Category: Event

Conference, Outreach, Technical Transfer, Training

It’s Never Too Cold for Alternative Transportation in Bozeman!

Posted on February 19th, 2019

Logo for Bozeman Commuter Project with sub text "Rethink Transportation" Text overlays on arrows pointing in opposite directions, imply directions of commute. Background graphic of mountains.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.

February 28 Webinar will present highlights of National Safety Summit

Posted on February 19th, 2019

Logo for National Center for Rural Road SafetyThe National Center for Rural Road Safety (Safety Center) is hosting a FREE, 1.5-hour online webinar on February 28, entitled “Bridging the Gap: Recap of Safety Summit #2”.  This webinar will provide a recap of the 2nd National Summit on Rural Road Safety: Bridging the Gap. If you were not able to join us in Savannah, GA in December 2018, then this webinar is for you! Come hear an overview of the most important takeaways from this action-oriented event with interactive sessions to assist attendees on their Road to Zero. More details and registration information are available here.

Governor Launches Parenting Website Created by CHSC

Posted on February 11th, 2019
Photo of Montana Governor Steve Bullock and Annmarie McMahill seated at a news conference
Montana Governor Steve Bullock and Annmarie McMahill

Attention Montana parents! The Center for Health and Safety Culture (CHSC), in partnership with the Montana Department of Public Health and Human Services, has created ParentingMontana.org – a new website packed with informative tools on guiding children and teens toward safe and healthy behaviors.

On January 23, Montana Governor Steve Bullock officially launched the website with a news conference, stating “In Montana, we want what’s best for our kids and we all want to be the best parent possible. Now, there’s a new resource available to tackle the wide variety of challenges youth deal with and to support the success of each child in Montana.”

The website features practical tools for parents with kids ranging from age five to age nineteen, covering challenging topics such as anger, bullying, chores, confidence, conflict, discipline, friends, homework, listening, lying, peer pressure, reading, routines, stress, and underage drinking. It is the product of months of thorough and detailed work by the entire staff at CHSC.

Principal Investigators Annmarie McMahill and Jay Otto had the opportunity to participate in the news conference to celebrate the website going live. “It is exciting to see all these great tools come together in one easy-to-use location,” said Annmarie, “and so gratifying to work on a project that will be immediately helpful to parents, teachers, and caregivers in our communities.”

CHSC has posted the Governor’s full news release on its website.

Several news stories also feature photos, video clips and quotes by CHSC staff:

KXLH Channel 9 (Helena); KRTV Channel 3 (Great Falls); and KPAX (Missoula) News: https://kxlh.com/news/montana-and-regional-news/2019/01/24/state-announces-new-program-for-montana-parents/

Montana Public Radio: http://www.mtpr.org/post/state-launches-website-help-parents-raise-their-kids

Great Falls Tribune: https://www.greatfallstribune.com/story/news/2019/01/23/montana-launches-parenting-website/2662375002/

TRB – The Show Must Go On

Posted on February 4th, 2019
Natalie Villwock-Witte (far left) presenting from a lecturn at a panel discussion.
Natalie Villwock-Witte presents at TRB Annual Meeting

WTI researchers braved heavy snow, transit closures, and the partial government shutdown to attend the 2019 Transportation Research Board (TRB) Annual Meeting in Washington, D.C. in January.  Nonetheless, they had a busy week with many productive opportunities to share their research and collaborate with peers.

A few highlights include:

  • WTI Director Steve Albert received a certificate of appreciation from the TRB Committee on Transportation Needs of National Parks and Public Lands in recognition of his 12 years of leadership on committee activities.
  • Three Fellows from the Public Lands Transportation Fellows program had the opportunity to present posters highlighting their current projects:
    • Corinne Jachelski presented on trail, bicycle, and other alternative transportation upgrades underway at the Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Refuge Complex in Colorado.
    • Dylan Corbin’s poster highlighted his efforts to create a transportation plan that will expand public transportation and alternative transportation access to four sites within the San Diego National Wildlife Refuge Complex.
    • Vince Ziols presented on the bicycle network, shuttle services, and water taxis that are enhancing regional access to the Detroit River International Wildlife Refuge.
Fellows Corinne Jachelski, Vince Ziols and Dylan Corbin stand in front of their research posters at TRB poster session.
Fellows Corinne Jachelski, Vince Ziols and Dylan Corbin
  • Workshop Participants seated at tables view a presentation slide called "Categories for Rural Critical Needs"
    Workshop on Rural Research Roadmap project

    Jaime Sullivan’s workshop on the NCHRP Rural Research Roadmap project attracted an audience of more than 70 attendees interested in her progress report on the identification of the most critical research needs related to improving rural transportation. More than 500 research needs displayed on 20 posters inspired a lively discussion.

 

  • Karalyn Clouser and Zach Becker, our UTC Students of the Year (read their profiles here), were honored at a banquet during the opening weekend of the TRB meeting. The weather and transportation delays prevented Zach from attending, but Steve Albert and David Kack were on hand to cheer on Karalyn when she received her award.

 

David Kack, Karalyn Clouser, and Steve Albert

WTI Presents Implementation Tools and Solutions at NRITS Conference

Posted on October 31st, 2018
Steve Albert (seated far right on dais) at the opening session of NRITS
Steve Albert (far right on dais) at the opening session of NRITS

WTI Researchers traveled to Fort McDowell, Arizona last week for the National Rural Intelligent Transportation Systems Conference and Exhibit, held in conjunction with the 25th Anniversary of ITS Arizona, which focused on the theme of “Creating ITS Implementation Solutions for All Communities.”

WTI helped launch NRITS more than 25 years ago, and staff members continue to play a leading role by sharing their expertise at the annual forum. WTI Director Steve Albert opened the conference at the plenary session, presenting a history of NRITS and a eulogy for longtime NRITS champion, Bill Legg of Washington DOT.  Later in the conference, Steve led the “Roundtable on Rural ITS,” which offered an overview of the challenges and opportunities facing rural areas interested in developing and implementing new transportation technologies.  At the workshop on “Utilizing ITS for Rural Road Safety,” Natalie Villwock-Witte presented the Rural ITS Toolkit, which was recently updated by WTI staff through the National Center for Rural Road Safety. David Kack was a speaker at the “Multimodal Transportation Technology” workshop, where he presented on the Wyoming Intercity Bus Study, which provides a model for finding and filling transit gaps in rural areas, and Doug Galarus spoke at the “Rural ITS Weather Applications” workshop, where he presented on the Aviation Weather Information (AWI) system developed for the California Department of Transportation.

Bicycle/Pedestrian Planning Highlighted at Society of Women Engineers Conference

Posted on October 31st, 2018
Sara Dunlap (MnDOT), Dorian Grilley (BikeMN), and Natalie Villwock-Witte at the Society of Women Engineers Conference
Sara Dunlap (MnDOT), Dorian Grilley (BikeMN), and Natalie Villwock-Witte

At the annual meeting of the Society of Women Engineers (SWE) in Minneapolis in October, WTI Researcher Natalie Villwock-Witte and her research partners at Minnesota Department of Transportation and Bike Minnesota were invited to lead a presentation entitled “Bicycles and Pedestrians: Advocacy, Planning, and Research.” Known as the “The World’s Largest Conference for Women Engineers,” SWE is attended by more than 10,000 engineers, students, and industry leaders.

Coming up Soon! December Summit will Focus on Rural Road Safety

Posted on October 15th, 2018

Banner image promoting National Summit on Rural Road Safety, December 4-6, 2018. Photo depicts first responders assisting at a traffic accident

Following a highly successful inaugural forum in 2016, the National Center for Rural Road Safety and the National Association of County Engineers will host the 2nd National Summit on Rural Road Safety from December 4-6, in Savannah, Georgia.  At the first summit, more than 100 attendees from around the country collaborated on defining the future for “Moving Rural America” by articulating the key transportation safety issues facing rural areas, culminating in a call to action of “On the Road to Zero, We Cannot Ignore Rural.”

For the second summit, participants will continue to move the rural conversation forward and focus more intently on safety solutions and “Bridging the Gap.”  Some of the key questions they will tackle include how to create a unified voice for rural areas, and how to implement safety solutions with rural constraints.

“After the first summit, participants were encouraged by the progress we made to develop an initial action plan and they wanted to keep the momentum going,” said Safety Center Manager Jaime Sullivan. “At the upcoming summit, we’re looking forward to taking the next step of how to select and implement safety solutions that will make a real difference on rural roads.”

If you’re interested in attending, early bird registration closes on November 12!  The agenda and registration information are available here.

WTI helps NW Bozeman neighbors bring their vision for safer streets to life!

Posted on August 20th, 2018

Examples of temporary "pop up" street features for safer streets in Bozeman. These features use chalk, straw bales and planters to build temporary roadway features.
Examples of temporary “pop up” street features for safer streets in Bozeman.
WTI’s Bozeman Commuter Project is working with Bozeman neighborhoods to implement Pop-up Traffic Calming projects to reduce drivers speeds on residential streets, and bring more visibility to bikes and pedestrians. This weekend residents of Northwest Bozeman in the Valley Unit neighborhood will be setting up a temporary demonstration of curb extensions and a traffic circle at three intersections near Valley Unit park. Data will be collected via intercept surveys and radar speed detection units to better understand how these designs can reduce vehicle speeds and increase safety for local residents and those traveling by bike, foot, bus, stroller, walker or wheelchair.
Related News Story: AARP Highlights Bozeman Traffic Calming Project in National Publication