TRANSPORTATION ROUNDUP
Compiled by Benita M. Dodd
Logistics and innovation: More than 1,100 people have registered already for the fourth annual Georgia Logistics Summit on February 8th, 2012, in Atlanta. Hosted by Georgia’s Center of Innovation for Logistics, the Summit is the only state-led collaborative event of its kind and size in the nation – and draws 85 percent of its participants from the private sector. The deadline for registration is Friday, January 27. Go to http://summit.georgialogistics.org/ to register to attend. The Center of Innovati
on for Logistics is led by Page Siplon, who was a panelist in the Georgia Public Policy Foundation’s second annual Legislative Policy Briefing in the fall of 2011. Watch his presentation at the Briefing here: https://live-gppf.pantheonsite.io/pub/legislative_briefing_agenda.htm.
Freight moving again: Transportation Employment increased more than 1.5 percent year-over-year in December, with rail employment up 3.9 percent and trucking up 3.2%. Transportation Industries added about 50,200 employees in December, accounting for 25.1 percent of the overall net employment gains added last month. Source: Center of Innovation for Logistics
Breaking ground: Representatives from the Atlanta Regional Commission presented their “Breaking Ground 2011” report to the Georgia Regional Transportation Authority last week. The ARC’s interactive Web site describes the implementation status of transportation projects programmed to receive funds in the most recently completed fiscal year. The latest report reveals that found that 68 percent of 216 phases were implemented. There were various reasons for delays, including funding issues and environmental studies and reports. According to an ARC representative, the record indicates that “The more phases we try to move forward, the worse implementation gets.”
Transit ridership counts: A Powder Springs, Ga., company is working with MARTA to perfect a system that can provide counts of multiple passengers entering rail rapid transit vehicles through a wide-stream door, the Transportation Research Board reports in its Transit IDEA (Innovations Deserving Exploratory Analysis) Program 2012 report released on January 15. The prototype system, known as the the Cyclops Passenger counter uses radar, television and a wireless transmission system. “The system, when fully developed, may offer transit systems an efficient method of obtaining ridership counts,” and even determine the direction of travel of each passenger, according to the report.
Ownership is a wonderful thing: Some U.S. cities will be launching bikeshare programs this spring and summer, while other cities are beginning to share their data, according to American City & County. New York’s bike share program, which will be run by Alta Bicycle Share, will launch this summer with 10,000 bikes at 600 stations. Riders can pay by trip or purchase an annual membership that will cost $100 and allow unlimited rides shorter than 30 minutes. In October 2009, a New York Times article described how a Paris bike share program ended up with 80 percent of the initial 20,600 bikes stolen or damaged. “Many of the specially designed bikes, which, when the system’s startup and maintenance expenses are included, cost $3,500 each, are showing up on black markets in Eastern Europe and northern Africa. Many others are being spirited away for urban joy rides, then ditched by roadsides, their wheels bent and tires stripped.” Here in Georgia, the wheels fell off Decatur’s Yellow Bike program (established in 2002) after theft and vandalism problems, a similar problem in other U.S. cities.
TRANSPORTATION ROUNDUP
Compiled by Benita M. Dodd
Logistics and innovation: More than 1,100 people have registered already for the fourth annual Georgia Logistics Summit on February 8th, 2012, in Atlanta. Hosted by Georgia’s Center of Innovation for Logistics, the Summit is the only state-led collaborative event of its kind and size in the nation – and draws 85 percent of its participants from the private sector. The deadline for registration is Friday, January 27. Go to http://summit.georgialogistics.org/ to register to attend. The Center of Innovation for Logistics is led by Page Siplon, who was a panelist in the Georgia Public Policy Foundation’s second annual Legislative Policy Briefing in the fall of 2011. Watch his presentation at the Briefing here: https://live-gppf.pantheonsite.io/pub/legislative_briefing_agenda.htm.
Freight moving again: Transportation Employment increased more than 1.5 percent year-over-year in December, with rail employment up 3.9 percent and trucking up 3.2%. Transportation Industries added about 50,200 employees in December, accounting for 25.1 percent of the overall net employment gains added last month. Source: Center of Innovation for Logistics
Breaking ground: Representatives from the Atlanta Regional Commission presented their “Breaking Ground 2011” report to the Georgia Regional Transportation Authority last week. The ARC’s interactive Web site describes the implementation status of transportation projects programmed to receive funds in the most recently completed fiscal year. The latest report reveals that found that 68 percent of 216 phases were implemented. There were various reasons for delays, including funding issues and environmental studies and reports. According to an ARC representative, the record indicates that “The more phases we try to move forward, the worse implementation gets.”
Transit ridership counts: A Powder Springs, Ga., company is working with MARTA to perfect a system that can provide counts of multiple passengers entering rail rapid transit vehicles through a wide-stream door, the Transportation Research Board reports in its Transit IDEA (Innovations Deserving Exploratory Analysis) Program 2012 report released on January 15. The prototype system, known as the the Cyclops Passenger counter uses radar, television and a wireless transmission system. “The system, when fully developed, may offer transit systems an efficient method of obtaining ridership counts,” and even determine the direction of travel of each passenger, according to the report.
Ownership is a wonderful thing: Some U.S. cities will be launching bikeshare programs this spring and summer, while other cities are beginning to share their data, according to American City & County. New York’s bike share program, which will be run by Alta Bicycle Share, will launch this summer with 10,000 bikes at 600 stations. Riders can pay by trip or purchase an annual membership that will cost $100 and allow unlimited rides shorter than 30 minutes. In October 2009, a New York Times article described how a Paris bike share program ended up with 80 percent of the initial 20,600 bikes stolen or damaged. “Many of the specially designed bikes, which, when the system’s startup and maintenance expenses are included, cost $3,500 each, are showing up on black markets in Eastern Europe and northern Africa. Many others are being spirited away for urban joy rides, then ditched by roadsides, their wheels bent and tires stripped.” Here in Georgia, the wheels fell off Decatur’s Yellow Bike program (established in 2002) after theft and vandalism problems, a similar problem in other U.S. cities.
