Seal of the United States Department of Transportation. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The Intelligent Transportation System Joint Program Office (ITS JPO) is pleased to announce the following opportunity:  Research and Demonstration Program Manager. Applications for this position must be in by Monday, August 15, 2016.

The successful candidate will be responsible for developing, in close coordination with the ITS JPO staff, the research direction for the ITS program. This includes recommending research initiatives, monitoring relevant research, coordinating ITS research with other modes through venues such as Research Planning and Investment Coordination (RPIC) and may include University Transportation Centers (UTC), representing the ITS JPO in research forums, and coordinating with other ITS JPO staff to ensure seamless execution of projects from research, testing, technology transfer, and evaluation.

The Program Manager is also responsible for leading specific research projects within the ITS JPO. The incumbent is a recognized ITS expert who often represents the Department on ITS technical program issues. You will also participate in a range of other ITS program technical and research activities involving other DOT and Federal organizations and other agencies, such as the Transportation Research Board (TRB), Department of Commerce, Department of Justice, and Department of Energy.

This is an exciting opportunity if you are experienced in analyzing and reviewing ITS research and deployments and adept at collaborating with public and private transportation stakeholders on the implementation, commercialization, and communication of ITS technologies.  Come join the ITS JPO team if you are passionate about advancing tomorrow’s transportation technologies today to create a safer, smarter, more efficient transportation system!

For additional information and to apply for this position, please use the links below:

Transportation Specialist, GS-2101-14/15 (Open to Status & VEOA Applicants)

https://www.usajobs.gov/GetJob/ViewDetails/446638200

Transportation Specialist, GS-2101-14/15 (Open to All U.S. Citizens)

https://www.usajobs.gov/GetJob/ViewDetails/446638600

To learn about applying for careers at U.S. DOT please visit this link

The latest forecast from McKinsey Consulting on the disruptive trends unfolding in the automotive sector is very much along the lines of what I have been saying for quite a while.  It predictions comes packaged in a nice, easy to consume slick video presentation shown below.

Among the major disruptions, the ones I see having direct and tremendous social and roadsafety implications are ridesharing and vehicle automation, both aided by a confluence of technology and consumer aversion for driving/owning automobiles. Of course, the pace of disruption will be dictated by the Federal policies and that means our lawmakers must remain nimble and be willing to set aside their political ideologies to help the industry as it leaps forward.

Scenarios for growth of vehicle automation. Source: McKinsey

Check out the full report here

What if all trips in a city were carried out by a fleet of self-driving cars shared by users? The latest report from OECD’s International Transportation Forum explores the potential outcomes of such a radical upgrade in an urban mobility system. The report concludes that up to 9 out of 10 conventional cars could become redundant under certain circumstances. Vast amounts of public space would be freed for other uses in such a scenario. Take a look:

If you get a chance, visit their website and even better plan a visit to attend the upcoming ITF conference in Leipzig, Germany.  I had the privilege to be a part of this event last year and came away with a lot of very important issues, esp. related to transportation policy, at a global level. It was one of the well-organized and best run events that I got to attend in all of my years as a transportation professional.

TRB is one of six major divisions of the National Research Council— a private, nonprofit institution that is the principal operating agency of the National Academies in providing services to the government, the public, and the scientific and engineering communities. The National Research Council is jointly administered by the National Academy of Sciences, the National Academy of Engineering, and the Institute of Medicine. TRB’s varied activities annually engage more than 7,000 engineers, scientists, and other transportation researchers and practitioners from the public and private sectors and academia, all of whom contribute their expertise in the public interest by participating on TRB committees, panels, and task forces. The program is supported by state transportation departments, federal agencies including the component administrations of the U.S. Department of Transportation, and other organizations and individuals interested in the development of transportation.

The Program Officer is responsible for assisting with one or more of the organization’s projects with minimal oversight by Director or Senior Program Officer. Assembles committees and provides staff assistance to committees as they conduct their work. Responsible for ensuring projects stay on schedule and within budget.

Incumbent applies in-depth professional level knowledge to independently solve a full range of complex problems. The job’s primary focus is supporting studies or convening activities. The work is primarily intellectual or analytical in character, requiring advanced knowledge. Assignments are broadly defined and require judgment and creativity to complete. Incumbent is often responsible for oversight or management of other staff. Reports to Senior Program Officer or Director.

ESSENTIAL JOB DUTIES:

1. Manages projects of minimal or moderate complexity. In collaboration with supervisor, manages budget, supervises staff, and ensures program or project meets objectives.

2. Where applicable and with director/senior program officer oversight, recruits potential committee nominees and assembles appointment packages. Communicates and coordinates with the committee chair and members. Identifies and gathers research materials for the committee. Facilitates the flow of information among committee/panel members, consultants, staff, and other applicable parties

3. Conducts large and small workshops and/or meetings. Develops agendas, invites presenters and participants, oversees meeting logistics and multimedia presentations, and prepares written summaries.

4. Prepares background papers and technical summaries. Develops written products (e.g., reports, proceedings, white papers). Drafts and edits materials for publication. Synthesizes and edits research findings and technical data and determines the relevance of data for purposes of activity.

5. Supports committee members, forum members, workshop participants, etc. in all aspects of work. Assistance is provided in preparing the draft report, including writing sections of report based on committee input and review and editing the report for format, consistency, and grammar. Facilitates the response to review, responds to comments and concerns of editors, and prepares the final manuscript for publication.

6. Supports dissemination activities related to assigned programs or projects. Creates and maintains materials for web sites social media channels and other outreach to provide interest groups with information generated from and for activities.

7. Oversees project budget and schedule and authorizes expenditures. As required, collaborates with financial staff to ensure compliance.

8. Collaborates with experts and sponsors from federal, state, and local government agencies, foundations, schools, and other organizations. Represents the unit and committee within and outside the National Academies.

9. With Director or Senior Program Officer oversight, conducts background research on topics for new studies, programs, or activities.

For more information, visit http://chk.tbe.taleo.net/chk02/ats/careers/requisition.jsp?org=NAS&cws=1&rid=8047 and search for Job Number 150070-5.

As the saying goes a picture is worth a thousand words .. This one is worth a few thousand stories on transport policy, included as part of a message promoting the ITF report titled “Cycling, Health and Safety”  In a nutshell, as summarized by ITF, the more people cycle, the fewer fatal accidents. Every kilometer cycled benefits society.

Image Courtesy: International Transport Forum . Click image to read the report “Cycling, Health and Safety”

While we are at it, I recommend you to check out the video series on cycling, safety & health on ITF’s YouTube channel:

This is a highly recommended viewing material if you are a transportation professional  (or from any industry that touches up on transportation of people and goods). Why? Because it will help you understand what the future of transportation looks like and get you a glimpse of the challenges we will be tacking. Stimulating would be an understatement if you are a geek like me and this video gives you a lot to think about in terms of how to prepare yourself as a professional to operate/practice in this new paradigm.

Many of our decision-makers and old-school professional grunts, don’t have a clue of the seismic shift underway in the world of industry, dominated by the rapid advancement of automotive technology.  Advanced technology-driven concepts such as connected vehicles, automated vehicles, Internet of Things, etc, that are already appearing on the horizon, we are about to experience something special. and these industry experts, in a very adorable and casual fashion, discuss some of the emerging trends and pressing issues (i.e, cyber security, customer acceptance, etc) over a beer. You may have already witnessed glimpses of this future with Tesla pumping our over-the-air updates to the vehicles, much like the updates for your cellular phone, to improve their performance.    To summarize what’s ahead according to these guys,, the embedded software in a vehicle of tomorrow will be as much important as engine (or even more).   So, if you are a transportation professional better learn to think like a software developer (and get yourself exposed to some programming languages while you are at it).

The future of personal mobility looks more and more “connected” as the two economic forces, technology and automobiles, are colliding at a far greater velocity.  This paves way for a landscape that is expected to feature unprecedented levels of connectivity (i.e, tethered vehicles). Here is a neat infograph from Statista that shows the landscape of connected cars and what’s ahead.

That said, one big question that looms large in my mind is this – how are going to manage all that troves of data from these connected cars? How are we going to parse/analyze and make sense out the digital mess that is ready to flood our roads? Only time will tell (or the app developers?).

Image Courtesy: Statista via Forbes

Image courtesy: via BusinessInsider

Given the great amount of public interest in automated vehicles, global automakers are no longer kidding around. Off late, they are investing a great amount of  time and resources, particularly in the research shops at Hyundai, GM and Toyota, in developing technologies to support this ambitious agenda. The chart below shows the spike in number of patents related to autonomous driving from the auto OEMs. The chart was part of a survey report by Thomson Reuters IP & Science, “The State of Innovation in the Automotive Industry 2015,” which analyzed patent applications and mapped trends in five key areas: Propulsion, navigation, handling, safety and security, and entertainment.

Image Courtesy: Businessinsider.com

According to Reuters, Overall, Asians and Germans dominated the top 10 companies for patent applications, while GM, ranked seventh, was the only U.S. company making the list. The automotive sector saw the number of patent filings around the world grow by double-digits year-on-year over the past five years, the Thomson Reuters report said. While Google Inc has dominated headlines in self-driving cars, Toyota, GM and Hyundai received the most patents in this area, said Bob Stembridge, one of the report’s authors.