David Harkey, president of the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety and the Highway Loss Data Institute, joins the ITE Talks Transportation podcast to discuss connected and automated vehicles (CAVs) and two new studies conducted by the traffic safety research organizations. The first study cites data that illustrate the growing benefits of advanced driver assistance systems; the second reveals possible limits of automated systems in reducing crashes. He also addresses criticisms of the second study, and discusses the future of safety and CAVs.

Vincent Valdes joins the ITE Talks Transportation Podcast to talk about the role of mobility as a service (MaaS) and mobility on demand (MOD) in public transit and how innovation can improve travel for users and transportation networks as a whole. The podcast was recorded while Vince was at the FTA Office of Research, Demonstration and Innovation. This summer, he transitioned roles to become president and CEO of the Southwestern Pennsylvania Commission.

Robert Wunderlich, P.E., ITE Fellow and Director of the Center for Transportation Safety at the Texas A&M Transportation Institute, discusses the Safe System approach to reducing serious injuries and fatalities on roadways. He highlights various aspects of the Safe System, including roadway design that reduces user error and lowers impact forces, and explains what transportation professionals can do to help implement a Safe System approach.

Paul Skoutelas, President and CEO of the American Public Transportation Association, discusses both the short- and long-term impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on public transit and how the industry is responding, as well as how funding from the CARES Act will be used to assist transit agencies throughout the recovery.

Annie Chang, head of New Mobility at SAE and director of the Mobility Data Collaborative, joins the ITE Talks Transportation podcast to discuss the mobility landscape and her research in the mobility as a service/mobility on demand field. She also shares the challenges and potential solutions regarding safety around micromobility, and talks about the shared taxonomy for mobility recently released by SAE International.

Tamika L. Butler, Esq., director of Equity and Inclusion at Toole Design, joins the ITE Talks Transportation Podcast to discuss the critical issue of equity in transportation. She delves deep into the challenges confronting transportation professionals when it comes to designing systems and communities that are safer, more accessible, and more equitable for all, and discusses key disparities and concerns currently at play in the industry.

We’d like to give our listeners a little perspective on you beyond your work and ITE. Can you give us some insights on what you like to do when you are not focused on transportation?

We have covered a variety of topics in our Q&A sessions, what area haven’t we touched on that you are passionate about and would like to share with our members?

ITE is an international organization with members in more than 75 countries, but the vast majority of our members are in North America. How do we best balance the desire to have a larger global presence with the reality of where the majority of our current members live and work?

ITE is seeking to broaden its reach and become a true “Community of Transportation Professionals. What should we be doing to attract and retain a broader, more diverse membership?