Countdown to San Diego...

This Friday, I fly out to San Diego to attend the ITE Technical Conference. I will also be attending my first ITE Board of Direction Meeting as a full District Director. Among the items on the agenda include:

1. MEGA Issue -- Public Inforamtion, Public Relations, Public Image/Information/Relations Development and Resources

2. Membership Recruitment, Retention and Reactivation Task Force Report

3. National Unified Goal for Traffic Incident Management

Certification Update...
Today, Tom Brahms updated the International Board on the status of the upcoming certification exams:

"At six sites on March 24, 2007 we will have 178 persons sitting for one of the four exams this surpasses the prior record date of October 2001 when 174 sat for the PTOE exam. For the first offering of the Professional Transportation Planner certification exam we have 76.

"A concerted effort will be made between now and the October 2007 multi-site TPCB PTOE/PTP/TSOS/ TOPS Exams to increase the number of applicants for all TPCB certifications but especially of TSOS and TOPS.

"From my perspective 2007 will be a successful year if we end it as follows:
Certificate Program_____ #Applicants 2007 _____End of Year # certificants
______PTOE________________ 300 __________________2,000
_______PTP________________ 250____________________ 175
______TSOS ________________ 200 ___________________ 150
______TOPS ________________130 ____________________100

"To reach these numbers I need your help. Talk up these opportunities. Talk up the training that is available for PTOE, TSOS and TOPS. Encourage the ITE sections to hold sessions around the refresher courses (many did so with the PTOE refresher courses and were able to provide a useful member service). For each of these programs the refresher course has a MS PowerPoint slide set with instructor notes (available from ITE Headquarters for $25.) and an accompanying reference (available for purchase from ITE Headquarters with discounts available for quantity purchases). ITE through the ITE Educational Foundation has scheduled these refresher courses as web seminars. Further we have recorded the audio and visuals for the refresher courses and they may be used on a self instructional basis. These will be available within the next two weeks. There will be a single disk for each certification program and they will be priced at $125 for each program. The user may go through the refresher courses at their own pace and repeat sections as necessary. We also have a practice exam available on line for a nominal fee of $10.

"A brochure will be produced in April to promote this material as well as the four certification programs.

"We have come a long way since January 1999 (the first offering of the PTOE exam) and we can and will make similar progress on all of the certification programs.

"On Friday, April 20, 2007 immediately following a two day TPCB Strategic Advance in Annapolis, MD there will be a workshop to define the audience, subject domains and the format of a transportation safety certification program. These are exciting times workings of the TPCB.

"Special thanks goes to Brian Bochner and Steve Gayle for the considerable effort that they contributed to getting questions prepared and reviewed, for their active participation in the exam assembly and subsequent reviews prior to the launching of the Professional Transportation Planner exam. Their efforts have made it possible for the 76 persons to take the PTP exam on March 24th. And by the way the 76 compares with 104 that sat for the PTOE exam in January 1999. This bodes well for the future of the PTP certification."

-- 03/14/07 e-mail from Thomas W. Brahms, Executive Director and CEO, Institute of Transportation Engineers, Transportation Professionals Certification Board

Midwestern District Director Report...

Yesterday, I filed my March District Director Report to ITE HQ. Below is text from that report. Thanks to the Section and District Presidents who all contributed to this report.

Institute of Transportation Engineers
International Director Report

International Director: Stephen J. Manhart, P.E., PTOE
Date Submitted: March 8, 2007
District: Midwestern District

I. Issues or topics discussed at chapter, section and district board meetings that may need to have ITE Board and/or staff discussion/action (please list for each issue/topic—the chapter, section or district person to contact for further information):

a. Issues with Membership Database -- The North Central Section continues to have problems with maintaining their own database (for email lists) and not getting timely updates from ITE on new member/member contact info changes. This is the lifeblood of our organization and should be the top priority of ITE. (Contact Marcus Culver, NCITE President.)

b. Web Pages -- Will ITE ever host section/district web pages? Would ITE ever consider having a staff of 2 to 3 people to maintain these web pages? It is a tough call, but we find it is becoming more and more difficult to find volunteers to keep our website up to date. Having a paid professional would help but also introduce issues with how to share those 2-3 people across all the Districts and Sections. (Contact Marcus Culver, NCITE President.)

c. District Dues -- There was a question a while back from someone about whether one could only pay local and national dues without paying district dues. According to Earl Newman, technically, one could opt out of paying District dues, but that isn't really advertised. Not that it is a common request, but it raised the issue of whether there is a need for the District to inform members more clearly on the services provided on the District level. (Contact Peter Lemmon, Illinois Section President.)

d. Section Restructuring -- The MOVITE Board is currently evaluating their Board make-up and representation. Any changes could be taken to a vote this year if a restructuring gets that far. The Section President would be the contact person who can elaborate as needed. (Contact Doug Ripley, MOVITE President.)

II. “New” topics and papers that you feel the other Board members and ITE Staff should be aware of that were presented at one of the chapter, section or district:

a. Real Time Traffic Database -- The winning paper for the Wisconsin Section’s Martin Bruening Award described Wisconsin DOT’s new database system, WISTRANSPORTAL, which will link all of the state’s real time traffic data and archival data such as accident reports into a central location for data analysis. This system will ultimately feed the State’s new “511” initiative and will assist designers in identifying high crash locations. These are just two of the possibilities derived from the new system which is still under development. For more information, contact Steven Parker, UW-Madison, Traffic Operations Lab, author, 608-265-4921

b. Modern Roundabouts – As with other areas of the country, modern roundabouts are becoming quite “fashionable” in the Midwest. Nevertheless, operational analysis of them remains a subject of much debate. For example, RODEL is becoming the accepted norm for roundabout analysis in Minnesota, while some agencies are admitting RODEL’s limitations and are considering other analysis tools. Some members are looking to ITE to provide leadership and direction in settling this operational analysis issue. NCITE’s Intersection Traffic Control Committee is looking at which analysis methods may be best for the Minnesota condition.


III. Student Chapter or student-related innovative activities and/or products that the ITE Board and/or staff should be aware of:

a. Professional Ethics at the Student Level – MOVITE will be discussing the topic of professional ethics as part of student activities this summer. (Get to ’em while their young!)

b. “Job-Shadowing” -- Last fall, after the Illinois Section’s monthly luncheon held at Illinois Institute of Technology and following a job fair, section members tried a "job shadow" program where students could go back to the office with participating firms for the a few hours in that afternoon to get a sense of the office environment, talk about different aspects of our jobs, answer questions, and hopefully get a feel for what we actually do at work. They are hoping to expand on this program this fall. Have other Sections tried something like this and if so, how was their experience?

c. ITSO -- NCITE’s student chapter at the University of Minnesota is called ITSO, Interdisciplinary Transportation Student Organization, and is actually a compilation of ITS MN, WTS and NCITE. The advantage of this, while it may appear that ITE is not strongly emphasized, is that you get a broader exposure to students you might not otherwise reach. NCITE has joint meetings and offers scholarships opportunities to OTSO, as well as mentoring programs. This group has surprisingly increased student membership and activity in our organization.

d. Students at TRB -- Both UW-Milwaukee and Madison sent student delegations to the TRB Annual Meeting. UW Milwaukee has sent a group every year since 1998 through innovative fund raising and Section support. (Contact Professor Alan Horowitz, Chair of Civil Engineering, UWM, 414-229-6685, for more information.)

IV. Unique programs or projects of the chapter, section or district:

a. Research Grant -- The North Central Section is looking at offering a small transportation research grant for a member or group in their section to further some already in-place project. The recipient would be required to write an article in their newsletter, perhaps give a section meeting presentation on the topic and submit an article to the ITE Journal and even perhaps present an International Meeting presentation. NCITE hopes to spur some good research and communication with this grant. This is in response to the lack of quality articles and reports being submitted for the newsletter, which is a result of members being so busy.

b. Green Bay Chapter – The Wisconsin Section is exploring the possibility of starting a regional chapter in the Green Bay (Fox Valley) area.


VI. General Comments / Other Significant Issues to bring to the attention of the Board and HQ Staff:

a. St. Louis Meeting -- MOVITE is hosting a joint Section and Midwestern District Meeting in St. Louis, MO, on June 13-15, 2007.

b. Billing of Non-International, Section Affiliate Members -- Can this be done at the International Level to use their billing resources? (Please contact Katie Belmore, WI Section Treasurer 414-225-3729)

c. E-Balloting -- Can Section elections be done under the same system that international uses for e-balloting under an ITE wide contract? (Contact Dan McCormick, WI Section Secretary 608-266-4761)

d. Midwestern ITE Blog – Since January, I have maintained a blog of ITE District and Section activities, news, and information of interest. My weblog address is:
www.midwestern-ite.blogspot.com

March in Minnesota... March roared in like a lion when the second massive snow storm in less than a week dumped more than a foot of snow throughout the upper Midwest. In the Twin Cities yesterday, the snow storm was anticipated, and Mn/DOT crews (top picture) did a great job in clearing the roads so that the p.m. peak drive was not gridlocked. In Duluth (lower picture), snowfall was combined with high winds coming off of Lake Superior, causing white-out conditions and stalling traffic in its tracks.

This weather was part of a larger severe storm that hit the Midwest and ares to the south yesterday. Severe thunderstorms and hail were reported in the Kansas City area, thunder-snow and ice were reported in Iowa, and tornadoes were reported throughout the South.

Early Daylight Savings and Traffic Signals...
Rick Zygowicz of the Wisconsin Section posted this timely warning (pun intended!) as part of ITE Wisconon News and Events:

The results of a brief survey have shown that only a small percentage of agencies that operate and maintain traffic signals have taken action to prepare traffic signals for the changes to Daylight Savings Time (DST) that take effect this year.

The 2005 Energy Policy Act has extended DST by one month. Previously DST took effect for most of the United States at 2 a.m. on the first Sunday of April and reverted to standard time at 2 a.m. on the last Sunday of October. Beginning this year DST begins for most of the United States at 2 a.m. on the second Sunday in March (March 11th) and reverts back to standard time at 2 a.m. on the First Sunday of November (November 4th).

If no action is taken traffic signal controllers may have incorrect time settings from March 11th - April 1st and October 28th - November 4th; resulting in Time of Day signal timing plans being offset by one hour on the dates indicated. Peak hour timing plans offset by one hour could potentially increase traffic delays at signalized intersections. It is recommended that this information be passed along to state and local agencies involved in the operation or maintenance of traffic signals to encourage appropriate action to be taken.

Agencies should be advised to check their system documentation to determine how these changes will effect the operation of their system(s). One or more of the following actions may be necessary:

> Controllers with programmable DST settings -- Update the settings to reflect the new implementation dates prior to March 11th. Verify that the changes take effect and monitor the operation of the system particularly on the dates of March 11, April 1, October 28 and November 4, 2007.

> Controllers without programmable DST settings connected to a central system or external time source -- Contact controller manufacturer for availability of firmware or software update; install update prior to March 11th. If firmware or software update is not available; disable DLS feature on controller and implement time update from central system or external time source. If DST feature cannot be disabled; implement time update from central on March 11th and verify time settings on April 1st, October 28th and November 4th.

> Controllers without programmable DST settings not connected to a central system or external time source -- Contact controller manufacturer for availability of firmware or software update; install update prior to March 11th. If firmware or software update is not available; disable DST feature on controller and implement time update manually on March 11th. If DLST feature cannot be disabled; implement time update manually on March 11th and again on April 1st, October 28th and November 4th.

For more information on this subject or this survey, please contact:
Eddie Curtis, P.E.
FHWA Resource Center
61 Forsyth St SW Suite 17T26
Atlanta, GA 30303
(404) 562-3920
http://ops.fhwa.dot.gov/arterial_mgmt/index.htm

An Open Letter to District and Section Leadership--

TO: Midwestern District Board, Illinois Section Board, MOVITE Section Board, NCITE Section Board, Wisconsin Section Board

FROM: Steve Manhart, P.E., PTOE, Midwestern District Director

RE: Transportation Certification Update

DATE: February 23, 2007

Just a few years ago, transportation professionals questioned the worth of any additional certification beyond the professional engineer license or AICP certification. Now, the Professional Traffic Operation Engineer (PTOE) certification has become an accepted and respected recognition of qualifications.

To date, total applications for the PTOE certification since the beginning of the program have surpassed 2,125 and there are more than 1,700 certified PTOEs worldwide. In the Midwestern District alone, we have 275 PTOEs.

Certification opportunities are on the rise. The PTOE, Traffic Operations Practitioner Specialist (TOPS) and Traffic Signal Operations Specialist (TSOS) certification exams are set to be offered on March 24, 2007. On that date, the Transportation Professional Certification Board (TPCB) will also be offering a new certification exam – the Professional Transportation Planner (PTP) certification exam.

Certification requirements, fees and exam schedule are posted on the updated TPCB website, http://www.tpcb.org/ . You will also find the listing of the seven March 24 exam locations, which includes one in the Midwestern District (Chicago), one close by (Dallas), and one at the ITE Technical Conference in San Diego. Please note that the application deadline has been extended to March 9, 2007, for these exams.

Preparation assistance for these exams is available on the TPCB website. There are online practice exams for all four certification programs and they are hosted on ITE’s learning.com website. The cost of the practice exams has been lowered to $10 per exam. Copies of the TSOS and TOPS Refresher course reference and the PowerPoint slide set with instructor notes are available for purchase. Soon, complete recordings of the PTOE/TOPS/TSOS web refresher courses and will be offered for self-study.

I encourage you to talk up these certification programs. Consider setting the example for your section. Encourage peers and subordinates to apply to take one or more of the exams. Remind everyone there is still time to sign up for the March 24 exams at any of the seven locations. The TPCB has pledged to expedite applications as they come in.

Together, we can post a record number of people sitting on one day taking the TPCB certification exams. Help us meet the goal to have more than 50 sit for the new Professional Transportation Planner exam.

Thanks!

TPCB News...
The Transportation Professional Certification Board Inc. (TPCB) announced that the first Professional Transportation Planner (PTP) examination will be held in six cities on March 24, 2007. Applications for the PTP certification exam on Saturday, March 24th must be received by Friday, March 9th. Additional information including an application, a detailed list of the subject domains and sub-domains, the number of questions on the test, a practice exam and future exam dates and locations is on the TPCB Web site at http://www.tpcb.org/.

Also, The TPCB is looking for participants in strategic planning for the proposed Transportation Safety certification. Are you interested, or do you know of someone you could recommend? It would require travel to Annapolis, MD. Please get back to me with any recommendations. I would request your response by March 1. I will then pass the names on to ITE HQ, and they will ultimately assign who will attend.

Plans to Improve Access to O'Hare...

Chicago is pushing a new plan aimed at improving roadway access to O'Hare International Airport, where driving to and from the terminals is like going through the world's busiest cul-de-sac.The ambitious initiative includes widening the main airport road, Interstate Highway 190, and building a new Mannheim Road over I-190, complete with a flyover ramp feeding traffic to the Tri-State Tollway (Interstate Highway 294).

In addition, the airport transit system, or People Mover trains, would be modernized. Twenty-four new People Mover cars would be added to the current 15-car fleet to meet future shuttle demand between the airline terminals and remote parking areas, city aviation officials said. Of the current 15 cars, 12 are in active use with three held in reserve.

http://http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/columnists/chi-0702190188feb19,1,583994.column?coll=chi-news-col

Commuter Rail Gets Support from Outstate Minnesota Mayor...

Saint Cloud, MN, Mayor David Kleis and other supporters are lobbying for support from his city and other surrounding communities to be connected to the Northstar Commuter Rail Project. The Northstar Corridor from the St. Cloud area to downtown Minneapolis is one of the fastest growing transportation corridors in the state.

Commuters from the St. Cloud area who are traveling on either I-94, I-494 or Highway 10 to or from the Twin Cities can spend hours stuck in traffic during their rush hour commute.St. Cloud, with the support of legislation and the surrounding communities, could have an opportunity for its commuters to avoid the headache of rush hour traffic.

http://media.www.universitychronicle.com/media/storage/paper231/news/2007/02/19/News/Snarled.Traffic.Leads.Kleis.To.Push.For.Commuter.Rails-2728215.shtml

Saint Paul Looks for Light-Rail to Spur Development...

It's a seven-mile extreme makeover that many hope will spark a citywide renaissance.

After months of brainstorming, two task forces issued a block-by-block blueprint Thursday for development along a proposed $1 billion light-rail train line between St. Paul and Minneapolis. The master plan envisions a downtown high-rise transit hub, a Capitol-area "urban village" and more stores in the Midway.

http://www.twincities.com/mld/twincities/news/16709521.htm

US Transportation Secretary Visits Missouri...

Mary Peters, the U.S. Secretary of Transportation says the future of Missouri transportation is at the crux of the future of transportation nationwide. Peters also highlighted her plan to reduce congestion on the nation's busiest highways and interstates and included Missouri in her Corridors of the Future Program. She listed the I-70 corridor from Missouri to Ohio as one of the 14 stretches of highways and interstates her program will target.

In addition, Peters stressed the importance of finding a working solution to the controversy over the Mississippi River Bridge. She says the Missouri Transportation Department and the Illinois Transportation Department must work together because individual state revenues just won't cut it. Missouri has been pushing for a toll bride. Illinois has rejected that idea. But, Peters says a toll bridge is a viable solution.

http://www.missourinet.com/gestalt/go.cfm?objectid=C81D2465-079C-11A4-AC6919EFE95AEEEB

Iowa Transporation Commission says Road Use Tax will fall short...

The Iowa Transportation Commission Tuesday endorsed the study that shows the road use tax fund will fall nearly 28 million dollars short in the next 20 years. The report has already gone to the legislature and Department of Transportation Director Nancy Richardson says this action helps in the argument for more road money.

http://www.radioiowa.com/gestalt/go.cfm?objectid=C0C276EC-94F4-EBDC-FA1A585B5A5B0C33

St. Louis Salting, Signal, and Striping Questions...
A St. Louis Post-Dispatch traffic reporter answers readers' questions regarding ice control, flashing left-turn arrows, and double-white pavement markings... http://www.stltoday.com/stltoday/news/columnists.nsf/alongfortheride/story/FA563AAEBFDB7A69862572800007706B?OpenDocument

Candidates Announced for District Secretary/Treasurer...

At today's NCITE Section Meeting, President Marcus Culver announced that the nominees have been selected for this year's election for 2008 District Secretary/Treasurer position. John Crawford of URS Coporation and Mike Spack of TDI have been nominated for the District post. Elections will be held later this year. The successful candidate will serve a four-year progression through the District offices from Secretary/Treasurer, to Vice President, President and Past President. Good luck to each of the candidates!

Tax Questions...
Marcus Culver, NCITE President, had questions regarding tax implications for his section. According to the "ITE Elected Leadership Manual", the section should probably be filing a return since their annual receipts are over $25,000.

However, in a phone call to Peter Frentz at ITE HQ, it was learned that as long as the section's revenue stays below $50,000, the section does NOT need to file taxes. Once the section gets over that $50K threshold, they need to go through a fairly lengthy process to establish tax exempt status (which ITE’s lawyers help with), and then they will have to file from that point forward. For more information, please contact Peter Frentz at ITE Headquarters.

PhotoCop, the Sequel...

This week, the City of Minnepaolis will be asking the Minnesota State Legislature to reconsider a state law to allow it to resume PhotoCop, which trained cameras on 12 intersections to catch drivers running red lights. We'll be following the developments of this debate.

Read more at: http://www.startribune.com/587/story/995790.html

McTrans HCS Survey...

McTrans is asking users of simulation models to participate in an online survey... "Recognizing that traffic analysts often use simulation and other models in conjunction with, or instead of, the HCM procedures, the National Cooperative Highway Research Program (NCHRP) has initiated a project to enhance the guidance in Part V of the HCM for selection and use of alternative traffic analysis tools. This project is being carried out by the University of Florida and T-Concepts Corp.

"One of the key tasks involves a survey of current practice. We invite all users of traffic analysis tools to participate in this survey. Your response will help to guide the research team in the development of guidelines that will be useful to you as a transportation professional.

"The survey document is posted at http://trc.ce.ufl.edu/research/nchrp385/survey.htm. The survey is brief and can be completed in about ten minutes. If you agree that better guidance is needed on the use of alternative tools for traffic analysis, we hope you will take advantage of this opportunity to give the project team your thoughts."

ITE District 1 Considering Name Change...
Much like our Midwestern District in the last couple of years, ITE District 1 is considering a name change. District Director Kim Hazarvartian says the District Executive Board is talking about changing its name from District 1 to Northeastern District. The District incorporates the New York Upstate Section, The Meotrpolitan Section of New York and New Jersey, and the New England Section. Their executive board questioned whether they needed to have a vote of their membership to approve the name change.


This is the latest in the trend of districts rebranding themselves by their geographic area. One look at the ITE website under "ITE Chapters" shows a map that identifies each of the 10 districts by their new geographic monikers. Check it out at http://www.ite.org/emodules/scriptcontent/chapterdirectory/main.cfm

NCITE Section Meeting Announced...

Please join NCITE for breakfast on Tuesday, February 13th and learn more about the status of several of our high priority transit corridors. A panel of four speakers – Rich Rovang, Metropolitan Council (Central Corridor), Katie Walker, Hennepin County (Southwest Corridor), Mike Schadauer, Mn/DOT (Northstar Corridor) and Dan Krom, Dakota County (Cedar Avenue) – will each be giving a presentation on their respective corridors.
Follow the attached link for information on the February NCITE Section Meeting.
Please RSVP (email preferred) by noon Thursday, February 8.

http://www.nc-ite.org/announcements/NCITE-Feb-13-2007.pdf

Illinois Considering Roundabouts...

Roundabouts Debated for Kane County (IL) Traffic Safety... http://www.suburbanchicagonews.com/beaconnews/news/241369,2_1_AU03_ROUNDABOUT_S1.article