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The FHWA Office of Natural Environment has announced a GS-13/14 position on the Sustainable Transport and Climate Change Team. The position will focus on climate change adaptation, mitigation, and sustainable transportation issues, research and policy. We are looking for a high-energy, team-oriented individual to help lead FHWA efforts in these high priority and emerging areas.

The position closes October 1.

Please see the USAjobs link below. Should you have any questions, please do not hesitate to call or email Mike Culp, Sustainable Transport and Climate Change Team Leader (michael.culp@dot.gov, 202-366-9229).

http://jobview.usajobs.gov/GetJob.aspx?JobID=90782706&aid=46575945-17910&WT.mc_n=125

The Research and Innovative Technology Administration (RITA) seek an Electronics Engineer/Engineering Project Manager (GS-0855-14) to join the Communication, Navigation, Surveillance (CNS) and Traffic Management Center of Innovation (COI) at the John A. Volpe National Transportation Systems Center (Volpe Center). RITA coordinates the U.S. Department of Transportation’s (DOT) research programs and is charged with advancing rigorous analysis and the deployment of cross-cutting technologies to improve our Nation’s transportation system. This is one of eight COI’s at the Volpe Center whose function is to maintain and apply internationally recognized capabilities in communication, navigation, surveillance, operations management, and associated information technology disciplines to enhance the capacity, safety, and security of next-generation transportation systems. It serves as a focal point on Positioning, Navigation, and Timing (PNT) systems engineering for the civil community and fosters interagency coordination efforts. This position is located at the Volpe Center in Cambridge, MA.

This is an exciting opportunity for an experienced Electronics Engineer/Engineering Project Manager (GS-0855-14) interested in joining the Operations Risk Assessment and Terminal Systems Division to lead projects that directly contribute to the evaluation and implementation of complex work areas affecting the users and operators of the National Airspace System (NAS).  As the Engineering Project Manager, you will lead aviation modeling and simulation development with emphasis on airborne and surface aircraft and air traffic management systems, and direct technical teams in the conceptualization, design, and application of simulation software, prototype, debugging and testing. You will work with other Volpe Center and Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) national technical experts and senior program managers in the areas of aircraft wake vortex modeling; surveillance systems; navigation systems; pilot and air traffic controller behavior; air-ground communication systems; aerodynamics; aircraft control systems; and airspace design.  In this role, you will represent the Volpe Center before the FAA and other DOT organizations; other government departments and agencies; pilots’ and controllers’ unions; aircraft owners and operators; standards development organizations; and international aviation organizations.

If you have the scientific, technical and project management expertise to lead these challenging engineering projects, then this job is for you!  You must able to work in a collaborative and entrepreneurial environment, and have superb analytical, problem-solving and communication skills. (An Annual Financial Disclosure is required each year from the individual in this position. Some travel required.)

This announcement is posted under both Merit Promotion procedures and to the Public on www.usajobs.opm.gov. Applications will be accepted from current and former competitive service Federal employees, and people eligible under special hiring authorities.  Please know that Merit Promotion announcements are the vehicle through which Federal employees generally apply for Federal positions.

·  Merit Promotion (RITA.VOLPE-2010-00040): Status Candidates – http://jobview.usajobs.gov/GetJob.aspx?JobID=90809565

·  Public (RITA.VOLPE-2010-0041): US Citizens – http://jobview.usajobs.gov/GetJob.aspx?JobID=90810484

If you or someone you know has the experience and proven results, I encourage you or them to apply. We are looking for a diverse pool of qualified candidates.  Please contact Elizabeth León at elizabeth.leon@dot.gov or 617-494-2214 if you have any questions.

The Research and Innovative Technology Administration (RITA) seeks a Transportation Industry Analyst to join our team.  RITA coordinates the U.S. Department of Transportation’s (DOT) research programs and is charged with advancing rigorous analysis and the deployment of cross-cutting technologies to improve our Nation’s transportation system.  This position is located within the Bureau of Transportation Statistics’ (BTS), Office of Airline Information which collects on-time performance, financial, and operational data from the airline industry.

BTS is responsible for leading the development of high quality transportation data and information.  As a federal statistical agency, BTS provides an objective source of statistical analysis for decision making at all levels.

RITA is looking for a motivated, self-reliant, dynamic professional who can apply their expertise in the collection, analysis, and dissemination of airline statistics. This includes managing large scale datasets, generating analysis, and applying the latest information technology to meet the Nation’s need for relevant, accurate, and timely airline statistics.

If you know someone interested in this Washington, D.C. based position with relevant experience and proven results please encourage them to apply under the attached vacancy announcements.  We are looking for a diverse pool of qualified candidates.

The vacancy announcements can be found on:

http://jobsearch.dot.gov/getjob.asp?JobID=90800692 (All Sources)

http://jobsearch.dot.gov/getjob.asp?JobID=90800817 (Merit Promotion)

Open period: Friday, September 17^th – Thursday, September 30th

Please direct any questions to Linda Riggins, Human Resources, at (202) 366-0277 or Linda.Riggins@dot.gov.

(Source: The London Evening Standard)

Image Courtesy:Alex Lentati via The London Evening Standard

These figures from the London Ambulance Service about the special cycle crews, set up to respond to 999 calls in heavy traffic, are quite impressive:

(1) The average response time is now five minutes but can be as short as just 60 seconds

(2) Created savings including £300,000 in fuel – the equivalent of 20,000 ambulance journeys.
(3) Treated 50,000 patients since they were first piloted 10 years ago and freed up an estimated 5,000 ambulance hours a year, the equivalent of having an extra two vehicles staffed with two paramedics.

Click here to read the entire article.

(Source: AP via Yahoo News )

The number of people dying on the nation’s roads has fallen to its lowest level in six decades, helped by a combination of seat belts, safer cars and tougher enforcement of drunken driving laws.

The Transportation Department said late Wednesday that traffic deaths fell 9.7 percent in 2009 to 33,808, the lowest number since 1950. In 2008, an estimated 37,423 people died on the highways.

Forty-one states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico saw reductions in highway fatalities, led by Florida with 422 fewer deaths and Texas, down 405.

The motor vehicle fatality rate — the number of deaths per 100 million miles traveled — is the lowest ever: 1.13 deaths in 2009, down from 1.26 in 2008, DOT says, even as Americans were driving 0.2% more than in 2008.

The annual highway safety report also reported the following stats:

• _ Motorcycle fatalities broke 11 years of annual increases, falling by 16 percent, from 5,312 in 2008 to 4,462 in 2009.
• _ The number of people injured in motor vehicle crashes fell for a 10th consecutive year.
• _ Alcohol-impaired driving deaths declined 7.4 percent in 2009 to 10,839 deaths, compared with 11,711 in 2008.

Note:  I commend the efforts of the USDOT’s leadership (Secretary, the Administrators, staff, etc) in ensuring that our nation’s roads are safe for the citizens.   The multi-pronged approach taken by various administrations within the Department, including targeted campaigns towards drunk driving, texting while driving, etc., are paying big dividends, as evidenced by these dramatic reduction in fatalities.  Also, we have to recognize the efforts of the vehicle manufacturers for making their vehicles a lot safer than what they were in the decades before. Many vehicles in today’s market sport great active and passive systems compared to the cars of yesteryears, which help greatly in reducing the risk of fatal injuries to the occupants during an accident.  The role of local enforcement agencies should also be appreciated in this remarkable effort.  Apart from the obvious safety benefits, there are many other associated benefits at the societal and personal level – reduction in associated costs such as repair costs, travel time savings, insurance costs, etc.  In all, as a society we are progressing well but we still have a long way to go.  Let’s not forget that we are still losing thousands of people on our roads and that only means one thing – we cannot slow down our efforts!

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Source: The Economist

Car-sharing programs have been gaining a lot of popularity and building up momentum over the years, especially in urban environments such as Washington, DC, NYC, etc.  The Economist has done a good coverage of the growing trend and here are some of the interesting nuggets that caught my attention:

• One rental car can take the place of 15 owned vehicles
• By 2016 the market will be worth $6 billion a year, half of that in America, with a total of some 10m users
• Zipcar already has 400,000 members, mostly in America where it is thought to have 80% of the market.
• A car owner doing 12,000 miles (19,000km) a year can save $1,834 by shifting to a car-sharing service

Car-sharing started in Europe and spread to America in the late 1990s, when the first venture opened in Portland, Oregon, a traditional hangout of tree-huggers. For years it was organised by small co-operatives, often supported by local government. It still has a green tinge. One in five new cars added to club fleets is electric; such cars are good for short-range, urban use. But sharing is no longer small.

Frost & Sullivan, a market-research firm, estimates that by 2016 the market will be worth $6 billion a year, half of that in America, with a total of some 10m users. Outside America, most of the growth is in Britain and other north European countries such as Germany. The market leader is a company called Zipcar, founded in Cambridge, Massachusetts, which is now headed for a public listing. Zipcar already has 400,000 members, mostly in America where it is thought to have 80% of the market. It recently bought Streetcar, the market leader in London, though competition authorities are still scrutinising that deal.

The sharing trend is now seeping into another prominent area of transportation – the bicycles.  Many cities around the world, including London and Washington, DC,  are beginning to install innovative bike-sharing programs that offer a great advantage for those who prefer to check the city by biking than by driving.   Looks like the “sharing” trend is only going to intensity in the years ahead given the state of our poor economies and shrinking wallets! the societal, ecological and environmental benefits resulting from such sharing schemes are definitely a big plus for many more cities to consider implementing such schemes for car as well as bikes.   After all didn’t we  already know the saying  “Sharing is Caring”.

Click here to read the entire article.

[polldaddy poll=3731727]

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The Research and Innovative Technology Administration (RITA) is looking for an IT Specialist (Network Services). RITA coordinates the U.S. Department of Transportation’s (DOT) research programs and is charged with advancing rigorous analysis and the deployment of cross-cutting technologies to improve our Nation’s transportation system.  This position is located at the Volpe National Transportation Systems Center (Volpe Center), an innovative fee-for service organization which is part of the U.S. Department of Transportation (U.S. DOT’s) Research and Innovative Technology Administration in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The Volpe Center is an internationally recognized Federal center of transportation and logistics with a world-class, multidisciplinary technical team with expertise across all modes of transportation.

We have an exciting opportunity for a talented IT Specialist (Network Services) to serve as key member of the Safety Data, Collection, and Distribution Division. In this exciting role the ideal candidate must have demonstrated experience in providing technical support for technology systems by planning, designing, and managing network environments within or related to a transportation field.

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.

The general public announcement can be found via the link below:

http://jobview.usajobs.gov/IT Specialist_PUBLIC

The merit promotion announcement can be found via the link below:

http://jobview.usajobs.gov/IT Specialist_MERIT PROMOTION

Please direct any questions to Tara Smallidge, Volpe Human Resources, at 617-494-2450.

The Research and Innovative Technology Administration (RITA) seeks an experienced Environmental Protection Specialist to join the Energy Technology Division at the John A. Volpe National Transportation Systems Center (Volpe Center). The position is located at the Volpe Center in Cambridge, MA.

RITA coordinates the U.S. Department of Transportation‘s (DOT) research programs and is charged with advancing rigorous analysis and the deployment of cross-cutting technologies to improve our Nation’s transportation system. This is one of eight Centers of Innovation (COI) at the Volpe Center whose function is to undertake transportation policy analysis and research that contributes to a compelling vision of the 21st Century transportation enterprise and supports decision making in the development, management, operation, and financing of an integrated multimodal national transportation system that meets 21st Century mobility needs for goods and people.

Working within the Energy Technology Division, you will lead and collaborate in projects that directly impact the nation’s most important policies and programs related to transportation and energy. As part of our team, you will develop and analyze federal, state, and local policies and programs related to the transportation sector’s roles in energy distribution and consumption, and advise senior decision-makers on related matters; the primary focus of your work will be on the Energy Policy and Conservation Act (EPCA), the Clean Air Act (CAA), and Department of Transportation (DOT) authorization and funding acts.

In this role you will lead the development of model policies and programs for adoption and implementation at the state and local levels; lead the development of supporting analyses; and coordinate outreach to agencies through meetings, workshops, testimony, and other means. You will also facilitate negotiations and information sharing with affected industries; with officials from state, local, and international environmental, energy, and transportation agencies; and with environmental advocacy and other nongovernmental organizations.

If you are an experienced professional, and have the expertise and the desire to influence the direction our nation’s policies and programs, then this job is for you!  You must have superb analytical, problem-solving and project management skills, and must be able to work in a collaborative and entrepreneurial environment. Writing samples will be required from all individuals identified as best qualified. (An Annual Financial Disclosure is required each year from the individual in this position.)

This announcement is posted under both Merit Promotion procedures and to the Public on www.usajobs.opm.gov. Applications will be accepted from current and former competitive service Federal employees, and people eligible under special hiring authorities.  Please know that Merit Promotion announcements are the vehicle through which Federal employees generally apply for Federal positions.

• Merit Promotion (RITA.VOLPE-2010-0038): http://jobview.usajobs.gov/GetJob.aspx?JobID=90170019  (MERIT PROMOTION)
• Public (RITA.VOLPE-2010-0037): http://jobview.usajobs.gov/GetJob.aspx?JobID=90169910 (PUBLIC)

Informational briefing: Wednesday, August 25, 2010 from 11:00-12:00 p.m., Volpe Center, Cambridge (Conference Room: Building 1-3-45B; conference call no.: 1-877-336-1839; access code 6481986). Ryan Harrington, a senior technical staff member of the Division, will hold an information session at this time to describe the job and to answer any questions employees may have. Elizabeth León from Human Resources will be there to answer questions about the application process.

If you or someone you know has the experience and proven results, I encourage you or them to apply. We are looking for a diverse pool of qualified candidates.

Please contact Elizabeth León at elizabeth.leon@dot.gov or 617-494-2214 if you have any questions.