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Press Release from ITSA

2006 National Rural ITS Conference Broadens Horizons in Big Sky Country

Big Sky, Montana, August 30, 2006 -- Set against the majestic backdrop of the Rocky Mountains and Lone Mountain, the 2006 National Rural ITS (NRITS) Conference, held in Big Sky, MT, August 13-16, provided more than 250 rural transportation and emergency services professionals with three days of workshops, technical sessions, and unique networking opportunities.

Hosted by the Montana Department of Transportation, Rocky Mountain ITS Chapter, Western Transportation Institute, Federal Highway Administration, Critical Illness and Trauma Foundation, and ITS America, the 2006 NRITS provided the opportunity for attendees to obtain information on current rural transportation issues, and exchange valuable ideas and information regarding the challenges faced in rural transportation. Session topics included Advanced Traveler Information Systems and 511, Road Weather Systems and Modeling, Coordinated Public Mobility, Data Collection and Sharing, Solutions for Rural Transit and Congestion, Commercial Vehicle Safety, ITS Resources and Multi-State Initiatives, Public Safety, and Communications. Additional topics included Animal Detection Systems, Operations and Maintenance, Partnerships, and Emergency Evacuations and Services.

New Frontier for NRITS

New this year to the NRITS format, were three special opportunities for attendees — workshops, professional continuing education units (CEUs), and interdisciplinary sessions. According to Steve Albert, Chairman of the ITS America Rural Special Interest Group (SIG) and Director of the Western Transportation Institute, “The Rural SIG’s goal is to transition the NRITS Conference from a predominately technology transfer event to one that is more focused on workforce development and training, which began with this year’s NRITS Conference. It is ITS America’s goal to facilitate more dialogue and to conduct training workshops and seminars.” In keeping with this goal and paradigm shift, this year's program included a National Highway Institute ITS Procurement Course and an invitation-only United We Ride/Mobility Services for All Americans Workshop for Rural Areas. In addition, those attendees signed up to receive CEUs could receive up to 1.65 for their attendance to the full conference; 1.3 CEUs for attendance on Monday and Tuesday.

Finally, more than the traditional transportation organizations and agencies were involved in sponsoring the 2006 NRITS ? new to the sponsorship list this year was the Critical Illness and Trauma Foundation. In learning that the Foundation was scheduled to host a Rural Emergency Medical Services Summit (the “Summit At The Summit”; August 16-18) at the same venue as NRITS, the ITS America Rural SIG coordinated with the Foundation to develop a full day of interdisciplinary sessions to highlight the important connection between rural emergency medical service transportation and need for rural ITS, including sessions on Initiatives to Improve Emergency Medical Response, Partnering and Outreach, and Improving EMS and Incident Response. Each conference offered their respective attendees reduced registration rates for attendance of both events. Presentations from the conference sessions will be made available after September 15, 2006 at http://www.westerntransportationinstitute.org/professionaldevelopment/nrits/2006/

Networking in the Wild, Wild West

Despite the substantive and diverse technical sessions and workshops, 2006 NRITS was not all work and no play. Attendees weregiven the opportunity to sharpen networking skills while visiting the scenic areas of Big Sky Resort, the town of West Yellowstone, and Yellowstone National Park. Networking activities included an opening exhibitors’ reception; group outdoor activities such as mountain biking, white water rafting, hiking, golf, fly fishing and horseback riding; and a dinner-dance complete with a live award-winning country band and two-step dance lessons, making it easy for attendees to mix business with pleasure.

Future NRITS Conferences

Next year's NRITS Conference is scheduled for October 7-10, 2007, for Traverse City, MI, at the Grand Traverse Resort. Sponsored in part by the Michigan DOT, ITS Michigan, U.S. DOT, and ITS America, the 2007 NRITS will provide an opportunity for transportation professionals to share information and ideas on current rural transportation issues at an unparalleled destination resort. Participants will have the opportunity for networking while visiting the many scenic areas surrounding the City of Traverse City and Sleeping Bear Dunes National Park. From the endless outdoor opportunities, including boating, winery tours, world-class golf, balloon flights, and horseback riding, to the unique museum and historic venues, or the casino and downtown nightlife, take a look, and you will say “Take Me There” to the casual and stimulating lifestyle of Northern Michigan. For more information, visit http://www.itsa.org/nrits.html.

Conference Presentations (organized by session)

Session A1: Technology Synthesis and Evaluation of Road/Weather Systems MODERATOR: Ed Boselly, Weather Solutions Group
Katie O'Keefe	Western Transportation Institute	Evaluation of the UDOT Weather Operations/RWIS Program
Manju Kumar	Western Transportation Institute	Evaluation of Automated Wind Warning Systems
Xianming Shi	Western Transportation Institute	Synthesis of Vehicle Based Winter Maintenance Technologies
Ahmed Al-Kaisy	Montana State University	Weather-Response Signal Timing: Practical Guidelines
Session A2: ATIS and 511 Interoperability MODERATOR: Ben Frevert, Iteris
Robert White	Vermont Agency of Transportation	ConnectVermont: Vermont’s Tourism and Traveler Information Platform
Jaime Eidswick	Western Transportation Institute	Evaluation of Alaska’s 511 System
Heather Young	ITS America	511 Interoperability Quick Tips
Session A3: Coordinated Public Mobility MODERATOR: Gwo-Wei Torng, Mitretek Systems
John Krause	Idaho Transportation Department	Idaho Statewide APTS Assessment
Pam Couch	Modoc County Transportation Commission	An Evolving Frontier-Rural Mobility Management Center: Improving Coordination and Mobility with Advanced Technologies
David Kack	Western Transportation Institute	An Evaluation of the Transportation Component of the Real Choices Systems Change Grant in Montana
Session A4: Innovative Communication Solutions MODERATOR: David Lochtefeld, Utah Department of Transportation
Doug Galarus	Western Transportation Institute	The Redding Responder Project: Mobile Data Communication Challenges in Remote Rural Areas
Dr. Richard Wolff	Montana State University	Providing Traveler Information in Rural Areas Using Ad Hoc Wireless Routing
Bradley Cameron	Utah Department of Transportation	City-wide Wireless Traffic Signal Interconnect and TCC Implementation for Utah’s Washington County
Session B1: Road/Weather – Modeling Applications in Road Maintenance MODERATOR: Thomas Kratochvil, New Mexico Department of Transportation
Jennifer Hanson	Surface Transportation Weather Research Center	Spring Load Restriction Modeling
Damon Grabow	Surface Transportation Weather Research Center	A Discussion of Geospatial Blowing Snow Susceptibility Index
Benjamin Hershey	Surface Transportation Weather Research Center	The Effects of Residual Chemical on the Road During Blowing/Drifting Snow Events
Leon Osborne, Jr.	Surface Transportation Weather Research Center	A Blowing and Drifting Snow Prediction System Supporting Winter Road Maintenance Decision Making
Session B2: “Rural” Congestion and Travel – Getting the Word Out MODERATOR: Fred Kitchener, McFarland Management LLC
Michael Klatt	ADDCO, Inc.	No Mickey Mouse Operation: PITS Keeps Travelers Informed
Chris Strong	Western Transportation Institute	Golden Gate National Recreation Area ITS Pilot Project Evaluation
Mark Parry	Utah Department of Transportation	A Road for All Seasons: The Little Cottonwood Canyon Transportation Study
Gary Danczyk	Glacier National Park	Using ITS to enable Going-to-the-Sun Road Construction
Session B3: ITS Solutions for Rural Transit MODERATOR: Richard Hodges, Hodges Transportation Consulting, LLC
Todd Allen	RouteMatch Software	Managing and Coordinating Transportation in Rural Communities Using Transit ITS Technologies
Jeff Gerfen	California Polytechnic State University	Commercialization Test Deployment of the EDAPTS Smart Transit System
Yehuda Gross	ITS Joint Program Office, USDOT	System Impacts and Lessons Learned from Community Transportation Coordination Operational Tests Using ITS
Session B4: Innovative Data Collection and Sharing MODERATOR: Sean Campbell, California Department of Transportation
Jack Stickel	Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities	Seasonal Weight Restriction Decision Making Process
Gregory Thompson	ThomTech Design, Inc.	Level of Service Evaluation and Analysis of Anti-Icing Road Treatments
Doug Galarus	Western Transportation Institute	The WeatherShare Project: Aggregation and Dissemination of Weather Information for Public Safety
Clint Gregory	California Department of Transportation	New Frontiers in Data Collection
Session C1: Innovative Road/Weather Data Collection, Control and Sharing MODERATOR: Mark Owens, Meridian Environmental Technology, Inc.
Xianming Shi	Western Transportation Institute	Integrating the Surface Transportation Weather Information: An ITS System for Northern California
Ray Murphy	Federal Highway Administration	New and Emerging Strategies for Road-Weather Management
Edward Boselly	Weather Solutions Group	Integrated Information for Roadway Maintenance and Operations Support
Bonnie Haskins & Jennifer Hanson	Surface Transportation Weather Research Center	ESS Data Control and Evaluation
Session C2: Multi-State Initiatives MODERATOR: Steve Albert, Western Transportation Institute
Bill Legg	Washington State Department of Transportation	North/West Passage Corridor: Development of an ITS Integrated Corridor Strategic Plan
Ed Ryen	North Dakota Department of Transportation	Multi-State ITS Project Deployment: A Win-Win Arrangement
David Huft	South Dakota Department of Transportation	The Pooled Fund Study Maintenance Decision Support System
Ray Starr	Minnesota Department of Transportation	Stop Sign GAP Assistance at Rural Expressway Intersections
Session C3: Transportation Management and Operations MODERATOR: Bob Koeberlein, Idaho Transportation Department
Gary Schneider,	R&S Consulting	Innovation in Systems Engineering for ITS Design, Management and Operation
Karen Gilbertson	Kansas Department of Transportation	Kansas Statewide Transportation Operations and Management Center Study
Miomar Ivanovic	GeoDecisions	Addressing Rural ITS Needs When Developing Statewide ITS Operations Strategies
Davis Powell	Texas Department of Transportation	Texoma Vision: Traffic Management Center with a Rural Texas Twist
Session C4: ITS Resources MODERATOR: Dennis Foderberg, Short Elliott Hendrickson, Inc.
David Kack	Western Transportation Institute	Developing a Transportation Toolkit for Federal Land Managers
Heather Young	ITS America	SAFETEA-LU S1201: Real-Time Systems Information Management Program
Session D1: Commercial Vehicle Safety and Operations MODERATOR: Bill Legg, Washington State Department of Transportation
Larry Redd	R&S Consulting	Evaluation of Intelligent Transportation System Alternatives for Reducing the Risks of Truck Rollover Crashes Due to High Winds
Randy Allemeier	Idaho Transportation Department	The Idaho Smart Roadside System “Efficient, Service-Oriented Weight Enforcement”
Ed McCormack	Washington State Transportation Center	Near Real-Time Truck Travel Data in Rural Corridors
Session D2: Innovative Approaches to Data and Communications MODERATOR: Dean Deeter, Athey Creek Consultants
Leslie Fowler	Kansas Department of Transportation	Dorothy to the Wizard: “Can You Hear Me Now?”  An Innovative Approach to Providing Public Safety and Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) Communications in Rural Kansas
Greg Thompson	ThomTech Desin, Inc.	Chaos versus Blink Applied to Data Collection
Session D3: ITS Maintenance MODERATOR: Mike Bousliman, Montana Department of Transportation
Manju Kumar	Western Transportation Institute	Maintenance of ITS Devices in Rural Areas: Case Studies
John Hansen	ITS-Solutions-Help, LLC/Mobile Detect, Inc.	ITS Requires Effective Maintenance (You Actually Wanted this to Work Too?!)
Session D4: Second Generation CARS-511 MODERATOR: Thomas Kratochvil, New Mexico Department of Transportation
Greg Laragan	Idaho Transportation Department	Overcoming the Challenges of Implementing a New Statewide Traveler Information and 511 System – Idaho’s Experiences
Bruce Burrows	Wyoming Department of Transportation	Route-based reporting for ATIS (Telephone Component)
Session E1: Animal Detection and Warning MODERATOR: Rob Ament, Western Transportation Institute
Sedat Gulen	Indiana Department of Transportation	Evaluation of Radar (Radio Detection and Ranging) Sensing in Reducing Vehicle-Deer Collisions on the Indiana Toll Road
Marcel Huijser	Western Transportation Institute	The Reliability of the Animal Detection System Along Hwy 191 in Yellowstone National Park, Montana
Laura Stanley	Virginia Tech Transportation Institute	Enhanced Wildlife Warnings as Potential Means of Reducing Wildlife-Vehicle Collisions
Amanda Hardy	Western Transportation Institute	Effectiveness of Animal Advisory Messages on Dynamic Message Signs as a Speed Reduction Tool: A Case Study in Rural Montana
Session E2: Public Safety Integration: Examples and Best Practices MODERATOR: Dia Gainor, Idaho EMS Bureau
Doug Funke	General Dynamics Advanced Information Systems	Integration of Collision and Emergency Medical Services Data to Improve Response to Automobile Collisions in the State of Alabama
John Hansen	ITS-Solutions-Help, LLC	Catching the BAD GUYS
Kevin McGinnis	National Association of EMS Officials	Pursuing a National Unified Goal for Traffic Incident Management
Session E3: Using ITS for Information Collection and Dissemination MODERATOR: Mark Parry, Utah Department of Transportation
Sean Campbell	California Department of Transportation	Web Based ITS Field Element Control and Traveler Information
Kristin Virshbo	Castle Rock Consultants	Expanding a Condition Reporting System into a Statewide Traffic Management System: The Experiences of Deploying the New York Thruway Authority Statewide Traffic Management System
Mohammad Smadi	Advanced Traffic Analysis Center	DMS Composer: A Software Application for Supporting DMS Operation
Tom Blaine	New Mexico Department of Transportation	Design of Automated Variable Speed Limits and Lane Assignments in Rural Areas
Session E4: New Strategies and Innovative Approaches to Road/Weather Systems MODERATOR: Mark Owens, Meridian Environmental Technology, Inc.
Jack Stickel	Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities	Rural Communications Solutions for Road Weather Information Systems
Joerg Rosenbohm	PB Farradyne	Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission (PTC) Fog Dectection
Mark Askelson	Surface Transportation Weather Research Center	The Pavement Precipitation Accumulation Estimation System (PPAES)
Ben Frevert	Iteris	Idaho RWIS Build Out
Session F2: Evacuation Preparedness and Response MODERATOR: Steve Clinger, Federal Highway Administration
Charles Brindell	PBS&J	FDOT Study of Multi-State Hurricane Contra-Flow and Evacuation Response
Session F3: Leveraging to Meet Partner Needs MODERATOR: Steve Albert, Western Transportation Institute
Lisa Loftus-Otway	Center for Transportation Research at University of Texas at Austin	Strategies for ITS Funding: The Benefits of Leasing
Tip Franklin	Serco Group, Inc.	Multi-Tasking for ITS
Session F4: Technology Evaluation MODERATOR: Wei Zhang, Federal Highway Administration
Wei Zhang	Federal Highway Administration	Field Evaluation of Detection Control Systems
Peter Davies	Castle Rock Consultants	The Potential Applications of High Definition Radio for Rural ITS
Chris Strong	Western Transportation Institute	Pilot Application of AVL on Snow Plows
Session G1: Improving EMS and Incident Response Lake/Canyon MODERATOR: Kevin McGinnis, National Association of State EMS Officials
Nels Sanddal	Critical Illness and Trauma Foundation	Rural Ambulance Crashes: Tragedies En Route to the Hospital
Marie Flanigan	Calspan-University at Buffalo Research Center	A GIS Evaluation of EMS Response to Alaskan Car Crashes
Session G2: Using Existing Technology in New Ways MODERATOR: John Hansen, ITS-Solutions-Help, LLC
Doug Galarus	Western Transportation Institute	The Application of Systems and Software Engineering Process Models for Development on Small to Moderate-Sized ITS Projects: WeatherShare and the Redding Responder Projects
Manju Kumar	Western Transportation Institute	A Smart Work Zone Delay Estimation System for Rural Highway Operations
Session G3: Communicating to Travelers: Lessons in Interagency Cooperation and Partnering MODERATOR: Greg Krueger, Michigan Department of Transportation
Amy Vanderbilt & Lisa Ballard	Glacier National Park	Communicating to Travelers: Glacier National Park is the Sum of its Partnerships
Jennifer Douglas	Citizens Conservation Corps of West Virginia	West Virginia Courtesy Patrol: Striving to Meet Tourism and Traveler Needs
Session G4: Workforce Development MODERATOR: Dennis Foderberg, Short Elliott Hendrickson, Inc.
Emily Parkany	Mitretek Systems	New Opportunities for ITS Learning
Richard Hodges	Hodges Transportation Consulting, Inc.	NTI’s ITS Staffing Courses
Joe Schopfer	Montana Department of Transportation	Developing Supervisors in a Technical Environment
Session H1: National Initiatives to Improve Emergency Medial Response Lake/Canyon MODERATOR: Nels Sanddal, Critical Illness and Trauma Foundation
Jack Stickel	Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities	Roadway Inventory Data for EMS Response – the MIRE Development
Clay Mann	Intermountain Injury Control Research Center	Reaching Towards a National EMS Dataset
Jenny Hansen	Next Generation 9-1-1	USDOT’s Next Generation 9-1-1 Initiatives
Kevin McGinnis	National Association of EMS Officials	Communications System of the Future
Session H2: Innovative Data Collection and Sharing MODERATOR: Mark Owens, Meridian Environmental Technology, Inc.
Bruce Churchill	Delcan Corporation	The Use of Cell Probe Data
Stephen Gaddy	Meridian Environmental Technology, Inc.	Automated Collection of Winter Maintenance Data: Applications and Challenges
Doug Galarus	Western Transportation Institute	The Redding Responder Project: Computing and Communication in the Middle of Nowhere
Session H3: Partnering and Outreach – Veteran Programs to New Approaches Dunraven/Obsidian MODERATOR: Martha Morecock Eddy, Wilbur Smith Associates
Dennis Foderberg	Short Elliott Hendrickson, Inc.	ITS Minnesota Outreach
Brian Scott	SRF Consulting, Inc.	Lessons Learned from a Major ITS Deployment Along a Rural Corridor
Michael Shaw	U.S. Department of Transportation	Satellite Navigation Services for Applications at Federal, State and Local Levels
Session H4: Microwave Communications for Rural ITS Applications Lamar/Gibbon MODERATOR: William Jameson, Western Transportation Institute
Ian Turnbull	California Department of Transportation	Microwave Communications for Rural ITS Applications

 

Conference Agenda

Click here to view the conference agenda with speaker bios and session descriptions