What follows is the regularly scheduled updates from several District 6 sections and chapters.
New Mexico Chapter
I was pleased to see another good turnout at this month’s section meeting on Thursday, our last regular luncheon before the summer break and before our new officers-to-be take charge in September. How quickly this year’s series of meetings went by. I admit that some sweat was shed each month trying to book interesting speakers, but it was fun. Who would have imagined that our line-up would include a cyclist, an architect, a lawyer, and a czar, not to mention our own members Tony Abbo and David Wilson, whom I again thank for their presentations. For the many of you who missed our UNM students in May, you can go to our website to view the presentations by Emmy Foley, Trent Simpler, and Bryan Estvanko. In addition, I would like to give honorable mention recognition to the other students submitting papers this year: Jim Ellis, Jenny Seder, John Pavlakos, Anthony Cabrera, Andrea Trujillo, Leslie Romero, and Krishna Doddikadi. Keep all our talented student chapter members in mind when you’re looking to fill that intern position.
Regarding our website, Craig Watts was vigilant in keeping an eye on the cyber-squatters occupying the nmite.org domain. Apparently, they grew tired of holding it since we had no intention of paying them for it, so they gave up. Craig quickly snatched it back up, and our entire website is available there now. We are maintaining the nmite.com domain for a while in the transition, but both URLs will connect you to the same site. I would also like to thank Bohannan Huston, Inc. for hosting our section website over the past few years. Becky Lowe at BHI is our most helpful webmaster.
It’s now election season for all levels of ITE. We devoted most of this month’s luncheon agenda to covering the three elections pending. For our New Mexico Section, two members have stepped up to run for Secretary-Treasurer: Paul Barricklow and Albert Ruiz. Their candidate statements will be included in the ballot mailings going out next week. In addition, Ross Lujan is the nominee for Section President, and Kristal Metro is the nominee for Vice President. Ballots must be returned by Monday, July 6. Online elections for the Western District will run from June 10 to July 13, and for ITE International July 1 – 23. Go to the westernite.org and ite.org websites for information on those races and candidates.
Our annual summer field trip is now scheduled! On Thursday, July 9, we will be heading out to see what’s taking shape on Mesa del Sol, currently the largest urban master-planned development in the U.S. Representatives from Forest City Covington will be hosting us in their new Aperture Center Building designed by world-renowned architect and New Mexico native Antoine Predock. Their presentation will cover sustainability and transprtation master planning for the 12,900 acre development. Consulting engineers from Bohannan Huston Inc. and URS Corporation will cover specific aspects of the transportation design, and Parsons Brinckerhoff will discuss the proposed I-25 Mesa del Sol interchange. Look for a meeting announcement and further details in coming days.
The following week, a number of us will be heading to Denver for the Western District Annual Meeting, July 12 -15. If you are planning on attending, please send me a note so that we can connect there and get a Traffic Bowl team together for Tuesday afternoon. We will also have at least one student, Anthony Cabrera, attending, and I hope that we can all take the time to show him around and introduce him to the folks in our district. If anyone is aware of other students from New Mexico planning to attend, please let me know. I will be arriving on Saturday and attending the District Board Meeting all day Sunday, so look for me at the social hour thereafter on Sunday evening.
At the District Board Meeting, I will have a couple of items on the agenda for the New Mexico Section. First, I will be inviting one of the District officers out to our meeting at El Pinto on September 3 to swear in our newly elected slate of section officers, and to give us an update from the District and ITE International. Second (and more exciting), I will officially offer New Mexico’s bid to host the 2017 Western District Annual Meeting in Albuquerque! As some of you may recall, New Mexico hosted the District Meeting in 1985 under the chairmanship of Dr. Jerry Hall, and again in 2001 under the chairmanship of Karen Aspelin. If you do the math, it seems that our 16-year cycle will bring us due in 2017. That will fit well into the series already taking shape: 2009 Denver, 2010 San Fransisco, 2011 Anchorage, 2012 Ventura, 2013 Phoenix, 2014 Seattle (joint International), 2015 unassigned, 2016 Anaheim (joint International), 2017 Albuquerque. Planning would begin in earnest in 2013 with the formation of a Local Arrangements Committee, so we have plenty of time to get prepared. I will make the pitch to the Board and report back to you all after the meeting.
-Jim Barrera
Oregon Section
The Oregon ITE Technical Workshop was held January 27, 2009 at the Oregon DOT Region 1 Office in Portland, which was attended by approximately 70 people. The workshop focused on the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices (MUTCD). The premise was to introduce major sections and important changes which will appear in the upcoming edition. In addition to specific chapters addressed, the presenters provided more in-depth information about several important design/operations issues. Specifically addressed were MUTCD Chapters 3, 4, 8, and 10 – Markings, Traffic Signals, Railroad Crossings, and Light Rail.
The Oregon ITE Section members enjoyed an after-work happy hour at Lucky Lab in Portland on February 19th, 2009. Approximately 20 members representing both public and private sectors attended the event.
On April 7th, ITE Oregon section joined force with Portland WTS Chapter and ITS Oregon section to host the manager of the office of Innovative Partnerships and Alternative Funding of Oregon Department of Transportation, James Whitty. James presented the potential benefits, impacts and results of Oregon’s mileage fee program as a means for replacing the gas tax.
May 7th was the joint lunch meeting of the Oregon Section of ITE, the Greater Oregon Section of ITE and the Oregon Traffic Control Devices Committee. The speaker was Oregon State Senator Bruce Starr who summarized the latest transportation funding options being discussed in the state legislature. Also announced at the May meeting were the results of the Oregon ITE Board elections. The 2009/2010 Oregon ITE Officers are: Bikram Raghubansh – President, Chris Tiesler – Vice President, Evan Dust – Secretary/Treasurer and Todd Mobley – Past President.
The Oregon Section is happy to announce the recipients of the inaugural Oregon ITE Undergraduate and Graduate Student Scholarships. Josh Crain from Portland State University received the Undergraduate scholarship and Lisa Diercksen from Portland State University received the Graduate scholarship. Both awards were in the amount of $1,000.
-River L. Hwang
San Francisco Bay Area
On April 16, 2009, the SF Bay Area ITE Section (SFBayITE) held a joint technical meeting with the Northern California Chapter of the International Chinese Transportation Professionals Association . Presentation topics this month focused on the ongoing evaluation of operational performance on SF Bay Area freeways and multiple transportation planning efforts in San Francisco. The meeting was sponsored by Wiltec, a firm that collects and analyzes traffic data in California, Nevada, and Hawaii. Moses Wilson, president of Wiltec, briefly discussed the firm and its capabilities.
Joy Lee of the SF Bay Area’s Metropolitan Transportation Commission’s (MTC) Highway and Arterial Operations section led off the technical presentations with a discussion of MTC’s current Freeway Performance Initiative (FPI). FPI is a partnership with the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) and Bay Area congestion management agencies (CMAs).
The overall goal of FPI is to improve the operations, safety, and management of the Bay Area freeway system. Specific objectives of the FPI program are to develop a comprehensive freeway strategic plan, create a prioritized list of freeway projects and strategies, improve system performance through management, complete the Bay Area HOV lane system, and close key gaps in the freeway system to address bottlenecks.
Bay Area freeways have already seen the benefit of good system management, as evidenced from ongoing ramp metering demonstration projects. In one before and after study, MTC found that the implementation of a ramp metering program during the p.m. peak hour on a 15-mile segment of eastbound Interstate 580 through Pleasanton and Livermore resulted in a corridor travel time reduction from 35 to 21 minutes on the freeway mainline.
Tilly Chang, Deputy Director for Planning at San Francisco County Transportation Authority (SFCTA), concluded the presentations with her discussion of several current SFCTA efforts. These efforts include a congestion pricing feasibility study, variable tolling on Doyle Drive, and the upcoming smart parking management pilot program called SFPark. Led by the SF Municipal Transportation Agency (SFMTA), SFPark uses variable pricing and new technology to manage on- and off-street parking, with the goal of increasing parking space turnover and availability in SF neighborhoods. Technologies include: multi-space meters and in-street parking space sensors, variable message signs communicating space availability and pricing, and web/phone-based information systems.
The SFCTA Mobility, Access and Pricing Study (MAPS) is exploring the feasibility of charging motorists a user fee as a way to manage congestion, also known as congestion pricing. The study is funded by a $1 million Federal Highway Administration grant.
Andrew Kluter, P.E.
Washington Section
April 14 – Luncheon Meeting
There was a certain sense of déjà-vu as I walked briskly through the hallway on my way to this month’s ITE luncheon meeting held in room 104 of the Old Redmond Shoolhouse. As I entered the classroom, I reached for my hall pass else I face certain hand cramps as I write “I will not be tardy” on the chalkboard. Fortunately, the ladies that greeted me just wanted my meeting fee as they handed me the boxed lunch. As I settled into a seat toward the back of the room Nick Ching opened the meeting and introduced John White, director of the Alaskan Way Viaduct and Seawall Replacement Program for WSDOT, to talk about the current recommendations.
The improvements would come in a hybrid approach. The City of Seattle would be responsible for the Seawall, waterfront streetcar and arterial improvements at Denny Way and Spokane Street. WSDOT would be responsible for the tunnel and connections at either ends. In addition, King County-Metro as well as the Port of Seattle would contribute to improvements towards a combined $4.24B solution that would provide capacity improvements, improve access to and through downtown Seattle, and make Seattle’s waterfront a world-class destination.
The tunnel itself will be 2 miles long at depths of 30 to 200 feet under the surface. A 54’ diameter bore will be required to provide two lanes of traffic in each direction with shoulders. Construction of the tunnel will start 2010 with a 2015 opening date. The waterfront promenade will follow in 2016. To cap the formal part of the presentation, Mr. White displayed a video rendering of a drive through the tunnel that highlighted the areas it would traverse along with potential vertical conflicts.
Following the presentation, Mr. Ching announced the upcoming ITE social on the 23rd in Bellevue, the Quad Conference at the beginning of May in Vancouver, Student Night in Seattle also in May and the Annual Meeting June 8th at the Tulalip Casino.
April 23 – ITE Social Night
Located in the heart of downtown Bellevue, the Tap house Grill provided a hip venue for transportation professionals to gather after work for a social gathering. With a 160 beers available, there was sure to be a brew for everyone. With appetizer menus minimally priced (as well as minimally portioned) you just can’t stop at just one order.
With about two dozen attending the gathering throughout the evening, the topic of discussion ranged from kids’ softball schedules to scouting out potential players for the annual golf tournament. There were attempts made to discuss LED streetlights and traffic data, but this must have been signs of glitches of the first social gathering. I’m sure with more practice, we’ll be able to leave those topics for before 5pm.
-Paul Cho
