Distracted Driving PSA for “cagers” via Reddit

via Reddit

The image below was posted on the Colorado Dept. of Transportation’s Facebook Page with the following note: “Did you know that Colorado experienced a 66% increase in pedestrian fatalities and a 63% increase in bicyclist fatalities from 2011 to 2012? Share the Road folks!”  After seeing the Facebook post, I got curious and paid a visit to the CDOT website and found out they have an awesome campaign “Share the Road, Friend”  underway to create  an awareness about the  shared responsibility for road safety among all road users. They got all kinds of promotional materials made available on the CDOT website and while you are there don’t forget to check out the campaign videos as well. Nicely done, CDOT.

Share the Road, Friend – via Colorado Dept. of Transportation

The Volpe Center seeks multiple Technology Policy Analyst, GS-0101-13 in the Technology Innovation and Policy Division, (RVT-91) within the Advanced Transportation Technologies Technical Center. This division provides the technical and analytical support for research initiatives and decision-making at all levels of government and industry supporting all modes of transportation.  The Technology Policy Analysts primary duty is to participate as a member of a team that conducts research and applies analytical methodologies on a broad set of topics as a means of developing, comparing, and evaluating policy options in support of successful transition of technologies (e.g., connected vehicles, automated vehicles, new transportation applications, or vehicle-to-infrastructure communications, among others) from research into adoption and use.

The ideal candidate will have experience working in an environment with little policy precedence and where policy options have to be developed and created concurrently and iteratively with transportation related technology development.  This position is not focused on application of existing policies to IT or other systems, but is focused on the objective and rigorous development of new policies for new and emerging transportation technologies.

You must have superb analytical, communication, and problem-solving skills, and be able to excel in an entrepreneurial, fast –paced environment. Transcripts are required (see details in “How to Apply” tab). If you are invited to interview, you will be asked to submit writing samples prior to your interview.

Note:  Please note that the application deadline is Monday, June 24, 2013. Click here to learn more and to apply.

About: An innovative, fee-for service organization, the Volpe National Transportation Systems Center (VolpeCenter), part of the U.S. Department of Transportation’s (U.S.DOT’s) Research and Innovative Technology Administration in Cambridge, Massachusetts, is an internationally recognized Federal center of transportation and logistics with a world-class, multidisciplinary technical team with expertise across all modes of transportation.

via NPR

NPR gushes over the time-lapse video goodness of a traffic circle in Vietnam’s Ho Chi Minh City (formerly known as Saigon), captured by British photog, Rob Whitworth (who describes himself as an architectural photographer by day, time lapse photographer by night).  Though I grew up in India and have seen it all when it comes to traffic congestion, there is no doubt the roundabout showcased in this video is plain crazy. Should be an awe inspiring sight to witness how they manage traffic and control the flow of traffic in real time without incidents.  Maybe during my next visit to SE Asia I’ll take a detour and study it up close?  Oh, while we are at it, don’t forget to check out Rob’s other two videos – one each from Shanghai, China and Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. 

It is amazing how cool and unfazed this young man (Artur, who is 21yrs old, according to the notes in YouTube) was while handling the traffic at such a busy intersection in Toronto.  What’s even more amazing is the response from the drivers..  They just follow his guidance and move along without much trouble.. Above all, kudos to the cops for not arresting him (which could very well be the case in some cities in the US).

via Reddit

via Jalopnik

Comparing the speedsters

The Research and Innovative Technology Administration (RITA) seeks one Transportation Specialist (GS-2101-13) to support the Transit Safety and Security Division at the Transportation Safety Institute (TSI).  RITA coordinates the U.S. Department of Transportation’s (DOT) research, training and data analysis programs and is charged with advancing rigorous analysis and fostering the deployment of cross-cutting technologies to improve our Nation’s transportation system.  TSI provides premier worldwide training, products, and services for people in the public and private sectors through innovative, state-of-the-art methods and technologies that contribute to the protection of life, property, and the environment.  The TSI training center is located in Oklahoma City, OK at the Mike Monroney Aeronautical Center (MMAC), a Federal Aviation Administration training and materials facility.  Visit www.tsi.dot.gov to learn more.  This position is located in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.

As a Transportation Specialist (Transit Rail), you will serve as a technical and policy advisor responsible for any required development, implementation, and instruction supporting Federal Transit Administration (FTA) in the establishment of a Public Transportation Safety Certification Training Program for Federal and State personnel.  S/he is responsible for serving as a nationally recognized expert on rail safety and security training.  As a recognized expert, s/he will regularly participate as a technical resource and advisor on technically complex and politically sensitive transit rail safety and security issues.

The ideal candidate is a recognized technical expert on transit rail safety and security, and has leadership and team building skills and techniques such as group facilitation, coordination, coaching, problem solving, and interpersonal communication.  The ideal candidate can integrate work processes and products, and obtain resources in liaison with the supervisor to lead project team members to meet program and production goals.  S/he must have the ability to use consensus building, negotiating, coalition building, and conflict resolution techniques to establish and maintain effective working relationships and to interact appropriately in highly charged emotional situations for the purpose of influencing managers or other officials to accept and implement findings and recommendations for justifying and resolving matters involving significant or controversial issues.  The incumbent will share expertise through publications and presentations in respected forums, knowledge sharing venues within appropriate DOT communities, and mentoring of technical staff.

This announcement is open to the general public and under merit promotion for current or former Federal employees and people eligible under special hiring authorities.  Please note that merit promotion announcements are the vehicle through which Federal employees generally apply for Federal positions.

Application deadline:  Friday, June 7, 2013

Merit Promotion Announcement

(RITA.TSI-2013-0007):  https://www.usajobs.gov/GetJob/ViewDetails/344455400

Public Announcement

(RITA.TSI-2013-0008):  https://www.usajobs.gov/GetJob/ViewDetails/344456100

Apart from the ability to show how cool you are, this new innovation from Monkey Light Pros (currently in Kickstarter), will make you  quite visible to motorists and other road users during the night time.. That said, I’m really not looking forward to the possibility of too many Nyan cats flooding our city streets..Hey, as long as it saves lives and gives you a reason to get on the bike, I’m all for it :)

Image via Gizmodo

Gadget/tech stuff blog Gizmodo offers the following details:

• It utilizes a quartet of LED-impregnated bars that fit along the the spokes inside of your wheel. As the wheel spins, the bars rotate and generate the 256-color animated GIFs by exploiting the persistence of vision effect.
• Each unit weighs just 500 grams and fits on a 26 to 29 inch rim using the standard 32 or 36 spoke pattern.
• The system can load up to 1000 frames in a variety of media formats (JPG, GIF, PNG, AVI, MPEG, MOV, QT, FLV) onto a web-based playlist for display (think about blitzing around the town with a different GIF every day! AWESOME!)
• Users can also download the Mac/Linux API to create custom light shows though the system comes preloaded with 10 animations.
• The integrated 7000mAh Li-ion battery supplies 3 – 8 hours of power at full brightness (up to 48 hours on lower settings).
• Cost: a single light system with a $700 and a pair for $1400. They’ll retail for $895 a pop if and when the program funds

Not sure what happened to this motorcyclist to create such a ruckus on the street.  But one thing is damn clear – he/she is not fit to operate a motor vehicle, EVER. Ridiculous!

 via Reddit

Source: Imgur

A bit of background: This image is part of a safety campaign by Canadian provincial agency Societe de l’assurance automobile (SAAQ) urging people to wear seat belts in the car. SAAQ (whose translation in English roughly equates to Quebec Automobile Insurance Corporation) developed a set of  posters,including the one below, for displaying in bars and restaurants from August 27 to September 23, 2012..

Very clever driving safety ad.. Source: Imgur via Reddit

Click here to see the other posters in this campaign.