Monday, March 22, 2010 – ISSN 1529-1057

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Spring’s Sprung:  It’s Time to Make Plans to Attend ITS America’s 2010 Annual Meeting & Exposition, May 3-5, 2010, in Houston, Texas.

• Plan to attend the “meeting before the meeting”:  the Texas State Senate Transportation & Homeland Security Committee will examine key issues at 9:00 a.m. Monday, immediately prior to the Opening Plenary.  The Committee will conduct a hearing focused on congestion and air quality, overweight vehicles, hurricane response and other issues such as transportation finance and traffic safety.
• Reserve a spot for a unique opportunity to tour the security system of the Port of Houston, the port ranking second in the US in total tonnage.  You also won’t want to miss touring Houston’s other innovative ITS-enabled transportation resources including Houston TranStar, a national leader in freeway incident management.
• Choose from among our 50+ educational sessions, and earn “professional development hours.”
• Save time and register online. The Conference hotel is 90% sold out; click here for reservations.
• Exhibit space and sponsorship opportunities are still available.

AVIATION

1) The Future of… Airplane Service

Seatback touch-screens can and will offer a variety of services.

Link to video on ZDNet:

http://news.zdnet.com/2422-19177_22-405374.html

2) The Future of Flight

Editorial calls for airlines to install equipment to allow use of NextGen air traffic control.

Link to editorial in The Washington Post:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/03/20/AR2010032002738.html

GPS / NAVIGATION

3) GPS-Guided Parachutes Deliver Supplies to Soldiers in Remote Areas

Link to article on Nextgov:

http://www.nextgov.com/nextgov/ng_20100318_6585.php

4) Use of Car GPS Units Steering Some Truckers Into Trouble

Link to article in the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review:

http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/news/pittsburgh/s_672795.html

MARITIME

5) UK Opens National Control Center to Tackle Security Risks at Sea

Link to BBC News story:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/8579649.stm

OTHER

6) California Lawmakers’ Travel Data Secret

Security concerns cited for refusal to disclose destinations or proof trips were for official business.

Link to AP article:

http://www.mercurynews.com/breaking-news/ci_14693669

7) ‘Augmented Reality’ Travel App Bolsters Smartphone

Link to article in USA Today:

http://www.usatoday.com/travel/flights/2010-03-22-realitytravel22_ST_N.htm

8) Phone + GPS + Camera = Revolution

Link to article in Governing:

http://www.governing.com/column/phone-gps-camera-revolution

PUBLIC INFORMATION / EDUCATION

9) Take $787 Billion. Now Show Where It’s Going

Advising the Recovery Accountability and Transparency Board on how to offer clear data.

Link to article in The New York Times:

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/22/business/media/22link.html

ROADWAYS

10) The Internet of Cars

Link to article on ICT Results:

http://cordis.europa.eu/ictresults/index.cfm?section=news&tpl=article&BrowsingType=Features&ID=91314

TRANSIT

11) Wi-Fi on New Mexico’s Rail Runner Gets Closer

Link to article from the Albuquerque Journal:

http://www.masstransitmag.com/web/online/Top-Transit-News/WiFi-on-Rail-Runner-Gets-Closer/3$11014

12) New York MTA Slows Rollout of Pictographs Due to Budget Crunch

Link to article in the New York Post:

http://www.nypost.com/p/news/local/cash_strapped_mta_signs_off_jCeoFcHniqpB0Hew8QY0PL

TRAVELER INFORMATION / TRANSPORTATION MANAGEMENT

13) Pennsylvania DOT’s Incident Command Center Uses New Technology to Monitor Roads

Link to article in The Times-Tribune:

http://thetimes-tribune.com/news/penndot-s-incident-command-center-uses-new-technology-to-monitor-roads-1.691666?localLinksEnabled=false

14) Road Conditions Tracked, Shared by University of Maryland-Created Network

Link to article in The Baltimore Sun:

http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/education/bal-md.traffic21mar21,0,3231007.story

15) Intelligent Traffic System to be Used in Gurgaon, India During Commonwealth Games

Link to IANS article:

http://sify.com/finance/gurgaon-to-have-intelligent-traffic-system-news-default-kdvq4cbfage.html

16) The Start Date of Intelligent Transport Management System in Baku, Azerbaijan Announced

Link to article on Today.Az:

http://www.today.az/news/business/64568.html

VEHICLES

17) Taking the Driver Out of the Car

Link to article in The Wall Street Journal:

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703580904575131511589391150.html

News Releases

1) EU’s Emergency Support System Project to Conduct Field Test April 28

2) Beat the Traffic Introduces New Traffic Forecasting Feature for iPhone and BlackBerry Apps

Upcoming Events

Women’s Transportation Seminar Annual Conference – May 19-21 – Washington, DC

http://www.wtsinternational.org/SecondaryTemplate.aspx?id=5378

Today in Transportation History

1860 **150^th anniversary** John George Bartholomew, a noted cartographer and geographer, was born in Edinburgh, Scotland.

http://www.johnbartholomew.com/

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 (Source: National Post, Canada; Photo: bensonkua@ Flickr)

Organizers for the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics have unveiled their $157-million transportation plan for the event.