China’s Game Changer Threatens U.S Naval Dominance – Dong Feng 21D Missile Could Shift Power Balance in Pacific

August 5, 2010 at 5:25 pm

Scary proposition unwrapping itself .. This is just a challenge to the U.S.dominance in the Pacific but also for many other Navy’s in China’s back yard. This should be ringing alarm bells in New Delhi, India which is the largest regional naval power in South Asia (and counts itself among the largest blue water navies in the world).

Having fought a war with China in the past, and watching over the recent Chinese troop/infrastructure build-up in the Tibet region, this news must be even more unsettling for India’s Ministry of Defense.

Amplify’d from www.huffingtonpost.com

Bristling with fighter jets that can reach deep into even landlocked trouble zones, America’s virtually invincible carrier fleet has long enforced its dominance of the high seas.

China may soon put an end to that.

U.S. naval planners are scrambling to deal with what analysts say is a game-changing weapon being developed by China – an unprecedented carrier-killing missile called the Dong Feng 21D that could be launched from land with enough accuracy to penetrate the defenses of even the most advanced moving aircraft carrier at a distance of more than 1,500 kilometers (900 miles).

Analysts say final testing of the missile could come as soon as the end of this year, though questions remain about how fast China will be able to perfect its accuracy to the level needed to threaten a moving carrier at sea.

The weapon, a version of which was displayed last year in a Chinese military parade, could revolutionize China’s role in the Pacific balance of power, seriously weakening Washington’s ability to intervene in any potential conflict over Taiwan or North Korea. It could also deny U.S. ships safe access to international waters near China’s 11,200-mile (18,000-kilometer) -long coastline.

While a nuclear bomb could theoretically sink a carrier, assuming its user was willing to raise the stakes to atomic levels, the conventionally-armed Dong Feng 21D’s uniqueness is in its ability to hit a powerfully defended moving target with pin-point precision.

Uss George Washington

See more at www.huffingtonpost.com

 

Bernie’s Transportation Communications Newsletter (TCN) – August 5, 2010

August 5, 2010 at 5:05 pm

Thursday, August 5, 2010 – ISSN 1529-1057


IBTTA 78th Annual Meeting & Exhibition — Register Today! Early Bird Discount Ends August 22, 2010

Come to San Diego, September 12-15, 2010, for IBTTA’s 78th Annual Meeting & Exhibition, the year’s most highly-anticipated learning and networking event — attracting more than 700 toll industry experts and decision makers from across the globe. Under the theme, Sustainable Transportation, the technical program offers tracks focused on innovation, policy, the economy, and the California tolling experience. Hosted by the California Toll Operators Committee (CTOC), this event features interactive seminars, influential speakers, technical tours and special events, informative exhibits and more! Customized sponsorship and exhibitor packages are available. Visit IBTTA’s website for details.

AVIATION

1) July Issue of the National Weather Service’s The Front Online

Link to newsletter:

http://www.weather.gov/os/aviation/front/10july-front.pdf

GPS / NAVIGATION

2) DeLorme Unveils First Text Satellite Messaging GPS Handheld Device

Link to article in International Business Times:

http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/41123/20100805/delorme-gps-amazon-satellite-communicator-earthmate-google-maps.htm

3) GPS-Equipped Glasses are a Personal Navigation System

Link to article and video on CrunchGear:

http://www.crunchgear.com/2010/08/03/video-this-pair-of-glasses-is-actually-a-personal-navigation-system/

OTHER

4) Should Videotaping the Police Really Be a Crime?

Link to commentary in Time:

http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,2008566,00.html

5) The Tragic State of Pitching the Geospatial Press

Link to commentary in Directions Magazine:

http://www.directionsmag.com/article.php?article_id=3558

6) Social Media in the Transportation Industry: Implications for Change

Link to audio files and presentations from the North Jersey Transportation Planning Authority:

http://www.njtpa.org/Involved/events/SocialMediaSymposium.aspx

7) Can Australia’s TravelSmart Work in the US?

Link to audio and PowerPoint presentation by Randy Salzman:

http://www.njtpa.org/Involved/Events/TravelSmart_Presentation.aspx

PUBLIC INFORMATION / EDUCATION

8) Web Site Sheds Light on Pennsylvania Transportation Crisis

Link to article in the Standard Speaker:

http://standardspeaker.com/news/website-sheds-light-on-transportation-crisis-1.922617

9) Minnesota Launches ‘No Texting While Driving’ Campaign

Link to AP article:

http://wcco.com/local/texting.while.driving.2.1844013.html

RAILROADS

10) CREATE Partners Create Web Site for 75th Street Corridor Project

Link to article in Progressive Railroading:

http://www.progressiverailroading.com/prdailynews/news.asp?id=24020

Link to site: http://www.75thcip.org/

SAFETY / SECURITY

11) US Department of Homeland Security and FEMA Invite Comments to National Dialogue on Preparedness

Link to further information:

http://preparedness.ideascale.com/

TRANSIT

12) Beloit (Wisconsin) Transit Using Bingo to Attract Bus Riders

Link to story and video on WISC-TV:

http://www.channel3000.com/traffic/24518073/detail.html

13) Transit Buddies to Help Newcomers Navigate Arkansas Bus System

Link to article in The Sun:

http://www.jonesborosun.com/story.php?ID=44173

14) A Case for Open Data in Transit

Link to blog and video on Streetfilms.org:

http://www.streetfilms.org/a-case-for-open-data-in-transit/

TRAVELER INFORMATION / TRANSPORTATION MANAGEMENT

15) Time Warner Cable’s NY1 Preps 24-Hour Traffic Channel

Link to article in Multichannel News:

http://www.multichannel.com/article/455675-Time_Warner_Cable_s_NY1_Preps_24_Hour_Traffic_Channel.php

16) Qatar to Get Smart Traffic System

Link to article in Zawya:

http://www.zawya.com/story.cfm/sidZAWYA20100805054524

VEHICLES

17) Experts Debate How Connected Vehicles Will Talk to Each Other

Link to article on The Detroit Bureau:

http://www.thedetroitbureau.com/2010/08/experts-debate-how-connected-vehicles-will-talk-to-each-other/

18) Car Tech: Building the Zero-Fatality Car

Link to article in Computerworld:

http://www.computerworld.com/s/article/9179697/Car_tech_Building_the_zero_fatality_car

19) Back to the Futurama with Cooperative Mobility

Link to blog on Mobile Synergetics:

http://www.mobilesynergetics.com/cooperative-mobility-futurama/

News Releases

1) Akron-Canton Airport Launches New Advertising Campaign: Intervention

Upcoming Events

2010 National Signage Research & Education Conference – October 13-14 – Cincinnati

http://www.thesignagefoundation.org/conference/

Today in Transportation History

1620 **390th anniversary** The Mayflower left on its first attempted voyage to North America. Due to a leak on a companion ship, the vessels had to return.

http://www.archive.org/stream/mayflowerherlogj00ames#page/n9/mode/2up

1930 **80th anniversary** Neil Armstrong, the first person to walk on the Moon, was born in Wapakoneta, Ohio.

http://www.jsc.nasa.gov/Bios/htmlbios/armstrong-na.html

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

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

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

© 2010 Bernie Wagenblast www.bwcommunications.net

Shoot your Commute – Des Moines, IA wants volunteers for local photo shoot to promote alternative transportation

August 5, 2010 at 2:57 pm
Image via Des Moines Register

Image via Des Moines Register

Members of the local non-profit Urban Ambassadors organized the event, dubbed “Shoot Your Commute,” because of the image’s ability to convey the benefits of alternative transportation. They believe a localized version would be more meaningful to residents of Greater Des Moines.

Des Moines-based photographer Tobin Bennett will shoot the localized version on East Locust with the state Capitol building framed in the background.

The public is welcome to attend the photo shoot from 2 – 4 p.m. Sunday on East Locust between East Fourth Street and East Sixth Street. Traffic on those blocks will be blocked during that time.

Those interested in volunteering for the photo shoot can call 515-491-0706, e-mail adamhammes@gmail.com or sign up on Facebook.

Click here to read more. Please pass this along to your friends who live in Des Moines and its surrounding areas.

7 puppies die after American Airlines flight

August 5, 2010 at 2:22 pm

Terrible.. Definitely not good for AA’s prospect of getting future/repeat business with dog owners..If you remember, just last month, the U.S. Department of Transportation said short-faced dogs such as pugs and bulldogs accounted for about half of the 122 dogs that died during U.S. flights in the last five years. Veterinarians say those dogs are more likely to have breathing problems.

Amplify’d from www.wtopnews.com

Seven puppies died after flying in the cargo hold of an American Airlines jet.

American said it contacted the shipper who put the puppies on a Tuesday morning flight from Tulsa, Okla., to Chicago, and is investigating further.

Airline spokeswoman Mary Frances Fagan said Wednesday the shipper put 14 puppies aboard Flight 851, which was scheduled to leave Tulsa at 6:30 a.m. but was delayed an hour by storms in Chicago.

American said on its website it won’t carry warm-blooded animals if the actual or forecast temperature is above 85 degrees. As the plane sat on the tarmac in Tulsa, it was already 86 degrees before 7 a.m., according to the National Weather Service.

Fagan said cargo holds carrying animals are routinely kept between 50 and 70 degrees.

Baggage handlers taking the puppies to a kennel area at O’Hare Airport grew concerned because they looked lethargic. Employees tried to cool down the dogs, and they were taken to a vet’s office, but five died initially and two others died later, Fagan said.

Read more at www.wtopnews.com

 

Methane-powered Beetle to Hit UK Streets

August 5, 2010 at 1:10 pm

I like this part: “The process of conversion isn’t brand new, but this will be the first automobile fully converted to run on biogas in the United Kingdom without any loss of performance.”

Amplify’d from www.engadget.com
The Bio-Bug is a regular old 2 liter VW convertible modified to operate on both gasoline and compressed methane gas: once the methane runs out, the car reverts back to running on gasoline. The cars run on so little methane that just one regular sized sewage plant could run a car (or cars) over 95,000,000 miles per year.Read more at www.engadget.com
 

Move over Japan.. China’s maglev trains to hit 1000 kms/h in, hold you breathe, 3yrs!

August 4, 2010 at 11:05 pm

Wow. It’s amazing how the US is still “trying” hard to build its first true high-speed rail line and the amount of bickering to get the funding. At this rate, China will not only steal Japan’s thunder, but also those of the U.S.’ which is still priding itself on the technological (& economic) superiority of earlier decades.

Amplify’d from www.engadget.com
maglev

China’s maglev trains to hit 1,000kph in three years, Doc Brown to finally get 1985 squared away

According to the laboratory at Southwest Jiaotong University, a prototype is currently being worked on that’ll average 500kph to 600kph, with a far smaller train to hit upwards of 1,000kph in “two or three years.” The trick? Tossing the maglev train inside of a vacuum tube, enabling greater velocity due to decreased friction. If you’re scoffing at the mere thought of how much such a setup would cost, you’re probably not alone — it’s bruited that the tunnel would cost “10 to 20 million yuan ($2.95 million) more than the current high speed railway for each kilometer.”Read more at www.engadget.com
 

Clueless Colorado Gubernatorial Candidate, Warns Of U.N. Plot To Destroy America With Bike-Sharing Programs

August 4, 2010 at 5:53 pm

After reading this news item below, I’m totally out of words and appalled at the level of ignorance and fear mongering that goes in politics.. Dear politicians, please stay away from stuff when you don’t really know what you are talking about

Amplify’d from www.huffingtonpost.com

Republican gubernatorial candidate Dan Maes is warning voters that Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper’s policies, particularly his efforts to boost bike riding, are “converting Denver into a United Nations community.”

“This is all very well-disguised, but it will be exposed,” Maes told about 50 supporters who showed up at a campaign rally last week in Centennial.

Okay, here’s the mystery that Maes alone has penetrated. Denver is a member in something called the International Council for Local Environmental Initiatives. They’ve been a member since 1992. It is an “international association that promotes sustainable development.” One of the things that contributes to sustainability and an overall pleasant quality of life is a bike-sharing program called “B-Cycle” which has taken donations and grant monies to make 400 bicycles available for the residents of Denver to tool around on when the spirit moves them. Hickenlooper has praised the program so Maes is trying to make the case that it’s a UN plot to deprive people of “freedom.”

Read more at www.huffingtonpost.com

 

Bernie’s Transportation Communications Newsletter (TCN) – August 4, 2010

August 4, 2010 at 5:07 pm

Wednesday, August 4, 2010 – ISSN 1529-1057


2010 ITS Tri-Chapter Information Exchange Summit – Joe Giglio Keynote Speaker – Registration DEADLINE Aug 6th, 2010

It’s the last week to sign up for the 2010 ITS Tri-Chapter Information Exchange Summit in Gettysburg, PA on August 18th & 19th.  Joe Giglio of Northeastern University will be Thursday’s luncheon speaker.  Click here for more information and registration forms.

Questions regarding the Annual Meeting can be directed to the Annual Meeting Co-Chairs, Karen Jehanian at kjehanian@kmjinc.com or Matt Kozsuch at matt.kozsuch@mcmtrans.com.  All registration materials must be sent to Greg Kausch by Friday, August 6, 2010 at gkausch@crcog.net or mailed to his attention at: CATA, 2081 W. Whitehall Road, State College, PA 16801.

AVIATION

1) Airline Fees Irk Travel Web Sites, Which Want More Info Upfront

Link to article in USA Today:

http://www.usatoday.com/money/industries/travel/2010-08-04-airlinefees04_ST_N.htm

2) Spirit Airlines’ Next Fee? Talking to a Human at the Airport

Link to ABC News story and video:

http://abcnews.go.com/Travel/spirit-airlines-fee-talking-human-airport/story?id=11306933

3) KLM iPads Bring In-flight Entertainment to Lounges

Link to article in Inflight:

http://www.hmgaerospace.com/news/show/892

GPS / NAVIGATION

4) Isolated Village Mistaken for Lourdes Thanks to Pilgrims’ GPS Blunders

Link to article in The Guardian:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/aug/04/lourdes-gps-mistake-catholic-pilgrims

MARITIME

5) Inside the US Navy’s Next-Generation Destroyer

Link to CNET News blog:

http://news.cnet.com/8301-13772_3-20012567-52.html

OTHER

6) Coming Soon to New York City, Free Wi-Fi in Livery Cars

Link to article in The Wall Street Journal:

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704499604575407773797744474.html

7) Beyond Decibels: Planning the New Sounds of the City

Link to commentary in New Scientist:

http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg20727711.000-beyond-decibels-planning-the-new-sounds-of-the-city.html

SAFETY / SECURITY

8) Crash Data Promises to Make Big Impact on Emergency-Medical Sector

Link to article in Urgent Communications:

http://urgentcomm.com/mobile_data/news/crash-data-emergency-medical-20100804/

Upcoming Events

Roads & Bridges Live: 2010 – October 12-14 – Rosemont, Illinois

http://www.roadsbridgeslive.com/

Today in Transportation History

1790 **220th anniversary** The United States Revenue Cutter Service, forerunner to the US Coast Guard, was established.

http://www.uscg.mil/history/

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

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

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

© 2010 Bernie Wagenblast www.bwcommunications.net

Changing face of Rest Stops – As some states close highway rest stops, others see roadside revenue

August 4, 2010 at 4:04 pm

States that aren’t allowed to lease rest-area space to businesses have to pay millions of dollars each year to clean and maintain the facilities.

Amplify’d from www.stateline.org
Last month on the busy Interstate 95 corridor, Delaware unveiled a new $35 million welcome center, which houses restaurants and shops and is expected to bring additional money to the state.

New Mexico is the most recent case in a rash of rest-stop closures that has affected states from Vermont to California. Facing enormous budget deficits, many states have raided transportation funds, forcing them to shut down all but the most necessary of operations. For Arizona, Louisiana and Virginia, the shuttering of roadside rest stops has become one of the most visible signs of the current budget crisis.

In Delaware, however, the story couldn’t possibly be more different. Last month, Delaware unveiled a sparkling new 42,000-square foot welcome center on the busy Interstate 95 corridor. Not only did Delaware not spend a dime constructing what amounts to a $35 million mini-mall in the highway median. The rest stop actually makes Delaware money. The state’s contract with HMSHost, a company that runs retail operations at many airports, gives Delaware a percentage of revenues from sales of gas, food and other goods — at least $1.6 million per year for 35 years.

There’s always been a difference between the highly commercialized highway rest areas in the Northeast and those in the South and West, where the stops often are little more than parking lots with bathrooms and perhaps some vending machines. But the contrast has never been more stark than it is now. The states with commercialized rest stops like Delaware are free to find ways to milk them for more and more revenue. Meanwhile, the states without commercialization are coming to see highway rest areas as a financial drain they might just as well do without.

Read more at www.stateline.org

 

259mph – Sikorsky notches a new speed record for helicopters

August 4, 2010 at 2:30 pm

It looks more like a plane with two rotors on the top .. but nonethless, it is a flying marvel.

Amplify’d from www.wired.com

Two hundred and fifty-nine miles per hour. That’s how fast the Sikorsky X2 flew during a recent test flight in Florida. The flight broke a record that had stood since 1986 when a Westland Lynx managed 249 mph.

And Sikorsky isn’t done yet.

The X2 is a technology demonstrator aimed at developing helicopters that easily cruise up to double the speed of traditional helicopters. Using a twin rotor design, a pusher prop and numerous aerodynamic improvements, Sikorsky says this type of design could lead to helicopters that are easily capable of even higher cruise speeds.

Read more at www.wired.com