Transportation Radio

At ITS New Jersey's annual meeting in September, Veronique (Ronnie) Hakim, Managing Director of the MTA, was inducted into the organization's hall of fame. Hakim, who served the Garden State for six years as executive director of NJ Transit and the New Jersey Turnpike Authority, has had a unique opportunity to see the bi-state transportation network from three of the largest transportation agencies in the US. She spoke with Transportation Radio about what she learned during her time in New Jersey, especially from a technology perspective.

When the New York City subway opened in 1904 even H.G. Wells probably didn't envision the types of communications we take for granted today. Transit Wireless took on the challenge of making it possible to using cellphones in underground subway stations. Not only is cell service now available, but Wi-Fi and public safety radios also work in underground stations.

Bill Bayne is the CEO of Transit Wireless and we spoke about what the company is doing and some of the challenges they faced in making it operational.

For nearly four years Ananth Prasad served as Florida's Secretary of Transportation. More recently, he's been a senior vice president and National Transportation Practice Leader at HNTB. At the end of 2016 he wrote an op-ed piece on investing in the nation's infrastructure. Five months into the Trump Administration he talked with Transportation Radio about where things now stand and some factors to consider on how to allocate that money.

Virginia Secretary of Transportation Aubrey Layne has all aspects of transportation under his purview. From highways, to ports, to transit, if it moves people or cargo, chances are he plays a role. In Transportation Radio's ongoing series featuring state transport agencies around the US, we talk about how the commonwealth manages transportation and what makes Virginia unique.

Kirk Steudle, the director of Michigan DOT, is distinguished in many ways but two factors that stand out are his years of service as the leader of the state's transportation agency and the national leadership roles he's had with AASHTO, TRB and ITS America. That experience give him unique insights not only into MDOT but what's happening nationally. He shares that perspective in the latest episode of Transportation Radio's profiles of state DOTs.

Over the past few years you can barely open a newspaper or watch a newscast and not hear automated and autonomous vehicles mentioned. One form of automated vehicles have been carrying passengers since 1975. West Virginia University's personal rapid transit system connects three campuses and downtown Morgantown. New systems are being developed elsewhere in the world, primarily in Asia and the Middle East. Peter Muller is the president of the Advanced Transit Association, as well as his own firm, PRT Consulting. In this Transportation Radio interview we discuss PRT, where it is and where he sees it going.

The Rhode Island Department of Transportation may have the smallest territory to cover of any state DOT, but there's quite a few transportation facilities packed into that area. The Main Street of the east coast, I-95, carries millions of travelers, both locally and interstate. Amtrak's busiest line, the Northeast Corridor runs through the state, connecting Connecticut and Massachusetts. In addition there are ports, ferries, a major airport, and commuter buses and trains. Peter Alviti is RIDOT's director, and he spoke with Transportation Radio about his agency as part of our profile of state DOTs.

For the third year in a row, the Ferry Safety and Technology Conference will take place in Manhattan. This year’s event is May 11 and 12. The conference is presented by the Worldwide Ferry Safety Association and brings maritime experts together to discuss ways to improve ferry service safety and efficiency. Dr. Roberta Weisbrod is the executive director of the association and she spoke with Transportation Radio about the conference and her organization.

When it comes to extremes, no department of transportation in the United States comes close to what the Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities has to deal with. From the coldest weather in the US to the highest mountain in North America, Alaska presents a unique set of challenges. Marc Luiken is the commissioner of Alaska DOT&PF and in the third episode of Transportation Radio's profiles of state DOTs, Commissioner Luiken talked about the agency he leads.

This year's Parking Industry Exhibition, aka PIE, returns to the Chicago area. A change in this year's event is that there will be tracks focused on different segments of the parking industry, such as airports, municipalities and hospitals. The man responsible for pulling all this together is John Van Horn. He's the editor and publisher of Parking Today and he spent a few minutes talking with Transportation Radio about the event.