety applications in their vehicles. The test will include many vehicles with vehicle awareness devices, others with integrated safety systems, and others that use aftermarket safety devices to communicate with surrounding vehicles.
The vision of the Safety Pilot is to test connected vehicle safety applications in real-world driving scenarios to determine their effectiveness at reducing crashes and to ensure that the devices are safe and do not unnecessarily distract motorists or cause unintended consequences. The Safety Pilot will evaluate everyday drivers' reactions both in a controlled environment through driver clinics and on actual roadways with other vehicles through the real-world model deployment. In all, approximately 3,000 vehicles will be included in the combined model deployment and driver clinics. Driver reactions will be evaluated as they use the latest wireless vehicle safety applications and receive in-vehicle warning messages if they approach potentially dangerous traffic situations.
Meet Kevin Gay
Kevin W. Gay contributes strategic thinking and technical direction for both quantitative research and information system technology projects. He is a certified Project Management Professional (PMP) with over a decade of experience in managing budgets, resources, and schedules in challenging advanced technology projects.
Currently, Mr. Gay is assisting the Intelligent Transportation Systems Joint Program Office (ITS JPO) in the technical management of the Safety Pilot Program, a multi-modal year-long field operational test of Dedicated Short Range Communications (DSRC) based crash avoidance systems involving thousands of motor vehicles and corresponding roadside systems. These crash avoidance systems have the potential to impact 81% of all vehicle crashes.
Previously, Kevin served as the project manager for the development of a prototype back office system to facilitate the Wireless Roadside Inspection (WRI) Pilot Test for the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA). The WRI Program seeks to improve motor carrier safety (reduction in accidents) by increased compliance with regulations through a higher frequency of roadside safety inspections using wireless technologies. Mr. Gay has worked on many FMCSA-sponsored projects since joining Volpe, including the Compliance, Safety, and Accountable (CSA) program, which redesigned FMCSA safety compliance business processes, and the Program Effectiveness Models, which provide analytical estimates of the safety benefits generated from FMCSA safety programs.
Prior to joining the Volpe Center, Mr. Gay worked in private industry, developing advanced transportation planning and execution applications to enhance the capabilities of shippers, third party logistics providers, and transportation providers to buy, sell, manage, and optimize multi-modal transportation services. Mr. Gay received a B.S. in Applied Mathematics from Georgia Institute of Technology.
This event is also available via webinar:
When the event begins, to view the slideshow, go to www.webmeeting.att.com and log in with the meeting number and code below.
Meeting number: 8773361839
Code: 2996006
To connect for the audio conference, the information is the same:
Call-in number: 877-336-1839
Code: 2996006
The Volpe Center is committed to providing equal access to these sessions for all participants. If you need alternative formats or services, please contact Patricia Gordon, Reasonable Accommodation Coordinator, at Ext. 3938 by September 20 so that services may be coordinated.
For further information on Transportation Trajectories, please contact Ellen Bell, Director of Strategic Initiatives for Research and Innovation, 617.494.2491 ellen.bell@dot.gov
(Added 10/19/2011)
U.S. DOT SBIR Program Kicks Off Fiscal Year 2012 Program with Call for Innovative Research Proposals
The U.S. DOT's Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Program seeks innovative research proposals from small businesses to address specific research challenges facing the modal administrations. The SBIR Program Office at the Volpe Center has posted the first of two SBIR Program solicitations for Fiscal Year 2012, inviting small businesses to submit research proposals that address high priority goals within the U.S. DOT.
The first solicitation of the year has identified nine (9) research topics, including highway, rail, transit, and pipeline topic areas. The FY 12.1 DOT SBIR Program Solicitation opened on October 11, 2011 and closes December 12, 2011. The solicitation is now available online at http://www.volpe.dot.gov/sbir/current.html
(Added 10/13/2011)
Volpe to Deliver SmartPark Truck Parking Presentations at the Intelligent Transportation System (ITS) World Congress
Gary Ritter, Director of the Advanced Transportation Technologies Technical Center at the Volpe Center will deliver two presentations at next week's 18th World Congress on Intelligent Transportation Systems in Orlando, Florida. Mr. Ritter will participate in two sessions that are related to truck parking. In the first, he will present the technical paper, "Smart Park: Truck Parking Field Operation Test Results," co-authored by Alan Chachich and Scott Smith of the Volpe Center's Technology, Innovation and Policy Division. The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) asked the Volpe Center to support its SmartPark program by assisting with a field operations test of two technologies, video imaging and magnetometry, to assess their suitability for determining the occupancy of truck parking areas. This paper reports the results of these tests. FMCSA has undertaken the SmartPark initiative to demonstrate whether an ITS technology for providing parking availability information in real-time to truckers on the road will work for diverting trucks from filled to unfilled parking areas. A secondary benefit for drivers is that SmartPark can help them in managing fatigue. Mr. Ritter will also participate in a panel discussion on the efforts to use ITS to support truck parking. Keeping the Economy Moving is the theme of this year's World Congress on ITS.
(Added 10/13/2011)
U.S. DOT Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Program Success Stories
Three new DOT SBIR Program success stories have been posted on the U.S. Small Business Administration's (SBA) new website, http://www.sbir.gov/success-stories-by-agency/128
The success stories feature SBIR projects funded by the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) and Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA). Since its inception, the DOT SBIR Program has provided incentive funding to small businesses to translate their innovative ideas into commercial products that address key transportation problems. These innovations are the primary source of new technologies that can provide improve the safety and efficiency of the nation's transportation network. The SBIR Program has helped spawn successful commercial ventures that not only improve the transportation network, but also create jobs, increase productivity and economic growth and enhance our nation's global competitiveness.
The DOT SBIR Program is administered by the Volpe National Transportation Systems Center (Volpe Center).
(Added 10/13/2011)
Volpe Scientist Recognized by White House with Early Career Award
The White House recently named Volpe Center employee Dr. Kristin C. Lewis a recipient of the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers. The award is the highest honor bestowed by the United States government on science and engineering professionals in the early stages of their independent research careers.
Dr. Lewis distinguished herself by working collaboratively to develop a standard for synthesized hydrocarbon jet fuels which has since received international approval. She is also recognized for her outstanding leadership coordinating the aviation-related fuels research of 200+ organizations from Government, industry and academia.
Dr. Lewis serves as the Head Research and Technical Advisor for the Federal Aviation Administration's Commercial Aviation Alternative Fuels Research Initiative (CAAFI), a coalition that seeks to enhance energy security and environmental sustainability for aviation through alternative jet fuels. "The aviation community is actively researching sustainable alternative fuel solutions. It's an exciting time to be involved in alternative fuels because momentum is really building" says Lewis.
In addition to her work at CAAFI, Dr. Lewis is an active participant in the rich scientific and academic community in the Boston area, partnering with researchers at MIT's Aeronautics and Astronautics Department. Dr. Lewis also has strong ties with the U.S. Air Force's Research Laboratory (AFRL) in Dayton, OH, where she is considered a recognized leader in the field.
Prior to joining the Volpe Center in 2009, Dr. Lewis worked as a Rowland Junior Fellow at Harvard University's Ecology Lab, where she received her Ph.D. in Biology in June 2004.
Presidential Early Career awardees are selected for their pursuit of innovative research at the frontiers of science and technology and their commitment to community service as demonstrated through scientific leadership, public education, or community outreach.
"This recognition from the White House of Kristin's outstanding accomplishments and future promise is very well deserved," said CAAFI Executive Director, Richard Altman.
Dr. Lewis is one of ninety-six awardees and the only recipient in the U.S. Department of Transportation.
(Added 10/11/2011)
Volpe Center Supports National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) Development of Fuel Efficiency Regulation for Heavy Trucks
A joint NHTSA-Environmental Protection Agency regulation to reduce heavy truck fuel consumption and greenhouse gases was recently published in the Federal Register. The rule—"Greenhouse Gas Emissions Standards and Fuel Efficiency Standards for Medium and Heavy-Duty Engines and Vehicles—is the first ever U.S. regulation to control heavy-truck greenhouse gas emissions and fuel consumption. A Volpe Center team—Ryan Harrington, Kevin Green, Don Pickrell, Catherine Taylor, Coralie Cooper, and David Pace—assisted NHTSA in the development of the regulation. The work is part of the Center's ongoing support to NHTSA on the Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) program. The Volpe Center's work included establishing approaches to regulate this sector, developing cost estimates for heavy-duty truck technologies, assisting in the Environmental Impact Analysis, and drafting regulation text. As a result of the rule, 270 million metric tons of CO2 and the use of 530 million barrels of oil will be avoided over the life of the vehicles sold between 2014 and 2018. Since the rule will remain in place after 2018, significant savings from the rule will continue to be realized from heavy trucks after 2018. Link to rule.
(Added 10/06/2011)
Volpe Center Career Fair—October 6
Are you interested in a career in transportation, where you can leverage your skills to help address transportation issues in all the different modes? Are you in Massachusetts? Join the Volpe Center in our annual Careers in Transportation Open House & Diversity Fair on October 6, from 11am-2pm at our Cambridge, Massachusetts office. View live demos and learn about our work in the fields of engineering, environmental studies, operations research, public policy, community planning, economics, human factors, computer science, acquisitions and communications! For questions and to RSVP, email Kate Porter.
Event flyer (PDF, 151 KB)
(Added 09/29/2011)
Straight from the Source with Matthew A. Coogan
Straight from the Source
an innovation information exchange for the transportation community
Integration of Air and High Speed Rail: Are We Ready to Do It?
Matthew A. Coogan
Director of the New England Transportation Institute
About the Source: Matthew A. Coogan
Mr. Coogan is the Director of the New England Transportation Institute, a non-profit research institute devoted to intermodal and interdisciplinary issues. Over the past decade he has focused on the deployment of integrated multimodal mobility strategies, and the use of new information technologies in the implementation of those procedures. He graduated from Harvard College in 1969, and later served as a Loeb Fellow in Advanced Environmental Studies at Harvard's Graduate School of Design. Between 1983 and 1991, Mr. Coogan served as Undersecretary of Transportation for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, where he co-founded the Coalition of Northeastern Governors' Task Force on High Speed Rail. He was appointed by the National Academy of Science to both the Committee on High Speed Ground Transportation and the Committee to Critique the National Maglev Initiative. He has lectured on transportation issues throughout the United States, and in Europe and Asia. He has been featured in Engineering News Record, Architectural Record, The New York Times, USA Today, Bloomberg News Service, The Wall Street Journal, and The Washington Post, and has appeared on The Today Show, CBS News, and National Public Radio.
Presently, Mr. Coogan is serving as Principal Investigator for the Transportation Research Board's Airport Cooperative Research Program Project 03-23 Integrating Aviation and Passenger Rail Planning. Before this assignment, he served as PI for ACRP Report #31, Innovative Approaches to Addressing Aviation Capacity in Coastal Mega-Regions. In 2009, he served as Prime Contractor in the preparation of A Regional Context for Intercity Passenger Rail Improvements in the Northeast for the Coalition of Northeastern Governors. He was the Principal Investigator for ACRP Report #4, Ground Access to Major Airports by Public Transportation, and for the Transit Cooperative Research Board's Report #62 Improving Public Transportation Access to Large Airports. He is a founding member of the Board of Directors of the International Air-Rail Organization, based in London, England.
When:
Tuesday, October 4, 2011
12 noon to 12:30 p.m.
Where:
Volpe Center
55 Broadway, Cambridge, MA
Management Information Center 1, Building 1, 12th floor
This event is also available via webinar:
When the event begins, to view the slideshow, go to www.webmeeting.att.com and log in with the meeting number and code below.
Meeting number: 8773361839
Code: 2996006
To connect for the audio conference, the information is the same:
Call-in number: 877-336-1839
Code: 2996006
The Volpe Center is committed to providing equal access to these sessions for all participants. If you need alternative formats or services, please contact Patricia Gordon, Reasonable Accommodation Coordinator, at Ext. 3938 by September 20 so that services may be coordinated.
* The views of this presenter do not necessarily reflect the views of the U.S. Department of Transportation.
(Added 09/29/2011)
Transportation Trajectories with Karen Van Dyke
About Transportation Trajectories
Featuring Volpe Center experts, Transportation Trajectories is a new dialogue on advancing transportation innovation for the public good. You are cordially invited to join the first Transportation Trajectories conversation as Volpe Center staff describe their work and share their knowledge of the transportation enterprise.
About the Event
Recent Developments in Positioning, Navigation and Timing Systems
with Karen Van Dyke
Principle Technical Advisor for Global Positioning Systems at the Volpe Center and Director of the Office of Positioning, Navigation and Timing at the U.S. DOT's Research and Innovative Administration
When:
Tuesday, September 27, 2011
12 noon
Where:
Management Information Center 1, Building 1, 12th floor
Volpe Center
55 Broadway, Cambridge, MA
This event is also available via webinar:
When the event begins, to view the slideshow, go to www.webmeeting.att.com and log in with the meeting number and code below.
Meeting number: 8773361839
Code: 2996006
To connect for the audio conference, the information is the same:
Call-in number: 877-336-1839
Code: 2996006
The Volpe Center is committed to providing equal access to these sessions for all participants. If you need alternative formats or services, please contact Patricia Gordon, Reasonable Accommodation Coordinator, at Ext. 3938 by COB tomorrow so that services may be coordinated.
Meet Karen Van Dyke:
Karen Van Dyke is the Volpe Center Principal Technical Advisor on GPS and Director of the Office of Positioning, Navigation, and Timing at the U.S. Department of Transportation's Research and Innovative Technology Administration. Karen has conducted availability and integrity monitoring studies for aviation applications of GPS for all phases of flight. She was the project lead of a Volpe Center team that designed, developed, and implemented GPS Receiver Autonomous Integrity Monitoring (RAIM) outage reporting systems for both the U.S. Air Force and the FAA, which are used to brief GPS availability to pilots during pre-flight planning. She has worked with the FAA to develop prediction models for the GPS Wide Area and Local Area Augmentation Systems to support the Notice to Airmen (NOTAM) system. Karen also has worked with Australian, German, and Chilean aviation authorities on the implementation of similar systems for use by pilots and air traffic control in these countries.
Ms. Van Dyke was a member of a team that conducted a study for the Office of the Secretary of Transportation to identify and analyze GPS vulnerabilities and interference mitigation techniques for all modes of transportation. More recently she has headed a team of Volpe staff who been supporting the GPS Joint Program Office on development of GPS III, performing the GPS Integrity Failure Modes and Effects Analysis (IFMEA), working with the Federal Railroad Administration on the High Accuracy Nationwide Differential GPS initiative, assessing the use of the GPS Wide Area Augmentation System for maritime applications, and development of a GPS Performance Monitoring System for DECEA (Brazil Aviation Authority).
Currently she is the lead for the DOT Research and Innovative Technology Administration, on behalf of DOT and the civil community, in the development of a National Positioning, Navigation, and Timing (PNT) Architecture for 2025 with the National Security Space Office. This effort is in support of the National Space-Based PNT Executive Committee.
Karen received her BS and MS degrees in Electrical Engineering from the University of Massachusetts at Lowell. She is the recipient of the Award for Meritorious Achievement (the Silver Medal) from the Secretary of Transportation and the Superior Achievement Award (the Bronze Medal) from the DOT Research and Special Programs Administration. Ms. Van Dyke served as the President of the Institute of Navigation from 2000-2001. She is a Fellow of the Institute of Navigation (ION) and is the recipient of the ION Early Achievement Award and the Distinguished Service Award. Ms. Van Dyke was a collaborator on the book, Understanding GPS: Principles and Applications (first and second editions).
* The views of this presenter do not necessarily reflect the views of the U.S. Department of Transportation.
(Added 09/20/2011)
Straight from the Source with David Soucie
An innovation information exchange for the transportation community
Looking Beyond Safety Management Systems to Risk IQ—What threats arise when we think our operations are safe? How to REPAIR the internal conspiracy of inaction
with David Soucie
Owner of Sans Souci Enterprises, LLC and
Author of Why Planes Crash—An Accident Investigator Fights for Safe Skies
When:
Tuesday, September 13, 2011
12 noon
Where:
Management Information Center 1, Building 1, 12th floor
Volpe Center
55 Broadway, Cambridge, MA
This event is also available via webinar:
When the event begins, to view the slideshow, go to www.webmeeting.att.com and log in with the meeting number and code below.
Meeting number: 8773361839
Code: 2996006
To connect for the audio conference, the information is the same:
Call-in number: 877-336-1839
Code: 2996006
The Volpe Center is committed to providing equal access to these sessions for all participants. If you need alternative formats or services, please contact Patricia Gordon, Reasonable Accommodation Coordinator, at Ext. 3938 by COB tomorrow so that services may be coordinated.
About the Source:
David Soucie is the owner of Sans Souci Enterprises, LLC., a catastrophe and disaster recovery company based in Colorado. He works with the Federal Aviation Administration as a member of the Safety Management Implementation (SMI) Committee, a Joint Planning and Development Office Working Group, and serves on the Safety Management Systems Focus Group in Washington D.C. Previously, he was an aviation safety inspector and the National Business Process and Information Technology Lead for the FAA and, before that, served as the senior director of technical services for Air Methods Inc., which has recently become the largest helicopter emergency medical operation in the world. Skyhorse Publishing New York, NY has recently published his book Why Planes Crash—An Accident Investigator Fights for Safe Skies, which provides insight and understanding about how to improve and prepare today's safe aviation system for tomorrow.
* The views of this presenter do not necessarily reflect the views of the U.S. Department of Transportation.
(Added 09/07/2011)
Straight from the Source with Peter H. Appel
An innovation information exchange for the transportation community
Transportation Technology and Policy:
a 2011 Perspective
with Peter H. Appel
Administrator
Research and Innovative Technology Administration
U.S. Department of Transportation
When:
Thursday, September 1, 2011
12 noon to 12:30 p.m.
Where:
Management Information Center 1, Building 1, 12th floor
Volpe Center
55 Broadway, Cambridge, MA
This event is also available via webinar:
When the event begins, to view the slideshow, go to www.webmeeting.att.com and log in with the meeting number and code below.
Meeting number: 8773361839
Code: 2996006
To connect for the audio conference, the information is the same:
Call-in number: 877-336-1839
Code: 2996006
The Volpe Center is committed to providing equal access to these sessions for all participants. If you need alternative formats or services, please contact Patricia Gordon, Reasonable Accommodation Coordinator, at Ext. 3938 so that services may be coordinated.
About the Source:
Peter H. Appel was confirmed by the U.S. Senate as Administrator of the Research and Innovative Technology Administration (RITA) on April 29, 2009. Since joining RITA, Appel has worked with Secretary Ray LaHood to advance key U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) initiatives by leveraging effective research and cross-modal coordination. These initiatives have included two Distracted Driving Summits, which have brought key transportation researchers, advocates, decision makers and other leaders together to address this growing safety issue; the bolstering of USDOT's Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) Program to best improve safety, efficiency, and environmental sustainability across all modes of surface transportation; the enhancement of the Bureau of Transportation Statistics' data collection, coordination and analysis capabilities; and the establishment of the Department's Safety Council, which brings together all ten modal administrators to advance transportation safety across the Department.
Before joining RITA, Mr. Appel was with the global management consulting firm of A.T. Kearney, Inc. He has led business improvement initiatives for clients in the private and public sectors, with a focus on Transportation and Infrastructure.
Mr. Appel has over 20 years of experience in Transportation, and has supported organizations in the railroad, trucking, airline, and ocean shipping industries with growth strategy, supply chain improvement, post-merger integration, public-private partnerships, and other key business and policy issues. Previously, he served as the Special Assistant to the Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration, and as Assistant Director for Pricing and Yield Management at Amtrak. Mr. Appel earned his bachelor's degree from Brandeis University in Economics and Computer Science with Highest Honors, and received his Master of Science in Transportation from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
* The views of this presenter do not necessarily reflect the views of the U.S. Department of Transportation.
(Added 08/24/2011)
Volpe Center Library Profiled in Public Roads
The July/August 2011 issue of Public Roads includes an article about the Volpe Center library —"Volpe Center Library Celebrates 40 years with Facelift."
(Added 08/16/2011)
New Fuel Economy Standard Targets 54.5 mpg by 2025
At the Washington Convention Center today, President Obama announced an agreement between the White House and automobile manufacturers to target 54.5 miles per gallon as the fleet average for passenger cars and light trucks by 2025. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) are instrumental in evaluating proposed fuel economy standards to assess potential economic and environmental impacts. In estimating the costs and effects of potential fuel economy standards, NHTSA receives support from a team at the Volpe Center. The team evaluates alternative future technologies affecting the vehicle market and overall fleet performance. For more information, refer to the CAFE Compliance and Effects Modeling System: The Volpe Model.
(Added 07/29/2011)
Dutch Centre for Transport and Navigation General Director Presents on Forever Open Road Initiative
Officials from the Dutch Centre for Transport and Navigation (DVS) visited the Volpe Center on July 15 to discuss projects of mutual interest and possible new areas for cooperation. Discussion topics included regional planning for transportation infrastructure and sustainability, the Strategic Highway Research Program 2 (SHRP 2), and performance measures. Dr. Joseph Sussman, JR East Professor Civil and Environmental Engineering and Engineering Systems at MIT also participated in the dialogue.
Joris Al, General Director of DVS, also participated in the Volpe Center's information exchange series "Straight from the Source." Mr. Al's talk focused on Forever Open Road, the core of the Forum of European National Highway Research Laboratories' (FEHRL) fifth Strategic European Road Research Programme, launched in the spring of 2011. The initiative aims to transform the way roads are built, designed, maintained, and operated and addresses the research and innovation challenges now facing the European road and transportation system. Forever Open Road envisions a road that is adaptable, automated, climate-change resilient, and based upon a concept for building and maintaining roads that can be applied across Europe, regardless of region or country.
"I'm going to talk about innovation. It [the talk] is about cooperation maybe even more than innovation because we are beginning to find out that innovation without cooperation is just no deal. The whole transport industry has just become so complicated, has so many disciplines, there are so many requirements from the public. Transport research has become so expensive and the implementation of that research has become even more expensive. In the FEHRL organization, which I represent also as president, we thought that we would have to get together and work together to really innovate."
– Joris Al, Managing Director of Rijkswaterstaat, Centre for Transport and Navigation in the Netherlands
View a video clip of this quoted portion of the presentation Joris Al gave at the Volpe Center.
(Added 07/27/2011)
Straight from the Source with Shelley J. Row
An innovation information exchange for the transportation community
Transforming Transportation through Technology
Imagine! Think about how wireless connectivity can change safety, mobility and the environment
with Shelley J. Row
Director, Intelligent Transportation Systems Joint Program Office,
U.S. DOT
When:
Tuesday, July 26
12 noon to 12:30 p.m.
Where:
Reserved Dining Rooms 1-3, Building 1, 2nd floor
Volpe Center
55 Broadway, Cambridge, MA
This event is also available via webinar:
When the event begins, to view the slideshow, go to www.webmeeting.att.com and log in with the meeting number and code below.
Meeting number: 8773361839
Code: 2996006
To connect for the audio conference, the information is the same:
Call-in number: 877-336-1839
Code: 2996006
The Volpe Center is committed to providing equal access to these sessions for all participants. If you need alternative formats or services, please contact Patricia Gordon, Reasonable Accommodation Coordinator, at Ext. 3938 so that services may be coordinated.
About the Source:
Shelley J. Row is Director of the U.S. Department of Transportation's Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) Joint Program Office (JPO), a position she has held since January 2007. As JPO Director, Ms. Row manages a $110 million annual budget to advance research and deployment of ITS, in support of the Transportation Department's goals of reducing congestion and improving safety and productivity.
Ms. Row's Federal career began in 1987 when she joined the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), working in its division offices in California, Arizona and North Carolina. After a stint in FHWA's Headquarters managing ITS Early Deployment Planning and Outreach, Shelley returned to the field as Engineering Systems Manager in the Georgia Division office, where she was responsible for ITS project implementation in preparation for the 1996 Summer Olympics. Shelley's accomplishments in Georgia won her the Secretary of Transportation's Team Award and the Secretary's Gold Medal.
Returning to Headquarters in late 1996, Shelley joined the ITS Joint Program Office as the ITS Travel Management Coordinator and later was selected to be team leader of the ITS Deployment Task Force. She was also selected to be the Departmental team lead for development of the policy on ITS architecture consistency, an effort for which she received another Secretary of Transportation's Team Award. In 2000, Shelley became Director of FHWA's Office of Transportation Operations. In that position she led programs on highway work zone operations, security and traffic incident management, the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices and road weather management. In 2003 Shelley left FHWA to become Chief Technical Officer for the Institute of Transportation Engineers, the position she held for three years immediately prior to becoming Director of the ITS Joint Program Office.
Shelley has received numerous awards in government service. Among those, in addition to the Secretary of Transportation's awards, are the FHWA's Administrator's team award and the Administrator's Superior Achievement Award. Shelley holds Bachelor degrees in Civil Engineering and Architecture from Texas Tech University and an MBA in management from Virginia Tech. She is a registered professional engineer and professional transportation operations engineer.
Shelley's civic activities include two terms as President of the Eastport (Maryland) Civic Association, Chair of the Annapolis Transportation Board and Chair of the Mayor's Transition Team on Transportation and Parking. She has run three marathons.
* The views of this presenter do not necessarily reflect the views of the U.S. Department of Transportation.
(Added 07/20/2011)
Article Co-written by Ben Rasmussen of the Volpe Center is featured in Sustainability News
The Spring/Summer issue of Sustainability News, an internal National Park Service (NPS) Newsletter, features an article co-written by Ben Rasmussen of the Volpe Center's Policy, Planning and Organizational Analysis Center of Innovation and Lauren McKean of the Cape Cod National Seashore. The article, "Age by Age: Integrating climate change mitigation and adaptation into new transportation and land use strategies for Cape Cod's future," focuses on a Volpe Center pilot project with the NPS on interagency transportation, land use, and climate change scenario planning.
View the article (PDF, 180KB)
(Added 07/11/2011)
Straight from the Source with Joris Al
An innovation information exchange for the transportation community
Forever Open Road: Redefining Highway Transport for the 21st Century
An initiative of the Forum of European National Highway Research Laboratories
With Joris Al
General Director of the Centre for Transport and Navigation
The Netherlands
When:
Friday, July 15, 2011
12 noon to 12:30 p.m.
Where:
Management Information Center 1, 12th floor, Building 1
Volpe Center
55 Broadway, Cambridge, MA
This event is also available via webinar:
When the event begins, to view the slideshow, go to www.webmeeting.att.com and log in with the meeting number and code below.
Meeting number: 8773361839
Code: 2996006
To connect for the audio conference, the information is the same:
Call-in number: 877-336-1839
Code: 2996006
The Volpe Center is committed to providing equal access to these sessions for all participants. If you need alternative formats or services, please contact Patricia Gordon, Reasonable Accommodation Coordinator, at Ext. 3938 so that services may be coordinated.
About the Source:
Joris Al is General Director of the Centre for Transport and Navigation (DVS), part of the Directorate-General of Public Works and Water Management (Rijkswaterstaat) of the Ministry of Infrastructure and the Environment in the Netherlands.
Dr. Al is a graduate of several international schools in Europe. He received a Masters degree in liberal arts (language and literature) at the University of Leiden in the Netherlands.
He held several senior management positions at the Ministry of Housing, Physical Planning and Environment until 1998. From 1998 to 2005, Joris was a consultant and interim manager in a number of organizations, ranging from research institutes to public water boards.
In July 2005, Joris was appointed managing director of the AVV Transport Research Institute of Rijkswaterstaat. After a restructuring of the Rijkswaterstaat research institutes, he became general director of the Centre for Transport and Navigation.
Since 2010 Joris has also served as president of FEHRL, the organization of European National Road Research Centres.
The Volpe Center has a long-running agreement for collaboration with DVS focusing on topics of mutual interest, including ITS, integrated transportation planning, safety and health, and climate change.
* The views of this presenter do not necessarily reflect the views of the U.S. Department of Transportation.
(Added 07/07/2011)
WTS Boston Names Volpe Center "Employer of the Year"
The Volpe Center was recently named 2011 Employer of the Year by the Women's Transportation Seminar (WTS) WTS Boston Chapter. Robert Johns, Volpe Center Director, accepted the Boston Chapter's 2011 Employer of the Year award at the Annual WTS-Boston Scholarships and Awards Dinner on June 13. Anne Aylward, Deputy Associate Administrator for Research, Innovation and Technology at the Volpe Center, accepted the 2011 "Employer of the Year" award from the Women's Transportation Seminar (WTS) at the organization's Annual Conference Awards Banquet on May 19 in San Francisco. The Volpe Center received both awards for its commitment to the highest standards of transportation excellence and to the professional excellence of women.
(Added 06/29/2011)
Dr. Wassim Najm Receives U.S. Government Award for Engineering Safety
Dr. Wassim Najm recently received the U.S. Government Award for Engineering Safety at 22nd International Conference on the Enhanced Safety of Vehicles, in Washington, DC. He received recognition for his extraordinary contributions in the field of vehicle safety technology. This distinguished award is from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), the highest federal authority for the prevention and control of traffic accidents in the U.S.
Dr. Najm is the Chief of the Advanced Vehicle Technology Division within the Advanced Transportation Technologies Center of Innovation at the Volpe Center. He is responsible for 14 federal staff and research projects in support of NHTSA's mission to save lives, prevent injuries, and reduce economic costs due to road traffic crashes.
Dr. Najm has played a significant role in furthering vehicle safety research by mentoring junior researchers—who now represent a passionate cadre dedicated to research efforts directed toward enhanced highway vehicle safety, as well as safety in other transportation modes, including rail and aviation. Since joining the Volpe Center in 1999, Dr. Najm has published 38 technical papers and 22 technical reports and was invited to provide 14 oral technical presentations at various national meetings.
Dr. Najm has worked with European researchers who are interested in adapting and applying his methods to a European Field Operation Test (euroFOT) safety benefit assessment. Dr. Najm's research field test findings and results also are used by automobile manufacturers who participate in the Crash Avoidance Metrics Partnership from around the world. The benefit estimates produced by Dr. Najm provide a basis to inform and guide automobile industry decisions relative to crash avoidance and other vehicle safety offerings and likewise provide a statistically solid technical foundation for government policy decisions directed at safety improvement.
Dr. Najm is widely recognized for his pioneering contributions in enhancing crash safety analysis through the combination of statistics in combination with safety engineering analysis principles. The taxonomy of pre-crash situations and corresponding crash types developed by Dr. Najm provides a uniform framework that is referenced and used by traffic safety researchers to assess and compare alternative crash avoidance concepts and technologies on a comparable basis. Similarly, Dr. Najm has published data on the frequency of crashes targeted by vehicle safety system concepts, most recently updated in 2010, which are used by researchers in evaluating the potential scope and extent of safety benefits at various levels of deployment of safety system technologies or concepts. The methods and techniques pioneered and practiced by Dr. Najm and others provide a solid technical underpinning for decision making by industry and government alike. Dr. Najm has led the way toward more effectively forecasting the potential benefits of safety improvement concepts in ways that then can be validated through field testing to assess and confirm that hypothetical interventions in a crash scenario occur as predicted.
Dr. Najm successfully managed and contributed key technical work for two major multiyear projects funded by the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) Intelligent Transportation Systems Joint Program Office (ITS JPO) and overseen by NHTSA. These projects involved the field testing and evaluation of integrated vehicle-based safety systems and intersection violation warning systems—technologies that could make important contributions to NHTSA and U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) goals related to highway safety. Wassim also continued a project on pre-crash sensing and an exploratory task on vehicle-to-vehicle communications, and provided vital assistance to junior division staff in developing projects related to the evaluation of both electronic stability control (ESC) for commercial single-unit trucks and event data recorders (EDRs). He currently is involved in planning the safety evaluation for a large-scale field operational test of Dedicated Short-Range Communications technology involving several thousand cars, trucks, and buses operating in close proximity—the results of this evaluation will influence future NHTSA rulemaking.
(Added 06/23/2011)
Straight from the Source with Juan Carlos Muñoz Abogabir
An innovation information exchange for the transportation community
What Services Should You Operate in a Bus Corridor? And What Can We Achieve in Time Savings, Reliability, and Comfort if Properly Controlled?
with Juan Carlos Muñoz Abogabir
Dept. of Transport Engineering & Logistics
Pontificia Universidad Catolica de Chile
Visiting Professor at MIT
When:
Tuesday, June 28
12 noon to 12:30 p.m.
Where:
Management Information Center 1, Building 1, 12th floor
Volpe Center
55 Broadway, Cambridge, MA
This event is also available via webinar:
When the event begins, to view the slideshow, go to www.webmeeting.att.com and log in with the meeting number and code below.
Meeting number: 8773361839
Code: 2996006
To connect for the audio conference, the information is the same:
Call-in number: 877-336-1839
Code: 2996006
The Volpe Center is committed to providing equal access to these sessions for all participants. If you need alternative formats or services, please contact Patricia Gordon, Reasonable Accommodation Coordinator, at Ext. 3938.
About the Source:
Juan Carlos Munoz got his PhD in CEE and his MSc in IEOR from the University of California at Berkeley in 2002. He is an Associate Professor at the School of Engineering of the Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, where he acted as an Associate Dean of Academic Affairs from 2007 to 2010. His main research areas are public transport, logistics, transport networks, and traffic flow theory. Since 2010 he leads the Across Latitudes and Cultures Bus Rapid Transit Centre of Excellence funded by the Volvo Research and Educational Foundations.
During 2003 and 2004, he was personal advisor of the Chilean Minister of Transport on transit issues. In 2008, he was designated as one of the 12 members of a committee summoned by the Minister of Transport to suggest action lines for the recently created transit system of Santiago, Transantiago. He was a member of the Board of Directors of the Metro of Valparaiso and advisor of the President of the Metro of Santiago from 2007 to 2010. Mr. Muñoz also works on designing flexible work shifts for transit drivers and retail workers. Currently, he runs a project, Shift-UC, which assigns weekly work shifts to more than 45,000 workers in Chile, Colombia, Argentina, and Peru. He is a member of the Editorial Advisory Board of Trans Res Part B, of the Transportation Research Board Committee on Transportation in Developing Countries and of the International Scientific Committees of the CASPT (Conference on Advanced Systems of Public Transport) and Thredbo (International Conference on Competition and Ownership in Land Passenger Transport) Series. Currently, he is spending a sabbatical year at MIT in Boston.
* The views of this presenter do not necessarily reflect the views of the U.S. Department of Transportation.
(Added 06/22/2011)
A Colloquia Series: Transportation Challenges and Opportunities—Transportation Safety in the Digital Age
This event is available as a webinar—Volpe staff are asked to please coordinate with their supervisor if they plan to participate via webinar:
When the event begins, to view the slideshow, go to www.webmeeting.att.com and log in with the meeting number and code below.
Meeting number: 8773361839
Code: 2996006
To connect for the audio conference, the information is the same:
Call-in number: 877-336-1839
Code: 2996006
The views of guest presenters do not necessarily reflect the views of the U.S. Department of Transportation.
About the Colloquia Series
The Volpe Center is launching a new Colloquia Series on Transportation Challenges and Opportunities. The goal of the series is to provide a forum for thought leaders and decision makers from the transportation enterprise to convene and anticipate future transportation issues and to generate fresh approaches to emerging issues. The series is an effort to support effective public and private sector policy decisions by focusing on the core issues that underlie today's most pressing transportation challenges. The first colloquium will be on Transportation Safety in the Digital Age. It will consist of three roundtables:
- Age-Correlated Operator Performance: Lessons and Insights from Automobile Drivers—June 21, 2011, 9 a.m. to noon via webinar
- Automation and the Human: Intended and Unintended Consequences (date to be announced)
- Cyber Physical Systems (date to be announced)
About the Roundtable on Age-Correlated Operator Performance
Limitations or failures in human performance cause as many as 85% of transportation-related deaths. Among a host of emerging issues in this area, the topic of performance limitations of inexperienced and aging drivers is increasingly demanding attention on a national level. As part of the Transportation Colloquia Series, the Volpe Center is organizing a colloquium to analyze and explore driver performance limitations at both ends of the driver age spectrum. Motor vehicle fatalities, injuries, and accidents are disproportionately high in these two groups. Invited participants will have the opportunity to discuss the following areas of inquiry:
- What do the demographics (i.e., age, tenure, health metrics, etc.) of the driving public and transportation operators look like now and into the future? What have states and companies been doing to adapt to these trends?
- With respect to age, which driver populations are at risk for safety and health-related incidents and problems, and by how much? What does that risk look like? What are the mediating variables that make a person in one of these categories more or less at risk (i.e., experience, shiftwork, sleep problems, use of multiple medications, etc)?
- What is the relationship between experience and age-related attributes and conditions in maintaining safe performance and resiliency to hand off-normal situations effectively?
- What approaches/developments in technology need to be augmented to support safety and performance without the development of over reliance? What mediating factors need to be considered in the proper adaption to and trust of these new technologies?
- What evidence is there, if any, regarding justification for moving away from a prescriptive approach to age limitations toward a performance/testing approach for maintaining licenses and certifications? What additional infrastructure or technology would be needed and is it already developed?
- What additional information or research is needed to inform this discussion? Is this happening now (if so, where)? If not, what are possible opportunities to gather it?
Tentative Order of Events and Expert Presentations
Welcome by Robert Johns, Volpe Center Associate Administrator and Director of the Volpe Center.
There will be four presentations:
Introduction of Roundtable Topic by Stephen Popkin, PhD, Director of the Human Factors Research and System Applications Center of Innovation at the Volpe Center will introduce the roundtable topic.
Are Younger and Older Drivers Safer than They Used to Be?
Anne McCartt, PhD, Senior Vice President for Research, Insurance Institute for Highway Safety
New Transportation Technologies Bring New Policy Challenges: Social, Safety & Liability Implications of Driving in the Digital Age
Joseph Coughlin, PhD, Founder and Director, Massachusetts Institute of Technology AgeLab and Director of the New England University Transportation Center
Hazard Anticipation and Attention Maintenance: New Training Programs Reduce
Behaviors Associated with the Crashes of Novice and Older Drivers on the Open Road
Up to One Year after Training
Donald L. Fisher, PhD, MPH, Professor and Department Head, Mechanical and Industrial Engineering, University of Massachusetts
Mary Stearns, PhD, Chief of the Behavioral Research and Demonstration Division at the Volpe Center will facilitate a Q and A.
(Added 06/15/2011)
WTS Names Volpe Center "Employer of the Year"
Anne Aylward, Deputy Associate Administrator for Research, Innovation and Technology at the Volpe Center, accepted the 2011 "Employer of the Year" award from the Women's Transportation Seminar (WTS) at the organization's Annual Conference Awards Banquet on May 19 in San Francisco. Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood gave the keynote address at the event. WTS is an international organization with more than 4,000 members which promotes the professional advancement of women in transportation careers. Rachael Barolsky Sack of the Center's Policy, Planning and Organizational Analysis Center of Innovation serves as the Treasurer of the WTS-Boston chapter and joined with the Center's Lindsey Morse in co-nominating the Volpe Center for Employer of the Year. Robert Johns will accept the Boston Chapter's Employer of the Year award at the Annual WTS-Boston Scholarships and Awards Dinner to be held June 13.
For more information on the Volpe Center's "Employer of the Year" award, see the WTS website.
(Added 06/03/2011)
Straight from the Source with Joseph F. Coughlin, PhD
An innovation information exchange for the transportation community
New Vehicle Technology, Older Drivers & the Policy Problem of Transition
with Joseph F. Coughlin, PhD
Founder and Director, MIT AgeLab
Tuesday, June 7, 2011 12:00 –12:30 pm
This event is available as a webinar:
When the event begins, to view the slideshow, go to www.webmeeting.att.com and log in with the meeting number and code below.
Meeting number: 8773361839 Code: 2996006
To connect for the audio conference, the information is the same:
Call-in number: 877-336-1839
Code: 2996006
* The views of this presenter do not necessarily reflect the views of the U.S. Department of Transportation.
(Added 06/02/2011)
Director Emeritus John Receives AIAA Public Service Award
After a distinguished career in public service and transportation spanning half a century, the Center's Director Emeritus Dr. Richard John was awarded the 2011 Public Service Award by the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA). This honor, which is given "for excellence in national leadership and life-long contribution to the nation's aviation and aerospace enterprise," goes to individuals outside the aerospace community who have shown visible and consistent support for the nation's aviation and space goals. The list of previous recipients includes Secretary of Transportation Norm Mineta, Secretary of Defense William Perry, Senators Barry Goldwater and Barbara Mikulski, and television news personalities Walter Cronkite and Hugh Downs. Dr. John received the award at the Aerospace Spotlight Awards Gala at the Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center in Washington, DC on May 11th. As part of the ceremony, the Center prepared a short video of Dr. John.
(Added 05/25/2011)
Straight from the Source with James P. Womack
An innovation information exchange for the transportation community
New Frontiers for the Global Automotive Enterprise
with James P. Womack
Founder and Senior Advisor, Lean Enterprise Institute
Tuesday, May 24, 2011 12:00 –12:30 pm
This event is available as a webinar:
When the event begins, to view the slideshow, go to www.webmeeting.att.com and log in with the meeting number and code below.
Meeting number: 8773361839 Code: 2996006
To connect for the audio conference, the information is the same:
Call-in number: 877-336-1839
Code: 2996006
* The views of this presenter do not necessarily reflect the views of the U.S. Department of Transportation.
(Added 05/19/2011)
Bay State Bike Week and National Transportation Week
The week of May 15-22 is auspicious for transportation and the Volpe Center as both Bay State Bike Week and National Transportation Week are being celebrated at the same time. This juxtaposition helps to highlight the potential benefits of bicycle commuting to employers, employees and their communities. Bicycle commuting-related events at the Center include workshop on "How to Change a Flat Tire," an Information Table in the Center lobby and a tour of the Center's new Bicycle Facilities on Tuesday, and a "Bicycle Brake Repair" workshop on Thursday. The Charles River Transportation Management Association, of which the Volpe Center is a member, is also hosting a "Kendall Square Bicycle Breakfast" Thursday morning in Kendall Square. Additional information on bike safety for adults and kids and cycling in general are available on the Internet. As a kickoff in preparation for Bay State Bike Week, the Volpe Center was invited to participate in the first MassCommuter Challenge Leadership Ride, an exclusive 20-mile bicycle ride around Boston for approximately 20 top executives and agency representatives organized by the Massachusetts Transportation Management Associations.
(Added 05/15/2011)
DOT Director of Intelligence, Security and Emergency Response Visits Center
Michael Lowder, the Department of Transportation's Director of Intelligence, Security and Emergency Response (S-60), visited the Volpe Center last week. Several Center project managers briefed Mr. Lowder on a variety of tasks relevant to S-60, including cyber security; aviation traffic management systems; innovative security technologies; the Maritime Safety and Security Information System; transportation response, recovery and modeling; and transportation resilience. He also met with senior Center management and Ms. Mary Beth Mello, Federal Transit Administration Regional Administrator and the Regional Emergency Transportation Coordinator. Discussions focused on opportunities for collaboration between the Volpe Center, S-60, the modal administrations and other agencies. Mr. Lowder was also the featured speaker in the Center's "Straight from the Source" guest lecture series, where he described his office's responsibilities to a Center audience.
(Added 05/15/2011)
GBFEB Excellence in Government Awards
Four Volpe Center Finalists, one Finalists Team and one Winner of the 2011 Greater Boston Federal Executive Board (GBFEB) Excellence in Government Awards were honored on May 5th at a Ceremony at the JFK Library and Museum in Boston. Adam Klauber was the Winner of the GBFEB Award for Creativity and Innovation, Division II: The Initiative Award, which recognizes an individual who has gone above and beyond the call of duty in assisted the agency in meeting sustainability and/or wellness goals. Four other Center individuals and one team were also recognized as Finalists:
- Andrea Goldstein: Finalist for "Administrative and Support Excellence"
- Michael Osakowicz and Michael Raymond: Finalists for "Professional Employee of the Year"
- Eric Falzone: Finalist for "Fresh New Hire"
- FRA Amtrak Capital Improvements Projects Oversight Team: Steven Peck, Patrick Bien-Aime, Paul Bousquet, Marco DaSilva, James Harrison, John McGuiggin, Tashi Ngamdung, Andrew Shields, Erik Curtis, Chris Murray, Gabriel Lopez-Bernal, Joseph Sposato, Courtney Zamora, Jessica Hector-Hsu, and Chris Cicchitelli (contractor)—Finalist Team for "Innovation and Creativity"
(Added 05/11/2011)
MSSIS in Ghana
Kam Chin and Henry Wychorski of the Multimodal Logistics Enterprise Division recently traveled to Ghana to provide Ghanaian Naval officers with Maritime Domain Awareness training and Maritime Safety and Security Information System (MSSIS) familiarization and capability demonstrations. While in country, they also assisted in restoring an Automatic Identification System (AIS) site located in Sekondi and reestablished the vessel tracking data feed to the MSSIS network on behalf of the U.S. Navy Africa (NAVAF) sponsors. In addition, the Volpe team met with representatives from Ghana University and program sponsor to discuss MSSIS and AIS capabilities and install equipment on selected fishing vessels to support joint U.S.-Ghana maritime safety and fishing enforcement initiatives.
Developed by the Volpe Center for the U.S Navy, MSSIS enhances maritime safety and security by tracking in real time the location of more than 10,000 commercial vessels from more than 50 participating nations.
(Added 05/06/2011)
New BTS Director Visits the Center
The Volpe Center welcomed the two senior officials of the Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS) on April 27. Associate Administrator and Director Patricia S. Hu and Deputy Associate Administrator and Deputy Director Dr. Steven K. Smith met with the Center's senior management for mutual briefings on both agencies' current activities and priorities. Among the possible areas for collaboration discussed were: developing and using visualization tools that could display data from various sources and assist in turning "data" into "knowledge"; as well as strengthening our collaboration with Geographic Information Systems.
(Added 05/05/2011)
April 28: A Busy Day at the Volpe Center
Research and Innovative Technology (RITA) Administrator Peter Appel and Acting Civil Rights Director John Benison both had very active schedules during their visit to the Volpe Center on April 28. In recognition of the fact that "Take Your Daughters and Sons to Work" Day was also being held, Mr. Appel welcomed the young guests in the morning and discussed some possible transportation options for the future with them. He also addressed an All Staff meeting in the auditorium, received briefings on Center initiatives, and held several meetings. Mr. Benison discussed organizational strategy and development, Equal Employment Opportunity, and human resources issues with Center officials responsible for these functions.
(Added 05/05/2011)
Take Our Daughters and Sons to Work® Day at the Volpe Center
RITA Administrator Peter Appel and Volpe Center Director Robert Johns recently welcomed 40 children, grandchildren, nieces, and nephews of the Volpe Center staff, U.S. DOT regional offices, and on-site contractors to the 2011 Take Our Daughters and Sons To Work® Day program. During an activity-filled day, program participants saw three presentations—"Watch the Traffic in the Sky" about the Enhanced Traffic Management System; "The Mystery of Earthquakes," which focused on the engineering and science of earthquakes; and one on tracking ships using the Maritime Safety and Security Information System. They also discovered the safety implications of quieter cars for visually-impaired pedestrians and participated in a simulator exercise involving the Cab Technology Integration Laboratory, a locomotive simulator that serves as a human factors research laboratory.
The day's activities concluded with an ice cream social sponsored by the Transportation Employee Recreation Association.
(Added 05/05/2011)
Center Earns Three Sustainability Awards
Volpe Center staff recently received one individual and two group awards during the Department of Transportation Annual Sustainability Achievements Awards Ceremony. Dave Duncan, chief of the Real Property and Facilities Services Division, won the Individual Sustainability Leader Award for orchestrating several 'green' initiatives that enhanced the environmental performance of the Center's six-building, 14-acre campus, while also being a team member on the two group awards. The Volpe Commuter Choice Survey team of David Duncan, Bill Halloran, Adam Klauber, Alison Kruger, Stephanie Morrow, Lindsey Morse, Christopher Roof and Eran Segev were recipients of the Sustainability Partnership Group Award for developing and administering a Commuter Choice survey that a Federal interagency taskforce recently adopted as the standard tool to assess and report employee commutes for annual Federal greenhouse gas inventories. Finally, the Green and Secure Waste Management team of David Duncan, Roberta Gould, Adam Klauber and Neil Stone won the Innovative Waste Minimization Group Award for adopting secure sensitive document collection bins and creating a system to collect and destroy recordable media such as CD-ROMs which recycles more than three tons of these materials each year.
(Added 04/29/2011)
Straight from the Source: MIT's Missy Cummings Presents
On April 12, Dr. Mary (Missy) Cummings from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) spoke as part of the Volpe Center's "Straight from the Source" presentation series. Dr. Cummings is Associate Professor of Aeronautics and Astronautics and Director of the MIT Humans and Automation Lab and holds appointments in the MIT Aeronautics and Astronautics Department, Engineering Systems Division, and the Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory. She provided insight into her current research activities, including lessons from studies in human supervisory control and simulation and evaluation of human interaction in automated systems. Specifically, she discussed a focus on determining the optimal sharing of functions between humans and machines performing complex tasks. Dr. Cummings is a graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy and served as one of the U.S. Navy's first female fighter pilots.
"Straight from the Source" is a new presentation series designed as an innovation information exchange for the transportation community. Speakers are invited to introduce new ideas and discuss emerging issues.
(Added 04/15/2011)
Engineer Wins SAE International Presentation Award
Emily Nodine, a mechanical engineer with the Advanced Transportation Technologies Center of Innovation, recently received an "Award for Excellence in Oral Presentation" from SAE International, the largest international association of automotive engineering. She was recognized for her "Independent Evaluation of Integrated Vehicle-Based Safety Systems (IVBSS)" presentation at the SAE 2011 Government/Industry Meeting. The Award is based on being one of the highest-scoring presenters at an SAE meeting based on scores submitted by the audience. Since the Oral Awards program is designed to encourage a higher quality of technical presentations, less than 5% of all presentations are honored.
(Added 04/13/2011)
Volpe Center Receives Excellence in Commuter Options Award
The Volpe Center received a Pinnacle Award at the Massachusetts 2011 Excellence in Commuter Options (ECO) Awards ceremony at the Massachusetts State House on April 1. The Pinnacle award is one of several ECO awards presented by the Massachusetts Department of Transportation, through MassRIDES, the statewide travel options program. ECO awards are granted to Massachusetts employers who make admirable contributions in the field of commuter options. The Volpe Center received recognition for its transit benefits, promotion of non-driving commuting alternatives, and emergency ride home program. Gregory Winfree, the Research and Innovative Technology Administration's Chief Counsel, and David Ishihara, the Volpe Center's Deputy Associate Administrator for Operations, along with Volpe Center employees David Duncan, Adam Klauber, and Kathy Scurio accepted the Volpe Center's award at the ceremony.
For more information on the 2011 Massachusetts ECO Awards, go to http://www.commute.com/employers/ecoawards and http://transportation.blog.state.ma.us/blog/2011/04/employers-commuter-options-awards.html
(Added 04/08/2011)
U.S. DOT SBIR Program Releases 2011.2 Solicitation with Call for Innovative Proposals
The U.S. DOT's Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Program seeks innovative research proposals from small businesses to address specific research challenges facing U.S. DOT agencies. The SBIR Program Office at the U.S. DOT Research and Innovative Technology Administration (RITA) Volpe Center has posted the second and final SBIR Program solicitation for Fiscal Year 2011, inviting small businesses to submit research proposals that address high priority U.S. DOT goals.
The solicitation has identified three research topics from the Federal Motor Carrier Safety (FMCSA) Administration, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA). The research topics include: developing a proof of concept for a trailer attribute determination system from within the tractor, simulation techniques for studying night driving effects on driver behavior, examination of hazardous materials portable tanks within the transportation system.
Proposals are due on June 13, 2011. The solicitation is now available online at http://www.volpe.dot.gov/sbir
The U.S. DOT SBIR Program is administered by the Volpe Center, part of the Research and Innovative Technology Administration (RITA).
(Added 04/04/2011)
Federal Labs Learn About Volpe Center Transit Security Programs
For the second year in a row, a Volpe Center expert was invited to present on current technology development success stories at the spring Federal Laboratory Consortium (FLC) Northeast Regional Meeting in Fishkill, NY in March. William Baron of the Intermodal Infrastructure Security and Operations Division briefed attendees on the Center's transit security projects. The briefing highlighted: the Security Cooperation Plan for the New York Metropolitan Area Transit Agencies, which addresses bus, subway, commuter rail and ferry services in Connecticut, New Jersey and New York; the integrated security system for the new MBTA Silver Line in Boston, MA; field testing blast resistant video equipment for the Department of Homeland Security; a Rail Trestle Intrusion Detection System for a bridge in Pittsford, NY that uses invisible infrared video cameras and a PA system to deter trespassers; and the PEERS Grade Crossing Video Recording System wireless digital video installations that record incidents where drivers violate grade crossing signals in three Illinois towns; and a Security Strategic Plan for the MBTA which identifies security gaps and prioritizes solutions. At last year's spring 2010 FLC Northeast conference, Dr. Judi Bürki-Cohen had described how the Center was supporting the Federal Aviation Administration NextGen initiative by applying human factors to improve the flight simulator program.
(Added 03/31/2011)
Women's Transportation Seminar Names Volpe Center as 'Employer of the Year'
The Volpe Center has been selected as "Employer of the Year" by both the Women's Transportation Seminar (WTS) and the WTS Boston chapter, and will receive the awards at their annual International Conference in San Francisco this May and at a Boston Awards Dinner in June. The WTS is an international organization with more than 4,000 members which promotes the professional advancement of women in transportation careers.
As stated in the nomination, more than 31% of the Center's leadership, 38% of its workforce and 44% of its current interns and co-op students are females. The Volpe Center and its staff have been actively engaged with the WTS for a number of years. Recently the Center's Anne Aylward, Deputy Associate Administrator for Research, Innovation and Technology, gave a presentation to WTS-Boston on her own transportation career and challenges for the nation's transportation future.
(Added 03/31/2011)
Anne Aylward Addresses Women's Transportation Seminar
Anne Aylward, Deputy Associate Administrator for Research, Innovation and Technology at the Volpe Center, recently addressed the Boston chapter of the Women's Transportation Seminar (WTS-Boston). Her talk, Beijing to Boston: One Woman's Intermodal Transportation Journey, described Ms. Aylward's personal transportation journey, beginning with her first trip to China in 1948 and culminating in her current position at the Volpe Center. She also reflected on the role of transportation research and planning as the nation grapples with 21st century transportation challenges. Last Spring, Anne was appointed to her current position, leader of the Volpe Center's Centers of Innovation, which encompass all of the research, innovation, technology, and transportation program analysis functions performed by the Center. The WTS luncheon also celebrated Woman's History Month.
(Added 03/31/2011)
Volpe Center Nominees for Prestigious GBFEB Awards
We are happy to announce the following five Volpe Center employees and one team are finalists for the 2011 GBFEB (Greater Boston Federal Executive Board) Excellence in Government Awards in the categories listed below:
- Andrea Goldstein for Administrative and Support Excellence
The award for Administrative and Support Excellence is designed to recognize an employee in a clerical, administrative, or technical support position who demonstrates overall exceptional achievement. Outstanding leadership skills, abilities, or resourcefulness in implementing innovative approaches that resulted in significant improvement in the efficiency of office operations; organizing or planning of office activities are considered. - Michael Osakowicz and Michael Raymond for Professional Employee of the Year Award—Division I: Administrative
The Professional Employee of the Year Award—Administrative Division recognizes individuals employed in professional occupations with an administrative component. This includes contracting and administrative officers, human resources and budgeting staff, EEO, and other administrative specialties. Nominees should demonstrate outstanding leadership skills and commitment to team building, exceptional customer service, and consistently contribute to the achievement of the agency's mission. - Volpe Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) National Railroad Passenger Corporation (Amtrak) Capital Improvement Projects (CIP) Oversight Team for the Award for Creativity and Innovation, Division I: SAVE (Securing Americans' Value and Efficiency). (Volpe team members include: Steven Peck, Patrick Bien-Aime, Paul Bousquet, Marco DaSilva, James Harrison, John McGuiggin, Tashi Ngamdung, Andrew Shields, Erik Curtis, Chris Murray, Gabriel Lopez-Bernal, Joseph Sposato, Courtney Zamora, Jessica Hector-Hsu, and Chris Cicchitelli.)
Modeled after the President's SAVE (Securing American's Value and Efficiency) award, this local version will be presented to the Federal employee or team, of any level, who has demonstrated a high degree of initiative that results in significant operational, process, or methods improvements and/or cost savings to the organization and/or the Government. - Adam Klauber for Creativity and Innovation, Division II: The Initiative Award
The Initiative Award recognizes an individual or team, of any level, who has gone above and beyond the call of duty and is committed to leading by example through transforming how they work in practical ways that have tangible results and have assisted the agency in meeting its' sustainability and/or wellness goals. - Eric Falzone for the Fresh New Hire Award
The Fresh New Hire Award is presented to a Federal employee who has been employed by the Federal Government for five years or less, and who has made a significant contribution to the furtherance of a successful operation in their Federal workplace. This category is designed to recognize those who have gone above and beyond the call of duty while displaying a positive attitude to improve the everyday operations of their Federal workplace. Contributions should be beyond those outlined in their job description. The employee should have displayed great success which goes beyond the expectations of a fresh hire in the Federal workplace. Participation should exemplify the best traditions of public service through nominee's overall dedication, positive attitude, mentoring or training of others, and voluntarily taking on new projects and collateral duty assignments.
These individuals have all distinguished themselves and the Volpe Center with their achievements and dedication to public service. Our congratulations to all of them on becoming finalists for these awards!
The Awards Ceremony will be held on Thursday, May 5, 2011 at the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum in Boston.
(Added 03/30/2011)
Volpe Center Presents at FAA Cyber Security Conference
The Volpe Center's cyber security staff participated recently in the 10th Annual Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Information Technology/Information Systems Security (IT/ISS) Partnership Conference in Orlando, FL. The event attracted more than 1700 attendees, including senior executives, chief information officers, ISS managers and cyber security personnel from the FAA, the Department of Transportation (DOT) and other government agencies and private companies.
Mike Dinning (pictured here), Director of the Freight Logistics and Transportation Systems Center of Innovation, made presentations on the Center's extensive cyber security activities and participated in a panel discussion on cyber security in all modes of transportation. Information Assurance Program Manager David Sawin gave a presentation on the Volpe Center's support to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Control Systems Security Program for Transportation. He also managed the Volpe Cyber booth at the conference.
(Added 03/28/2011)
Acclaimed Inventioneers Visit the Volpe Center
The Inventioneers, a team of six bright and motivated students, demonstrated their transportation safety prototype the SMARTWheel and learned about transportation safety technology at the Volpe Center during a trip down from Londonderry, New Hampshire on March 22. Joining the visit were the team's coaches, Lisa Evarts and Sue Balcom, and Dr. Joseph Coughlin and Bruce Mehler of the MIT AgeLab, friends of both the Inventioneers and the Volpe Center. The Inventioneers tour of the Volpe Center included introductions to the Maritime Safety and Security Information System, Air Traffic Flow Management System, Drug and Alcohol Testing Lab, and Human Factors Simulators. Alison Kruger, Communications and Outreach Specialist in the Technical Outreach and Program Support Office supported the visit and led the tour of the Volpe Center.
(Added 03/24/2011)
JR Central Fellows Learn About Volpe Support to Federal Rail Initiatives
Two visiting fellows from the Central Japan Railway Company (JR Central) -- Shinichiroh Gotoh and Shohie Yoshida – recently spent a week meeting with rail experts at the Volpe Center. The visitors are currently participating in a year-long assignment to the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA). During their trip to Cambridge, they learned about the Volpe Center's long-standing support to the Federal Railroad Administration. They also visited the new Cab Technology Integration Laboratory rail simulator, a human factors laboratory recently installed at the Center for FRA.
(Added 02/28/2011)
Volpe Crashworthiness Engineer Presents in Berlin on Rail Passenger Equipment Safety Standards
At the 8th International Symposium on Passive Safety of Rail Vehicles in Berlin, Germany, Kari Jacobsen of the Physical Infrastructure Systems Center of Innovation delivered a presentation co-developed with David Tyrell, entitled, "Overview of FRA Crashworthiness Safety Standards for Passenger Rail Equipment." Ms. Jacobsen is a Senior Mechanical Engineer who develops computer simulations of train collisions, designs tests to evaluate train crashworthiness, and conducts forensic investigations of train accidents. Nearly 100 rail safety colleagues and rail industry professionals attended the meeting, representing 16 nations. Ms. Jacobsen exchanged information on passenger rail industry and international safety standards as well as railcar designs proposed for use in the United States. Her trip will inform the Volpe Center's guidance to the Federal Railroad Administration's (FRA) Engineering Task Force in developing new standards for high speed passenger rail equipment safety evaluation in the United States. The Volpe Center conducts research on train crashworthiness as part of the FRA's Equipment Safety Research Program. The goals of the research are to develop strategies for improving train crashworthiness and to provide the technical basis for federal regulations and industry standards.
Kari Jacobsen at work in the field.(Volpe Center Photo)
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On tour of the Stadler Railcar Manufacturing Facility in Berlin, Germany. From left to right: Dr. Alois Starlinger of Stadler, Kari Jacobsen from the Volpe Center, and Ronny Wandtke of Stadler. (Volpe Center Photo)
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(Added 02/11/2011)
Multidisciplinary Volpe Staff Exchange Ideas with MBTA Operations
Volpe Center experts met recently with members of the Massachusetts Bay Transit Authority (MBTA) operations staff, including Chief Operating Officer John Lewis. Volpe's unique role as a multidisciplinary center of transportation research makes this information exchange meeting with a local transit authority particularly of note. Staff from the Centers of Innovation met with MBTA representatives on topics as diverse as rail engineering, physical and cyber security and human factors research.
The MBTA debriefed on its General Manager Richard Davey's new strategic plan and the operational safety initiatives that will support the million trips Boston-area travelers take every week.
Volpe staff from the Freight Logistics and Transportation Systems Center of Innovation, including Director Michael Dinning, shared Volpe's expertise in transit systems security and cyber security and explored potential collaboration in control system cyber security. Staff from the Systems Engineering and Safety Division, including acting Division Chief James Harrison, shared expertise on Communication-Based Train Control research programs and new communication technologies such as Fiber-Optical Train Detection. Volpe's Human Factors group, led by Director Steve Popkin, provided a tour of our Human Factors Research lab, as well as a discussion on rail-related human factors research and rail operator training programs.
(Added 02/10/2011)
Center Director Recognized for Support to Transportation Research Board Council
During the Annual Transportation Research Board (TRB) meeting in Washington, D.C., Volpe Center Associate Administrator and Director Robert Johns was recognized for his three years as Chair of the TRB Technical Activities Council (TAC). In particular, the award emphasized his leadership of the TAC, his contributions to TAC strategic planning activities, and his focus on emerging and cross-cutting issues in transportation research during that time. Director Johns received the award during the TAC luncheon on January 23 from Bob Skinner, TRB Executive Director; Mark Norman, TRB Technical Activities Director; and Katie Turnbull, Texas Transportation Institute and incoming TAC Chair.
(Added 02/09/2011)
2010 Volpe Center Year in Review
The 2010 Volpe Center Year in Review is now online. Access it at http://www.volpe.dot.gov/infosrc/yir/2010/toc.html
(Added 02/04/2011)
Volpe Cyber Security Team Briefs White House, Homeland Security, and Coast Guard on Control Systems Security Program
Accompanied by Administrator of the Research and Innovative Technology Administration Peter Appel, Michael Dinning, Director of the Freight Logistics and Transportation Systems Center of Innovation, briefed Special Assistant to the President Howard A. Schmidt on cyber security challenges in transportation, and the Volpe Center's work for the Department of Homeland Security's Control Systems Security Program for Transportation. CSSP aims to reduce the risk of cyber attacks against critical infrastructure control systems through risk mitigation activities. Mr. Schmidt, Cybersecurity Coordinator on the President's National Security Staff, orchestrates cybersecurity activities across the government. Rick Lichtenfels, Deputy Director of CSSP at the Department of Homeland Security and sponsor of the Volpe Center's CSSP project, and David Sawin of the Freight Logistics and Transportation Systems Center of Innovation also attended the meeting.
Mr. Sawin later provided a program briefing to Mr. Lichtenfels' office, the National Cyber Security Division's Control Systems Security Program for Transportation at the Department of Homeland Security. Mr. Sawin and Rod Cook, Chief of the Intermodal Infrastructure Security and Operations Division also briefed the United States Coast Guard Cyber Command on the Volpe Center's activities and capabilities in cyber security and the CSSP initiative. Team members Kevin Harnett, Darryl Song, and Charlie McCarthy supported the meetings.
(Added 02/04/2011)
NHTSA Administrator Strickland Visits the Volpe Center
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) Administrator David Strickland visited the Volpe Center last week. During his visit, Administrator Strickland Volpe senior leadership discussed Volpe's work on behalf of NHTSA as well as NHTSA's perspective and approach to research. The work discussed included Safety Data Systems, Corporate Average Fuel Economy, Intelligent Transportation Systems and Crash Avoidance research, Human Factors and Acoustic research, Cyber Security, and Breath Alcohol and Testing.
(Added 02/03/2011)
Collaborative Research Agreement between Dutch and Volpe Renewed, Joint Workshop on Traveler Perception
Last week, the Volpe Center and the Netherlands Ministry of Infrastructure and Environment's Centre for Transport and Navigation (DVS) renewed a collaborative research agreement after experts from both research institutions participated in a workshop on traveler perception. Since 1998, the agreement has provided a framework that enables information exchange and collaboration between the Dutch Ministry and the Volpe Center (on behalf of the U.S. Department of Transportation). The agreement allows both institutions to benefit from one another's experience and expertise; to find solutions to problems of mutual concern, and to improve transportation systems and techniques without the costly duplication of parallel national efforts.
The annual Volpe-DVS joint workshop is a result of this collaborative workshop agreement. Each year, representatives from both sides agree upon a discussion topic, and experts from both sides flesh out the nuances of a particular topic during a workshop. In previous years, workshop subjects have included workforce capacity building, congestion policy and pricing, intelligent transportation systems, safety and human factors, and mega-region planning. This year's topic was Traveler Perception and the various planning and human factors considerations one can take into account to alter the perceived experience and behavior of travelers.
(Added 2/1/2011)
The Volpe Center at TRB
Volpe Center Director and Associate Administrator Robert Johns and Deputy Associate Administrator for Research, Innovation and Technology Anne Aylward, managers and technical experts participated in a wide range of sessions, committee meetings and demonstrations at the 90th annual Transportation Research Board Annual Meeting (TRB) held January 22-26 in Washington, DC.
Director Johns was particularly active as Chairman of the Technical Activities Council, which oversees TRB's 200 committees. He presided at the Council meeting, welcomed new members to TRB committee participation, and reported on the Council's activities and award winners at the Chairman's Luncheon. Mr. Johns also presented the awards for Outstanding Papers at the Thomas B. Deen Distinguished Lectureship and Paper Award Presentations.
At displays in the exhibit hall, staff showcased the Volpe Center's upgraded library resources as well as recent project activities, including motor vehicle crash avoidance, motor carrier safety, quieter cars and the safety of blind pedestrians, and the Commuter Choice Survey tool.
Aaron Hastings from the Environmental Measurement and Modeling Division demonstrating the binaural head technology used in acoustic and sound measurement work done by the Volpe Center.
This technology was used in the work that the Volpe Center has done on quieter electric cars and their impacts on the safety of vision-impaired pedestrians. |
Susan Dresley, the Volpe Center's Federal Librarian, takes a student through a tour of Volpe's Library website and its features.
The Library celebrated its grand opening this past fall with a ribbon-cutting featuring RITA Administrator Peter Appel and National Transportation Library Director Amanda Wilson. The new website is a project to collect and make accessible the more than forty years of transportation research the Volpe Center has conducted. |
Sarah May from the System Measurement and Analysis Division demonstrating the Volpe Center's work for the Compliance, Safety, Accountability (CSA) Program on behalf of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration.
The CSA Program provides an understanding into how large commercial motor carriers and their drivers are complying with safety rules, informing intervention measures. The Volpe Center has been involved in the development and implementation of the CSA Program over the past several years. |
Leisa Moniz, Program Director for the Department of Transportation's Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Program, interfacing with visitors at the SBIR booth.
Since 1982, the Volpe Center has directed the Department's SBIR Program, due to our background in innovative programs such as technology transfer, cooperative R&D agreements, outreach projects involving a cross-section of the transportation community, and technical assistance to state and local governments, as well as private organizations. |
(Added 01/31/2011)
Cyber Security Session at the TRB 90th Annual Meeting
A session entitled "Cyber Security: Keeping Our Nation Safe from Manmade and Natural Cyber Events" will take place at the TRB 90th Annual Meeting later this month in Washington, DC. Presiding Officers of the session are Michael Dinning, Director of the Volpe Center's Freight Logistics and Transportation Systems Center of Innovation, and Jeffrey Western of Western Management Consulting, LLC. Presentations will include:
TSA Cybersecurity Strategies for the Nation's Transportation Systems
Kelly Bray, Transportation Security Administration
Cyber Concerns and Strategies for Transportation Organizations
Edward Fok, Federal Highway Administration
Cybersecurity: The Insider Threat
Richard W. Bloom, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University
Social Engineering
Mike Murrary, MAD Security
Attendees will learn which transportation systems are potentially at risk from cyber attacks, how even the most prepared organization may be vulnerable to cyber attacks, and how government and industry are collaborating to reduce cyber security risks.
The session will be held on January 24, 2011, from 10:15 a.m. to 12 p.m., at the Hilton Hotel in Washington, DC.
(Added 01/06/2011)
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