Conference, Outreach, Technical Transfer, Training
The Bozeman Commuter Challenge kicked off on June 1 with Bike Week. Staff from WTI and the Montana Department of Transportation (MDT) Design Team enthusiastically joined in by leaving their cars at home and cycling to work!
The Challenge runs through June 30, so it’s not too late to join. Log your bike, walk, bus, or carpool trips all month long! Are you signed up at bozemancommute.org? Head there to register, and check out how it works by reading the Challenge FAQs.
The Montana Department of Transportation (MDT) will host a webinar featuring research by a team from the Center for Health and Safety Culture. MDT recently released the final report for “Understanding Law Enforcement Attitudes and Beliefs about Traffic Safety,” which aimed to understand how the culture within law enforcement agencies impacts engagement in traffic safety enforcement. CHSC researchers, including Jay Otto, Kari Finley, Kelly Green, and Nic Ward, led the research on behalf of the Traffic Safety Culture Pooled Fund program. The team conducted surveys and interviews with 19 law enforcement agencies in four states to collect data for the assessment.
The webinar, which will provide an overview of the research results, will be held on Monday, July 8. Learn more and sign-up at the registration website. The final research report and a project summary report are available on the MDT project webpage.
It’s on folks! The Bozeman Commuter Challenge kicked off on June 1 and runs through June 30. Log your bike, walk, bus, or carpool trips all month long! Are you signed up at bozemancommute.org? Head there to register, and check out how it works by reading the Commuter Challenge fact sheet.
For the first week, check out the daily activities for Bike Week. Lots of local businesses will be offering free coffee, snacks or other surprises during morning or evening commute hours.
WTI is a partner with the Bozeman Commuter Project for this event, so let’s do our part!
WTI will host two five-day summer camps in 2019 that are free for area middle school students interested in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM), as well as community design and planning.
Mobility Innovations, which will be held July 15-19 and July 22-26 on the Montana State University (MSU) campus, will integrate STEM topics and provide opportunities for participants to apply design thinking to mobility and transportation issues. Through a variety of activities, the camp will explore topics like community design, public health, sustainable construction materials, wildlife and habitat conservation, advanced technologies, and safety.
Students entering grades 6 through 9 in the fall are invited to attend. The camp will bring Montana teachers, MSU faculty and researchers, and industry guest speakers to campus to share a diverse mix of fun, exploratory, and hands-on activities with participating youth.
The camps are free to participants and will meet from 9 a.m. until 3 p.m. daily. Space is limited, and applicants may register for only one of the two available weeks. For more information on the camp and to register, visit the Mobility Innovations registration page. 
WTI Road Ecologists Rob Ament and Tony Clevenger traveled to Kuala Lumper, Malaysia in April to present at the Road Ecology – Transportation Infrastructure and Wildlife Conservation Workshop. Co-sponsored by WTI, Association of Consulting Engineers – Malaysia (ACEM), ERE Consulting, the Management and Ecology of Malaysian Elephants (MEME), and the Center for Large Landscape Conservation, the main goal of the workshop was to encourage discussions between wildlife practitioners and engineers that will lead to innovative solutions that enhance both transportation networks and wildlife conservation efforts. Rob and Tony spoke on effective wildlife mitigation measures in North America, such as wildlife crossings, and how they may be applicable to large species in Malaysia, which include both elephants and tigers. One of the highlights of was a field trip to Royal Belum State Park, via houseboat!
The workshop also provided an opportunity to hold the kick-off meeting for the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s (IUCN’s) Asian Elephant Transport Working Group, under the auspices of its Connectivity Conservation Specialist Group. “It was our first face-to-face meeting and the 10 members put together a work plan for the next year,” said Rob, who serves on the working group.
The National Center for Rural Road Safety will host a free webinar on “Marketing Safety” on Thursday April 25 at 11 a.m. (Mountain Time).
This webinar will provide practical methods of effective communication with stakeholders, leadership, and the public, including five techniques for better communication and marketing, how to write engaging “teaser” messages, and how to use a communications brief to plan outreach activities. This training is directed towards a very broad safety audience, such as law enforcement, planners, engineers, first responders, elected officials, public health, tourism agencies, and safety culture experts. To learn more and to register, check out the Marketing Safety webinar announcement.
On Thursday, May 9, 2019 at 12:00 pm – 1:00 pm (Mountain Time), the Montana Department of Transportation (MDT) and the Center for Health and Safety Culture (CHSC) will host a free webinar on the Traffic Safety Culture Pooled Fund research program.
Growing “traffic safety culture” has been identified as a core strategy by the USDOT Safety Council, FHWA’s Joint Safety Strategic Plan, the National Towards Zero Deaths (TZD) Safety Initiative, and the Road to Zero Coalition. Growing a positive traffic safety culture can support traffic safety goals by reducing risky behaviors and increasing protective behaviors; it can also increase public acceptance of other effective traffic safety programs.
In 2014, MDT initiated a five-year transportation pooled fund program on traffic safety culture, partnering with the CHSC as the principal research entity. Through this program, state DOTs and other stakeholder organizations have conducted cooperative research on the role of traffic safety culture in achieving the Toward Zero Deaths (TZD) vision. To build on initial research success, the members will continue another five-year cycle beginning October 1, 2019. This webinar will introduce the pooled fund program to state DOTs and other traffic safety stakeholders interested in more information or wishing to participate in the new funding cycle. Learn more about the Pooled Fund Program and register for the Traffic Safety Culture webinar.
Plan now to attend the 12th TRB International Conference on Low Volume Roads, being held September 15–18, 2019 in Kalispell, Montana. Register by May 15 to take advantage of the reduced Early Bird rate. WTI is the local host for this conference, so please help spread the word to colleagues in your network.
The conference will provide a global forum to examine new technologies and new techniques in the planning, design, construction, operation, and maintenance of low-volume roads. Panelists will explore case studies and practical solutions to common problems related to all aspects of low-volume roads.
For registration and hotel information, visit the conference website.
This fall, the Center for Health and Safety Culture (CHSC) will host a training workshop on the fundamentals of Positive Culture Framework. Registration is now open for the 2 ½ day event, which will be held September 24-26 in Nashville, Tennessee.
The training is designed for anyone working to improve health and safety, such as traffic safety professionals, substance misuse professionals, prevention specialists, violence prevention advocates, coalition members, government personnel, and law enforcement officers. Through this training, attendees will:
The agenda and registration information for this training is available on the CHSC website.
Winter Bike to Work Day and new campus shuttle promote transportation options
Snow is falling and so are the temperatures, but hearty Bozeman residents never shy away from going outside in the winter. With that in mind, the Bozeman Commuter Project is sponsoring Winter Bike to Work Day on March 8, 2019 to encourage local commuters to continue (or even start!) cycling to work through the winter months. Participants who register at bozemancommute.org can earn reward coupons for local coffee shops and breweries. The project also provides cyclists with tips for cycling safely in winter conditions. WTI is a partner in the Bozeman Commuter project and is helping to promote this event. “We always get a great response to our commuter challenges in the summer months,” said project coordinator Dani Hess; “we want to keep that momentum going and keep encouraging the folks who choose to get around by bike in the winter months as well.”
In other commuter news, the Associated Students of Montana State University have launched a campus shuttle that makes loops around the perimeter of campus every 20 minutes on weekdays from 7:40 a.m. until 5:40 p.m. The service is free to students, staff, faculty and visitors, so check out the route map and additional information here. WTI has also provided support to this pilot effort through the Bozeman Transportation Demand Management project. “We’re excited to see the growing interest in transportation options at MSU from student leadership and are happy to be a part of piloting and evaluating new services like the campus shuttle,” said Hess.