Present your ideas for smarter mobility and urban development at Transforming Transportation 2015

Transforming Transportation 2015 (#TTDC15) is the annual conference co-organized by EMBARQ, the sustainable urban transport program of the World Resources Institute, and the World Bank. This year’s conference will focus onSmart Cities for Shared Prosperity, and will examine how smart, connected urban mobility can improve quality of life in cities.

We’re inviting YOU to become a presenter! Pitch your ideas to present on either “Innovations in Urban Development for Smart Cities” or Innovations in Mobility for Smart Cities.” Presentations will follow the PechaKucha format and must be submitted by December 2, 2014 at 11:59pm EST. Those interested can consult the detailed submission guidelines.

For any questions or comments, please contact embarq@wri.org. Tune in for regular updates at www.TransformingTransportation.org and on social media by following #TTDC15.

The slide deck from EMBARQ’s recent webinar on parking & transit oriented development (TOD).

If you have not already doing it, highly recommend following EMBARQ’s slideshare channel. You can regularly see such informative material made available.

Now that I’ve returned to my office after a week long transportation nerdery (is that a word??) in Washington, DC, I thought of quickly registering a few observations I made during the week.  What I call the TRB Week has three back-to-back transportation events that happen in a week:  it all began with the 3rd Transportation Camp (Jan 12) then followed by the 2013 TRB Annual Meeting (Jan 13-17) and concluded with the Transforming Transportation (Jan 17-18).  As I stated earlier, these are mere observations and shared with the hope that it benefits the attendees heading to DC for future Transportation Research Board Annual Meeting and events planned around that conference.

1. Transportation Camp: My TRB Week began at Transportation Camp here in DC (awesome facility support provided by co-host George Mason University’s Transportation Policy Program) and offered a glimpse of things to come.  This annual unconference is one of my favorite events in the Transportation Calendar for many reasons and continues to remain on the “MUST Attend” category.  As usual, I learned a lot about how much interest there is for biking among the Transportation planning community. Yes! A lot of bike-related sessions.  And the organizers, esp. OpenPlans, did a fantastic job keeping the event pace along.  For some odd reason, there are fewer sessions involving technology, technologists and hacks and more attendance from Transportation planners. My favorite session at this event featured a discussion on safety and security for women riders on Delhi’s Metro rail.
2. 2013 TRB Annual Meeting:  Like in the years before, this conference continues to be at the center stage  for many of us in the Transportation Community and its importance has only continued to grow with more and more participants and innovative programming ideas tested by the organizer (Transportation Research Board).  This event offers a great chance to meet, learn and network with fellow researchers from around the world.  It is also an opportunity for me to catch up with many of my friends and colleagues whom I’ve known for years when they arrive in town.   Coffee breaks, lunch hour and dinner are always booked for me during this conference.  A few notable nuggets from TRB this year:
   • TRB smartphone app –  This was an awesome addition to the slate of conference planning tools, despite having some glitches/difficulties syncing the sesssion information across the platforms (phone/tablet/PC).  I’m hoping this app will be better and much more user-friendly as TRB continues to fine-tune the product in the months ahead.
   • Wifi access –  Internet connectivity during the conference continues to be a big pain but TRB staff noted that relief is on the way when the conference moves from the hotels (Marriott, Omni and Hilton) to the Convention Center in 2015.  This also would render more opportunities to attend sessions that are currently not accessible to many of us due to the logistics involved (riding shuttle buses between hotels is a big deterrent when it comes to planning my sessions at the different hotels though it doesn’t take much time to travel between them).  Thanks to my employer (Citizant, Inc) I was lucky to have had a Verizon MiFi hotspot that allowed me to stay connected to the web at 4G speeds and allowed for a seamless support for my clients throughout the conference.
   • Food – Continues to remain a major sore point as all the eateries around the conference hotels, esp. Marriott, get jammed up quickly with conference goers during lunch times.   The Lobby bar at Marriott continues to be a major attraction for coffee breaks and post-dinner drinks as it can be a great venue to schedule meetings.
   • My first audio podcast interview – Got interviewed for an Audio Podcast by Andy Boenau, a Transportation planner who also does very interesting podcasts with experts engaged in transportation. We discussed various issues randing from social media  in transportation to the evolution of driver-less cars (vehicle automation).   Yet to see the final product and I’m hoping to see it available on Andy Boenau’s website soon (urbanismspeakeasy.com)
   • Social Media – I cannot stress enough the role of Social Media in bringing people together during such large gatherings of people.  The presence of twitter is undeniable as the volume of tweets continue to swell year after year during the conference (and also in the weeks leading up to the conference). Don’t believe me? I recommend you check the hashtag #TRBAM and you will know what I am talking about.   And this shows you how popular Twitter is:  tweet from @TRBofNA today says “3,968 tweets using #TRBAMSun. Jan. 13-Thursday, Jan. 17, 2013. In 2012, we had 2,830 during the same#TRBAM timeframe”. One of the major highlights of the TRB Annual Meeting is the impromptu tweetup I planned with a few fellow Twitterti. This tweetup held at Open City Cafe on Jan 16th  was conceived, planned and executed via Twitter.  We had a great turnout (about 85 people) and full sponsorship from @Uber_DC, the best hi-tech Taxi service at your fingertip.
   • Innovative Programming: TRB staff are testing different formats to keep the audience engaged.  One such effort was the Pecha Kucha style presentation, a 1st for TRB, that I happened to be a part of.  Though the event was slated at the tail end of the conference (Yeah. Wednesday evening 7:30PM start), we had a great turn out.  The moderator (and friend Shin Pei-Tsay) did an awesome job mixing up the line up, alternating between U.S. and European presenters to keep up the tempo.  Each presenter had 20 slides and 20 seconds per slide to tell their story, mostly with visuals (and a sprinkling of text).  I couldn’t have imagined a better format for a tired audience who have endured death by powerpoint all through the week.
   • Networking: I cannot stress enough the importance of networking during the TRBAM Week.  Here are a few words of wisdom for the new and young attendees:
     • Stuff a ton of business cards in your coat/jacket when you arrive at TRB.
     •  Always be willing and ready to tell your story. If it is not too much work, I recommend that you prepare a two minute “elevato r pitch” that tells your story. You never know who will be in that hypothetical elevator with you.
     • Looking for a job? Prepare and print a few copies of your resume and keep it ready for sharing with people interested in your story.
     • Attend as many networking events as possible.  Often you will see many Happy Hours, Receptions, Sponsored Events, etc held along the sidelines of the Annual Meeting. These are great venues for meeting and interacting with cool people.
     • Get a lot of sleep if you can can. That’s one of the toughest things to do when you are in town for just a few days catching up with people and attending sessions.
     • And stay connected on Social Media:  Are you the shy one?  No worries. If you are not so social in person, you may want to start by chatting with your target audience on Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn. This virtual interaction should definitely give you the confidence to interact with them in person when you are at the event.  Also, from a civic sense, the conversations in the community will only get better when more people start talking. So, don’t hesitate to send out a tweet or post a note on LinkedIn.
     • Do not hesitate to signup for volunteer opportunities, especially at the TRB Committees. If you are under 25yrs old, the committees would be glad to have you added as a Young Member.  Also, a few notable forums that you should consider checking out during the Annual Meeting – Young Professionals in Transportation (they host an awesome reception every year. MUST ATTEND for us transportation professionals), Young Members Council, Womens Transportation Seminar, etc
3. Transforming Transportation – Right on the heels of TRB Annual Meeting, the World Bank and World Resource Institute’s EMBARQ hold this annual event, Transforming Transportation, at the World Bank building, bringing together experts from around the world to discuss sustainable transportation issues.  This year was a bit more special than previous years with the addition of a Keynote by New York City Mayor Mr. Michael Bloomberg, who has a great interest in supporting sustainable transportation initiatives not just in his city but also across the globe. The amount of knowledge sharing that happens in this event is unparalleled and I always walk away with a ton of new ideas that I could easily implement in my world of transportation and communications.  This event also serves as a reminder for me as a professionals practicing the craft in the Developed world, that there are so many challenges that remain unsolved in transportation domain in the developing world.

There are so many more things I’d like to write about but in the essence of time, I’m going to stop here.  Should I find the time and energy in the next couple of days, I’ll do a follow-up post.  If you think I have missed something or should have addressed a few more points, do not hesitate to drop me a note in the comments sections.  I’ll be happy to respond to your comments/suggestions/etc.  Also, do not hesitate to share this article with your fellow Transportation professionals if it will help prepare them for the next year’s event.

Related articles

• TRB 2013 Annual Meeting News: Revolutionary Change Cometh – Transportation Practitioners See Industry Transformation with Mobility Data from AirSage(TM)

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Sustainable urban transport and development saves lives and improves quality of life. Learn how EMBARQ makes this happen

EMBARQ’s Approach to Health and Road Safety

(Source: World Bank via Transport 2012)

Just after the TRB conference, senior decision makers and transport experts from around the world met in Washington from 27 – 28 January 2011 to share the latest experiences, information and best practices focused on safe, clean, and affordable transport services.

This year’s event featured case studies on sustainable transport from China, Mexico, Colombia, South Africa, India and the U.S. The joint event was co-organized by EMBARQ, The World Bank, Inter-American Development Bank, Asian Development Bank, Institute for Transportation Development and Policy, Clean Air Initiative for Asian Cities, and the Partnership for Sustainable Low Carbon Transport.

Click here to access the speaker bios and presentation (via slideshare.net) or

Click here to download the presentations (in PDF) and event agenda.

Related articles

• TT2011: Global Perspectives on Sustainable Transport and Urban Development (thecityfix.com)

Title: EMBARQ Interactive Webinar: Darío Hidalgo presents “Modernizing Public Transport”

Date: Tuesday, December 14, 2010

Time: 10:00 AM – 11:00 AM EST

Click here to REGISTER

Join Darío Hidalgo, EMBARQ’s Director of Research & Practice, as he presents his new publication “Modernizing Public Transport: Lessons learned from major bus improvements in Latin America and Asia.” Darío will provide an overview of his comprehensive review of major bus improvements in 13 cities. He will summarize common challenges and lessons learned, highlighting key recommendations for successful project planning, decision-making, implementing and operation.

To see Darío’s bio, please visit: http://www.embarq.org/en/about/staff/dario-hidalgo

To download “Modernizing Public Transport,” please visit: http://www.embarq.org/en/modernizing-public-transportation

To learn more about how to join the webinar, please visit: http://support.gotomeeting.com/ics/support/default.asp?deptID=5641&task=knowledge&questionID=5613

Click here to REGISTER

Related articles

• Q&A with Dario Hidalgo, Part 1: Modernizing Public Transportation (thecityfix.com)
• Megacities on the Move: Scenarios for the Future of Sustainable Urban Mobility (thecityfix.com)
• Q&A with Dario Hidalgo, Part 2: Modernizing Public Transportation (thecityfix.com)
• The Future of Sustainable Urban Mobility: Integrate, Integrate, Integrate (thecityfix.com)
• The Future of Urban Sustainable Mobility: Go Beyond the Car (thecityfix.com)
• Reddy : Incentives for public transport (ibnlive.in.com)

(Source: EMBARQ)

Research led by EMBARQ’s Senior Transport Engineer Dario Hidalgo provides key findings and lessons learned from a comprehensive review of major bus improvements in 13 Latin American and Asian cities.

“Modernizing Public Transport,” a 40-page report released in October 2010, is based on research and interviews with planners and public officials in cities and transport agencies around the world.

The report reviews and synthesizes information regarding challenges experienced by transport system decision makers in three key areas: planning, implementation and operations. In order to assist urban transport planners and implementing agencies, the study also provides recommendations on avoiding or mitigating similar difficulties when introducing bus reforms in developing world cities.

The report looks at transportation in 13 cities and will present in-depth case studies of nine of the cities. The first two case studies—profiling Leon and Guadalajara, Mexico—will be available by the end of October. The remaining seven case studies will be published by the end of November, including Bogota and Pereira, Colombia; Curitiba, Brazil; Guayaquil and Quito, Ecuador; Mexico City, Mexico; and Santiago, Chile. The other cities covered in the report are Sao Paulo, Brazil; Beijing, China; Ahmedabad, India; and Jakarta, Indonesia.

Also, don’t forget to check out the two-part Q&A with Dario Hidalgo on TheCityFix.com.   For those who are interested, you can access the official press release here.

Click here to learn more about EMBARQ and it’s awesome work across the globe.

Related articles

• Q&A with Dario Hidalgo, Part 1: Modernizing Public Transportation (thecityfix.com)
• The Future of Urban Sustainable Mobility: Go Beyond the Car (thecityfix.com)
• Cities in Focus: Curitiba (thecityfix.com)
• Q&A with Dario Hidalgo, Part 2: Modernizing Public Transportation (thecityfix.com)
• The Importance of Sustainable Mobility in Megacities (thecityfix.com)
• Megacities on the Move: Scenarios for the Future of Sustainable Urban Mobility (thecityfix.com)
• The Future of Sustainable Urban Mobility: Integrate, Integrate, Integrate (thecityfix.com)

Yesterday (June 15, 2010), I had the chance to attend “Online Engagement for Sustainable Urban Mobility”, a panel discussion and roundtable organized by EMBARQ, the sustainable transportation arm of the World Resources Institute, at its headquarters in Washington, D.C. Part of a week-long citywide festival focused on technology and innovation, the event brought together citizen activists and representatives from government agencies and non-profits to discuss open data, online citizen engagement and collaboration – while looking at the nation’s capital as a case study.  The agenda, as seen on the invitation

How urban transportation can be made more sustainable through:

• Open Data
• Blogging and Citizen Journalism
• Government Transparency and Civic Engagement
• Citizen Collaboration

This was a great forum to share/listen best practices, lessons learned, failure stories and ideas of how to put theory into practice, as it relates to the following over-arching questions: What online tools exist in the D.C. area to make transportation more efficient, user-friendly and sustainable? What are some examples of Web-based innovation and collaboration in the D.C. transport sector? How can government, technology and civil society work together to improve the way we move around – by foot, by car, by bike, and by transit – in the nation’s capital?

The awesome panel consisted of the following individuals:

Moderator: Christian Madera (Columnist, Next American City)
Host: Erica Schlaikjer (Online Engagement Coordinator, EMBARQ)

Panelists:

• Bryan Sivak (Chief Technology Officer, District of Columbia)
• Lance Schine (Chief Information Officer, District Department of Transportation)
• David Alpert (Blogger, Greater Greater Washington)
• Justin Jouvenal (Web Editor, Postlocal.com)
• Nick Grossman (Director of Civic Works, OpenPlans)

Roundtable Discussion Leaders:

• Eric Gundersen (Development Seed)
• Harriet Tregoning (Office of Planning)
• Nat Bottigheimer (WMATA)
• Dan Silverman (Prince of Petworth)
• Zvi Band (FixMyCity DC)
• Philip Ashlock (OpenPlans)

Here are some  interesting observations worth sharing, courtesy of Moderator Christian Madera and fellow participant Kara Hadge, contributing author of New America Foundation’s Sustaining Democracy in a Digital Age blog,  who sat right next to me and offered great input to our discussion group.  For a detailed recap/summary, I seriously recommend you to check out Christian column on Next American City and Kara’s blog post titled Wired Cities .

• While the local city government has been at the forefront of releasing its municipal data for the public and developers to utilize, most of the region’s transportation falls under the jurisdiction of WMATA, the regional transit agency.
• DDOT is involved is now sharing an API for real-time location data for the city’s small fleet of circulator buses, and embarking on the use of QR codes on buses and shelters to assist both passengers and transit managers
• DC Circulator will shortly be launching an Open Data Challenge for developers, featuring three categories: Public Apps (Web and/or Mobile;), Visualization (currently there is no dashboard to monitor what’s happening on all lines), and an unknown internal app to be used by WMATA/DDOT.
• DC Capital Bikeshare #CaBi website  http://capital-bikeshare.appspot.com/ is expected to be launched soon
• DDOT is looking to add (someday) these MIT conceived futurisitic looking, networked, read again – networked, bus stops called Eyestop

In all, it was a great experience meeting and listing to some of the best minds in business about the use of social media tools and emerging opensource efforts in transportation.  Thanks to EMBARQ and the Digital Capital Week community for putting together this event.  I’ll certainly keep you informed of  other resources/products resulting from this event as they become available.