Monday, August 30, 2010 – ISSN 1529-1057

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Countdown to IBTTA’s 78th Annual Meeting & Exhibition — September 12-15th in San Diego, CA – Register Today!

Join your colleagues in San Diego, September 12-15, 2010, for IBTTA’s 78th Annual Meeting & Exhibition, the year’s most highly-anticipated learning and networking event — attracting more than 700 toll industry experts and decision makers from across the globe. Under the theme, Sustainable Transportation, the technical program offers tracks focused on innovation, policy, the economy, and the California tolling experience. Hosted by the California Toll Operators Committee (CTOC), this event features interactive seminars, influential speakers, technical tours and special events, informative exhibits and more! Register and make your hotel reservations today! Visit IBTTA’s website for details.

AVIATION

1) British Airways Flight Scares Passengers After Emergency Crash Message Plays By Mistake

Link to story and video on ABC News’ World News Tonight:

http://abcnews.go.com/WN/british-airways-flight-bound-hong-kong-scares-passengers/story?id=11496766

2) Transport Canada Bans Coverage of Float Plane Safety Workshop

Link to article in The Vancouver Sun:

http://www.vancouversun.com/news/Transport+Canada+bans+coverage+workshop/3459288/story.html

CAMERAS

3) More Traffic Cameras for Pennsylvania’s Highways

Link to story on KYW Radio:

http://kyw.cbslocal.com/2010/08/29/more-traffic-cams-for-pa-s-highways/

CARTOGRAPHY

4) Stylish Maps that are Chatty

Link to article in The New York Times:

http://intransit.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/08/30/stylish-maps-that-are-chatty/

ELECTRONIC TOLLING

5) For New I-85 Toll Lane in Georgia, Signs Might Not Help Much

Link to article in The Atlanta Journal-Constitution:

http://www.ajc.com/news/gwinnett/for-new-i-85-600843.html

GPS / NAVIGATION

6) Newest in Construction Technology: GPS on Earthmovers

Link to article in the Deseret News:

http://www.deseretnews.com/article/700060879/Newest-in-construction-technology-GPS-on-earth-movers.html

7) GPS Vehicle Tracking Systems Help Drivers Go Green

Link to blog on Eco Institution:

http://www.ecoinstitution.com/green-news/gps-vehicle-tracking-systems-help-drivers-go-green/

OTHER

8) More US Travelers are Using Smartphones

Link to article in USA Today:

http://www.usatoday.com/tech/wireless/2010-08-30-smartphone-travel_N.htm

9) New System to Simplify Traffic Fine Collection in Turkey

Link to Anatolia News Agency article:

http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/n.php?n=new-system-to-ease-the-collection-of-traffic-fines-2010-08-30

10) The Inconvenient Truth About Traffic Math: Progress is Slow

Link to article in The Wall Street Journal:

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703959704575453921039632134.html

11) ITS Turbo Architecture Version 5.0 is Now Available

Link to further information from the Research and Innovative Technology Administration:

http://www.its.dot.gov/press/2010/arch_turbo5.htm

PARKING

12) New Electronic Signs Will Help Find Parking in Seattle

Link to article on seattlepi.com:

http://blog.seattlepi.com/transportation/archives/219586.asp

ROADWAYS

13) Highway Poles Listen to Glean Traffic Data from Road Noise

Link to article in The Journal News:

http://www.lohud.com/article/20100829/NEWS01/8290380/-1/newsfront/Highway-poles-listen-to-glean-traffic-data-from-road-noise

SAFETY / SECURITY

14) Metra Conductors Bar Riders Who Ignore Gates, Lights

Hand commuters cards warning of dangers and possibility of fine.

Link to article in the Chicago Sun-Times:

http://www.suntimes.com/news/transportation/2651500,CST-NWS-rideside30.article

TELEMATICS

15) GM: OnStar Upgrade Bypassed Dealers

Link to CNET blog:

http://reviews.cnet.com/8301-13746_7-20015055-48.html

TRANSIT

16) Virginia Tech Teams with Transit to Launch VT Bus Tracker

Link to article in Metro:

http://www.metro-magazine.com/News/Story/2010/08/Virginia-Tech-Blacksburg-Transit-launch-VT-Bus-Tracker.aspx

Link to VT Bus Tracker: http://www.bustracker.org/

17) Do You Have an App for That?

Link to column in Metro:

http://www.metro-magazine.com/Blog/Transit-Dispatches/Story/2010/08/Do-you-have-an-app-for-that-.aspx

TRAVELER INFORMATION / TRANSPORTATION MANAGEMENT

18) Highway Police Web Site Launched in India

Link to Express News Service article:

http://www.indianexpress.com/news/Highway-police-website-launched/673921

19) 511 Traffic Advisory Service Proposed for Santa Cruz, California Region

Link to article in the Santa Cruz Sentinel:

http://www.santacruzsentinel.com/localnews/ci_15936847

20) Washington State DOT Launches Traffic App

Link to blog in The Stranger:

http://slog.thestranger.com/slog/archives/2010/08/30/early-adopters-scoff-at-new-wsdot-traffic-app

21) Smarter Commuting Starts with Analytics, Visualization

Link to blog on SmartData Collective:

http://smartdatacollective.com/brett-stupakevich/26847/smarter-commuting-starts-analytics-visualization

VEHICLES

22) Dude, Where’s My Apple iCar?

While Apple is wasting its time on TV, Microsoft drives away with the automobile market.

Link to commentary in Computerworld:

http://www.computerworld.com/s/article/9182459/Dude_where_s_my_Apple_iCar_

23) Crash-Proof Cars?

Link to article in Fleet Owner:

http://blog.fleetowner.com/trucks_at_work/2010/08/30/crash-proof-cars/

24) Sweet Talking Your Computer

How should computers in vehicles interact with drivers?

Link to article in The Wall Street Journal:

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703959704575453411132636080.html

25) Untangling the Wireless Car

Link to article on cellular-news:

http://www.cellular-news.com/story/45083.php

News Releases

1) i95travelinfo.net Spells Relief for Holiday Travelers on the East Coast

2) DC Metro Transit Police Use Tag Readers to Identify Stolen Cars and Car Thieves

3) OnStar Celebrates Patents During National Inventor’s Month

4) Shuttle GPS Devices Aid Mississippi State University Student Commuters

5) IEEE Members Globally Work on the Development of Intelligent, Vehicular Transport Systems for Smarter, Safer Travel

6) Winning Transportation Projects Saving Lives, Time, and Money

Upcoming Events

Webinar: Biodiesel Policies and Mandates: What’s Really Involved? – September 16

http://www.dieselforum.org/multimedia/webinars

Today in Transportation History

1985 **25^th anniversary** President Reagan signed an executive order to create an emergency board to investigate a dispute between the United Transportation Union and various railroads.

http://www.reagan.utexas.edu/archives/speeches/1985/83085c.htm

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

The Transportation Communications Newsletter is published electronically Monday through Friday.

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

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

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

© 2010 Bernie Wagenblast  www.bwcommunications.net

Friday, August 27, 2010 – ISSN 1529-1057

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IBTTA 78th Annual Meeting & Exhibition — Register Today! Early Bird Discount Ends August 22, 2010

Join your colleagues in San Diego, September 12-15, 2010, for IBTTA’s 78th Annual Meeting & Exhibition, the year’s most highly-anticipated learning and networking event — attracting more than 700 toll industry experts and decision makers from across the globe. Under the theme, Sustainable Transportation, the technicalprogram offers tracks focused on innovation, policy, the economy, and the California tolling experience. Hosted by the California Toll Operators Committee (CTOC), this event features interactive seminars, influential speakers, technical tours and special events, informative exhibits and more! Breaking News! The Hilton San Diego Bayfront has reduced the contracted room rate from $241/night to $219/night. The new rate applies to all existing confirmed reservations and any new reservations. Customized sponsorship and exhibitor packages are available. Visit IBTTA’s website for details.

AVIATION

1) US DOT Fines Non-profit Mercy Flights $30,000 Over Personal Pronoun

Link to article in the Mail Tribune:

http://www.mailtribune.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20100826/BIZ/8260315/-1/NEWS

GPS / NAVIGATION

2) The Government’s New Right to Track Your Every Move with GPS

Link to article in Time:

http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,2013150,00.html

PUBLIC INFORMATION / EDUCATION

3) Antitexting Campaign is Getting the Star Treatment

Link to article and video in The Boston Globe:

http://www.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/articles/2010/08/27/antitexting_campaign_is_getting_the_star_treatment/?p1=News_links

RAILROADS

4) Judge Orders EPA Not to Destroy Records Union Pacific Wants

Link to AP article:

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5izQLsYoanTsZoZZ6oQUZuzPGn7wAD9HRF6F80

5) Kentucky Puts Locations of Coal Infrastructure, Including Railroads and River Terminals, Online

Link to AP article:

http://www.kentucky.com/2010/08/27/1409200/ky-puts-locations-of-power-plants.html

Link to map:

http://kgs.uky.edu/kgsmap/KYCoal/viewer.asp

ROADWAYS

6) Visit FHWA’s Online Work Zone Training Compendium

Link to article in Focus:

http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/publications/focus/10aug/04.cfm

Link to site:

http://www.ops.fhwa.dot.gov/wz/outreach/wz_training/index.htm

SAFETY / SECURITY

7) US DOT to Unveil Database Standards to Improve Highway Safety

Link to article on Nextgov:

http://www.nextgov.com/nextgov/ng_20100827_3266.php

8) Do Some Traffic Hazards Get Too Much Attention?

Link to article in The Wall Street Journal:

http://blogs.wsj.com/drivers-seat/2010/08/27/do-some-traffic-hazards-get-too-much-attention/

TRANSIT

9) Long Island Rail Road Information Screens Have Been Virtually Useless in Wake of Fire

Link to article in The Wall Street Journal:

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704913704575454110763083290.html

10) In Long Island Rail Road Mess, Local TV Had a Chance to be Relevant, but Failed Even to be Useful

Link to article in the Daily News:

http://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/tv/2010/08/27/2010-08-27_tvs_not_1st_stop_for_info_on_lirr.html

11) New Cameras to Catch DC Metrobus Drivers’ Mistakes

Link to article in The Washington Post:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/08/26/AR2010082603710.html

TRAVELER INFORMATION / TRANSPORTATION MANAGEMENT

12) New Traffic Center Opens in Cobb County, Georgia

Link to story and video on WXIA-TV:

http://www.11alive.com/news/local/story.aspx?storyid=151672&catid=3

13) Adelaide on a Road to Nowhere

Adelaide Traffic Management Centre helps manage traffic in South Australia.

Link to article in The Advertiser:

http://www.adelaidenow.com.au/news/south-australia/adelaide-on-a-road-to-nowhere/story-e6frea83-1225911069762

14) Driving IT Right

Traffic is a web of connections and solutions will look at those relationships.

Link to commentary in Express Computer:

http://www.expresscomputeronline.com/20100830/techviews01.shtml

News Releases

1) Global Number of Consumer Telematics Users Will Reach 211 Million by 2015, Says ABI Research

Upcoming Events

Talking Freight Seminar on Freight and Carbon Footprint: Efforts to Enhance Supply Chain Sustainability – September 15

http://ops.fhwa.dot.gov/resources/news/news_detail.asp?ID=667

Friday Bonus

Catch the humorous end to the call of this horse race at Monmouth Park.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BpSmprqptSk

Today in Transportation History

1910 **100^th anniversary** What is recognized as the first official radio transmission from an airplane took place at Sheepshead Bay in New York City.

http://earlyradiohistory.us/1910enn2.htm

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

The Transportation Communications Newsletter is published electronically Monday through Friday.

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

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

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

© 2010 Bernie Wagenblast  www.bwcommunications.net

(Source: Wall Street Journal)

It Can Cost More to Fly to Hartford Than Barcelona. What Airlines Consider in Setting Prices.  I have always wondered about this issue.  And am glad that someone is trying to answer this.

Airline ticket prices often seem like a brain-teaser with little logic. From Chicago, a flight to Miami is more than twice as far as a flight to Memphis, but the shorter Memphis flight costs 25% more on average. Fly to Washington, D.C., from Hartford, Conn., and the average fare is nearly three times as high as if you flew to nearby Baltimore from Hartford, according to government data for the first quarter of this year.

The fares travelers pay typically have little relation to how far you fly, even though airline costs are largely dependent on the length of a flight. Long trips often cost less than short trips. Flights of the same time and distance can have radically different prices.

The price you pay for a ticket is driven by a number of variables: competition, types of passengers, the route and operating costs. But the biggest factor, by far, is whether discount airlines fly in a market. Low-cost carriers often set the price in markets because competitors feel compelled to match that price or risk losing customers and flying empty seats. And when they aren’t there, big airlines behave radically differently when setting prices.

Click here to read the entire article.

Related articles by Zemanta

• Decoding Airline Ticket Costs (online.wsj.com)
• Bumped? What a plane ticket says about you (msnbc.msn.com)
• Expect to pay more to fly this fall (msnbc.msn.com)
• Why Do Airlines Charge For Standby? (theatlantic.com)
• If you’re bumped from a flight, you may be stuck (usatoday.com)
• Airlines cash in with peak-day surcharges (seattletimes.nwsource.com)
• American Airlines, GE to Debut First U.S. Commercial Instrument Flight Path (environmentalleader.com)
• Do Cheap Airfare Specials Hurt the Environment – or Help It? (motherjones.com)
• Mexican airline industry’s troubles hit Texas (chron.com)

Wednesday, August 25, 2010 – ISSN 1529-1057

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Get involved in the TRB sponsored 2011 International Transportation Economic Development Conference. Submit an abstract!  Subjects and perspectives will include public and private sectors; academic, practitioner and policy issues; theory, concepts and operational tools; and all transportation modes and their relationship to economic development. All abstracts must be received by Wednesday, September 15, 2010. Authors should take care to ensure that abstracts submitted follow the guidelines shown (see http://www.ited2011.org/program.html).

Questions can be directed to conference planning staff at Meetings Northwest (866-633-8110).

CARTOGRAPHY

1) Introduction to Road Data – Part One

Link to article in Directions Magazine:

http://www.directionsmag.com/articles/introduction-to-road-data-part-1/130105

GPS / NAVIGATION

2) Satnav Put to Traffic Test in South Africa

Link to article on ITWeb:

http://www.itweb.co.za/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=36186:satnav-put-to-traffic-test&catid=225

OTHER

3) Advanced Communications Support US Department of Defense in Pakistan Flood Relief

Link to article on Nextgov:

http://www.nextgov.com/nextgov/ng_20100824_6147.php

4) UK Launches ERTOC Project to Improve Transport Efficiency and Sustainability; Track the Carbon Costs of Transport at the Consignment Level

Link to article from Green Car Congress:

http://www.favstocks.com/uk-launches-ertoc-project-to-improve-transport-efficiency-and-sustainability-tracking-the-carbon-costs-of-transport-at-the-consignment-level/2523307/

RAILROADS

5) Amtrak Power and Communication Lines Falter

Railroad says notifying the media is its first priority rather than its Web site or Twitter updates.

Link to story on WTOP Radio:

http://www.wtop.com/?nid=30&sid=2034708

ROADWAYS

6) Victoria to Institute Stricter Rules on Signage in Work Zones

Link to article in The Courier:

http://www.thecourier.com.au/news/local/news/general/tougher-rules-for-use-of-road-signs/1923850.aspx

SAFETY / SECURITY

7) California to Deploy Nation’s First Mass Mobile Alert System

Link to article in Government Technology:

http://www.govtech.com/gt/articles/768874

8) Transportation Security Laboratory Looks for Ways to Improve Threat Detection

Link to article and video in The Star-Ledger:

http://videos.nj.com/star-ledger/2010/08/at_government_lab_in_atlantic.html

TRANSIT

9) Webcams Show Progress of Light Rail Construction in Seattle

Link to blog on seattlepi.com:

http://blog.seattlepi.com/transportation/archives/219232.asp

TRAVELER INFORMATION / TRANSPORTATION MANAGEMENT

10) TV Traffic Feeds Available to Gwinnett County, Georgia Commuters

Link to article in the Gwinnett Daily Post:

http://www.gwinnettdailypost.com/localnews/headlines/101441604.html

11) Nine Secrets to Surviving Summer Traffic Jams

Pre-trip information one key to avoiding tie-ups.

Link to ABC News story:

http://abcnews.go.com/Travel/surviving-summer-traffic-jams-tips-roadtrips-families/story?id=11472848

News Releases

1) Cooperative Intelligent Transport Systems are Gaining Momentum Worldwide Despite Challenges, Says Frost & Sullivan

2) SEPTA and Philadelphia Office of Emergency Management Join Forces for Public Notification Alerts

3) Frost & Sullivan: Healthy Competition Between Vehicle Manufacturers to Drive Development of Active Safety Systems in Japan

Job Posting

–  IT Specialist (Network Services) – Research and Innovative Technology Administration – Cambridge, Massachusetts

http://tinyurl.com/28e8n96

Upcoming Events

Transport Systems Telematics 10^th International Conference – October 20-23 – Katowice-Ustron, Poland

http://www.tst-conference.org/index.php?page=home&lang=en

Today in Transportation History

1950 **60^th anniversary** President Truman ordered the US Army to take control of the nation’s railroads in anticipation of a strike.

http://www.trumanlibrary.org/publicpapers/index.php?pid=850&st=&st1

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

The Transportation Communications Newsletter is published electronically Monday through Friday.

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

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

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

© 2010 Bernie Wagenblast  www.bwcommunications.net