Date:  Jan. 11, 2013

 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

 

TRB's 2013 Annual Meeting Highlights Using Transportation Research to Do Things Smarter, Better, and Faster

 

WASHINGTON -- The 92nd Annual Meeting of the National Research Council's Transportation Research Board will have more than 4,000 transportation-related presentations in nearly 750 sessions and workshops.  Some 11,000 people from around the world -- including policymakers, administrators, practitioners, researchers, journalists, and representatives of government, industry, and academia -- will attend the meeting.  This year's spotlight theme is "Deploying Transportation Research: Doing Things Smarter, Better, Faster."

 

The meeting will take place in Washington, D.C., from Jan. 13-17 and be held in three hotels: Marriott Wardman Park Hotel, 2660 Woodley Road, N.W.; Omni Shoreham Hotel, 2500 Calvert St., N.W.; and Hilton Washington Hotel, 1919 Connecticut Ave., N.W.  Newsrooms will be available to reporters at the Marriott and Hilton; members of the news media must register to attend the Annual Meeting.  For registration information, contact Russell Houston (contact information below).  A list of highlighted sessions follows.  More information about the meeting, including a complete list of sessions, is available at http://www.trb.org/AnnualMeeting2013/AnnualMeeting2013.aspx.

 

Highlighted sessions:

 

Superstorm Sandy: Transportation Challenges and Research Opportunities in the Aftermath of a Disaster
This session will feature presentations from individuals who were on the front lines of preparation, response, and recovery associated with Superstorm Sandy, an event that led to cascading failures across all transportation modes, as well as other critical infrastructure sectors.

JAN. 13, 7 P.M. TO 9:30 P.M., MARRIOTT

 

Deploying Transportation Research: Video Theater
Watch videos showcasing transportation research results and innovations that have been successfully deployed, including FHWA’s "The New Normal,” NCHRP’s “National Cooperative Highway Research Program at 50 Years: Anniversary Video,” and SHRP 2’s “One Design -- 10,000 Bridges," among others.

JAN. 14, 9:30 A.M. TO 4 P.M., MARRIOTT

 

Thomas B. Deen Distinguished Lecture and Presentation of Awards
The Deen Distinguished Lectureship award recognizes the career contributions and achievements of an individual in areas covered by the Transportation Research Board's Technical Activities Division.  As the 2013 recipient, John P. Broomfeld will present an overview of his holistic approach to transportation infrastructure maintenance and preservation.  A number of TRB awards will also be presented at this event.

JAN. 14, 6 P.M. TO 7:15 P.M., MARRIOTT

 

Resolved: The Federal Government Should Substantially Increase Investment for Transportation Infrastructure
Two high school debate teams from New York City and Baltimore will debate whether the U.S. federal government should substantially increase investment for transportation infrastructure.  The National Association of Urban Debate Leagues, which is sponsoring the event, works to promote education equity in urban high schools by facilitating policy debate. A panel of transportation experts assembled by TRB will serve as judges.

JAN. 16, 10:15 A.M. TO NOON, MARRIOTT

 

Chairman's Luncheon
As the premier event and the largest single gathering at the meeting, this luncheon is attended by leaders in the transportation field from the U.S. and abroad.  The program will include the introduction of new Executive Committee members and officers, presentation of TRB's most prestigious awards, and featured speaker John Horsley, executive director of the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO). Limited seating (without lunch and admittance after 12:45 p.m.) is available.

JAN. 16, NOON TO 2 P.M., SHOREHAM

 

MAP-21 Implementation: A View From the U.S. Department of Transportation
Undersecretary for Policy Polly Trottenberg will lead a discussion with other officials from the U.S. Department of Transportation on progress in the implementation of major policy directions dictated by MAP-21, including project delivery and freight.

JAN. 16, 2:30 P.M. TO 4 P.M., SHOREHAM

 

Other sessions that may be of interest:

 

Implementing SHRP 2 Innovations: The Road from Research to Action

This workshop will examine how results of SHRP 2 research in the areas of renewal, capacity, reliability, and safety can be implemented by state departments of transportation in order to address some of the most pressing needs related to the nation’s highways. The adoption of such research products could potentially evolve into standard practice over the next 20 years.

JAN. 13, 9 A.M. TO NOON, HILTON

 

Reducing Risks and Costs of Climate Change: Preparedness and Adaptation in the Face of Increasingly Extreme Weather

In the scientific arena and at public infrastructure agencies, discussions on climate change have now evolved to include preventive measures combined with risk-based decision making to reduce climate change-related costs and risks.  This workshop will present worldwide, state-of-the-art research and initiatives to address this issue.

JAN. 13, 9 A.M. TO NOON, HILTON

 

Intercity Passenger Rail: Forecasting Its Role, Understanding Its Impacts

Speakers in this session will discuss the potential for high-speed rail, including methods to forecast demand and possible impacts on land use.

JAN. 14, 1:30 P.M. TO 3:15 P.M, SHOREHAM

 

Freeway Incident Management and Impact of Freeway Traffic Congestion

This session will include discussion of freeway incident management and the impact of traffic congestion, whether or not it is incident related.

JAN. 14, 2 P.M. TO 3:45 P.M, MARRIOTT

 

Airline Industry Restructuring

This session will look at the future competitiveness, demand, and policy implications of restructuring for the airline industry.

JAN. 15, 10:15 A.M. TO NOON, SHOREHAM

 

All You Wanted to Know About Roundabouts: Capacity, Safety, Trucks, and Modeling

This comprehensive poster session will address several aspects of roundabouts in transportation, including pedestrian crossings, comparison to traffic signal control, analysis of crash rate, and more.

JAN. 15, 10:45 A.M. TO 12:30 P.M., MARRIOTT

 

Automated Enforcement Evaluation, Application, and Effects on Highway Safety and Driver Behavior

This session provides a unique opportunity for attendees to interact with an international audience and share their experiences with automated enforcement systems.  Specifically, the presented studies evaluate the systems' effectiveness and their impacts on highway safety and driver behavior.

JAN. 15, 4:15 P.M. TO 6 P.M., MARRIOTT

 

Emerging Research in Emergency Evacuation

Presenters at this session will discuss new research in emergency evacuation, including how evacuee route choice impacts evacuation and how to predict the availability of bus transit drivers.

JAN. 16, 2:30 P.M. TO 4 P.M., MARRIOTT

 

Mythbusters: Speeding, Speed Management, and Safety Relationships

The presenters will share research that challenges common beliefs and practices about driver speeding behaviors, and will stimulate discussion of research needed toward developing more effective speed management practices and countermeasures.

JAN. 16, 4:30 P.M. TO 6 P.M., MARRIOTT

 

TRB is a division of the National Research Council.  The Research Council is the principal operating agency of the National Academy of Sciences and the National Academy of Engineering.  For more information, visit http://national-academies.org.

 

Contacts: 

Russell Houston, Senior Communications Officer

Transportation Research Board

202-334-3252; e-mail rhouston@nas.edu

 

Lorin Hancock, Media Relations Officer

Office of News and Public Information

202-334-2138; e-mail news@nas.edu

 

 

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