The California Central Coast Section has had a busy few months, with general meetings in June, August, and November, held 150 miles apart.

The June meeting was held at the City Hall of San Luis Obispo, where City Traffic Operations Manager Jake Hudson provided insight into the City’s traffic signal operations system, highlighting, among other features, remote signal monitoring, programming, video feeds, and CalTrans ramp integration.  Also presented was the City’s award-winning Traffic Operations Program, which standardizes the evaluation of roadway facilities while identifying the need for and prioritizing congestion relief projects citywide.

At the conclusion of the meeting, Section President Dennis Lammers presented the Cal Poly San Luis Obispo ITE Student Chapter with a $1,500 contribution.  This grant, which was graciously accepted by Student Chapter President Ian Barnes, is intended to subsidize the Chapter in its efforts to increase and sustain its membership, promote ITE’s mission, and foster a greater appreciation of our profession within academia.

Our August meeting took place in Camarillo, where Public Works Director Tom Fox, presented an overview of an interchange project along U.S. Route 101 (at Springville Drive), currently in the beginning of the construction phase.  Mr. Fox took the audience on a vivid journey of the project’s very interesting life thus far, from conception to bid opening and the stages in between.  He shared with the group the project’s various twists, turns, and growing pains; ultimate successes; and the Agency’s hard lessons learned.

A vendor show was held in November at Ventura City Hall, where seven participating vendors set up exhibits and gave brief presentations of their traffic applications to members.  Many thanks to Rodefx, Advanced Traffic Products, DDL Traffic, Clary Corporation, Nextech, WTI, and Fortel, and the City of Ventura for making the event possible.

Lastly, our Local Arrangements Committee (“LAC”) continues its great efforts in preparing to host the 2012 District 6 Annual Meeting in Santa Barbara.  2012 LAC Chairman Tom Mericle, City of Ventura; Vice-Chairman Robert Sweeting, City of Thousand Oaks; and the rest of the committee are looking for volunteers to assist in organizing the upcoming event.  While still a year and a half away, there is much to be done.  Those interested in helping to make the event a success are encouraged to contact Robert at rsweeting@toaks.org.

 

-Larry Tay

Vice President