(Image Courtesy: European PressPhoto Agency via NBCNews)

Prime minister turns traffic cop after hitting East Timor gridlock Image Courtesy: EPA via NBC News

Prime minister turns traffic cop after hitting East Timor gridlock Image Courtesy: EPA via NBC News

How often you see the leader of a nation get down to the street and direct traffic flow?  The answer is NEVER. But that changed today. The Prime Minister of East Timor, Xanana Gusmao, turned traffic cop on Monday after his car got stuck in a traffic jam outside the presidential office in the capital Dili.

The Research and Innovative Technology Administration (RITA) seeks a Geographer 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 in the Office of Geospatial Information Systems (OGIS), which is part of RITA’s Bureau of Transportation Statistics. The OGIS develops quality geospatial transportation data and applications and advances its effective use in transportation decision making.

(Photo credit: Wikipedia)

RITA is offering and opportunity for a seasoned public-service driven professional who is motivated and self-reliant. This individual must be able to share their experiences in providing geospatial information services. These experiences should include: (1) preparing high quality maps that showcase transportation information; (2) performing geospatial analyses involving transportation networks and facilities; (3) developing, maintaining, and distributing geospatial transportation data; and, (4) providing technical support directly to the Office of the Secretary of Transportation and the Office of Emergency Transportation.

If you or someone you know has the experience and a demonstrable record of proven results, I encourage you or them to apply to this Washington, D.C.-based position. We are looking for a diverse pool of qualified candidates.

The vacancy announcements can be found at:

(Merit Promotion): https://www.usajobs.gov/GetJob/ViewDetails/333541400 – Open Period- Thursday, December 13, 2012 to Monday, December 24, 2012

(All Sources): https://www.usajobs.gov/GetJob/ViewDetails/333537000 – Open Period – Thursday, December 13, 2012 to Monday, December 24, 2012

Closing Date: December 16, 2012

This position will serve as the Capital Project Manager for the Montgomery County Annual Bikeways Program, in the Department of Transportation’s Division of Transportation Engineering Planning & Design Section. This position will oversee the budgeting and directing the construction of bicycle facilities, including bike lanes, multi-use trails, parking/end-of-trip facilities, pavement marking and signage plans for both safety and way finding.

Prepare and submit budget estimates, progress and cost tracking reports, manage, coordinate, and supervise the construction process from the conceptual development stage through final construction on time and within budget. Directs and/or participates in the inspection of bicycle facilities or other road projects to assure that approved design is executed and that construction meets established standards. Develops or directs the development of requests for proposals, scopes of services, bid packages, contracts, amendments and other documents for the selection and contracting of design and construction services. Position requires thorough knowledge of grading, drainage, paving (asphalt and concrete), pavement markings and signage, construction, retaining walls, and other construction scopes related to bicycle facilities. File for necessary permits for project or assists consultant or contractor to prepare documents to file. Compile and analyze bicycle planning, design, and program data with a focus on customer service, innovation, and continuous improvement. Coordinate new project development or major renovation with user agency to ensure that facility meets their requirements.

(Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Duties include, but are not limited to serving as the division’s central contact for public inquiries, initiating studies, constructing on-road and off-road bicycle facilities, participating in maintenance and operational matters, providing public information and updates on program events, construction projects/detours, and special projects/services, increasing social media/public outreach. Develop and maintain the bicycle program website and other forms of communications, including print and social media as well as video.

The job will also entail planning innovative bicycle infrastructure and safety improvements, including analyze staffing, implementation capabilities and bicycle facility needs for the County and prepare budget for the associated Capital Improvement Programs Annual Bikeways Program, Stand Alone CIP Bicycle related projects, and federal and state grants.

Position requires extensive engagement with the public, advocacy groups, various organizations consultants, citizen’s organizations, and public officials to resolve matters regarding the planning/design and construction of bicycle facilities. This position will also require attending meetings or performing work at locations outside the office if necessary.

For more information, visit: http://www.montgomerycountymd.gov/ohr/staffing/careers.html(Hat Tip: Young Professionals in Transportation)

How do you teach a disrespectful driver about road safety? Rotary Club from the city of Blumenau, Brazil, started a campaign aimed at drivers who don’t respect crosswalks. And here is the outcome:

[yframe url=’http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KKWBDhTWiaU’]

Position Description: 

PURPOSE

The purpose of this position is to help develop, coordinate, implement, and communicate all of the Georgetown BID’s transportation initiatives to make Georgetown more accessible, improve pedestrian, bike, transit, and auto mobility, and improve the perception that Georgetown is easy to get to, around, and from.

RESPONSIBILITIES

A. Works with CEO, Marketing Director, Deputy Director for Operations, and other Staff, Board, and community, stakeholders to develop Georgetown transportation initiatives and participates in all city efforts that contribute to, or impact, Georgetown transportation including: public and private parking, street configuration, signage,
street cars and bus transit, taxi, para-transit, bike, bike sharing, car sharing, curb management, pedestrian experience, transportation marketing, organizing, and
advocacy programs.

B. Specifically:

1. Coordinates the BID’s participation in citywide streetcar program and organizes the BID stakeholder coalition working to bring the streetcar to Georgetown.
2. Coordinates the BID’s participation with the DC Circulator (DC Surface Transit Inc.)
3. Works with research coordinator to collect, update and report Georgetown transportation data including pedestrian counts, vehicle counts, parking statistics, and other relevant information.
4. Coordinates the BID’s activities to improve signage and wayfinding in Georgetown.
5. Oversees the BIDs efforts to develop a retail parking program (both on and off street).
6. Participates in an implementation program to improve Georgetown’s street furniture system. This should be integrated with other programs such as the Circulator and CaBi.
7. Works with city agencies and neighborhood stakeholders to plan and implement performance parking and other transportation programs that improve the experience of coming to Georgetown whether by car, bike, bus, or foot.
8. Works with marketing department to develop and communicate all materials necessary to support this program.

C. In general develops project plans, budgets, and implementation schedules, prepares RFPs for appropriate phases of projects, administers contracts and manages projects to timely completion.
D. Helps identify and secure outside resources to fund both planning and implementation from private, partnership, city and federal sources.
E. Integrates the BIDs transportation agenda into other relevant parts of the BID program.
F. Provides support for other Georgetown projects upon request of the CEO.

REPORTING RELATIONSHIPS

Georgetown dc day (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The Transportation Director reports to the CEO and works closely with all other staff members.

SCOPE

• Manages interns and consultants only.
• May represent the Georgetown BID to the city and Georgetown stakeholders on transportation issues.
• Exercises high level of initiative, independence, non-policy decision making and negotiation and implementation of projects.
• Develops budgets, and expends funds as approved for specific line items.
• Makes recommendations on major expenditures.
• Integrates transportation with other departments and organizations of the BID.

QUALIFICATIONS

• Minimum of 4-years of experience in the field of transportation, urban planning or related field.
• Strong written communication skills, including preparation of RFPs, and/or detailed reports.
• Excellent verbal communication skills including public speaking, facilitating and negotiating skills.
• Demonstrated skills in strategic planning.
• Experience managing multiple tasks to bring projects to timely completion.
• Basic analytical skills
• Bachelors degree required (preferably in related field of transportation, urban planning, public administration, public policy or related field). Masters degree preferred but not required.

SALARY
Competitive and comes with an excellent benefits package.

TO APPLY
Please send resume and cover letter to:

Transportation Director Search
Georgetown Business Improvement District
1000 Potomac Street NW
Suite 122
Washington, DC 20007

You can also send your resume or questions to: jobs@georgetowndc.com . Please put “Transportation Director Search” in the Subject line.

BACKGROUND
The Georgetown BID is a 12 year-old publicly chartered non-profit organization dedicated to making Georgetown cleaner, safer, more user-friendly and more vibrant. . The Georgetown BID runs a variety of programs including marketing the neighborhood as a unique shopping, dining, and historic destination, keeping the streets and sidewalks clean and passable; improving the streetscapes with plantings and street furniture; collecting and disseminating economic development research; and improving transportation access and mobility throughout the area. The organization has a $3.1 million annual budget and 17 employees and full-time contractors. For more information visit our web site at www.Georgetowndc.com.

The Georgetown Business Improvement District provides equal employment opportunities (EEO) without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, non-job-related disability, veteran status, genetic information or other protected group status. In so doing, we are committed to ensuring that all employees and applicants for employment are afforded an equal opportunity to pursue job opportunities to the fullest extent possible with the organization. Decisions on employment, promotions, opportunities for personal development, compensation and benefits reflect our commitment to furthering the principles of the Georgetown BID’s equal employment opportunity policy.

This Job Announcement, and any application submitted pursuant to it, is not an offer of employment or an employment contract.

Whether you are an Armani-wearing CEO of a company or a khaki-clad clerk building spreadsheets, we all prefer a little bit of comfort when we travel.  For some of us tired of traveling via the commercial airlines after enduring the hassles of a long check-in lines and TSA checkpoints, the alternative could be charter jets. Gone are the days when chartered jets are meant for the moneyed class. Today anyone can rent airplanes by the hour and travel quickly and conveniently. Of course, the price of travel is a bit higher compared to the commercial aviation options but none of the conventional air travel services can even come close to what is offered by the charter jets in terms of flexibility, comfort and ease.

Let’s first understand how it works. Airplane charters work very much the same way as car sharing services like ZipCar that allow you to rent cars by the hour via the internet. If you are a big city resident, you may have already seen/used car sharing services like ZipCar that allow you to rent cars by the hour via the internet. All you need is an account with the rental company and you can instantly make reservations over a smartphone/ computer whenever you need to rent a car. Once you finish using the car, you can return them to the nearest station and walk away. Airplane charters work very much the same way. Companies like JetCharters have made it quite easy for today’s wired traveler that he/she can now book chartered flights (sign up for an account when you are on the website) over the phone or via the internet using a smartphone/tablet/computer, very much like booking a car. Travelers arriving at the site are presented a simplified interface that requires trip information such as trip type, number of passengers, departure and destination airports of choice, preferred time and date for departure/arrival.

Travelers don’t have to always book a round trip flight. Based on the needs and affordability, a traveler can book a one way trip or a multi-leg trip stopping over in various airports. The hourly rate is dependent on the aircraft class. Aircraft hourly rates are dependant on aircraft size. There are three common size classes, based on cabin dimensions: light or small jets, mid-size or medium jets, heavy or full-size jets (and not to forget the air ambulances). JetCharters, one of the market leaders in the business, offers a wide selection of aircrafts ranging from small jets like a Beechjet400 (seating for six or seven passengers) to large jets like Gulfstream Legacy 600 and even a full-sized Boeing737 that can accommodate up to 172 passengers. An additional offering available under this service is the air-ambulance which could be very useful for transporting passengers with medical conditions.

So, how much it typically cost to rent an airplane by the hour? According to Chief Executive Air light jets typically cost around $2,500 per flight hour, mid-size jets cost around $3,200 per flight hour and heavy jets cost on average $4,500 per hour and up. In addition to flight charges, the charterer is responsible for all charges incurred during the trip, including over-night charges, landing fees, International fees (if you are traveling outside the country), catering and flight-phone usage.   One of the leading companies in the market, Planemasters, has taken out all the hassles and published a simple matrix showing the hourly rates for each type of plane they have on fleet.  If you would like to get smart about the details of chartering costs for a typical trip, I recommend that you check this blog. 

Source: Planemasters.com

Charter jets workout much cheaper if you are traveling with a group because the cost you are paying for renting a particular aircraft can be divided per passenger.  Let’s say if you are planning to fly a large group, say 10, of your friends/family to a wedding in Vegas (or a board meeting in Los Angeles) and the whole thing costs you $20,000.  If you work the calculator, you can easily figure out that it costs only $2000 per person, which might be slightly more than what each of you would have paid for a first class ticket. Now, how often can you have the whole plane for just you and your wedding party? And when you have it why not get the fun started before you even arrive at your destination. One of the major and attractive features of charter jets is the ability to arrive at even the hard to reach small towns without having to worry about catching connecting planes and missing baggage.

Often, small towns and communities are not conveniently located near a large airport, but air charters opens up more travel options with smaller airports across the region. Another benefit to choosing an operator through JetCharters is that there are no repositioning fees and travelers only pay for the distance they travel (ImagineAir and Kavoo are just two of the many licensed operators offering travel options through JetCharters.com). Also, air charters can be a great way to travel shorter distances while avoiding busy highways and roadways and it offers an increased amount of flexibility with travel schedules.  Planemasters, a Chicago jet charter company that is one of the largest executive charter companies in the entire Midwest, sums it up nicely on its website showing what you get for your $$ – service, flexibility, freedom, and control.  You can bet every traveler on this planet would like to the sound of “We’re on Your Schedule.”

In today’s uber-connected world where people even rent out their spare bedrooms by the day (i.e., AirBnB), it doesn’t come as a surprise that some of these individual jet owners are renting out their jets they bought for personal use. Instead of parking it at an airport and using it occasionally to fly to a meeting or a family get together, private aircraft owners can rent out their airplanes via JetCharter by signing up as operators. So, an aircraft owner can make significant chunk of change instead of having it parked in a hanger and collecting dust.

NetJets come to India…. (Photo credit: Mark D. Martin India)

Chartered planes business is fast expanding and is considered one of the hottest sectors for many investors. With a squeezed out commercial aviation network and a congested surface transportation system that is barely meeting the demand, many business travelers are looking at chartered jet travel as a viable alternative, partly because of the flexibility, convenience and swiftness. You know a business is hot when investment guru Warren Buffet swoops in with his war chest and buys private jet operator.  Looking at the demand and the potential for massive growth in this global market, Mr. Buffet’s company Berkshire Hathaway bought Net Jets, which sells partial ownership interests in business jets, about a decade ago. More recently NetJets announced plans to spend up to $9.6 billion on as many as 425 new planes, which should be a good indicator for how much demand is there for these jets.

Doesn’t matter how we analyze it, commercial airline services are no match for the convenience of a chartered plane . Imagine arriving at private terminal with our friends after avoiding crowded security lines of commercial airports and boarding the jet that are awaiting your party, eating & drinking whatever you like (i.e., catered food and not that stale over-priced sandwich you are used to). Wouldn’t that be a great way to get things rolling for that wedding in Las Vegas or that weekend in Bahamas?

**This blog post was sponsored by Straight North and JetCharters**

Related articles

• NetJets Inc. Launches Cutting-Edge, New Website
• CEOs Seeking Global Range Tilts Market to 8000-Mile Jets – Bloomberg
• Bombardier lands a massive order for its aircraft which will secure the jobs of its employees in Belfast. Adrienne McGill reports
• Jet Charter Ny: Ensuring Flight Safety
• Renting a Private Jet Charter
• “Uber for airplanes” BlackJet takes to the skies with celeb investors including Ashton Kutcher

via YPTransportation.org

This position is located in the Innovative Program Delivery office (HIN), Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), Washington, D.C. The Financial Analyst will serve as a member of the TIFIA Joint Program Office (JPO), one of five teams within HIN. The ideal candidate for this position will bring specialized experience in budget and accounting to apply the principles of the Federal Credit Reform Act of 1990 (FCRA), as interpreted through guidance from the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to manage the TIFIA program funds appropriated by Congress. Working with the budget and accounting staff from the FHWA and the Office of the Secretary, as well as outside technical advisors, you will prepare TIFIA’s annual budget submission, calculate the subsidy cost of each TIFIA transaction, prepare apportionments, collect payments from applicants and borrowers, and ensure that all financial events are recorded properly in the program accounts. This position is being filled at the GS-11, 12 or 13 level and is located in Washington, DC. Salary range is $62,467.00 to $115,742.00 per year, based upon qualifications.

This Financial Analyst vacancy announcement can be viewed at: FHWA.HIN-2013-0002: DEU-Open to all US Citizenshttps://www.usajobs.gov/GetJob/ViewDetails/331226200 and

FHWA.HIN-2013-0004: Government Employees only https://www.usajobs.gov/GetJob/ViewDetails/331227500.

In order to be considered, please follow specific application procedures on the announcements.

Application Cut-off: Given our continuing need for professionals in this field, we will routinely review applications and refer the top candidates for potential interviews multiple times during the open period of the announcement. The first cutoff for applications is close of business November 26, 2012, 2nd cut-off is December 26, 2012 and final review occurring after January 24, 2013 (closing date).

via NY Times

After seeing the devastating impacts of torrents of water on New York City subways and highway tunnels during Hurricane sandy, one would be curious to know – how do you stop rushing waters from entering your highway and transit/subway tunnels? Researchers from my alma mater, West Virginia University, have been at it for a while and they have come up with this brilliant solution – an inflatable plug.

[yframe url=’http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FawTqHpjs_g&hd=1 ‘]

Learn more about it here.

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Related articles

• Creating a Balloonlike Plug to Hold Back Floodwaters
• New York City Subways: Do you believe in magic?
• Sandy: Deaths, Power Outages, and Flooding in the New York City Subway
• How The MTA Plans To Un-Flood The New York City Subway System
• MTA: In 108 Years, The NYC Subway System Has Never Faced A Disaster As Devastating As This

Via Atlantic Cities

How do you tell the story about big agenda issues like environmental impact and emissions in a city like New York? One way to do this is by taking all the relevant data you can get and stitching it together in a graphic format that visually demonstrates the scope of the problem.  Let’ s see how its done.  Let’s start with the problem.

Carbon Visuals and the Environmental Defense Fund created an animation showing giant blue balls standing in for New York’s greenhouse-gas emissions in 2010 (the last year data were available). Each sphere represents one ton of carbon-dioxide vapor. Added up, they represent 54 million metric tons of climate-toasting chemicals, which is the amount of emissions that NYC recorded in 2010.  It is quite arresting when you visually see a huge mountain (Everest-sized) of blue balls blanketing your entire city.  Check it out.

[yframe url=’http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DtqSIplGXOA&hd=1′]

Related articles

• Visualizing a City’s Prodigious Carbon Emissions
• These Are the Best Data Visualization Vids of Our Massive Carbon Problem
• This Is What New York City’s Carbon Footprint Looks Like
• Visualising carbon emissions and climate change
• Visualizing CO2
• Video: What does NYC’s carbon footprint “look” like?

(via Ryan Van Duzer)