Month: December 2016

WTI releases mobile version of Weathershare real-time traffic tool.

Posted on December 19th, 2016

Weathershare realtime traffic app displayed on tabletJust in time for wintry holiday road trips over the river and through the woods, WTI has released a mobile version of the award-winning One-Stop Shop online traffic tool for travelers looking for up-to-the-minute information on weather and road conditions. Montana State University News Service released an extensive feature article on the project, which was highlighted on the MSU webpage last week, and has been picked up by several news organizations. You can read the article here, or try out the tool yourself at http://oss.weathershare.org/m

Read more about the latest phase of the Weathershare project.

Congratulations to the development team, which has put in many long hours creating, expanding, and enhancing this tool since 2014, in partnership with the California Department of Transportation and the Western States Rural Transportation Consortium. This hard working team includes Doug Galarus, Dan Richter, Leann Koon from WTI’s Systems Engineering Development and Integration program, WTI alumni staff member David Veneziano, and Caltrans partners Ian Turnbull and Sean Campbell.

New Center Attracts Local Media Attention

Posted on December 12th, 2016

Small Urban, Rural and Tribal Center on Mobility (SURTCOM), led by WTI was selected by USDOT as Tier 1 University Transportation Center, and will receive approximately $1.5 million a year for up to five years to lead research that improves the mobility of people and goods. Montana State University published a feature article about the selection on its website, and the story was also picked up by the Bozeman Daily Chronicle.

Article Published in Journal of Transport Geography

Posted on December 12th, 2016

The Journal of Transport Geography has published an atricle by Yiyi Wang and her colleagues: “Does bicycle network level of traffic stress (LTS) explain bicycle traffic behavior?” The article summarizes a case study in Oregon, and draws on census data, mode choice, and regional household travel survey data to investigate the relationship between the varying levels of traffic stress (LTS) routes and bicycle travel behavior.
Citation: Wang, H., Palm, M., Chen, C., Vogt, R., and Wang, Y. 2016. Does bicycle network level of traffic stress (LTS) explain bicycle travel behavior? Mixed results from an Oregon case study. Journal of Transport Geography, Volume 57: pp 8-18.

Read Article

Expansion of the One Stop Shop for Traveler Information

Posted on December 9th, 2016

The One Stop Shop for Traveler Information now includes Montana – and Idaho, Utah, Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado, and Wyoming! OSS has been providing travelers in California, Oregon, Washington, and Nevada access to route-oriented, real-time and near real time weather and road information through a single website, and now the Rocky Mountain States have access to this valuable traveler tool. Developed in partnership by WTI and Caltrans, OSS won an International award from the Intelligent Transportation Society of America for Best New Innovative Practice earlier this fall. Visit the OSS site at http://oss.weathershare.org/.

“Great job” goes out to Doug Galarus, Leann Koon, Dan Richter, and Caltrans Project Manager, Sean Campbell and Caltrans Project Champion, Ian Turnbull.

See the MSU news article here: http://www.montana.edu/news/15240/msu-39-s-wti-launches-new-traveler-website-for-montana-rockies-region

Tony Clevenger’s Wolverine Research Highlighted in Canadian Geographic

Posted on December 7th, 2016

A reporter for Canadian Geographic spent the day with Road Ecology researcher Tony Clevenger, to learn more about his research on wolverine populations in the Canadian Rockies. In “How Highways are Hurting the Wolverine’s Genetic Diversity,” journalist Fraser Los describes how Tony collects and studies hair samples left behind by wolverines, to better understand where they live and move through the mountain ecosystems, and how the movements have changed over time. Read the full article here. The research will also be featured in the December 2016 print issue of Canadian Geographic.

Fish Passage Research Published in International Journal

Posted on December 7th, 2016

The Journal of Fish Biology has published a study by WTI Road Ecology researcher Matt Blank and his colleagues in the MSU Ecology Department and at the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. “Evaulation of Swimming Performance for Fish Passage of Longnose Dace Rhinichthys Cataractae Using an Experimental Flume” highlights research conducted in a custom research flume constructed at the Bozeman Fish Technology Center. This type of field study helps researchers assess the swimming abilities of rare or declining fish populations, so barriers can be identified and removed and new fishways can be properly designed to allow natural movements. The full article can be read here.

USDOT Selects SURTCOM as new University Transportation Center

Posted on December 5th, 2016

After a highly competitive selection process, the U.S. Department of Transportion has announced that WTI has been selected as a Tier 1 University Transportation Center. The Small Urban, Rural and Tribal Center on Mobility (SURTCOM) will receive approximately $1.5 million a year for up to five years to lead research that improves the mobility of people and goods in small urban, rural and tribal areas. Projects will address issues such as enhancing access to public transportation services, implementing innovative multi-modal solutions, exploring alternative transportion such as ridesharing, adapting “smart cities” innovations to small communities, and increasing active transportation modes such as walking and cycling. WTI will lead the center in partnership with the Upper Great Plains Transportation Institute at North Dakota State University and the Northwest Tribal Technical Assistance Program at Eastern Washington University. Last week, U.S. Senator Steve Daines released a statement congratulating WTI on the the grant award.