President
Kumares C. Sinha, Ph.D., P.E., F.ASCE
Purdue University
Sinha@ecn.purdue.edu

Vice President
Robert D. Stevens, Ph.D., P.E., F.ASCE
Arcadis
rstevens@arcad is-us.com

Treasurer
Eva Lerner-Lam, Aff.M.ASCE
The Palisades
Group, Inc.
elernerlam@
palisadesgroup.com

Past-President
Robert R. Costigan, Ph.D., P.E., M.ASCE
Rcostigan8776@
woway.com

Larry Mugler, AICP, M.ASCE
Denver Regional
Council of Governments
lmugler@drcog.org

A. Essam Radwan, Ph.D., P.E., F.ASCE
University of
Central Florida
aeradwan@mail. ucf.edu

C. Michael Walton, Ph.D., P.E., F.ASCE
University of
Texas at Austin
cmwalton@mail. utexas.edu

Secretary
Jonathan C. Esslinger, P.E., F.ASCE
Transportation &
Development Institute
jesslinger@asce.org

In This Edition
T&DI Election Results

T&DI Sponsors Bus Rapid Transit Workshop

Task Force Studies Engineer's Role

A Message from our President

Intermodal Committee

Federal Agency Asks for Industry Assistance

Transportation Reauthorization Update

New Subcommittees Seek Volunteers to Develop...

8th AATT Conference in Beijing, 2004

Prizes, Incentives Offered for Early Renewals

WEBINARS

Award Nominations Due Soon

ASCE Member Memoirs

Live Interactive Webinar
Circulation for Commercial Development


Baltimore 2004 Annual Conference
T&DI Day, Friday, October 22, 2004
September 2004

T&DI ELECTION RESULTS

The Transportation & Development Institute welcomes Louis F. Cohn, Ph. D., P.E., and F. ASCE to the Board of Governors. Lou was elected by T&DI's members to the Board for a four year term beginning October 1, 2004.

Dr. Cohn has been Professor of Civil Engineering at the University of Louisville since 1984, where he also served as department chair for 18 years. His Ph.D. is from the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, and he is a P.E. in five states.

Lou has chaired two ASCE Executive Committees, the former Urban Transportation Division, and the Technical Council on Computing and Information Technology; two ASCE technical committees: Advanced Technology in Transportation, and Expert Systems; and two TRB Committees. He also served as President of the former Nashville Section. Lou is a member of the T&DI Planning and Economic, and Infrastructure Systems Committees.

He has authored more than 80 papers (including 18 in ASCE journals), a CERF Report and two NCHRP Reports. Lou is also the author of two books, including Opportunities in Civil Engineering.

Lou has received these ASCE national awards: 1985 Walter L. Huber Civil Engineering Research Prize, 1997 Frank M. Masters Transportation Engineering Award, 2002 Harland Bartholomew Award, and 2003 Computing in Civil Engineering Award.


T&DI Sponsors Bus Rapid Transit Workshop

T&DI, in partnership with the Federal Transit Administration (FTA), the Institute of Transportation Engineers (ITE), and the National Transit Institute (NTI) are jointly sponsoring a series of workshops educating transportation planners and engineers about this new, exciting transit concept. The first workshop is being held on October 22, 2004 at the Baltimore Convention center in conjunction with ASCE’s Annual Conference and Exposition.

Each workshop participant will receive a copy of FTA's new Characteristics of BRT (CBRT) report as part of their registration. The workshop's speakers are national experts on the different aspects of BRT such as, planning, engineering, operations, and vehicle guidance. The Workshop's luncheon key note speaker is Maryland Department of Transportation Secretary Robert L. Flanagan who will address his state's initiatives in BRT and other transit modes. The format for the workshop is a presentation on a specific aspect of BRT immediately followed by a question and answer session on that topic. The workshop will conclude with an open forum and panel discussion that will help FTA identify gaps in knowledge and topics for inclusion in future revisions to the CBRT report.

Registration for the workshop is $125 ($150 after October 1) which includes course materials, breaks, and lunch. You can register on-line, at http://www.asce.org/conferences/annual04/tdi_day.cfm, and by phone at 800-548-ASCE (2723).

You're also invited to attend the Francis C. Turner Lecture Breakfast beginning at 7:00 AM on October 22. This year's recipient of the Turner Lecture is Tom Downs, President and CEO of the ENO Transportation Foundation. Mr. Downs' lecture is titled "Is this the End of the Road?" Tickets for the Turner Lecture Breakfast are available at $25 using the BRT Workshop registration form.

If you're not able to attend the Baltimore BRT Workshop please check on T&DI's website (www.tanddi.org) for more information on future workshops in early 2005 in Florida, Southern California, and Las Vegas!


Task Force Studies Engineer's Role in Design/Build and Construction Management at Risk
By: Charles (Chuck) Williams, P. E.




Charles Willaims, P.E.

The T&DI Construction Committee has formed a Task Force to study the engineer's role in Alternative Project Delivery methods, namely Construction Management at risk and Design/Build. Our industry is going through major changes as seen in the increased use of new project delivery methods. As these delivery methods have become more prominent, the roles and responsibilities of the engineer have often been misunderstood and misinterpreted, says Chuck Williams, PE, MASCE, Chair of the Task Force. Many owners, design firms and most general contractors are still defining how the engineer participates in various roles such as design scope, construction quality, site related changes, final technical decisions and interfaces with the owner and third parties. "It's terribly important that our profession "step up", not "back", to perform its rightful role in these new delivery methods to promote project success and best serve the owner. "We hope to evaluate the currently defined roles and make some recommendations that owners and firms can utilize to build better project teams and execute projects more effectively," continues Chuck.

The mission statement of the Task Force is the following: "Evaluate the major alternative project delivery methods to define roles and responsibilities of the engineer relative to business, professional, and ethical perspectives. Develop and provide conclusions and recommendations in a published work product for use in the design–construction industry. Note: While there are several engineers who play key roles in capital project delivery, the term "Engineer", as referred to herein, is defined as the individual or firm that is professionally sealing or stamping the design documents to be utilized for construction.

The Task Force is currently soliciting owner and industry firm views and opinions and evaluating the current engineer roles as defined in various industry documents. If you have an interest to learn more about the Task Force work, and would like to participate, please contact Chuck at cwilliams@odcsynergy.com or Committee Chair, Matt McDole at mmcdole@e-470.com.







Matthew McDole, P.E., L.S.
Construction Committee Chair


A Message from our President

As this is the last newsletter during my tenure as T&DI's President, I would like to look back and review what we have accomplished during the past year.

An important accomplishment was the creation and adoption of a strategic plan. The committee and council chairs and the Board of Governors met in San Diego in February and developed the plan. The draft plan was circulated among members for comments and was subsequently adopted. This Vision, Mission and Objectives are posted on our web site. I am pleased to report that we have already accomplished some of the action items identified in the plan. For example, we initiated this newsletter in March as a forum for our members to communicate and network.

Another major effort this year was made to develop partnerships with other organizations and agencies. We are partnering with the Federal Transit Administration (FTA), the Institute of Transportation Engineers (ITE), and the National Transit Institute (NTI) on a series of four workshops on Bus Rapid Transit. The first workshop is being offered during the ASCE Annual Conference in October in Baltimore. We are working with the Interlocking Concrete Pavement Institute on the creation of a pre-standard on the use of pavers in full traffic applications. Our partnership with Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) continued on the LTPP paper contest. We also joined FHWA, the ENO Transportation Foundation, APWA, ITE and NTI to initiate discussions regarding transportation work force issues.

T&DI was sought out by other organizations for its expert resources particularly in the areas of transportation security and pavement design. For example, T&DI is represented on the AASHTO Special Committee on Transportation Security, and we were invited to participate in Federal Aviation Administration's (FAA) New Large Aircraft Working Group to disseminate information from this group to our members and other civil engineering professionals. We also have a T&DI representative sitting on the technical panel within the Innovative Concrete Pavement Foundation, working to revise the FAA's concrete pavement specification.

During the past year we took part in ASCE's surface transportation bill reauthorization efforts and contributed financially to extend ASCE’s Congressional Fellow's tenure on the staff of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee. We also were invited to participate in the United Nations Conference on Road Safety to form a worldwide alliance in combating this major public health issue.

A number of specialty conferences were held during the past year and several others planned for future years. The 28th International Air Transport Conference was held in Washington, DC in July and the 8th International Conference on Advanced Technologies was organized in Beijing in May. A national teleconference was held on Roving Vehicle Inspections for transit systems and it received wide coverage in the media. Three web-based seminars were organized; Gravel Roads on July 21, Understanding Terrorism and Public Transit on August 4, and Pedestrian Crossing Treatments on September 14th. T&DI jointly marketed a new continuing education course on Traffic Calming with ASCE’s Continuing Education Department. We also developed a liaison with ASCE's International Activities Committee.

The institute exists for the benefits of its members. We are always searching for ideas that can enhance our profession and our collective interests. If you have any suggestions or you want to take part in any existing or possible future activities, please take a few minutes and contact me or any of the members of the Board of Governors or Chairs of Committees and Councils or our Director. During the past year many members responded to my call to take part in institute activities. We have added 34 new members to our technical committees' rosters. Some of those members volunteered for multiple committees. I believe we have been able to accommodate the interests of all those who volunteered.

As my term as the President draws to a close, I welcome our Incoming President Robert Stevens, Ph.D., P.E., F.ASCE who has been active in ASCE for many years and is one of the founders of the institute. I am sure Dr. Stevens will take us to a greater height in our third year of existence. I want to conclude by thanking my colleagues and fellow members of the institute and by expressing my appreciation of the hard work of Jonathan Esslinger, P.E., F.ASCE, T&DI's Director and Andrea Baker, Institute Administrator.

Kumares C. Sinha, Ph.D., P.E., F.ASCE


Intermodal Committee

The Intermodal Committee, one of five technical committees of the Planning & Development Council, is currently undertaking three major projects. The committee is preparing a white paper entitled "Intermodal Transportation Systems: Overview And Guidelines for Users" that addresses several important issues, including intermodal freight and passenger transportation, intermodal efficiency and security, techniques and resources, and opportunities and challenges. The committee plans to develop a monograph on intermodal transportation with chapters that will provide details on the specific issues addressed in the white paper, and more. Finally, the committee has started organizing an international congress on Intermodal Transportation: Efficiency and Security in cooperation with other committees and organizations. The congress, planned for 2006, will help provide a forum for professional discussion among all involved parties, disseminate the latest developments, familiarize decision makers with current intermodal issues and challenges, and showcase success stories. The committee is looking for individuals to become members of the committee and actively participate in its activities. If interested, contact Dr. Said Easa at seasa@gwemail.ryerson.ca.










Said Easa, Ph.D., P.E., F. ASCE
Chair, Intermodal Committee


Federal Agency Asks for Industry Assistance

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) is conducting six (6) listening sessions across the country in September and October. The purpose of these sessions is to hear from stakeholders like you about ways FMCSA can improve the monitoring and assessing the safety of the motor carrier industry, and how the information should be presented to the public.

FMCSA recognizes that its stakeholders have valuable ideas that can assist them improve their ability to meet the goal of significantly reducing fatalities, injuries, and crashes involving large trucks and buses. The listening sessions will include a morning plenary session and up to four (4) facilitated breakout sessions. You may also participate in a roundtable discussion during the afternoon session with other stakeholders to share your thoughts and perspectives.

Details on the locations of the listening sessions may be found in the August 20, 2004 issue of the Federal Register in the Notices section.


Transportation Reauthorization Update

House and Senate leaders returned to Washington September 7 to hopefully finish work on a number of priorities, including a six year reauthorization of the nation’s transportation programs. Before leaving Washington at the end of July for a six week recess, another extension of the programs was passed that takes the highway programs to September 24 and transit programs to September 30.

The main sticking point remains a total funding level. In the final meeting before the recess of a House-Senate Conference Committee, House leaders made a counteroffer of $299 billion in contract authority and $284 billion in guaranteed funding, about $5 billion more in guaranteed funding and $15 billion more in contract authority than was passed by the full House, but still short of the figures passed by the full Senate. House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chairman Don Young (R-AK) indicated the amount was less than he desired, but was the maximum amount that would be acceptable to House Republican leaders and to the President. Young had previously pushed for a $375 billion reauthorization bill.

Senate conferees reacted coolly to the proposal, with Conference Committee Chairman James Inhofe (R-OK) suggesting the proposal would be defeated by the full Senate had a vote been held that day. Negotiations continued over the August recess.

Visit http://www.asce.org/govrel/tea3 for the latest news on this important issue. Also, visit ASCE's advocacy website at http://www.asce.org/advocacy.html to learn more details and express your opinions to your elected officials on this and other issues important to civil engineering.

ASCE Government Relations has moved!

As of August 1st, ASCE GR has moved to temporary quarters in the Ronald Reagan Building in downtown Washington, D.C. Please make note of our new contact information:

ASCE Government Relations
Ronald Reagan Building & International Trade Center
1300 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
Suite 700
Washington DC 20004
Phone: 202-204-2500
Fax: 202-204-2501
govwash@asce.org


New Subcommittees Seek Volunteers to Develop New Guidelines for Transportation Security

The Transportation Security Committee of T&DI has established two new subcommittees to develop Guidelines for Transportation Security. Both Subcommittees will be chaired by Eva Lerner-Lam, past chair of the Transportation Security Committee.

The Subcommittee on Guidelines for Roving Security Inspections will adapt best practices in the use of explosives detection dogs (EDD’s) and principles used by roving inspectors for fare inspection on transit vehicles to address issues of security in transportation terminals and on transportation vehicles. The Subcommittee is seeking security professionals with experience at transportation agencies, transit operating personnel familiar with fare inspection procedures, transit police officers, and others with experience handling EDD’s or developing and implementing fare inspection policies.

The Subcommittee on Guidelines for Professional Discourse will explore how professionals should handle the treatment of information related to transportation security and will develop a list of easy-to-reference Do's and Don'ts to guide professionals in how to discuss and disseminate information related to planning and analysis of transportation security systems. The subcommittee is seeking engineers and planners with experience handling "security-sensitive information."

If you are interested in serving on one or both of these subcommittees, contact Eva Lerner-Lam at elernerlam@palisadesgroup.com or 201-567-0088, ext. 11. for details or contact T&DI for the committee nomination form (tanddi@asce.org)


8th AATT Conference in Beijing, 2004

The 8th International Conference on Applications of Advanced Technologies in Transportation Engineering (AATT) held in Beijing, China May 26 – 28, 2004 was a great success. There were over 650 attendees representing twenty-six different countries. The conference was organized by the members of the Transportation & Development Institute and hosted by the China Academy of Transportation Sciences. The first conference of this series was held in San Diego in February, 1989 in cooperation with the California Department of Transportation. Since then these conferences were held in Minneapolis, Minnesota; Seattle, Washington; Capri, Italy; Irvine, California; Singapore and Boston, Massachusetts. The 9th conference will be held in Chicago, Illinois in 2006.

At the opening session of the Beijing conference, Wong Mengyong, Vice Minister of the Ministry of Communications, spoke about China's commitment to the use of emerging technologies. There were a number of keynote speeches on topics such as the status and prospects of advanced technologies application in China by Feng Maorun, Chief Engineer of the Ministry of Communications, recent developments in ITS in the United States by C. Michael Walton, Ph.D., P.E., F.ASCE of the University of Texas – Austin, and the experiences in the use of ITS technologies in Europe by F. Busch of Technical University of Munich, Germany. In a plenary panel session Chris Hendrickson, Ph.D., P.E., M.ASCE of Carnegie-Mellon University, Ed Sullivan, Ph.D., M.ASCE of California State Polytechnic University, Eva Lerner-Lam, Aff.M.ASCE of Palisades Group, Louis Cohn, Ph.D., P.E. F.ASCE of Louisville University and Kumares Sinha, Ph.D., P.E., F.ASCE of Purdue University discussed a wide range of issues from costs and benefits of technologies, traffic management and congestion pricing, ITS technology applications to transportation security and future directions.

There were several lively sessions including new methodologies for traffic flow prediction, traffic signal and control systems, O-D estimation and route choice, transportation logistics, GPS and the use of probe vehicles, network modeling, artificial intelligence applications, and traveler information systems. In a very well attended session technologies of managing traffic for the Olympic Games and special events was discussed where experiences from Atlanta and Sydney and plans for Athens and Beijing were presented.

An important feature of this conference was the attendance of students from four universities in Beijing with free registration and their interaction with the presenters greatly enriched the sessions. The conference banquet accompanied a cultural variety show. The general consensus was that the conference provided a unique opportunity for the researchers and practitioners from China to network with their counter parts in the U.S.A and Europe. The conference proceedings were published by ASCE and it is available for purchase from the ASCE Publication Department at www.pubs.asce.org.


Some participants at the 8th AATT Conference In Beijing


Prizes, Incentives Offered for Early Renewals

ASCE’s membership division will again be conducting drawings and awarding prizes this fall to encourage members to renew their membership early. As of September 1 members will be able to renew their membership, the address for online renewal being www.asce.org/renewal. Those renewing by the following dates will have a chance to win the prizes shown:

October 1: portable DVD player
October 18: handheld Global Positioning System receiver
November 1: Digital Camera
December 1: Apple iPod
December 13: 42 – inch plasma television

For more information, e-mail member@asce.org , call (800) 548-ASCE or (703) 295-6300.


WEBINARS

Webinars Offered by ASCE Cont. Ed. in conjuntion with T & DI
Seminar Title Day, Date and Time, ET Instructor
Signalized Intersection Safety Tuesday,10/5/2004 @ Noon to 1PM, Eastern Time Nazir Lalani
On Site Circulation for Commercial Development Tuesday,10/12/2004 @ Noon to 1PM, Eastern Time Nazir Lalani
Roadside Delineation and Safety Systems Tuesday,12/7/2004 @ Noon to 1PM, Eastern Time Nazir Lalani
The Forgiving Highway: Clear Zones as Recommended by AASHTO Tuesday, 12/14/2004 @ Noon to 1PM, Eastern Time Lou Stephens
Economic Analysis of Roadside Design Tuesday, 1/18/05, Noon to 1PM, Eastern Time Lou Stephens


Fall 04/ Winter 05 Transportation Seminars
Comprehensive Site Design Workshop November 11-12, 2004 Baltimore MD
Comprehensive Site Design Workshop February 24-25, 2005 Las Vegas NV
Context Sensitive Solutions October 19-20, 2004 Baltimore MD
Context Sensitive Solutions December 9-10, 2004 Tampa Bay TX
Context Sensitive Solutions February 3-4, 2005 San Antonio FL
Context Sensitive Solutions March 10-11, 2005 Chicago IL
Context Sensitive Solutions-Advanced Consensus Bldg Not Conflict Resolution -NEW! January 6-7, 2005 Scottsdale AZ
Context Sensitive Solutions-Advanced Flexibility of Design-NEW! February 24-25, 2005 Baltimore MD
Planning and Design of Service and System Interchanges in Urban and Suburban Areas February 17-18, 2005 Las Vegas NV
Preventive Pavement Maintenance February 3-4, 2005 Orlando FL
Residential Land Development Practices October 21-22, 2004 Chicago IL
Residential Land Development Practices December 9-10, 2004 Scottsdale AZ
Residential Land Development Practices March 31- April 1, 2005 Tampa FL
Roadside Design October 28-29, 2004 Albany NY



Award Nominations Due Soon

The deadlines for nominations for national awards given through T&DI are as follows: Robert Horonjeff Award, October 1, James Laurie Prize, November 1, Frank M. Masters Transportation Engineering Award, November 1, Wilbur S. Smith Award, November 1 and The Francis C. Turner Lecture Award, November 1. Nominations should be sent to the Honors and Awards Department, ASCE, 1801 Alexander Bell Drive, Reston, VA 20191


ASCE Member Memoirs

Memoirs of deceased members are published in ASCE's annual publication Transactions of the American Society of Civil Engineers. Friends or colleagues can acknowledge a recently deceased member by submitting memoirs to us. The deadline for submission for the 2004 Transaction is December 20th. For more information and instruction, see http://www.pubs.asce.org/authors/memoirs.html .



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