(Source: CBS news)

Why don’t fun and exciting things like this happen on my flights?  Anyways, WordPress founder Matt Mullenwag tweeted, while flying a red eye on Virgin America from San Francisco to New York Thursday morning, that a quick wedding was conducted on his flight while the plane was over Canada.  It just so happened that another passenger, Ryan McManus also broke the news via twitter while floating above ground.

The reporter who wrote about this story got an update from a Virgin America PR representative via email offering the following details:

The crew has been on rest (it was a red eye flight), but I did briefly get a hold of the pilot for the flight – and there was no “diversion” – this was part of the normal flight path. He actually was unaware of the reported celebration in the cabin (so reports that a pilot performed it are definitely not correct). That flight’s normal flight path (VX 28 SFO-JFK) does cross the Canadian border for a few minutes. I have not had reports from anyone else onboard however, so other than that I cannot confirm anything.

Note: Transportgooru.com wishes the newly weds all the very best and extends a warm virtual hug.

Related articles

• Gay couple reportedly marries aboard jetliner (msnbc.msn.com)
• Truth of story about gay wedding on Virgin flight over Canada is up in the air (theglobeandmail.com)
• Gay couple reportedly marries on commercial flight (msnbc.msn.com)
• Natalie Bahadur: Flying Virgin America for the First Time (huffingtonpost.com)
• Gay Couples Take to the Skies, Skype to Wed (cbsnews.com)

Friday, November 19, 2010 – ISSN 1529-1057

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GEWI Completes North American Traffic Technologies Tour – Webinar to Follow in January

GEWI would like to thank everyone involved in hosting and attending our first ever North American Traffic Technologies Tour.  Topics included technologies that are used around the world for location referencing and harmonization, data exchange between systems, next generation of real-time data for traffic navigation, and data exchange for connected vehicles/infrastructure projects.   We had many requests from locations and attendees we were unable to honor, so please look for a follow-up webinar to be held in January 2011.  If you’d like to receive notification of this event, visit www.gewi.com and register for the GEWI newsletter, or contactjim.oneill@gewi.com

AVIATION

1) Patience Wears Thin as FAA Navigation Equipment Problem Returns in Aspen, Colorado

Link to article in the Aspen Daily News:

http://www.aspendailynews.com/section/home/143775

CARTOGRAPHY

2) Bing Maps Redesign Introduced

Link to article on Softpedia:

http://news.softpedia.com/news/Bing-Maps-Redesign-Introduced-167572.shtml

MARITIME

3) ‘Numbering’ 13 Million Vessels Annually Helps Fight Terrorism, Says US Coast Guard

Link to article in Government Security News:

http://www.gsnmagazine.com/node/21862?c=maritime_port_security

PARKING

4) New York City’s Central Nervous System is Growing; Here’s What It Can Do

Link to article on Capital:

http://www.capitalnewyork.com/article/culture/2010/11/812466/cyborg-city-new-york%E2%80%99s-central-nervous-system-growing-heres-what-it-c

PUBLIC INFORMATION / EDUCATION

5) Airport Campaign Targets Sex Tourists

Link to CBC News story:

http://www.cbc.ca/canada/montreal/story/2010/11/18/airport-campaign-targets-sex-tourists.html

6) Tennessee DOT SmartFix 40 Project Wins National Communications Awards

Link to article in Business & Heritage Clarksville:

http://businessclarksville.com/2010/11/19/tdot-smartfix40-program-wins-national-communications-awards/

RAILROADS

7) Amtrak Arrests are Secret

Link to commentary in The Day:

http://www.theday.com/article/20101119/NWS05/311199863

ROADWAYS

8) Safe Highways Matter – Fall 2010

Link to newsletter:

http://www.safehighways.org/SafeHighwayMatters.Fall2010.pdf

SAFETY / SECURITY

9) Feds Ask for Airport Workers’ Personal Information

Link to story on CNN:

http://www.cnn.com/2010/TRAVEL/11/18/airport.workers.info/

10) TSA Blogger Bob Watched Closely by Readers

Link to blog on Nextgov:

http://techinsider.nextgov.com/2010/11/tsas_blogger_bob_freezes_comments.php

11) Alberta Transportation Minister Defends Distracted Driving Bill

Link to story and video on CTV Calgary:

http://calgary.ctv.ca/servlet/an/local/CTVNews/20101118/CGY_distracted_drivingupdate_101118/20101118/

TRANSIT

12) Montreal Transit Looks to Corporate Sponsorship

Link to Postmedia News article:

http://www.nationalpost.com/news/canada/Montreal+transit+looks+corporate+sponsorship/3853488/story.html

13) Orange County Transportation Authority Honored for Text Messaging Program

Link to article in Metro:

http://www.metro-magazine.com/News/Story/2010/11/OCTA-honored-for-text-messaging-program.aspx

TRAVELER INFORMATION / TRANSPORTATION MANAGEMENT

14) Ford and Wall Street Journal Office Network Partner for Traffic Updates

Link to article in Digital Outsider:

http://www.mediapost.com/publications/?fa=Articles.showArticle&art_aid=139859

15) Global Traffic Technologies Debuts The GTT Connection

Link to newsletter:

http://bit.ly/amO32Q

VEHICLES

16) Electric Car Web Site Aims to Ease Buyers’ Fears

Link to Reuters article:

http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE6AH66R20101118

Link to site: http://www.goelectricdrive.com/

17) German ‘Thinking Car’ Drives Itself

Link to story and video on NECN:

http://www.necn.com/11/19/10/German-thinking-car-drives-itself/landing.html?blockID=356472&feedID=4213

18) Carmakers’ Next Problem: Generation Y

People in their teens and twenties are more interested in gadgets than cars.

Link to story on MSNBC:

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/39970363/ns/business-autos

News Releases

1) Missouri State Highway Patrol Recognized for Best Overall Traffic Safety Program

2) The Market for Driver Monitoring Systems is Primed to Top $1 Billion by 2015

3) US Transportation Secretary Announces Recipients of New Railroad Safety Technology Grants

4) UPS Logistics Technologies to be Acquired by Thoma Bravo

5) Pennsylvania DOT Expands Twitter Offerings in Time for Thanksgiving Travel

6) Navteq Launches Next Generation Navteq TrafficOne

Upcoming Events

IntelliDrive Mobility Workshop – November 30-December 2 – Arlington, Virginia

http://www.its.dot.gov/press/announcement/mobility_workshop.htm

Friday Bonus

I’m not sure if this latest idea from the TSA is going to quiet those critics of more intrusive airport screenings.

http://wondertonic.tumblr.com/post/1600226419/tsa-announces-facebook-integration-for-full-body

Today in Transportation History

1960 **50^th anniversary** The first flight of the Hawker Siddeley P.1127, the first vertical short take-off and landing jet aircraft, took place.

http://www.primeportal.net/hangar/mark_hayward/p.1127/

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

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

Become a TCN fan on Facebook!

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

© 2010 Bernie Wagenblast  www.bwcommunications.net

(Source: CSPAN via Youtube)

It is amazing how passionate this man is.  While making a case for the Government to act swiftly, he took chastising the TSA to a new level for its latest nightmarish handling of the new security procedures. this easily qualifies as verbal beat down.  TSA has done a poor job handling this public backlash.  They ought to get a new PR/Social Media/Communications team to handle this boondoggle.  Poor Michael Chertoff – the former Secretary of the Dept. of Homeland Security (DHS)  got a bad bruising in this verbal tirade.

Related articles

• Ron Paul Unleashes On TSA: “Enough Is Enough” (disquietreservations.blogspot.com)
• Ron Paul to Congress TSA: “Enough is Enough” (nyletterpress.wordpress.com)
• “Duncan Blasts TSA Pat-Downs, Body Scanners” and related posts (dprogram.net)
• Guest post: Washington’s “sweetheart” deals may have gone too far this time (bigbrotherwatch.org.uk)
• “VIDEO: Bombshell: Former Homeland Chief Got ‘Sweetheart Deal’ Selling Scanners To TSA” and related posts (theyeshivaworld.com)
• Ron Paul Introduces American Traveler Dignity Act, Encourages TSA Opt Out Day (fdlaction.firedoglake.com)
• TSA Administrator Acknowledges “Invasive” Pat-Downs, Screeners (news.firedoglake.com)
• When Rights Get Squeezed (online.wsj.com)
• Grope up: Enough is Enough edition (emergentchaos.com)
• California DA Vows to Prosecute Airport Screeners Who Touch Travelers Inappropriately (foxnews.com)

(Sources:  White House.gov & Freep.com)

Watching GM turn the corner from a disastrous dud and morph into a Detroit’s Stud and a Wall Street darling, no could’ve been happier than President Obama and his team of economic advisors at the White House, who advised him on the bailout that rescued thousands of jobs and the iconic brand from a collapse.  The stunning turnaround culminated with a successful IPO debuting in the marketplace today. General Motors stock closed at $34.19 today, just above the $33 price of the initial public offering.

An elated President Obama convened a press conference this afternoon and shared his sentiment and belief in GM’s recovery strategy.

Today, one of the toughest tales of the recession took another big step towards becoming a success story.

General Motors relaunched itself as a public company, cutting the government’s stake in the company by nearly half.  What’s more, American taxpayers are now positioned to recover more than my administration invested in GM.

And that’s a very good thing.  Last year, we told GM’s management and workers that if they made the tough decisions necessary to make themselves more competitive in the 21st century — decisions requiring real leadership, fresh thinking and also some shared sacrifice –- then we would stand by them.  And because they did, the American auto industry -– an industry that’s been the proud symbol of America’s manufacturing might for a century; an industry that helped to build our middle class -– is once again on the rise.

Our automakers are in the midst of their strongest period of job growth in more than a decade.  Since GM and Chrysler emerged from bankruptcy, the industry has created more than 75,000 new jobs.  For the first time in six years, Ford, GM and Chrysler are all operating at a profit.  In fact, last week, GM announced its best quarter in over 11 years.  And most importantly, American workers are back at the assembly line manufacturing the high-quality, fuel-efficient, American-made cars of tomorrow, capable of going toe to toe with any other manufacturer in the world. Click here to read the president’s entire speech.

Freep’s awesome cartoonist Mike Thompson charts this wonderful recovery from a dud to a darling with a series of cartoons on his blog.  He also adds the following to go with his nice drawings:

As if this weren’t bad enough for auto bailout critics, the Ann Arbor-based Center for Automotive Research has released a report that validates the logic behind the bailout. As Free Press business writer Greg Gardner reported, “The CAR study says the federal government would have spent $28.6 billion more than it did on unemployment benefits, Medicare, Social Security and other programs had the automakers liquidated. So the entire rescue will pay for itself if the government can generate $38 billion from selling its shares.” But perhaps the most chilling details in the story were the report’s conclusions that liquidation of the two auto companies would have meant the loss of 1.4 million jobs and $121 billion in personal income.

Whew!  This above facts-full paragraph must be making many of the naysayers, like the conservative columnist Mr. George Will feel like throwing up.  A couple of days ago, he wrote an op-ed titled , Toxic Volt, on Washington Post saying a whole lot of negative things about the President’s Bailout for GM.  The President and Steven Rattner, the brains behind the execution of the bailout plan, should be chuckling over the phone talking about how bad they feel for George Will.  Sadly enough, the doubters still continue to find a way to question the legitimacy of success. Fox Business  News in an article on its website says massive dilution from existing shares, warrants and grants, as well as unfunded pension costs. And GM’s cash flow is still heavily reliant on tens of billions of dollars in tax breaks and taxpayer-backed loans from the Dept. of Energy.

If this is not victory enough for the President, today GM notched another impressive feat, which is more like a beautiful foil to the wonderful present inside – the IPO. The Detroit Free Press reports that the Chevrolet Volt extended-range electric vehicle has won Green Car of the Year, beating out the pure-electric Nissan Leaf, hours after General Motors returned to the stock market. The award, decided by judges that include environmental enthusiasts and Green Car Journal editors, comes the same week as the Volt won MotorTrend Car of the Year and Automobile Magazine’s Automobile of the Year.  How awesome could that for a man who was chided constantly by his opponents for the decisions he made to save the brand and the thousands of jobs associated with the existence of the brand.

I bet tonight the President of the United States will have a drink to celebrate one of his biggest victories since assuming office.  He will probably sleep a little better tonight with one less thing to worry about.

Related articles

• Obama Praises GM Bailout as Shares Gain 4% in IPO (dailyfinance.com)
• GM’s Chevy Volt wins Green Car of the Year (reuters.com)
• General Motors shares jump on Wall Street return (chron.com)
• GM’s Chevrolet Volt Named 2011 Green Car of the Year (dailyfinance.com)
• GM shares rise on return to Wall Street trading (washingtontimes.com)
• GM shares jump in post-IPO return to market (reuters.com)
• Chevrolet Volt wins Green Car of the Year award (theglobeandmail.com)
• General Motors Opens Up 6% Post-IPO >GM – Wall Street Journal (news.google.com)
• How General motors came back from the brink (independent.co.uk)
• Watch: Obama On GM: ‘The American Auto Industry … Is Once Again On The Rise’ (mediaite.com)
• Obama Hails GM Stock Sale as Policy Success- YOU DECIDE: Would You Buy GM Stock? (foxnews.com)
• President Obama on GM: “One of the Toughest Tales” Becoming a “Success Story” (whitehouse.gov)
• General Motors shares jump on Wall Street return (thenewstribune.com)
• Obama: GM Stock Sale a Success for His Policy (abcnews.go.com)
• GM IPO The Biggest In U.S. History (huffingtonpost.com)
• Obama: GM’s stock sale shows ‘tough decisions’ paid off (cnn.com)
• Obama to hail GM IPO (forexlive.com)
• CORRECTED – WRAPUP 4-GM shares jump in post-IPO return to market (reuters.com)
• RPT-(Nov 17)-UPDATE 12-GM IPO raises $20.1 bln biggest US IPO (reuters.com)
• You: How GM IPO Proves the Tea Party Wrong (newsweek.com)
• Good News on GM and the Auto Bailout, but Will Americans Care? (politicsdaily.com)
• Obama: GM Stock Sale a Success for His Policy (politics.usnews.com)

Thursday, November 18, 2010 – ISSN 1529-1057

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OTHER

1) Chicago Innovates Urban Planning with Participatory Communication

Link to blog on The City Fix:

http://thecityfix.com/chicago-innovates-urban-planning-with-participatory-communication/

PARKING

2) ePark, gooPark, noPark

City transportation departments are installing ITS which include interactive maps of traffic flows and parking.

Link to blog in Digital Communities:

http://www.digitalcommunities.com/blogs/city-cio/epark-goopark-nopark-111610.html

PUBLIC INFORMATION / EDUCATION

3) Vermont Police Policies on Release of Traffic Tickets at Odds

Link to article in The Burlington Free Press:

http://www.burlingtonfreepress.com/article/20101118/NEWS02/101117033/Police-policies-on-release-of-traffic-tickets-at-odds

4) Lawmakers Move to End Utah DOT’s Secretive Settlements

Link to article in The Salt Lake Tribune:

http://www.sltrib.com/sltrib/home/50695684-76/udot-committee-governor-settlements.html.csp

SAFETY / SECURITY

5) Americans Back Ban on Mobile Phones While Driving: Poll

Link to AFP article:

http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5j7tA6nw3hsEbbzpKiRlgYuQsjcdg?docId=CNG.bd993ab1c833142d7127b3f3145b1d25.21

Link to news release from Quinnipiac University:

http://www.quinnipiac.edu/x1295.xml?ReleaseID=1537

6) TSA, Pilots Weigh Biometric System for Airport Screening

Link to article in the National Journal:

http://www.nationaljournal.com/nationalsecurity/tsa-pilots-weigh-biometric-system-for-airport-screening-20101116

7) FCC Tightens Rules on Accuracy Reporting by Wireless Carriers for E911 Calls

Link to article in Government Security News:

http://www.gsnmagazine.com/node/21855?c=communications

TRANSIT

8) GPS Glitch Makes Myki Overcharge

Link to article in The Age:

http://www.theage.com.au/victoria/gps-glitch-makes-myki-overcharge-20101118-17yl5.html

9) Individual Pittsburgh-Area Drivers Warned They’ll Feel Mass Transit Cuts

Some officials express dismay over lack of public outrage and say message isn’t getting out.

Link to article in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette:

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/10322/1104201-147.stm

TRAVELER INFORMATION / TRANSPORTATION MANAGEMENT

10) BlackBerry Traffic App Pulls Into App World

Link to CNET blog:

http://www.cnet.com/8301-17918_1-20023267-85.html

11) Ohio DOT Gaffe Delays Launch of Highway Message Boards on Cleveland-Area Interstates

Link to article in The Plain Dealer:

http://blog.cleveland.com/metro/2010/11/post_395.html

VEHICLES

12) Technology Helps Government Fleet Managers Cope with Tight Budgets

Link to article in Government Procurement:

http://govpro.com/fleets/content/fleet-technology-trends-20101117/

13) Microsoft and Apple Race to the Vehicle Media Market

Link to BNET blog:

http://www.bnet.com/blog/technology-business/microsoft-and-apple-race-to-the-vehicle-media-market/6877

14) GM, Ford, Nissan Bring Smart Phone Apps to Cars

Link to Bloomberg article:

http://www.businessweek.com/technology/content/nov2010/tc20101117_352847.htm

News Releases

1) The National Academies Report Touts Benefits of Road Safety Cameras

2) FAA Proposes Requiring Pilot Certificates to Include Photos

3) TomTom and Tracker Management Deliver Live Driver Updates and Accurate Arrival Times for Towing Fleets

4) Neology Introduces High-Performance Tolling RFID Tag

Upcoming Events

Indian Maritime Technology Conference – January 21-22 – Chennai

http://tinyurl.com/34ogs4e

Today in Transportation History

1903 President Theodore Roosevelt signed the Hay-Bunau-Varilla Treaty with Panama.  The agreement gave the US exclusive canal rights across the Isthmus of Panama.

http://avalon.law.yale.edu/20th_century/pan001.asp

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

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

Become a TCN fan on Facebook!

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

© 2010 Bernie Wagenblast  www.bwcommunications.net

(Source: Wall Street Journal)

The Bloomberg administration is exploring a plan to build a new tunnel under the Hudson River that would extend the no. 7 subway line to Secaucus, N.J,  building on existing work being done on the no. 7 line, which is undergoing a $2.1 billion extension from Times Square to 34th Street and 11th Avenue.

The plan is an attempt to expand rail capacity and grab some of the $3 billion in federal money that had been set aside for a rail-tunnel project between New Jersey and Manhattan, according to multiple people familiar with discussions over the project. New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie spiked the rail tunnel three weeks ago due to concerns about cost overruns. Click here to read the full story

The WSJ also has a nice story that looks in to how the subway extension would transform traveling options (at least in the region) for the commuting public.

Related articles

• Extending No. 7 subway to Secaucus could provide alternative to killed ARC tunnel (nj.com)
• New York City proposes extending subway to New Jersey (reuters.com)
• Bloomberg administration looks at extending No. 7 subway line into Hoboken and Secaucus (nj.com)
• NY City proposes extending subway to New Jersey (reuters.com)
• “New York City-Secaucus Junction Transit?” and related posts (bridgeandtunnelclub.com)
• Transit pros say feds won’t pay to extend subway (nydailynews.com)
• Amtrak Won’t Revive Trans-Hudson Rail Tunnel Project (newyork.cbslocal.com)
• Amtrak, NJ Transit break off talks on reviving ARC Hudson River rail tunnel (nj.com)
• It’s Time for a Transcontinental Subway (blogs.forbes.com)
• Malloy Eyes Funds Marked For Hudson River Rail Tunnel (newyork.cbslocal.com)