| NYSDOT's 'roundabout' excellence honored at Bentlety's Be Inspired Awards |
| October 15, 2009 Bentley Systems |
| Beating our nominated projects from around the world, this $15.2 million bypass extension in Bethlehem, N.Y. — a pilot project for the New York State Department of Transportation (NYSDOT) to test the integration of automated machine control grading and the use of Bentley technology’s quantity managing capabilities — won in the Innovation in Roads category at this week's Bentley Be Inspired Awards.
Creighton Manning Engineering developed 3D digital terrain models (DTMs) and worked with... |
| Link: http://www.bentley.com/en-US/Promo/Be+Inspired/Finalists/Roads.htm |
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| LaHood: "Get your act together regionally, or forget help from Washington" |
| October 15, 2009 Detroit Free Press |
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| Link: http://www.freep.com/article/20091015/OPINION01/910150420/1322/How-to-lose-federal-transit-funding-(again) |
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| Oberstar praised the five states that have distributed their highway funds the quickest |
| October 15, 2009 Washington Times |
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| Link: http://washingtontimes.com/news/2009/oct/15/obamas-stimulus-paves-few-new-roads/ |
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| Virginia hosts Obama and LaHood |
| October 14, 2009 U.S. DOT |
| President Barack Obama joined U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood today at the site of the Fairfax County Parkway Extension in Virginia to announce more than 8,000 highway projects have been funded by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) since its passage in February.Of the nearly $27 billion available for highway projects through the Recovery Act, $19.5 billion has been obligated for 8,050 projects nationwide. As of Oct. 9, 2009, 4,760 highway projects were under construction. The Fairfax County Parkway Extension project is adding much needed capacity to a route that, by 2011, will serve nearly 66,900 daily drivers – an increase of nearly 10 percent over current levels. At an estimated $140 million, it is Virginia’s largest ARRA-funded project. |
| Link: http://www.dot.gov/affairs/2009/dot16109.htm |
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| National Gateway, a multi-state public-private partnership, gains significance |
| October 14, 2009 PR Newswire |
| More than 140 supporters from the public and private sectors in six states have joined together in endorsing the National Gateway, an unprecedented public-private partnership dedicated to revolutionizing the nation's transportation system, preparing it for the widely predicted growth in global demand.
Recently honored as "Competitiveness Project of the Year" by the North American Strategic Infrastructure Leadership Forum, the National Gateway has emerged as a leading public-private partnership. The project will use intermodal transportation and double-stack trains to improve America's global market competitiveness, create jobs, reduce transportation-related emissions and alleviate congestion on roads and highways.
According to Cambridge Systematic figures from 2009, every dollar of public money invested in the National Gateway will yield $16 in public benefits by significantly increasing freight capacity and reducing transit times between coastal ports and major population centers by 24 to 48 hours. |
| Link: http://www.nationalgateway.org/ |
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| 'MassDOT on track for Nov. launch; labor issues Rremain' |
| October 13, 2009 WBUR, Boston |
| "A massive restructuring of the state’s transportation agencies is on track to reach a major milestone next month. The new Massachusetts Department of Transportation will officially launch on Nov. 1, according to Jeffrey Mullan, the incoming state transportation secretary. He spoke at an oversight hearing held by the Joint Committee on Transportation on Beacon Hill." |
| Link: http://www.wbur.org/2009/10/08/massdot-hearing |
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| VIDEO: 'Paving the road of the future' |
| October 9, 2009 Florida Prestressed Concrete Association |
This video from the Florida Prestressed Concrete Association "examines the feasibility of using precast pretensioned panels for roadway segments that are assembled on-site and post-tensioned."
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| Link: http://fpcaweb.org/index/Index.html |
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| Bentley announces winners of 2009 Be Inspired Special Recognition Awards |
| October 9, 2009 CE News |
| Bentley Systems, Inc., will announce the winners of its 2009 Be Inspired Awards next week during its Be Inspired: Infrastructure Best Practices Symposium and Awards in Charlotte, N.C. The awards honor outstanding achievements in infrastructure and are judged by an independent panel of industry experts. However, in advance of that event, the company announced the winners of a new set of awards called Be Inspired Special Recognition Awards. |
| Link: http://www.cenews.com/news-bentley_announces_winners_of_2009_be_inspired_special_recognition_awards-698.html |
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| Industry leaders form committee to research concrete joint sealing |
| October 8, 2009 CE News |
| A group of pavement industry professionals joined forces to form a Seal/No Seal (SNS) Industry Research Committee to respond to a long-standing question about the value of sealing concrete pavement joints. The committee is working in cooperation with a large number of contractors and manufacturers responsible for the sealing and maintenance of pavement joints and cracks across the nation. |
| Link: http://www.cenews.com/news-industry_leaders_form_committee_to_research_concrete_joint_sealing-680.html |
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| IDOT releases bridge inspection summaries |
| October 5, 2009 Chicago Tribune |
| After putting an embargo on Illinois bridge inspection information due to concerns related to terrorism, the Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT) has released data and details. "With aggressive state plans now in place to spend an estimated $2.5 billion on bridge rehabilitation work and new bridges over the next six years, Gov. Pat Quinn and IDOT are lifting the veil of secrecy that previously existed," wrote the Chicago Tribune's Jon Hilkevitch. |
| Link: http://www.chicagotribune.com/business/autocorner/chi-getting-around_05oct05,0,7385266.column |
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| 'Stimulus transportation spending lags predictions' |
| October 2, 2009 Pro Publica |
| Based on estimates made by the Congressional Budget Office in February 2009, "stimulus money for transportation projects is being spent far more slowly than expected." |
| Link: http://www.propublica.org/ion/stimulus/item/stimulus-transportation-spending-lags-predictions-1002 |
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| VIDEO: Rep. Oberstar reacts to "misrepresentations" in the media |
| October 2, 2009 U.S. Congress |
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| Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fKMWCTZOpQU&feature=player_embedded |
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| VIDEO: LaHood & Oberstar discuss "misrepresentations" in the media |
| October 2, 2009 U.S. Congress |
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| Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fKMWCTZOpQU&feature=player_embedded |
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| 'GOP Blocks Plan to Use Bailout Fund to Preserve $8.7B in Transport Money' |
| October 1, 2009 Streetsblog Capitol Hill |
| "A bipartisan bid to extend existing federal transportation law for three months -- and tap the TARP bailout fund to avert the cancellation of $8.7 billion in contract authority -- was rejected on the Senate floor last night after GOP senators insisted on using..." |
| Link: http://dc.streetsblog.org/2009/10/01/republicans-object-to-tarp/ |
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| U.S. Senate okays one-month extension of SAFETEA-LU |
| October 1, 2009 Streetsblog Capitol Hill |
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| Link: http://dc.streetsblog.org/2009/09/30/senate-passes-one-month-extension-of-transport-law/ |
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| Koehle elected '09-'10 president of APWA |
| September 30, 2009 American Public Works Association |
| Larry T. Koehle, P.Eng., MPA, the Director of Public Works and Engineering for the Town of Caledon, Ontario, was elected President of the American Public Works Association (APWA) during the recent 2009 APWA International Public Works Congress and Exposition in Columbus, Ohio. Elected by APWA’s 29,000 members, Koehle will lead APWA, which provides professional development and educational services and promotes increased investment in public works infrastructure and systems. Koehle will serve as President of APWA for the 2009-2010 term. |
| Link: http://www.apwa.net/SuperPush/index.asp?ID=155 |
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| 'LaHood has been the only real public-relations bright spot for this White House' |
| September 30, 2009 The Hill |
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| Link: http://thehill.com/blogs/pundits-blog/the-administration/60875-ray-lahood |
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| The NEW Recovery.gov |
| September 29, 2009 Pro Publica |
| As we've covered over the summer, the first iteration of Recovery.gov -- the ARRA website built to make good on the Obama Administration's promise of a transparency -- came up short, so $18 million was scrounged to build a new one. Here it is. |
| Link: http://www.propublica.org/ion/stimulus/item/to-track-stimulus-a-new-version-of-recovery.gov-928 |
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| 'Could Congress Let States (Start to) Lose $8.7 Billion in Road Money?' |
| September 29, 2009 Streetsblog Capitol Hill |
| "The short answer: Maybe. As Congress rushed to give itself one more month to break the House-Senate stalemate over federal transportation policy, one matter was left unattended -- the $8.7 billion in un-obligated highway aid that's scheduled to start evaporating..." |
| Link: http://dc.streetsblog.org/2009/09/29/could-congress-let-states-start-to-lose-8-7-billion-in-road-money/ |
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| Virginia tranportation leader calls for JFK-like approach |
| September 28, 2009 The Washington Post |
| The Washington Post's Dr. Gridlock looks at the State of Virginia as a micro chasm of the United States' broader transportation problems. |
| Link: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/09/26/AR2009092602441.html |
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| VIDEO: Rep. Oberstar argues for a three-month extension of SAFETEA-LU |
| September 25, 2009 U.S. Congress |
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| Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BZ4WEKY-jaw&feature=channel_page |
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| Oberstar argues for a three-month extension (VIDEO) |
| September 25, 2009 U.S. Congress |
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| Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BZ4WEKY-jaw&feature=channel_page |
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| CE News offers ‘Collaborate to Succeed’ webcast |
| September 24, 2009 CE News |
| “Collaborate to Succeed,” A free CE News webcast, Oct. 14, 2009 at 2 p.m. EDT, sponsored by Autodesk, explores how improved collaboration can yield significant benefits such as cost- and time-savings to transportation projects and stakeholders, optimizing the use of project data throughout the project’s lifecycle and maximizing the impact of 3D model-based design processes |
| Link: https://event.on24.com/eventRegistration/EventLobbyServlet?target=registration.jsp&eventid=157308&sessionid=1&key=86D4FC65B7114003B10CE5F96418B15F&partnerref=CEbimchann&sourcepage=register |
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| House approves 3-month authorization extension |
| September 24, 2009 AASHTO |
| The House of Representatives voted 335-85 this evening to approve a bill that would extend federal highway and transit programs until the end of this year. Federal law authorizing spending on federal-aid highways, transit projects, and highway safety programs is set to expire Sept. 30.
The legislation does not address a looming $8.7 billion rescission of existing contract authority (enacted in the 2005 transportation law known as SAFETEA-LU and amended by a 2007 energy law), which will be executed next week by the Federal Highway Administration if not repealed.
The three-month extension bill now heads to the Senate, which has not yet acted on a proposal approved by three committees to extend authorization by 18 months, as requested by the Obama administration. |
| Link: http://www.aashtojournal.org/Pages/092309authorization.aspx |
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| ARTBA to explore P3s at upcoming conference |
| September 23, 2009 ARTBA |
| As Congress continues work on the next multi-year surface transportation authorization bill, industry leaders and government officials must address many questions, including: what is the future of public-private ventures (PPV), what is their value in an era of tight budgets, and how can project owners use public-private partnership (P3) programs to deliver value for transit, highway, rail and freight system users?
These issues and more will be explored during the 21st Annual American Road & Transportation Builders Association (ARTBA) Public-Private Ventures in Transportation Conference, September 24-25 in Washington, D.C. |
| Link: http://www.artbappvconference.org/http://www.artbappvconference.org/ |
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| USDOT kicks-off program to get more women working in transportation |
| September 21, 2009 U.S. Department of Transportation |
| U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood today at Spelman College announced the Pilot Entrepreneurial Training and Technical Assistance Women and Girls Program, created to encourage girls to pursue careers in science, engineering, and technology and help women in the field to achieve their goals. The new program is part of a broader effort, led by the White House, to ensure that federal programs and policies take into account the distinct needs and concerns of women and girls." |
| Link: http://www.dot.gov/affairs/2009/dot14809.htm |
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| $100 million goes to green transportation |
| September 21, 2009 U.S. Department of Transportation |
| The Obama Administration today announced $100 million in Economic Recovery Act funding for 43 transit agencies that are pursuing cutting-edge environmental technologies to help reduce global warming, lessen America's dependence on oil and create green jobs. Among the projects funded under the competitive bidding, Alabama will replace gasoline and diesel buses with electric hybrids, Massachusetts will construct wind energy generation turbines and Vancouver, Washington, will install solar panels at transit facilities. The 43 winning proposals were submitted by transit agencies from across the country as part of a nationwide competition for $100 million in American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA) funds. |
| Link: http://www.dot.gov/affairs/2009/fta2209.htm |
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| LaHood kicks-off program to get more women working in transportation |
| September 21, 2009 U.S. Department of Transportation |
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| Link: http://www.dot.gov/affairs/2009/dot14809.htm |
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| Oberstar to push for three-month extension of transportation bill |
| September 18, 2009 StreetsBlog |
| Continuing his strong opposition to the proposed 18-month delay of the reauthorization of the federal surface transportation bill, which the White House supports, Rep. Oberstar is close to presenting his alternative: a clean, three-month extension that would push any decision-making until 2010. |
| Link: http://dc.streetsblog.org/2009/09/17/oberstar-to-back-3-month-delay-in-transport-bill-as-soon-as-next-week/ |
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| 'Oberstar to Back 3-Month Delay in Transport Bill As Soon As Next Week' |
| September 18, 2009 StreetsBlog |
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| Link: http://dc.streetsblog.org/2009/09/17/oberstar-to-back-3-month-delay-in-transport-bill-as-soon-as-next-week/ |
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Department of Transportation makes steps to ensure the structure's ecological footprint is as small as possible, leaving room for natural habitats to flourish.
