Bike Safety Could Be Mastered in Cambridge

Bicycling in Cambridge, Mass., is a big success pretty much no matter how you slice it. According to a report from the city, the number of people on bikes in the leafy city on the Charles River tripled between 2002 and 2012. That makes Cambridge a leader in bike commuting nationally: 7.1 percent of Cambridge residents biked to work in 2012, putting it ahead of all but four other American cities.Perhaps unsurprisingly, the sheer number of crashes involving bicycles has gone up along with the number of people on bikes. According to an article in the Boston Globe, there was a 136 percent rise in bike crashes between 2004 and 2012, from 91 to 215.

The rate of crashes, however, has gone down by nearly 30 percent — from 19.6 crashes per million bicycle miles traveled in 2004 to 13.8 in 2012, the city’s analysis shows(only 5 percent of Cambridge crash injuries were reported as “incapacitating,” and in 18 percent the rider reported no injury). That decline in rate of crashes is one more manifestation of the “safety in numbers” phenomenonthat has been observed by many researchers looking at bicycle safety. Broadly speaking, the more people on bikes, the lower the crash rate.

Read the rest of the story here: http://nextcity.org/daily/entry/bicycling-cambridge-bike-safety-spending

Robert Cary Is New Richmond District Administrator

VDOT ANNOUNCES NEW RICHMOND DISTRICT ADMINISTRATOR
Robert H. Cary, P.E., will lead the transportation program in the agency’s Richmond District

RICHMOND, Va. – Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) Commissioner Charlie Kilpatrick, P.E., today announced that Robert H. Cary, P.E., will be the agency’s new Richmond District Administrator.

“I am pleased to announce that Robert H. Cary, P.E., will be leading VDOT’s Richmond District,” said Kilpatrick. “Rob takes on a new role with the agency, but is in no way new to VDOT. He brings an incredible amount of experience to the Richmond District. His background and experience working on the executive leadership team and directing both the Salem and Lynchburg districts will be invaluable to the transportation program in the Richmond area.”

Cary, who started his career with the agency in 1992, became the Salem District Administrator in July 2012. Before that, he served for five years as the agency’s Lynchburg District Administrator.

While in the Salem District, Cary directed road maintenance, construction and operations for a 12-county region of southwest Virginia that includes more than 9,200 miles of roadway,  2,800 structures, approximately 850 employees and an annual budget of $265 million.

Cary holds a Bachelor of Science degree in civil engineering from Virginia Tech. Following graduation, Cary joined William H. Gordon Associates of Woodbridge as a staff engineer and surveyor. In 1992, he became a transportation engineer in VDOT’s Staunton District and later, location and design engineer in the Salem District before being promoted to assistant district administrator for preliminary engineering.

Cary is chairman of the American Association of State Highway Officials’ (AASHTO) technical committee of preconstruction engineering, a member of AASHTO’s subcommittee on design, and is active with both the Transportation Research Board and the National Cooperative Highway Research Program.

TomTom Unveils New Online Navigation Service

TomTom has unveiled a new online navigation service that allows customers to offer a navigationapplication on internet-connected devices such as smartwatches or smart glasses without storing a large offline map.

The new service integrates well with TomTom's existing navigation products such as NavKit, NavKit Worker, NavCloud, and latest maps, real-time traffic, best-in-class routing, a comprehensive search function and easy-to-use software development kits.

The service also enables mobile device vendors and web service providers to provide online mapping and navigation applications that don't require an offline map.

To enhance its product line, TomTom has extended its partnership with deCarta.

Read the rest of the story at Road Traffic Technology.

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SolarSign Shines In Awards

From Road Traffic Technolgy

SES America arrives at World Congress fresh from the National Rural ITS conference, where its SolarSign was awarded New Product of the Year.

SolarSign is a solar-powered dynamic messaging sign (DM5) system with full range capabilities for large-scale displays on major highways in both rural and urban locations.

The solar power system allows signs to be erected where needed without placement being dictated by access to power and the signs can display travel times, warnings and awareness signs.

The NTCIP-compliant company uses the latest LEDs, which are 30-50% more efficient than traditional LED's and eliminate the need for a cooling system therefore reducing both power consumption and maintenance costs.

An optional power and temperature monitoring system provides real-time feedback to eliminate operational uncertainties regarding the power supply.

Japanese Pilot Project Uses Tablet-Guided Ultra-Compact Vehicles

From http://www.traffictechnologytoday.com/news.php

A pilot project in Japan is using a fleet of tablet computer controlled ultra-compact vehicles to navigate around a popular tourist destination. For its ‘Super Miniaturized Mobility’ project, Japanese telecoms company, Softbank, has deployed the vehicles across the village of Asuka, which is the site of Japan’s ancient capital, and features a number of important historical sites and locations that can be visited by the public. The ‘Michimo’ electric-powered, ultra-compact vehicles are a customized version of Nissan’s New Mobility Concept vehicle, which was introduced as a testbed model last year, to show the need for a small form-factor, short-distance vehicle for single passengers. The vehicle’s quiet electric propulsion and compact dimensions made it ideal for the relatively small size of the village.

Using the iPad Mini that is integrated into the Michimo vehicle, passengers can choose a target destination around the village without the need to rely on other map applications. Visitors or local residents can rent the vehicles to conveniently navigate around the village’s public areas, famous tourist spots and other featured destinations. The customized navigation system not only provides the optimal route andGPS location, but can also offer related or updated information. The navigation system also includes voiced guides, which provide directions, as well as functioning as an electronic tourist guide. The information provided is constantly updated by Softbank’s cloud databaseand local information sources. The Michimo’s are not autonomous, but require the user to drive manually to their destination.

In addition to the benefits for tourists, Softbank sees the project as having the potential to provide a convenient form of transport for the village’s elderly population. Although the use of tablet computers in cars for guidance and navigation is not a new concept, their integration into a vehicle that has been ‘personalized’ for a specific area, could lead to the development of automated single-use cabs that would effectively replace regular taxis, when used for quicksuburban trips. Softbank also plans to deploy the Michimo units across nearby towns and cities, particularly in the town of Takatori, and Kashihara City, home to another popular historical tourist site.

Millennials Favoring New Way of Transportation

Young Americans are just not into driving the way their elders are or did at their age. They are less likely to own cars or use cars. The drives they do are shorter. Meanwhile, the bus is looking good to them.

A new report confirms this trend and offers reasons that millennials —we're talking 14- to 31-year-olds — seem less drawn to the automobile thing. They're sure not singing car songs as the baby boomers did. No "Little Deuce Coupe," no "G.T.O.," no "Hot Rod Lincoln."

But the report, by the U.S. Public Interest Research Group and the Frontier Group, misses what I see as the biggest factor. Driving is no longer a coast down the great American open road. It's become a pain and a drag — drag as in "a boring or tiresome thing."

Read the rest of the piece at the Sun Journal website: http://www.sunjournal.com/news/columns-analysis/2014/10/18/froma-harrop-millennials-favoring-new-way-transportation/1604622#

Transportation Board Approves Berkmar Drive Alignment

The Commonwealth Transportation Board today approved the location of the proposed extension of Route 1403 (Berkmar Drive) in Albemarle County that will continue the  existing Berkmar Drive 2.3 miles north to Towncenter Drive.

The state transportation board approved Alternative A, which was endorsed by the Albemarle County Board of Supervisors and favored by members of the public who attended the location public hearing and provided comments on the three alternate routes presented.

The project is part of the Route 29 Solutions package and is being advanced in a design-build procurement that also includes the widening of Route 29 between Polo Grounds Road and Towncenter Drive and the grade-separated intersection at Rio Road and Route 29. It will build a new road running parallel to and west of Route 29 and will provide an alternate route for local traffic. The project, which includes a bridge spanning the South Fork Rivanna River and Rio Mills Road, is estimated to cost $54.5 million.

Approximately 70 people attended the location public hearing for the Berkmar Drive Extension project, which was held Sept. 18. The overwhelming majority of the public comments that expressed a preference for a specific alignment supported Alternative A. That alternative runs roughly parallel to Route 29 and avoids a residential property and minimizes impacts to the cultural resources identified by the environmental field investigations done during development of the alignment alternatives.

Public comment is currently being taken on the major design features of the Berkmar Drive Extension project as well as the other two design-build projects. Comments will be accepted through Oct. 24. More information about the project and the public comment opportunity is available on VDOT’s web site at www.Route29Solutions.org.