October 2014 • Volume 55 No. 2 2014 Annual Meeting District 10/FSITE and South Florida WTS A look back and staying ahead November 5-7 • Boca Raton • Florida Road Safety Regional Transit Sustainability & Livability Freight Movement Corridor Management INSIDE D10 / FSITE President’s Message.......................................................... 3 D10 Administrator’s Commentary....................................................... 4 Happy Birthday to the Traffic Signal.................................................... 5 TENC 111-02 Informational Report.................................................... 8 D10-ITE International Director Report............................................11 Candidates for Florida Section ITE Secretary..................................12 Florida at the Forefront of Automated Vehicle Movement...........14 FSITE and ITS - 2014 Summer Meeting Summary........................17 Thinking Multimodal II: Cool Performance Measures with GIS..............................................20 Student and Local Chapter Updates..................................................22 Upcoming Meetings..............................................................................25 2014 Annual Meeting Agenda.............................................................26 FLORIDA SECTION ITE OFFICERS President - Peter J. Yauch, P.E., PTOE Albeck Gerken, Inc. 1911 North US 301, Suite 410, Tampa, FL 33619 Phone: (813) 319-3790 • Fax: (813) 426-3948 • E-mail: [email protected] Vice President & Program Chairperson - Andrew D. Velasquez, P.E., PTOE Turnpike Enterprise P.O. Box 9828, Ft. Lauderdale, FL 33310 Phone: (954) 934-1161 • Fax: (954) 934-1383 • E-mail: [email protected] Treasurer & Membership Chairperson - Oliver R. Rodrigues, P.E., PTOE Florida Transportation Engineering 8750 NW 36th Street, #670, Miami, FL 33178 Phone: (305) 463-8411 • E-mail: [email protected] Secretary & FLITE Editor - Sage Kamiya, P.E., PTOE Local Chapters Big Bend Florida Chapter - Dave Bright, President Retired • 1907 Hidden Valley Road, Tallahassee, FL 32308-4508 Phone: (850) 877-6007 • Email: [email protected] Central Florida Chapter - Thomas Hiles, P.E. - President HDR Orlando • 315 E Robinson Street; Suite 400 • Orlando, FL 32801-1949 Phone: (407) 420-4200 • E-mail: [email protected] First Coast Chapter - Rajesh K. Chindalur, P.E., PTOE - President King Engineering •6500 Bowden Road, Suite 230, Jacksonville, FL 32216 Phone: (904) 636-6755 x220 • E-mail: [email protected] Gold Coast Chapter - Karl B. Peterson, P.E. - President Jacobs •800 Fairway Drive, Suite 190 •Deerfield Beach, FL 33441 Phone: (954) 246-1232 • E-mail: [email protected] Manatee County Public Works 1022 26th Avenue East, Bradenton, FL 34208 Phone: (941) 708-7407 • E-mail: [email protected] Panhandle Chapter – Keith Bryant, P.E., PTOE – President District 10 International Director - Rosana Correa, P.E., PTOE Southwest Florida Chapter - Stephen M. Jansen, P.E., PTOE Jacobs Engineering Group, Inc. 800 Fairway Drive, Suite 190, Deerfield Beach, FL 33441 Phone: (954) 246-1410 • E-mail: [email protected] Past President & District Director - Edward J. Kant, P.E. Edward J. Kant, P.E. 1910 Mission Drive, Naples, FL 34109 Phone: (239) 290-2891 • Fax: (866) 812-9439 • E-mail: [email protected] Florida Section Representative to District 10 - Matthew G. Wey, P.E., PTOE HDR Engineering, Inc. 5426 Bay Center Drive, Suite 400, Tampa, FL 33609-3444 Phone: (813) 282-2456 Associated Business Division Representative - Connie Braithwaite Econolite P.O. Box 550897, Jacksonville, FL 32255 Phone: (727) 400-6146 • Fax: (904) 212-1320 • E-mail: [email protected] Florida Planning Council (FLPLAN) Chair - Patricia Tice, P.E., AICP CREWS, LLC 606 Courtlea Cove Avenue, Winter Garden, FL 34787 Phone: (407) 877-3524 • Fax: (407) 877-3524 • E-mail: [email protected] Florida Urban Traffic Engineer’s Council (FLUTEC) Chair - Benton Bonney, P.E. Bay County Traffic Engineering • 840 West 11th Street, Panama City, FL 32401 Phone: (850) 248-8741 Email: [email protected] Lee County DOT, Traffic Section • 1500 Monroe Street, Fort Myers, FL 33901 Phone: (239) 533-8503 • E-mail: [email protected] Tampa Bay Chapter - Erbie Garrett - President Garrett Engineering Group, Inc. • 120 10th Avenue North, St. Petersburg, FL 33701 Phone: (727) 289-9018 •E-mail: [email protected] Treasure Coast Chapter - Shaun G. MacKenzie, P.E. - President MacKenzie Engineering and Planning, Inc. 10795 SW Civic Lane, Port St. Lucie, FL 34987 Phone: (772) 345-1948 • E-mail: [email protected] District 10 Student Chapters Florida A&M / Florida State University Faculty Advisor: Ren Moses, P.E., Ph.D. FAMU-FSU College of Engineering - Dept. of Civil & Environmental Engineering 2525 Pottsdamer Street, Room 129, Tallahassee, FL 32310-6046 Florida Atlantic University - Faculty Advisor: Evangelos I. Kaisar, Ph.D. Florida Atlantic University, Dept. of Civil, Environmental and Geomatics Engineering 777 Glades Rd. Bldg. # 36 Rm. 214, Boca Raton, FL 33431 Florida International University Faculty Advisor: Mohammad Hadi, P.E., Ph.D. Florida International University , Civil and Environmental Engineering Department University Park Campus, EAS 3865, Miami, FL 33199 City of Orlando City Hall, 8th Floor, 400 South Orange Avenue, Orlando, FL 32802 Phone: (407) 246-3626 • Fax: (407) 246-3383 • E-mail: [email protected] University of Central Florida Faculty Advisor: Haitham M. Al-Deek, P.E., Ph.D. District Administrator – Angela M. Garland, P.E., PTOE University of Central Florida Civil and Environmental Engineering Department P.O. Box 162450, Orlando, FL 32816-2450 GTS Engineering 11523 Palmbrush Trail, Suite 317, Bradenton, FL 34202 Phone: (941) 322-2815 • E-mail: [email protected] University of Florida - Faculty Advisor: Dr. Siva Srinivasan University of Florida - Department of Civil and Coastal Engineering 365 Weil Hall, Box 116580, Gainesville, FL 32611 University of Puerto Rico-Mayaguez Campus Faculty Advisor: Didier Valdez, Ph.D. University of Puerto Rico-Mayaguez P.O. Box 9000, Mayagüez, PR 00681-9000 University of South Florida Faculty Advisor: Pei-Sung Lin, P.E., Ph.D., PTOE University of South Florida - Center for Urban Transportation Research 4202 East Fowler Avenue, CUT 100, Tampa, FL 33620-5375 2 • FLITE - October 2014 D10 / FSITE President’s Message By Pete Yauch, P.E., PTOE, District 10 Chair / Florida Section ITE President Summer is winding down and we’re headed into the home stretch for 2014! We had a great meeting in Clearwater at the end of June; we partnered with ITS Florida which really helped to boost our attendance to a new high for recent years. We had an excellent technical program and were located at a great venue right on the beach. A big thanks to the Local Arrangements Committee and to our Board members for making this happen! Congratulations to the ITE Student Chapter at the University of Florida! They were victorious at our District competition in Clearwater, and went on to represent us at the Institute’s Annual Meeting in Seattle in early August. Unfortunately, they were not able to repeat their winning performance of last year, but I’m sure that they enjoyed the meeting and the opportunity to participate in the activities. Our next Florida meeting will be our Annual FSITE / District Ten meeting, which will be held November 5th through 7th, 2014, in Boca Raton. We’ll be at the Embassy Suites Resort, and this will be a joint meeting with the South Florida Chapter of WTS. Our theme is “Moving People and Goods: A Look Back and Staying Ahead”. We have full information and links for registering at our website, www.floridasectionite.org/meeting.html. Please check it out! There has been a lot of activity at the International level; I’m sure Rosana will have more detailed information in her article elsewhere in this edition of FLITE. The Institute’s Board has been working hard to address the changing role of the Institute in today’s profession. A new dues structure for public agency members, a reconfiguration of the Institute’s technical conference, and a makeover of ITE Journal are just three of the big steps of the past year. One of the big events in Seattle was the graduation of the first class of LeadershipITE. This program has been extremely successful; the class’s activities have been very productive for both participants and the Institute as a whole. If you’re interested, check out LeadershipITE at www.ite.org/leadership/ . Our election for District Ten / Florida Section Secretary / FLITE Editor is ongoing; ballots are included with the distribution of this edition of FLITE. We have two great candidates…please check them out and be sure to vote! Speaking of FLITE, please take the opportunity to check out all the articles in this edition; there is some great information here! Thanks to all that contributed! Have a great fall, and we’ll see you in Boca! Pete Pete Yauch, PE President, District 10 / Florida Section ITE FLITE is the official publication of the Florida Section Institute of Transportation Engineers. FLITE is published 2 times annually. Opinions expressed herein do not necessarily reflect official Institute or FSITE policy unless so stated. Publication of technical articles or business cards does not constitute official endorsement of products or services. Address changes should be directed to Oliver Rodriquez, P.E., PTOE • Florida Transportation Engineering • 8750 NW 36th Street, #670 • Miami, FL 33178. Articles and information to be published in FLITE should be sent to Sage Kamiya, P.E., PTOE, Manatee County Public Works • 1022 26th Avenue East, Bradenton • FL 34208 • E-mail: [email protected]. FLITE - October 2014 • 3 District 10 Administrator’s Commentary “Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much” - Helen Keller Angela M. Garland, P.E., PTOE GTS Engineering – Bradenton, Florida Greetings fellow Members & Affiliates, Each year around this time the District 10 Board begins to plan for next year’s leadership, events, budgets and numerous other items that keep our organization running smoothly. It takes a team of leaders to make it all work smoothly. I want to take this time to thank the leadership team for their hard work and efforts over the past year. Peter J. Yauch, P.E., PTOE has not only been the President once, but twice! He also previously served as International Director. Talk about going above and beyond for this organization! Andrew D. Velasquez, P.E., PTOE, our Vice-President, not only fulfilled his Program Chair duties this past year but stepped up last year and performed many of those same duties when our VP was unable to fill the role. Sage Kamiya, P.E., PTOE, has consistently created a top notch FLITE magazine and kept the Board straight with his Secretarial minutes. In Oliver R. Rodrigues, P.E., PTOE’s first year on the board he has quickly and efficiently stepped in to the roll of Treasurer. Past President Edward J. Kant, P.E. has shown his unwavering support of FSITE as he has been committed to his tasks even in his semi-retirement and worldly travels! I would also like to acknowledge Matthew G. Wey, P.E., PTOE in his role as FSITE Representative to District 10; Connie Braithwaite our Associated Business Division Representative; Benton Bonney, P.E as FLUTEC Chairman; and Patricia Tice, P.E., AICP the FLPLAN Chairman. Our District 10 International Director, Rosana Correa, P.E., PTOE, has been very instrumental in the success of our Puerto Rico section and has kept the Board informed about ITE headquarters activities. Our Puerto Rico Section has grown from 36 members in 2010 to over 70 members in 2014. This was made possible by the tenacity of the Puerto Rico Section leadership through quality meetings, functions and outings. Special appreciation for this year’s leadership team: President Vanessa Amado, PhD, PE; Vice President Miguel H. Pellot-Altieri, PE; Treasurer Miguel A. Vescovacci P.E., P.T.P., P.T.O.E., M.S.T.; Secretary Kathleen Díaz, PE; and Past President Francisco Martínez, PE. Thank you for your leadership and outstanding teamwork over this past year! “No man will make a great leader who wants to do it all himself or get all the credit for doing it.” —Andrew Carnegie Hope to see you at the Annual Meeting. Regards, Angela District 10 Administrator FSITE Past President 2009 4 • FLITE - October 2014 Happy Birthday to the Traffic Signal Pete Yauch, P.E., PTOE The History Channel recently noted the 100th anniversary of the electric traffic signal, which was installed on August 5, 1914, at the intersection of Euclid Avenue and East 105th Street in Cleveland, Ohio. Based on a design by James Hoge, who received a patent for the device, it consisted of a red indication on the near side and a green indication on the far side of the street, for each of the four approaches of the intersection. It was controlled by a manually operated switch located in a small control booth, and was wired so that conflicting signals were impossible. When the signals changed, a bell sounded to alert motorists to the change in displays. In addition, a switch in a nearby firehouse allowed the signal to provide an all red indication to allow fire vehicles to go by. In their newsletter, the Cleveland Automobile Club described the signal as being “…destined to revolutionize the handling of traffic in congested city streets and should be seriously considered by traffic committees for general adoption.” continued on page 6 FLITE - October 2014 • 5 Intelligent Transportation Systems – Fifty Years Ago? continued from page 5 The History Channel recently noted the 100th anniversary of the electric traffic signal, which was installed on August 5, 1914, at the intersection of Euclid Avenue and East 105th Street in Cleveland, Ohio. Based on a design by James Hoge, who received a patent for the device, it consisted of a red indication on the near side and a green indication on the far side of the street, for each of the four approaches of the intersection. It was controlled by a manually operated switch located in a small control booth, and was wired so that conflicting signals were impossible. When the signals changed, a bell sounded to alert motorists to the change in displays. In addition, a switch in a nearby firehouse allowed the signal to provide an all red indication to allow fire vehicles to go by. In their newsletter, the Cleveland Automobile Club described the signal as being “…destined to revolutionize the handling of traffic in congested city streets and should be seriously considered by traffic committees for general adoption.” Traffic signals evolved over many years, and the Cleveland installation was only one milestone in getting to the signals we know today. The world’s first traffic signal using colored lights was installed in December, 1868, at the intersection of George and Bridge Streets in London, England, near the Houses of Parliament. It was a modified from a railroad signal design, and had semaphore arms that, when extended horizontally meant Stop, and when lowered to a 45 degree angle, meant Caution. At night, a gas light on top illuminated red lenses for the Stop condition and green lenses for the Caution positon. Unfortunately, this first signal resulted in the tragic death of a police officer, when, as he was attempting to light the gas lamps, set off an explosion in the hollow semaphore support pole. However, the device had proven its value in controlling traffic, and those with improved designs were used throughout London. In the United States, early twentieth century police officers manually directed traffic while standing in the middle of the intersections; they were later provided with rotating semaphores, some of which were illuminated at night with kerosene lamps. A challenger to Cleveland’s claim of the first electric traffic signal is Salt Lake City. A Salt Lake police officer, Lester Wire, developed a wooden box with openings on all four sides for red and green colored lamps. It was hung over the middle of the intersection, and manually operated by a police officer. A side note – when the signal was taken out of service, it was used as a birdhouse in a local park for many years. continued on page 7 6 • FLITE - October 2014 Traffic signals evolved over many years, and the Cleveland installation was only one milestone in getting to the signals we know today. In the United States, early twentieth century police officers manually directed traffic while standing in the middle of the intersections; they were later provided with rotating semaphores, some of which were illuminated at night with kerosene lamps. Intelligent Transportation Systems – Fifty Years Ago? continued from page 6 Inventor Garrett Morgan is also billed as an inventor of the traffic signal. He patented a semaphore based design; its innovation and contribution to the traffic signal as we know it was the change interval; his semaphore design included a stage which indicated the signal was changing from the Go to the Stop condition. Ninety-one years later, we still don’t have consensus on how to time that interval! In 1922, the Crouse Hinds Company, in Syracuse, New York, manufactured the first “modern” traffic signal; a four-way, three section cast aluminum signal that was the first to have been designed specifically for traffic control purposes. Prior signals had been adapted from railroad or other lighting fixtures. ITE documented the history of the traffic signal, as well as other traffic control devices, in a book entitled “Traffic Devices: Historical Aspects Thereof”. It was written by ITE’s Committee on Development of Historical Traffic Control Devices and published by ITE in 1971. Unfortunately, it has since become out of print. It is interesting to note that a past chairman of that committee, and a key contributor to the development of the book, was Edward A. Mueller, a founder of the Florida Section, and past Secretary of the Florida Department of Transportation, who passed away earlier this year. Editor’s Note… One of the most visible benefits of membership in FSITE is our publications, most notably FLITE. It is distributed via the website AND the U.S. Postal Service. This will ensure that we are reaching a larger audience. The FSITE listserv will distribute an e-mail with a link to the newsletter to all of those who are signed up on the listserv (whether they are members or not). There is no cost to join the FSITE listserv, and your e-mail information will not be shared with anyone. To subscribe, go to http://eepurl.com/iwipo. That’s all there is to it! If you have any problems, contact the FSITE Webmaster at [email protected] All technical articles published in FLITE will be eligible for the “Best Technical Article” for the calendar year. So please submit your articles. The requirements for submittal are: • Must be submitted electronically via email to: Sage Kamiya at [email protected]; • Must be in Microsoft Word format (.doc), Text only (.txt) or Rich Text (.rtf); and • Graphics may be included in the text file but must ALSO be submitted separately as JPEG, TIFF, EPS, PDF, or PSD files at 300 dpi resolution. FLITE magazine is published twice a year with distribution 1-3 weeks prior to our meetings. Watch the website for article submission deadlines. FLITE - October 2014 • 7 Sight Triangle and Corner Clearance Policies at Intersections and Driveways TENC 111- 02 Informational Report Corresponding Author: Paul Villaluz, P.E., PTOE (M), Chairman of TENC 111-02. Project Engineer II, Manatee County Public Works Authors: Erik Zandvliet, TE (M), Willdan Engineering (California) Kalyan (KC) Yellapu, P.E., TE, PTOE (M), Linscott, Law & Greenspan Engineers (California) Brian Dempsey, P.E., PTOE (F), TRC Solutions, Inc. (New York) Sage Kamiya, P.E., PTOE (F), Manatee County Public Works (Bradenton, Florida) Nate Piotrowski, AICP, Village of Brown Deer Community Services (Wisconsin) Christopher Prisk, P.E., PTOE (M), L.R. Kimball (Pennsylvania) Introduction Problem Statement There are many points of conflict at roadway intersections between conflicting traffic maneuvers. Adequate vehicular sight visibility is a key component to providing safe interactions of these conflicting traffic movements. To that end, engineers, planners, designers, attorneys, and government administrators have created municipal codes, state highway guidelines, and engineering manuals in order to address intersection corner visibility issues. Sight distance calculation methods are contained in “A Policy on Geometric Design of Streets and Highways”, published by the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO). This policy is commonly known as the AASHTO Green Book. Local, county, and state governments do not consistently apply the methods described in the AASHTO Green Book in their codes. Objective This document explores the history of corner visibility guidelines, compiles and compares the intersection corner visibility policies and practices in place in the United States and in certain foreign countries, and addresses whether policy consistency on the topic exists. Stopping Sight Distance (SSD) is defined as the distance needed for a driver to perceive and react to a discernible hazard and then brake to a stop before reaching the hazard. Intersection Sight Distance (ISD) is defined as the distance needed for a driver to safely cross or make a left or right turn from an access point along the roadway.1 ISD plays an important role in geometric highway design because it establishes an acceptable design speed and intersection control based on the driver’s ability to visually identify and stop for a particular unforeseen roadway hazard or to proceed across the path of approaching traffic at an access point along a roadway without being in conflict with opposing traffic. A Sight Distance Triangle is the three-sided shape formed by the unobstructed view of the driver to an approaching vehicle and the projected paths of the two simultaneously approaching vehicles. There are two types of Sight Distance Triangles: approach and departure sight triangles. This report generally refers to departure sight triangles when the term “sight triangles” is used. A departure sight triangle is the minimum sight distance triangle needed for a driver departing from an access point to cross safely through the intersection area without conflicting with approaching vehicles. These triangles should be provided in each quadrant of the intersection approach controlled by stop or yield signs as well as at some signalized intersection approaches. Definitions Notable terms are defined below. Sight Distance is defined as the length of the unobstructed view of a driver to a potential conflict in the roadway. 8 • FLITE - October 2014 continued on page 9 Figure 1. Departure Triangle Exhibit Source: AASHTO Green Book, 2011. Figure 2. Inappropriate Landscape Figure 3. Access Drive Figure 4. Driveway Source: AASHTO Green Book, 2011. Source: AASHTO Green Book, 2011. Source: AASHTO Green Book, 2011. TENC 111-02 Informational Report Safety Considerations continued from page 8 Insufficient ISD seems to create crash potential at an intersection by obstructing a driver’s ability to perceive sufficient gaps in the conflicting traffic flow. Current research does not definitively link insufficient ISD to increased crash potential. Studies conducted by the Texas Transportation Institute (TTI) in 1981 concluded that sight distance had no discernible effect on safety or operations.5 In 2002, the Institute of Transportation Engineers (ITE) wrote that “inadequate sight distance due to the use of short perceptionreaction time is unlikely to result in a collision where the roadway volume is low with a very low volume entering, or crossing, the roadway from an access connection.” 6 Further studies will have to be done to measure the impact of the revision of the ISD guidelines upon intersection safety. Visual Obstructions The potential for visual obstruction is high at the corners of intersections where the proximity to private property is much closer. Items can cluster at corners or extend from private property to the point that they impact a driver’s ability to view approaching vehicles. Typical obstructions include fire hydrants, utility poles, fences and walls, signage, bus shelters, kiosks, benches, and buildings. Landscaping, on-street parking and parked cars on corner parking lots are also commonly found to reduce visibility. Land Development Considerations Sight visibility triangles at an intersection can potentially restrict the amount of land that can be developed on a corner lot. Providing ISD visibility triangles per AASHTO requirements influences the cost and the right of way required to construct a project, especially at intersections along curves and at intersections with rolling or hilly terrain.2 Motorists who are affected by inadequate sight visibility traditionally ask traffic engineers to lower the speed limit, install advance warning signs on the major street, or install all-way stops/ traffic signals.3 These mitigation measures have proven to be temporarily effective or not cost-efficient, implying that providing adequate intersection sight visibility in the initial design of the subdivision and/or intersection is the most effective solution.4 MUNICIPAL AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT CODE REVIEW The Technical Council Committee conducted an in-depth listserv/ MuniCode search using “Sight Triangles”, “Corner Clearance”, “Intersection Sight Distance”, and other associated terms. In addition, committee members obtained municipal, local, and state government codes, policies, guidelines and handbooks related to intersection or driveway sight distance triangle regulations. A random sample of 85 guidelines from this extensive body of research (over 850 were collected) was summarized in a database in order to identify recurring methods and requirements. continued on page 10 FLITE - October 2014 • 9 TENC 111-02 Informational Report continued from page 9 “POLICIES AND PRACTICES” SURVEY OF MUNICIPALITIES The Committee prepared a survey that was distributed to all the members of the ITE Traffic Engineering and Public Agency Councils that was based on the literature and code reviews. More than 150 responses were received. The survey asked the following questions: 1. Does your jurisdiction have established sight triangle and/ or corner clearance policies/standards at intersections? • Crashes are not likely to trigger an ISD compliance evaluation as much as a new development or citizen complaint. • Potential projects to improve sight visibility include change of traffic control and more frequent landscape maintenance. • Jurisdictions either require adjacent land owners to fund sight visibility improvement projects or consider the project as a public transportation project. • Respondent agencies usually prohibit man-made and natural obstructions to be erected, planted, or maintained in a position that will obstruct or interfere with sight lines. • Most jurisdictions have a formal design exception process. 2. Does your jurisdiction have established sight triangle and/ or corner clearance policies/standards at driveways? • The posted speed limit is used to estimate the vehicle approach speed for sight distance calculations. 3. Which department enforces intersection and driveway sight distance policies or standards? • Some jurisdictions do not require a licensed engineer to certify conformance to sight distance requirements. 4. When do you evaluate intersection or driveway sight distance conformance? SUMMARY 5. What type of projects does your jurisdiction consider to mitigate poor ISD? 6. How do you fund projects to mitigate ISD issues? 7. How do you regulate intersection and/or driveway sight triangles? 8. Does your jurisdiction have a formal design exception process if the required sight distance is not met? 9. How do you estimate the vehicle approach speed for sight distance calculations? 10. Does your jurisdiction require a licensed engineer to certify conformance to sight distance standards on construction plans or as-builts? Respondents were also invited to send additional information via e-mail to the committee. Summary of Findings The responses to the survey are intended to serve as a quantitative affirmation of the literature/code review. Following is a summary of these responses: • Despite AASHTO’s requirements, most jurisdictions have ISD codes that are uniquely specific to them. • Driveways/accesses are not necessarily treated similarly to intersections as far as ISD codes are concerned. • The Engineering Department often enforces ISD policies or standards. 10 • FLITE - October 2014 Although a guideline from AASHTO exists for the provision of sufficient ISD, many governments use specialized sight visibility triangles at street corners, a strict version of the AASHTO guideline, or a modification of the AASHTO guideline. An investigation of ISD values, vehicle positions, criteria, and enforcement techniques revealed few consistent trends. ORDERING INFORMATION The complete report is sold as an electronic publication (IR-138E), Order your copy today from the ITE Bookstore at www.ite.org/ bookstore References Mason, John M. (senior editor). Urban Street Geometric Design Handbook. Washington, D.C., USA: ITE, 2008. Bhesania, R.P.. “Changes in Intersection Sight Distance Standards and Their Implications.” ITE Journal, Vol. 62, No. 8 (August 1992): 43. Bhesania, R.P.. “The Need for Adequate Intersection Sight Distance in Roadway Design.” ITE Journal, Vol. 58, No. 8 (August 1988): 43. Bhesania, R.P.. “The Need for Adequate Intersection Sight Distance in Roadway Design.” ITE Journal, Vol. 58, No. 8 (August 1988): 43. Box, P.C.. “Warrants for Traffic Control Devices at Low-Volume Urban Intersections.” ITE Journal, Vol. 65, No. 4 (April 1995): 34. Stover, V.G. and F.J. Koepke. Transportation and Land Development. Washington, D.C., USA: ITE, 2002. ITE International Director’s Report September 2014 The International Board of Direction met in Seattle, Washington on August 8-9, 2014 prior to the Annual Meeting and Exhibit. The International Board of Directors along with the ITE Executive Board and ITE staff is working very hard to keep providing valued service to their members. A number of issues were discussed at the meeting that are of significant interest to ITE members. • Starting in year 2015, there will be monthly payment options for the Members to pay their dues. • As I mentioned in the FLITE Spring edition, membership in ITE Councils is free and open to any ITE member. You may join as many ITE councils as you like by signing up in ITE Community page. • ITE staff is working on improving the searchable database on ITE website. • The ITE Board of Direction approved a new fees structure for members under 30 years old. ITE recognize the importance of keeping the young members involved and is working with the newly established ITE Young Member Committee on creating activities/programs to help with that goal. As part of the Annual Meeting and Exhibit registration package, reduced meeting registration fee was offered for members under 35 years old and there was an increase on the number of young members participating at the Annual Meeting. The reduced fee registration for members under 35 years old will continue in future ITE meetings and conferences. • There is a new public agency membership option. If your agency is an existing ITE agency member or interested on becoming a members, there are two options: • The Traditional Dues Option that allows the public agency to provide for individual memberships for a specific number of professional staff members. Florida District Director Rosana Correa, P.E., PTOE Jacobs Engineering Group, Inc. 800 Fairway Drive, Suite 190 • Deerfield Beach, FL 33441 (954) 246-1410 (Direct) •(954) 246-1235 (Fax) [email protected] • The New Flat Fee Dues Option that is designed to provide individual memberships for an unlimited number of eligible professional staff members of the agency. With this option, your agency will have the flexibility to add and replace members at any time – at no additional cost! • For more information on the New Flat Fee Dues Option visit http://www.ite.org/membership/index.asp. As some of you know, ITE Executive Director and CEO Thomas W. Brahms will retire at the end of year 2015 after leading ITE for more than 40 years. ITE Executive Board will start looking for the new Executive Director in January 2015 and that is not an easy task. ITE International Board will be available to help in any way we can. During the ITE Annual Meeting, we celebrated the graduation of the first class of Leadership ITE. Leadership ITE is a program to identify, develop, and engage leaders to ensure that ITE and its members are positioned to engage and shape the future of transportation. The Class of 2014 consisted of 30 of bright and energetic transportation professionals. It was very exciting to see them grow and work together during the past year. And they are committed to ITE and ready to help the organization in any way they can. For more information on Leadership ITE, visit http://www. ite.org/leadership/default.asp. The ITE International Board of Direction will meet one more time in November 2014. If you have any question or concern you want to bring in front of the board or if I can assist you in any way, please don’t hesitate to contact me directly! I hope to see you at the Florida Section Annual Meeting in Boca Raton November 8-10, 2014. Regards, Rosana Correa, P.E., PTOE FLITE - October 2014 • 11 Candidate for FSITE Secretary Christopher Russo, PE Senior Transportation Engineer ATKINS It is an extreme honor to be nominated as one of your 2015 FSITE Secretary candidates. I genuinely look forward to the opportunity to serve the institute and our members. I have always lived by the motto that “any job worth doing is worth doing right.” If elected I am committed to the time and effort required to serve on our board and I am very fortunate to have the full support of my employer in this endeavor. History Like many of us I was first introduced to ITE through the student chapter at my alma mater. Soon after joining the ITE chapter at the University of Central Florida in 2006 I quickly learned that ITE was serving more than just free pizza. I learned that ITE was a community of transportation professionals who not only worked in the field but had a passion for advancing it. I learned that ITE had members that represented a model for how I wanted to model my own young career. I learned that ITE was a vehicle that advanced transportation industry awareness and was a hub of expertise, knowledge and ideas. What I have grown to appreciate in my professional years of being involved in both the local and statewide levels is that the qualities that make ITE special are only possible through the volunteering efforts from our members. Giving Back Several years ago, while serving as the UCF student chapter president, I was awarded the Burton Marsh Fellowship for Graduate research from ITE International. Upon receiving this generous fellowship I immediately made it a goal to give back to the organization that supported my educational advancement. Last year I was approached to serve as the Local Arrangements Committee Chair for the FSITE Annual Meeting held in Orlando. Right away I knew this would be the opportunity I was looking for to begin giving back to ITE. Objectives Leading a successful committee was only the beginning in what I hope to achieve though serving ITE in the coming years. As a candidate my focus is to serve the Florida Section by providing an increased accessibility for members to interact with the board and to uphold the responsibilities that come along with being an active figure in our transportation industry. I ask that with your vote we can continue to build upon our membership, promote our industry expertise, and, like my first interaction with ITE, be a positive and accessible influence in the careers of young transportation professionals. ITE has played a major role in my career and I contribute this interaction to the members and strong leadership that have served before me. As I look to build upon this foundation of strong leadership, I would appreciate your support, and more importantly, I ask that you please vote for the candidate of your personal choice. ITE & Professional Participation Highlights xx xx xx xx xx xx xx xx xx xx 2013 FSITE Robert Hill Young Transportation Engineer of the Year 2013 FSITE Annual Meeting Local Arrangements Committee Chair 2012 ITE Central Florida Chapter Speaker 2012 ASCE Central Florida Chapter YMF Technical Committee Chair 2012 IBTTA Exhibit Demonstrator at Summit on All-Electronic Tolling, Atlanta, GA 2011 Toastmasters International, Local Club President 2008 ASCE Florida Graduate Student of the Year 2007 ITE Student Chapter President at UCF 2007 FSITE Annual Meeting Local Arrangements Volunteer 2007 ITE International Burton Marsh Graduate Fellowship Recipient Education xx xx MSCE, University of Central Florida, 2008 BSCE, University of Central Florida, 2007 Please remember to Vote! Your voice counts! 12 • FLITE - October 2014 Candidate for FSITE Secretary Matthew weisman, P.E. Principal Hoffman, Weisman & Associates Candidate statement I am honored to be nominated for the 2015 FSITE Secretary candidacy. I first became a member of ITE my junior year at the University of Florida. Since then I have attended numerous FSITE conferences and met the best industry contacts. The knowledge I gained from ITE has been an invaluable asset for my success as a traffic engineer in Florida. My traffic engineering career started in 2003 when I interned with the Palm Beach County Traffic Engineering Division. It was that summer I realized I wanted to be a traffic engineer. Four years later I graduated from the University of Florida with a Bachelor’s Degree in Civil Engineering with a specialization in transportation engineering. Also during that time, I obtained an internship with the City of Gainesville Traffic Operations Division. Upon graduation, the City offered me a full time position as the ITS/Traffic Operations Engineer. Over the next two years I completed my Masters in Civil Engineering also from the University of Florida. I was hired by the City of Gainesville at a very fortunate time. The local governments and University of Florida had just funded the traffic management system project with the Florida Department of Transportation providing a matching grant. Being just out of college, I was able to apply newer technological ideas to the project. However, most important was the help I received from all the numerous contacts I met from being a member of ITE. The result was our award-winning state-of-the-art traffic management system! Traffic Engineering is changing. We are all required to do a lot more with less. Transportation is finally becoming a leading industry for this nation’s technology as we see more and more interest in both connected and automated vehicles. As an FSITE Officer, I will make sure Florida remains at the forefront as we embark on this exciting journey with new technologies such as of driverless cars and crash avoidance systems. Please help me take on these challenges as your next Secretary/FLITE Editor for the District 10 Florida Section! Recent Presentations xx 2014 The Future of Transportation Technology Panelist at 2014 TEAMFL 2013 IMSA Florida Seminar Presenter - Utilizing Wireless and Solar Power for ITS Deployments 2013 FCCMA - A Sustainable Alternative to Adding Highway Capacity 2012 Transpo Speaker - Alachua County I-75 interim ITS Project 2012 Transpo Speaker - Emergency Management and ITS 2011 FSITE Summer Meeting Speaker - Using Technology to Save Money and Advance Your Signal System xx 2010 Transpo Speaker - Being Proactive with Your Advanced Traffic Signal System xx xx xx xx xx Recent Awards xx xx xx xx 2012 - Young Transportation Professional of the Year (FSITE) 2012 - Outstanding Achievement Award for the Gainesville Traffic Management Center (ITS FL) 2011 - Innovation Award - At Large (City of Gainesville) 2010 - Student of the Year (United States Department of Transportation - RITA) BALLOTS FOR 2015 District 10 FSITE Officers were mailed directly to members. Ballots must be received by the Secretary no later than October 31, 2014 or presented to the tellers, prior to noon, November 5, 2014, at the 2014 District 10 Annual Meeting in Boca Raton at the Embassy Suites. Election results will be announced at the banquet, Thursday, November 6, 2014, and will be in the following issue of FLITE. FLITE - October 2014 • 13 Florida at the Forefront of Automated Vehicle Movement Tanner Martin Introduction The Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) is planning for the deployment of autonomous and connected vehicle technologies on public roadways with the establishment of the Florida Automated Vehicles (FAV) initiative. The FAV initiative is helping to create the framework for implementation by engaging stakeholders, developing research and pilot projects, and creating awareness of the technologies and how they support FDOT’s vision statement. These revolutionary technologies will be able to further FDOT’s vision statement; “serving the people of Florida by delivering a transportation system that is fatality and congestion free.” Automated vehicle technologies hold unprecedented opportunities in helping to reduce congestion and improve safety. Automated vehicle is an umbrella term that includes both autonomous and connected vehicle technologies. An autonomous vehicle (AV) is any vehicle equipped with advanced sensors (radar, LIDAR, cameras, etc.) and computing abilities to perceive its surroundings and activate steering, braking, and acceleration without operator input. Connected vehicles (CV) employ vehicleto-vehicle (V2V) and vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I) communication to provide real-time warnings to a human driver to help them avoid crashes. Additional information can include traffic signal status, traffic congestion and construction warnings, as well as impending severe weather events. Both technologies can improve safety and efficiency of our transportation system in Florida since over 90% of traffic crashes are due to human error. CV technologies can also allow back office systems such as the traffic signal control system to react to real-time information from the vehicle. Annual Summits The Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) organized the first Florida Automated Vehicles Summit (FAV Summit), co-organized by the Florida Institute of Consulting Engineers (FICE), in Tampa in November of 2013. The University of South Florida (USF) and the Tampa Hillsborough Expressway Authority (THEA) also played significant roles by serving on the organizing committee. Over 225 professionals (public and private transportation planners and engineers, academia, elected officials, and automotive industry representatives) assembled at the Tampa Marriott Waterside Hotel to learn about the state of the 14 • FLITE - October 2014 industry and how Florida has started to address the challenges and opportunities associated with these new technologies being implemented on public roadways. The FDOT organized more the 20 speakers to bring the audience up to speed on the latest happenings and to begin to engage the planning and engineering community within Florida. The 2nd FAV Summit will take place at Walt Disney World (WDW) in December (2014), and will again be organized by both FDOT and FICE. The first day of the 2014 FAV Summit will occur at Coronado Springs Resort to bring the attendees up to speed on the FDOT’s FAV Initiative and to hear how the industry has progressed since the first FAV Summit. The second day will take place at the WDW Speedway complete with live vehicle demonstrations and exhibitors showing off the latest technology. The planned activities will allow for the opportunity to experience first-hand both AV and CV technologies, how they work, and a greater understanding of the planning and engineering challenges that lay ahead. For registration information, please visit www.automatedFL.com. The FAV Summits will be hosted annually to allow stakeholders the opportunity to network and collaborate so that Florida can be a leader in adopting these revolutionary technologies. Florida leadership realized very early that these technologies hold vast potential to increase safety and efficiency on public roads. Research Projects The FDOT has collaborated with Florida universities and engineering consulting firms to gain a better understanding of some of the implications associated with planning for and integrating these technologies into Florida’s existing infrastructure. As of July 2014, three research projects have been launched to address policy implications, improved mobility for the transportation disadvantaged and aging populations, and AV applications for transit operations. The research will provide recommendations that FDOT will take into consideration when updating policies, engineering and design standards, and funding feasibility. The first research project, led by Dr. Siva Srinivasan at the University of Florida, will address policy implications as it relates to federal, state, and local transportation plans. A primary focus is to continued on page 15 Florida at the Forefront of Automated Vehicle Movement understand how Metropolitan Planning Organizations (MPOs) will need to update long range transportation plans, traffic operation considerations, and alternative land use scenarios. The second research project, led by Dr. Jeff Brown at the Florida State University, will explore how these technologies could assist the transportation disadvantaged remain mobile even as they age. Another primary focus is to understand potential market acceptance and fleet saturation of automated vehicle technologies, especially among the elderly and millennial populations in Florida. The third research project, led by Mr. Brian Pessaro at the University of South Florida, will assess the viability of various transit applications, particularly for Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) solutions. Other research projects will be initiated as gaps in knowledge are identified. The already identified research projects may also be expanded based on input from the Florida Automated Vehicles Stakeholder Working Groups. Pilot Projects As stated above, the FAV initiative includes deploying pilot projects that help establish Florida as a leader in the automated vehicle movement. One way that Florida can lead by example is to be an early adopter of the technology itself. As of now, the only way to cost effectively retrofit a vehicle with any level of autonomy is to install sensors that alert the vehicle operator of potential forward collisions, lane departure, pedestrian detection, and other advanced warnings. This level of automation is defined as Level 0 by the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration continued from page 14 (NHTSA), but serves as building blocks to allow for higher levels of autonomy. Please read the NHTSA’s Preliminary Statement of Policy Concerning Automated Vehicles (link here) to learn more about the Levels of Automation (0-4). FDOT Central Office and FDOT District 7 have collaborated to kick off a pilot project that includes the installation of MobilEye’s Advanced Driver Assistant System (ADAS) on approximately 50 vehicles in the Tampa Bay area. Study vehicles in this pilot project include FDOT District 7 sedans and light trucks as well as buses, vans, and sedans operated by Hillsborough Area Regional Transit (HART), Tampa Bay Area Regional Transit Agency (TBARTA), Pasco County Public Transportation (PCPT), and the Pinellas Suncoast Transit Authority (PSTA). The MobilEye device includes 1 forward looking camera and a LED display to provide visual and audible warnings to the vehicle operator of eminent forward collisions, lane departure alerts, and provides pedestrian/ bicycle detection. The MobilEye device does not utilize Global Positioning System (GPS) technology and does not track vehicle movement. A telematics system, provided by GeoTab, is installed on each vehicle to measure the effectiveness of MobilEye’s safety enhancements. In order to provide a benchmark for performance measurement (comparative analysis), an additional 50 vehicles received only installation of the GeoTab device. The basis for this pilot project is to determine if the MobilEye technology provides value in preventing avoidable traffic accidents. If the warnings provided by the MobilEye devices allow FDOT vehicle operators to prevent collisions, thereby reducing costs associated with collisions, then ADAS systems may be recommended for wide-scale adoption by FDOT. continued on page 16 FLITE - October 2014 • 15 Florida at the Forefront of Automated Vehicle Movement The goal of the second pilot project is to demonstrate that automated vehicle technologies can offer increased safety and efficiency for freight operations. To date, most pilot projects involving automated vehicle technologies have been executed in a controlled environment, and data from the few projects that have occurred on public roadways are not available publicly. By coordinating a pilot project centered on the collection of quantifiable data for freight operations, FDOT will be able to help advance the rate of adoption of AV technologies to further enhance trade and commerce for Florida. This pilot project is designed to deliver improved data and performance for all stakeholders involved. This pilot project will take place in Miami-Dade County and will follow a 3-phased approach to measure, prioritize, and automate portions of the perishable-goods delivery supply chain. The perishable freight industry is a significant contributor to the economy of Miami-Dade County. Drayage trips of perishables from Miami International Airport (MIA) operate almost continuously 365 days per year. Automated vehicle technologies can enhance safety and improve efficiencies of the movement of goods on these highly repetitious freight routes. The FDOT proposes that travel time reliability can be improved within the region surrounding the MIA by deploying AV technologies on a limited number of drayage operators’ fleet vehicles that agree to partner on the project. In phase 1, CV technologies will be deployed to allow fleet operators and FDOT to better understand vehicle progression throughout delivery corridors and where bottlenecks occur at traffic signals. Phase 2 will then utilize the same devices to connect the freight vehicles to traffic signals through the back-end systems at the Miami-Dade County Traffic Management Center. During non-peak congestion hours (potentially 12:00am – 5:00am), traffic signal priority could be granted to study vehicles in the pilot to improve delivery performance by providing the freight vehicle with a green signal. A preliminary analysis showed that a vehicle leaving MIA, travelling along NW 25th St, with a destination at 1500 NW 70th Avenue, resulted in a total travel time of just over 30 minutes (2.5 miles). The same vehicle could make the same trip in 8.5 minutes if given additional green time along this corridor. Reduction in travel time directly results in better on-time delivery performance, as well as savings in fuel use and greenhouse gas emissions. Phase 3 will include the installation of AV technologies that will reduce driver fatigue and improve safety by assisting the operator with steering, acceleration, and braking controls. This could potentially provide justification for policy changes that could allow drivers to operate beyond the limitation of 11 driving hours per day, or in the long-term remove the driver from repetitive drayage movements altogether. 16 • FLITE - October 2014 continued from page 15 Stakeholder Working Groups FDOT has organized Working Groups comprised of stakeholders that may be impacted by and/or have an impact on the adoption of automated vehicles in Florida. More than sixty individuals representing state agencies, trade organizations, transportation consultants, insurance providers, automobile manufacturers, and others make up the 3 working groups (Policy, Transportation/ Infrastructure, and Modal Applications). Each working group is tasked to identify challenges and opportunities associated with these technologies on public roadways and to discuss how the challenges could be mitigated and how to leverage the opportunities. The overarching goal of these working groups is to provide FDOT, and other state agencies, recommendations on how to address potential policy adoption or amendments, engineering and design standard changes, and infrastructure investment priorities. For more information on these working groups, please go to www.automatedFL.com. Among the most complex issues regarding the deployment of automated vehicle technologies include insurance and liability, driver responsibility, the interaction between vehicle and operator, vehicle ownership patterns, and how this will affect needs in long-range transportation plans and other state and regional plans. The socioeconomic impacts that these technologies could potentially generate may significantly alter a very broad range of industries, including (but not limited to); health care, automobile manufacturers, auto collision repair centers, insurance providers, public transportation operators, freight operators, shared mobility providers, and transportation infrastructure providers. These very issues are being explored by the appropriate entities within Florida by participating in the Florida Automated Vehicle Stakeholder Working Groups. Public Outreach A very important component of the FAV Initiatives is public outreach and education. FDOT staff and their consultants have traveled around the state to various planning and engineering conferences and meetings to engage these entities that are involved in providing transportation infrastructure. FDOT understands that these professionals and organizations need to be involved from the very beginning in order to proactively prepare Florida for these emerging technologies. Education and awareness of AV and CV technologies, beginning with the planning and engineering community, is essential in order to begin to address the questions and concerns that the general public will (and should) generate. FSITE and ITS Florida Summer Meeting Summary Sheraton Sand Key Resort, Clearwater Beach June 25 - 27, 2014 Submitted by Sage Kamiya, PE, PTOE Secretary/FLITE Editor The 2014 Summer Meeting, Access Florida 2014 was another great success. We were privileged to partner with ITS Florida for this summer’s excellent program. This year’s meeting started off with the choice of two well attended technical tours. Ken Sides (City of Clearwater) gave a tour and discussion of the SR60/Mandalay Avenue Roundabout. Ken Jacobs (Pinellas County) moderated an informative tour of the Pinellas County Traffic Management Center and the Practitioners Guide to Adaptive Signal Control. FLITE - October 2014 • 17 FSITE and ITS Florida Summer Meeting Summary continued from page 17 The 2014 Summer Meeting, Access Florida 2014 was another great success. We were privileged to partner with ITS Florida for this summer’s excellent program. This year’s meeting started off with the choice of two well attended technical tours. Ken Sides (City of Clearwater) gave a tour and discussion of the SR60/ Mandalay Avenue Roundabout. Ken Jacobs (Pinellas County) moderated an informative tour of the Pinellas County Traffic Management Center and the Practitioners Guide to Adaptive Signal Control. Thursday’s opening session began with Pete Yauch, FSITE President, introduced the Florida Section Board and ITS Florida Board. Gregg Letts, ITS Florida President, thanked the golf tournament sponsors for their support of the scholarship fund. Andrew Velasquez, FSITE Vice President, thanked the Local Arrangements Committee and meeting sponsors for their help in putting together the meeting. Pete also introduced John Kennedy, ITE International Vice President and Paula Benway and Ray Davis, Vice President Candidates. George Cretekos, Mayor of Clearwater, provided the opening remarks. He talked about the need for good traffic signal timing and spoke about the Greenlight Pinellas referendum for improving transit throughout the county. He also discussed the need to think of the future of transportation in Pinellas. Plenary Session 1 – Adaptive Signal Control was moderated by David Hale (University of Florida) with presentations by Charlie Wetzel (Seminole County), Giri Jeedigunta (Palm Beach County), Ken Jacobs (Pinellas County) and Hazem El-Assar (Orange County). After a short networking break, Plenary Session 2 – Arterial Monitoring and Performance was moderated by Andrew Velasquez, FSITE Vice President. Presentations for this session were Arterial Management by LK Nandam (FDOT District 1), Filling in the Data Gaps by Gene Glotzbach (FDOT Central Office), and GDOT’s RTOP Program by Kenn Fink (Kimley Horn). During lunch, John Kennedy, ITE Vice President, shared ITE’s focus on membership, in particular, on younger members. He also shared that ITE is partnering with Young Professionals in Transportation (YTP) to be the organization after YTP. Both Vice Presidential candidates Paula Benway and Ray Davis spoke briefly about the importance of voting for your ITE membership. Following lunch there was a Vendor Showcase. Connie Braithwaite and Ron DeSimone presented Econolite’s new 2070 Rack Mount controller. Jeremy Huffman presented Southern Manufacturing’s new ITS Commander with Remote Management and Monitoring of ITS devices. Andrea Jones presented Swarco’s Variable Message Signs. Bryan Kaeser presented FLIR’s Thermal Detection Devices continued on page 19 18 • FLITE - October 2014 FSITE and ITS Florida Summer Meeting Summary continued from page 18 In the afternoon, the Florida Traffic Engineering Council (FLUTEC), chaired by Benton Bonney (City of Orlando), received a brief update on the status of the Traffic Information Program series (TIP) by Vishal Kakkad (Manatee County) and a legislative summary from Fred Heery (FDOT Central Office). Fred discussed several items including the proposed “road rage” bill, utility relocation, tourist oriented directional signs, license plate readers, and the proposed update to the traffic signal maintenance compensation agreement which will include performance measure requirements. During the Florida Planning Council (FLPLAN), chaired by Patricia Tice (Crews, LLC) Dr. Pei Sung Lin (CUTR), Karen Seggerman (CUTR) and Dr. Aldo Fabregas (FIT) gave a presentation on Trip Internalization in Multi-Use Developments. The day concluded with the ITS Florida Board Meeting, a Tropical Reception, and the ever popular ITE District 10 Collegiate Traffic Bowl. All of the participants did an excellent job representing their schools; the University of South Florida, Florida International University and University of Florida. Congratulations to this year’s repeat winners representing the University of Florida’s ITE Student Chapter! The team included Don Watson, Thomas Chase, and Pruthvi Manjunatha. Friday morning began with a delicious continental breakfast and the FSITE Business Meeting with each of the officers sharing a brief report. For the first set of sessions attendees had a choice of two sessions. Technical Session 3a – Congestion Management Plans was moderated by Oliver Rodrigues, FSITE Treasurer with presentations from Gena Torres (Hillsborough MPO) on the Hillsborough County Lane Operations Study, Praveen Pasumarthy (CDM Smith) on SIS Bottleneck Study, and Pete Costello (INRIX) on Measuring Roadway Performance. Technical Session 3b – Express Lane Operations and Incident Management was moderated by John Easterling (Florida’s Turnpike) with presentations on I-95 Express Lessons Learned by Greg Letts (AECOM), I-595 Incident Response Features by Kelley Hall (FDOT District 4) and Operations and Incident Management by John Easterling (Florida’s Turnpike). The final session, Plenary Session 4 – Connected/Autonomous Vehicles was moderated by Sage Kamiya (Manatee County) with presentations on FDOT Automated Vehicles by Ed Hutchison (FDOT Central Office) and Tanner Martin (Kimley Horn), Tampa Hillsborough Expressway Authority to the Future by Bob Frey (THEA), and Connected Vehicle Application for Public Transportation by Stephen Reich (CUTR) Pete Yauch, FSITE President concluded the meeting by thanking everyone for their attendance and reminding them of the ITS 3C Summit in Alabama and the 2014 D10/FSITE Annual Meeting in Boca Raton in November. FLITE - October 2014 • 19 Thinking Multimodal II: Cool Performance Measures with GIS Part 2 of an informal discussion about the changing mindsets and toolsets required for multimodal planning and design. Patricia C. Tice, PE, AICP, LEED AP This article will provide some metrics to assess a project from an adequate facilities standpoint across several modes. First, though, the following are a few basic multimodal concepts from Part 1. • Modes must be considered independently. Just because you have good street connectivity does not insure that you have good walking connectivity or vice-versa. If you can functionally use multiple modes on a trip, then plan for it, but unless you have good plans for how those modes interact, don’t assume they will. • Each mode has its own scale. A walker won’t go far. A biker might go a little farther. Children aren’t generally allowed to go very far walking or on bike so parents may not either. A transit rider can’t spend all day on the bus. A driver probably shouldn’t be using their car to go 500 feet. • The resolution of the network for each mode should match its scale. If you are only going to walk within a ½ mile radius, a ¼ mile connection spacing doesn’t make sense. • An incomplete network is equivalent to no network. If your network is 90% complete but you can’t get from here to there, what’s the point? • Modes may have a temporal factor. Florida is hot. Miserably hot. Gross and sticky and sweaty hot. Without shade, walking will be out of the question in the middle of the day and probably other times of the day too. Similarly, night is dark. Without lighting, the only people that will be out are people you don’t want there, and night comes during peak hours in the winter. • Land use interaction is king. If there’s nowhere to go within walking distance, then people won’t walk, and since this is America, they may not bike either. If your transit service doesn’t get you anywhere useful in a reasonable amount of time (no more than double the car time), ridership will plummet. A three hour single-way commute is not practical. • Boredom matters. This goes for all modes. Drivers get frustrated at long lights. Walkers get irritated with long, uninterrupted walls or fences. Transit riders like riding more than waiting. I suppose biking is its own joy (or terror) but otherwise, watch out for “dead air” because people start to do unpredictable things when faced with nothing better to do. As far as multimodal measures go, realistic metrics are necessary. They sell well to politicians, are easy to explain to lay people and are easy to measure using standard GIS tools. Here are a few preferred realistic metrics: Intersection density: The number of intersections (by mode) in a specific area. This one gets at the resolution of the network. For instance: This measure can even be refined to address the quality of the intersections. Here’s a site that details the GIS calculation used for a fairly sophisticated intersection density calculation: http://geodata. epa.gov/arcgis/rest/services/OA/SmartLocationDatabase/ MapServer/10 Just for a sense of scale, Portland has an intersection density of 356 intersections per square mile while downtown Dallas has 186 intersections per square mile—which is still not that bad. After a cursory review of the literature, it appears that anything less than about 150 intersections per square mile is going to struggle with alternate mode use. Above about 200 intersections per square mile, other design issues may control. Note that a developer can cheat at this measure by using frontage roads along the main network and leaving large blocks in place but assuming that the block sizes are fairly regular, intersection density is a good starting tool. Nearby Neighborhood Assets: A measure of the number of complementary land uses that can be reached within a ¼ or ½ mile walk. This measure can be expanded to include those assets continued on page 21 20 • FLITE - October 2014 Thinking Multimodal continued from page 20 that can be reached within a single transit ride. The intuitive nature of this measure makes it particularly appealing to public policy makers and lay-people and would usually be applied to residential projects. To assess this measure, a list of complementary uses is created and the number of assets within a walk-shed or transit shed is measured. LEED uses a list of about 30 land use types that include uses like grocery stores, restaurants, community centers, banks, laundromats, and schools. Sites that can access a minimum number of complementary uses can be considered well connected from a land use standpoint. The primary walkshed can be defined within GIS using a ¼ mile radius around the site (assuming that the walk distance within that radius is less than ½ mile). A secondary or transit shed can be defined by using a ¼ mile radius around any transit stops on the lines that cross through the primary walk-shed. In Central Florida, this can become a fairly simple GIS exercise since the local property appraiser has a GIS database of local businesses categorized by their NAICS (Industry Classification) codes. Employment Accessibility: The number of the region’s top employers can be reached within a 45 minute transit ride. This one also applies to residential projects and is surprisingly easy to calculate. Even in areas where there is a dominant employer, many of the top employers have multiple locations throughout the region, like the local school district or large grocery store chains. The jurisdiction creates a list of the top 10 employers within the region. For each employer, Google Maps is used to calculate the travel time by mode for the closest location at a specific time of day—for instance, using an arrival time of 8:00 am. If people who live in that area can reach a minimum number (maybe 7?) of the major employers within the region, they are well connected. Customer/Employee Accessibility: the number of potential customers or employees that can reach a project within its modespecific travel sheds. In other words, this measure uses census data to calculate how many people live within the travel shed of your development that would match your target demographic for customers or employees. Percent of a complete network. The percentage of an area’s final design network for a mode that is both currently complete and can be accessed without interruption by a particular site. To use this measure, a jurisdiction needs to create a plan for what they consider to be a complete network for a mode, whether it is pedestrian, bicycle or transit. Each project measures the percentage of the network plan within the scale of each mode that can currently be accessed by that project. Mode Specific Connectivity Index. In the standard connectivity index, the number of segments (roadways) is divided by the number of nodes (intersections). To make this mode-specific, the links or intersections that can’t provide service for that mode are removed from the network entirely—because as far as that user goes, they don’t exist. Very low volume streets (i.e. less than 250 vehicle trips per day) can be considered walkable and included in a pedestrian connectivity index. Making this measure modespecific eliminates the tendency to over-estimate the ability for non-passenger vehicle modes to navigate systems for which no design treatment has been considered. In summary, several of these measures can be generalized to address entire areas with a bit of creativity. Using measures that mean something to both the end-user and the policy-maker increases our credibility and directly addresses the mobility potential of our multi-modal areas. FLITE - October 2014 • 21 student Chapter News Florida International University The Florida International University ITE student chapter has successfully organized and participated in a variety of events during this academic year, including our signature guest speaker events, professional conferences, technical field trips, community service projects, and other social activities. We have collaborated with one international and five national institutions and research centers thereby expanding our relations. The chapter hosted a total of 24 distinguished professionals from both the academia and the industry. To mention only a few, the list of guest speakers included Dr. Michael P. Hunter, Director of Georgia Transportation Institute/University Transportation Center (GTI/UTC); Dr. Robert Bertini, P.E., Professor, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Portland State University; and Mr. Bill Hjelholt, Senior Vice President, Americas Director, Freight Rail, AECOM. the conference. Our chapter members attended in the UTC Conference for the Southeastern Region in March, 2014 held in Atlanta, Georgia with their works. We also attended the FSITE Summer Meeting that took place in Clearwater, Florida in June, 2014 as the participant team in the Traffic Bowl Contest. Our chapter stood as one of the five nationwide winners for the proposal for 2014 ITE Trip Generation and Parking Data Collection Project, therefore our chapter members conducted data collection being involved in the filed survey. Our chapter hosted the Middle School students’ field trip to Palm Transit authority in Palm Beach County held in July 2014. Our chapter also helped establish the Women’s Transportation Seminar (WTS) Student Chapter at FIU. We have launched our new website ite.fiu.edu. Every semester, we hosted presentations and lab tours for undergraduate students at FIU to give them an overview of Traffic and Transportation Engineering and to help them decide about selecting their majors. Also, we have expanded our chapter’s library collection with the financial help of FIU CSO, thus making Highway Capacity Manual, Highway Safety Manual, Policy on Geometric Design of Highways and Streets, Transportation Planning Handbook and the Traffic Engineering Handbook available to our chapter members. We continued to encourage our members to attend professional conferences and meetings. This year we broke last year’s record with 25 members participating in the 93rd Annual Meeting of the Transportation Research Board in Washington, D.C. in January 2014. Our Executive Board Members enjoyed the ITE Reception held at the International ITE Headquarters. In addition, our chapter member Hamidreza Asgari won the prestigious Best Student Paper Award in the ITE District 10 Annual Meeting in November 2013. Our chapter member and former president Mr. Xuanwu Chen represented our chapter presenting at the ITE 2014 Technical Conference and Exhibit in March, 2014 held in Miami, Florida. His presentation was highly appreciated in 22 • FLITE - October 2014 We are very thankful to all the supporters who helped us achieve advancements than ever before. With the new academic year starting shortly, our chapter will strive continuously to be the best student organization not only at Florida International University, and also among all the ITE student chapters in the world. Visit our website ite.fiu.edu Follow us at facebook.com/FIUITE Traffic Information Program Series Ever wished that there was an easy to relay, plain language, non-engineering way of explaining the traffic engineering concepts to the citizens or elected officials? This is your chance to provide input in updating the TIPS that will help with this. Please contact Vishal S. Kakkad (vishal. [email protected]) with your input. student Chapter News Local Chapter News University of South Florida Emerald Coast This is our USF ITE student chapter at this year’s Traffic Bowl event in June. We were able to get a team of 3 students, Don Skelton, Qing Wang, and Casey Jarrell, to participate in the competition along with several other students to come and participate in the dinner and support the team. This year we came in 3rd place overall and we have already started discussing next year’s Traffic Bowl. Emerald Coast held its last meeting on August 28, 2014 and had 14 in attendance. The guest speaker was Chad Williams, P.E., District 3 Assistant District Maintenance Engineer. The topic was FDOT Maintenance Contracts. Our ITE student chapter is ver y active on campus. This is a picture from the USF Engineering Welcome Back Block Party. Along with several other student engineering organizations, ITE set up a booth to recruit new students. Our student chapter has participated in this event for several years now. We have weekly seminars where professionals in the field of transportation from different places and companies come and present to our ITE members. This is a good opportunity to network and ask any questions regarding what a job might entail in that specific area of transportation. We also have social events each semester to promote ITE. These are events that are usually sponsored by student government and any engineering student can attend. Last year during the fall semester we had a Halloween social following the weekly seminar and this year we are planning on a barbeque sometime in October. The student turnout for these events is always good. Each year our student chapter goes on 3-4 field trips where we learn about some form of transportation. The first field trip of the fall semester will be in late September/early October and it will be a behind the scenes tour of the Tampa street car. It is currently being planned and we already have several students showing interest. We are looking into a student chapter at FSU Panama City Campus. We are also planning an Emerald Coast ITE golf tournament sometime after the first of the year. Keith C. Bryant, P.E., PTOE President [email protected] UPCOMINGMEETINGS Mark your calendars now for… Smart Transportation: A look back and staying ahead 2014 District 10 / FSITE Annual Meeting Co-sponsored by South Florida WTS November 5-7, 2014 Embassy Suites Boca Raton 2015 Florida Section Summer Meeting May 2015 Daytona Beach ITE 2015 Annual Meeting and Exhibit August 2–5, 2015 Westin Diplomat Hollywood, Florida, USA 2015 District 10 Annual Meeting November 2015 Sarasota/Bradenton Area FLITE - October 2014 • 23 student Chapter News UF Traffic Bowl Team Places 2nd in Grand Championship UF ITE traffic bowl team (left to right): Michael Armstrong, Donald Watson, Thomas Chase, Pruthvi Manjunatha UF ITE Student Chapter Welcomes New Transportation Students This year, 6 new graduate students joined the transportation group at UF. An orientation was held on August 29, 2014 for all new and current transportation graduate students. Here students were introduced to new and current students as well as the transportation professors. The UF ITE Student Chapter also gave a presentation to new students about ITE and how to get involved. The UF ITE Student Chapter hopes to continue to get new students involved in various ITE activities around campus and in the Florida District. Transportation students and faculty after the orientation at UF 24 • FLITE - October 2014 The UF ITE traffic bowl team advanced to the 2014 ITE International Collegiate Traffic Bowl Grand Championship in Seattle, WA after its win in the District 10 ITE Traffic Bowl. There the team competed against 8 other schools from their respective districts. The UF team consisted of Thomas Chase, Donald Watson, Pruthvi Manjunatha, and Michael Armstrong (alternate). This was Thomas’ fourth time competing in the Grand Championship and Donald’s second. The Grand Championship consists of 3 semifinal rounds with three teams competing in each round. The winner from each semifinal round competes in a final round. The UF team was randomly drawn to play against Purdue University and Clemson University in the semifinals. The battle was fierce between UF and Clemson, but UF managed to come back from a deficit to win. The University of Texas at Austin team also managed to advance past the semifinals by beating the University of Massachusetts-Amherst and University of Kansas after 4 tiebreakers between UT Austin and UMass-Amherst in the Final Clue. Penn State University won its seminal match against Brigham Young University and University of Toronto. The final round was a close competition. UF, Penn State, and UT Austin entered into the Final Clue with 2000, 2100, and 2700 points, respectively. Neither the UF nor the Penn State team got the Final Clue correct, but UT Austin answered correctly to give them 4200 points and first place in the Grand Championship. The UF team came in second with 1 point, and Penn State came in third with 0. It was a fierce competition, and the UF ITE traffic bowl team is proud to have come in second. While Thomas and Don are no longer eligible to compete in the traffic bowl next year, the UF ITE Student Chapter hopes to recruit some new life to bring onto the team. Schedule of Events • November 5-7, 2014 District 10/FSITE and South Florida WTS are co-hosting the 2014 Annual Meeting and Awards Banquet on November 5-7 at the Embassy Suites Hotel in Boca Raton, Florida. The meeting theme is Smart Transportation: A look back and staying ahead and will have a multimodal focus with sessions on Safety, Livability/Sustainability, Regional Transit, Regional Freight and Transportation Systems Management & Operations (TSM&O). This meeting will involve interactive and dynamic technical sessions with speakers from the Florida Department of Transportation, various Metropolitan Planning Organizations and local government. Keeping with the meeting theme, we will celebrate the 100th year of the traffic signal with a special presentation by the Florida Section historians. For the Wednesday Tour, delegates will participate in an en-route presentation by the South Florida Regional Transportation Authority on the Tri-Rail, followed by a guided bus tour of the expanding Port Everglades To register, visit www.floridasectionite.org Earn up to 13 PDH or CM Credits Wednesday, November 5 12:00 pm - 5:00 pm 12:15 pm - 4:30 pm 5:30 pm - 7:30 pm 7:00 pm - 9:00 pm Registration Tri-Rail and Port Everglades Tour Welcoming Reception D10/FSITE Executive Board Meeting (all interested parties welcome) Thursday, November 6 7:30 am - 5:00 pm 7:00 am - 8:00 am 8:00 am - 8:30 am 8:30 am - 10:00 am 10:30 am - 12:00 pm 12:00 am - 1:30 pm 1:30 pm - 3:00 pm 1:30 pm - 3:00 pm 3:30 pm - 4:15 pm 4:15 pm - 5:00 pm 6:00 pm - 7:00 pm 7:00 pm - 9:00 pm Registration Desk Open Continental Breakfast Opening Session Tech. Session 1: Road Safety - Working Towards Zero Tech. Session 2: Regional Transit - Premium Transit Options for the Future Lunch Tech. Session 3a: Sustainability & Livability - A Regional Level Viewpoint Tech. Session 3b: Sustainability & Livability - Retrofi tting Our Streets Florida Traffi c Engineering Council (FLUTEC) Roundtable Florida Planning Council (FLPLAN) Council Roundtable Poolside Evening Reception Historical Look Back at the Transportation Industry Evening Banquet and Awards Ceremony Friday, November 7 7:30 am - 5:00 pm 7:30 am - 8:30 am 8:00 am - 8:30 am 8:30 am - 10:00 am 8:30 am - 10:00 am Registration Desk Open Continental Breakfast D10/FSITE Executive Board Update Tech. Session 4a : Freight - Current and Future Trends Tech. Session 4b: Corridor Management - It’s Not Your Grandparent’s Roadway 10:00 am - 10:15 am Networking Break 10:15 am - 11:45 am Tech. Session 5a : Lessons Forgotten - Long Range Planning & Short Term Memories 10:15 am - 11:45 am Tech. Session 5b : TSM&O Integration - Are We There Yet? - An Interactive Panel Discussion 11:45 am - 12:00 pm Wrap-up and Adjourn 12:00 pm - 2:00 pm WTS Board Meeting (all interested parties welcome; lunch provided) FLITE - October 2014 • 25 Transportation Study Engineer/Planner Wanted for Internship or Hire A Great Opportunity to Work for An Innovative Group ICON Consultant Group is a Tampa based Transportation Planning and Engineering Firm. We are a growing, passionate group having a working relationship with the Florida Department of Transportation, Local Municipalities, State Universities, Land Development Companies, and other Engineering and Construction Companies. Econolite Group proudly offers transportation management solutions including traffic controllers, ATMS and adaptive traffic control, signals and cabinets, video and radar detection, and cabinet components. To learn more, contact us at [email protected], or call 904-448-5619. www.econolite.com ICON is seeking an analyst who has a strong interest in developing alternative innovative solutions to the challenging transportation demands in Florida. Specific project tasks include: • FDOT/FHWA alternative interchange analysis including innovative concepts as a Diverging Diamond Interchange and Displaced Left Turns, • FDOT Traffic Engineering Studies in West and Central Florida, • Complete Street Studies and Concepts, Award-Winning Engineering Solutions • Safety evaluations to address pedestrians, bikes and vehicles, • Creatively solving traffic problems including all modes of transportation. What we look for in candidates: Good communication and organizational skills, traffic analysis and capacity software knowledge, micro-simulation program experience (VISSIM, Corsim, Synchro), knowledge of travel demand forecast modeling using FSUTMS (Cube), some CADD experience, proven experience with data collection and technical analysis methods. I-4 Bridges Spanning Reedy Creek 2013 DBIA Florida Transportation Design-Build Project of the Year 2012 FICE Engineering Excellence Award Winner Scan the QR code or visit youtube.com/gannettfleming to watch a video highlighting the project. ICON has built a reputation of not just meeting but exceeding our Clients’ expectations. Our strongest marketing tool is our people and the quality of our work! We hire people who want to be great at what they do. Are you up for the challenge? If this is you or if you would like to discuss Florida’s Transportation Engineering opportunities, please call. Thank you! Design-Build • Construction Management • Construction Inspection • Roadway/Civil Bridges and Structures • Full-Service Geotech • Contractor Quality Control Transit and Rail • ITS and Traffic Engineering • PD&E Studies • Transportation Planning 786.845.9540 • www.gannettfleming.com Offices Worldwide Including 10 in Florida 26 • FLITE - October 2014 2014_FLITENewsletter_4C_3.625x4.875.indd 1 4/29/2014 9:44:34 AM Angelo G. Belluccia, PE Principal, ICON Consultant Group. Inc. 10006 North Dale Mabry Hwy, Suite 201, Tampa, FL 33618 Phone: 813-962-8689 • www.iconconsultantgroup.com PROFESSIONAL DIRECTORY FLITE is a newsletter published by the Florida Section of the Institute of Transportation Engineers (FSITE) to inform members of the latest news items, articles and variety of topics of interest to transportation professionals in Florida. Two issues a year of FLITE are distributed to the section members approximately 1 to 3 weeks prior to the summer and fall meetings. Those firms wishing to be added to the Professional Directory should contact Oliver R. Rodrigues, [email protected]. G T S ( 1 * , 1 ( ( 5 , 1 * Angela M. Garland, PE, PTOE Data Collection Traffic Engineering Traffic Design Lighting Design Traffic Studies President 11523 Palmbrush Trl, Ste 317 Lakewood Ranch, FL 34202 Planning 941-322-2815 RCI [email protected] Providing Timely, Professional Engineering Solutions 10006 North Dale Mabry Highway, Suite 201 | Tampa, Florida 33618 813-962-8689 | www.iconconsultantgroup.com • • • • • Highway Design DrainageDesign&Permitting Site Civil Engineering & Planning Environmental Science TrafficControlAnalysis/Plans • • • • • TrafficEngineering TrafficOperationalStudies SafetyEvaluations TrafficDataCollection TransportationPlanning Certified DBE, MBE & SBE Reminder If you have not updated your personal and/or business contact information recently, we encourage you to visit the International ITE web site and do so. www.ite.org Are You Getting the FSITE-news? Florida Section ITE has an electronic newsletter that we send out via e-mail periodically. We have recently upgraded it so that you can choose to receive it in HTML, plain text, or mobile format. The brief newsletter provides information on upcoming meetings and news in the transpor tation profession. To subscribe for FREE, just go to http://eepurl.com/iwipo or point your smart-phone to scan the adjacent QR code. FLITE - October 2014 • 27 Sage Kamiya, P.E., PTOE FLITE Editor Manatee County Public Works 1022 26th Avenue East Bradenton, FL 34208 ASSOCIATED BUSINESS DIVISION (ABD) Allied Tube & Conduit Caliper Corp Control Technologies Cost Cast. Inc. CS Engineered Casting Econolite Control Products Edco/Emerson EtherWAN Systems, Inc. Flir Information Display Company (SpeedCheck) Iteris Inc. Lighting Control Consultants Trafficware Pexco/Davidson Traffic Control Products PTV America Quality Counts Southern Manufacturing Temple Tesco Traffic Logix Transportation Control Systems Wavetronix 28 • FLITE - May 2014 Ken Smith Paul Ricotta Mike Day Adam Kallmeyer Michael Velez Matt Joseph/Connie Braithwaite Gary Nesbitt Bill Starkey Kirk Wegener Gary Odell Stokes Wallace Bill Cook Stephen Kulisek Shelley Williams Kiel Ova Carlos Stevenson Jeremy Huffman Sheldon Pafford Jeff Neff James Weatherall Cary W. Hudkins Michael Kline 770-616-4477 617-527-4700 407-330-2800 863-422-5617 561-588-5981 904-448-5619 607-721-8840 817-812-3138 866-837-3238 503-626-3017 407-383-1845 321-608-9162 772-285-6289 904-612-3078 503-297-2556 954-599-0603 407-894-8851 386-615-8246 407-330-2800 800-641-4143 813-630-2800 407-388-0343
© Copyright 2024