OTREC's Past Events
June 2014
PSU Delft Summer Program
June 28, 2014 8:00 am - July 11, 2014 5:00 pm
Sustainable Transportation in the Netherlands
Faculty: Dr. Robert Bertini (PSU), Dr. Peter Furth (NEU)
Summary: This popular course offers students a unique learning opportunity. Open to PSU seniors and graduate students from all majors, students immerse themselves in the Netherlands and experience firsthand how pedestrian, bicycle, transit and auto modes can work together and complement each other in a truly liveable way.
Peter Koonce (The City of Portland Bureau of Transportation), the course's original creator, was inspired to develop the curriculum after guest lecturing for a Northeastern University course hosted at TU Delft in 2010. Koonce soon realized that he was involved in a course that he should have taken as an undergraduate, and he pledged to create the same experience for students at PSU.
"At the City of Portland, we had been talking about building better bicycle facilities, but it was hard to imagine them. By visiting with Dutch traffic engineers, you could ask them specific questions on what was working for them and how their design philosophies evolved over time."
Topics include Dutch bicycle facility planning and design, roundabout design, bicycle highways, transit networks, land use and zoning impact on transportation planning, and transit oriented development. In a typical day students meet for an introductory lecture at TU Delft, cycle to a nearby city for a tour led by local planners, engineers and politicians. Students work in small groups on a wiki-based project and also blog about their experiences as part of the course.
A recent article about the course, which recounts the insights and experiences of some former course participants, can be found here.
CE 4/510 (5 credits)
Faculty: Dr. Robert Bertini (PSU), Dr. Peter Furth (NEU)
More information about the course can be found here or by completing this simple form. Non-students interested in participating in the course should contact Dr. Robert Bertini.
Applications are now available through PSU Education Abroad.
Health and Transportation Partners: Working to Improve Pedestrian Safety in Oregon
June 11, 2014 11:00 am - June 11, 2014 2:30 pm
Health and Transportation Partners: Working to Improve Pedestrian Safety in Oregon
Safe States Pedestrian Injury Prevention Training and Mini-Grant Opportunity
Free IBPI Webinar
Wednesday, June 11, 2014
Part 1: 11:00 AM - 12:30 PM PST
Part 2: 1:00 PM - 2:30 PM PST
Join health and transportation partners working in Oregon and learn a variety of ways to improve pedestrian safety in your neighborhood, town or city. Explore the links between health and transportation, the best practices being used to increase the numbers of individuals using active transportation, and how to keep all road users safer. These methods need not necessarily be expensive engineering solutions, but can encompass education, enforcement and some simple fixes.
This webinar is required viewing for taking advantage of a pedestrian safety mini-grant opportunity that will be released in June 2014. Click here to preview the mini-grant program guidelines and application. The webinar will be recorded and a link will be emailed to all registrants after the webinar.
Audience: Those working in public health, pedestrian or bicycle advocacy, law enforcement, community planning, traffic engineering, citizen engagement or other fields that want to get people using active transportation and reduce the risks to users of the system.
Continuing Education Credits: This webinar provides three hours of training which equals 3 CM or 3 PDH. IBPI applies to the AICP for Certification Maintenance credit for each webinar. We will provide an attendance certificate to those who document their professional development hours.
Configuration: The webinar will be administered through GoToWebinar. The room will be opened 30 minutes before the start of the webinar.
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Morning
Afternoon
E-Bikes: Generating the New Wave of Cyclists
June 9, 2014 10:00 am - June 9, 2014 11:15 am
E-Bikes: Generating the New Wave of Cyclists
How do we get more people biking and to bike more often? Communities around North America are struggling with this question as they face growing economic, social, health and environmental issues. This webinar aims to explore if adding technology to bicycles can reduce barriers to bicycling (e.g., trip distance, topography, time, and rider effort) and encourage more bicycling trips, longer bicycling trips, and increase the diversity of people bicycling, including people with a disability or chronic injury.
Electric bicycles (e-bikes) are well established in China and other Asian and European countries but market adoption has been slow in the United States. E-bikes typically resemble a standard pedal bicycle with the addition of a rechargeable battery and electric motor to assist the rider with propulsion. Though research on the economic, operational, and safety issues of e-bikes in North America is limited, the webinar will present information gathered by PSU researchers on the adoption of e-bikes. Results from an online survey of existing e-bike users on their purchase and use decisions will be presented, which suggest that e-bikes are enabling users to bike more often, to more distant locations, and to carry more cargo with them. Additionally, e-bikes seem to allow people who would otherwise not be able to bike, because of physical limitations or proximity to locations, the ability to bike with electric assist.
What is an e-bike? Who is using these bikes and why? What are the barriers that are preventing broader adoption of this technology? As adoption of e-bikes increases, how should local agencies address the integration of e-bikes with other modes? These questions and more will be explored in this webinar.
The webinar is free through registration; early registration is encouraged. An archived video will also be posted after the webinar.
Continuing Education Credits: This 60-minute webinar provides one hour of training which equals 1 CM or 1 PDH. IBPI applies to the AICP for Certification Maintenance credit for each webinar. We will provide an attendance certificate to those who document their professional development hours.
Configuration: The webinar will be administered through GoToWebinar. The room will be opened 30 minutes before the start of the webinar.
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Seminar #394: Transforming Transportation Through Connectivity
June 6, 2014 12:00 pm - June 6, 2014 1:00 pm
May 2014
GIS Tools for Bicycle Network Analysis and Planning
May 30, 2014 12:00 pm - May 30, 2014 1:00 pm
Where: Room 204 of the Distance Learning Center Wing of the Urban Center at PSU
Speaker: Mike Lowry, Professor, University of Idaho
Topic: GIS Tools for Bicycle Network Analysis and Planning
Summary: This presentation is a showcase of various GIS tools developed for bicycle network analysis and planning. The showcase includes a tool for assessing community-wide bikeability, a tool for forecasting bicycle volumes based on street topology, and a tool for evaluating different bicycle improvement plans in terms of exposure to danger situations for bicyclists. The tools will be demonstrated with case study data. The presentation will include a review of the Highway Capacity Manual Bicycle Level of Service and a discussion about using bicycle and pedestrian data collected through citizen-volunteer count programs.
Stream the seminar live, or watch an archived video, when made available, through the link here.
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Capturing the Ride: Exploring Low-Density Flexible Transit Alternatives in Salem-Keizer
May 23, 2014 12:00 pm - May 23, 2014 1:00 pm
Just Sustainabilities: Re-Imagining E/quality, Living Within Limits
May 21, 2014 7:00 pm - May 21, 2014 9:00 pm
Where: Native American Student and Community Center, 710 SW Jackson Street, Portland, OR 97201
Speaker: Julian Agyeman, PhD
Topic: Just Sustainabilities: Re-Imagining E/quality, Living Within Limits
Summary: Professor Agyeman will first outline the concept of ‘just sustainabilities.’ He will argue that integrating social needs and welfare offers us a more ‘just,’ rounded, and equity-focused definition of sustainability and sustainable development, while not negating the very real environmental threats we face. He will define just sustainabilities as ‘the need to ensure a better quality of life for all, now and into the future, in a just and equitable manner, whilst living within the limits of supporting ecosystems.’ He will then look at examples of just sustainabilities in practice in the real world focusing on ideas about ‘fair shares’ resource distribution globally; planning for intercultural cities; achieving wellbeing and happiness; the potential in the new sharing economy; and finally the concept of ‘spatial justice’ and how it complements the more established concept of social justice.
Julian Agyeman is Professor of Urban and Environmental Policy and Planning at Tufts University, Medford, MA. He is an environmental social scientist whose expertise and current research interests are in the complex and embedded relations between humans and the environment, whether mediated by governmental institutions or social movements, and the effects of this on public policy and planning processes and outcomes, particularly in relation to notions of justice and equity. He is co-founder and Editor-in-Chief of the international journal ‘Local Environment: The International Journal of Justice and Sustainability.’ With over 150 publications, his recent books include ‘Cultivating Food Justice: Race, Class and Sustainability’ (MIT Press 2011) and ‘Introducing Just Sustainabilities: Policy, Planning and Practice’ (Zed Books 2013). In August 2014, his book ‘Incomplete Streets: Processes, Practices and Possibilities’ will be launched by Routledge.
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Of Railroads & Finance: The Making of Market Society in the Pacific Northwest
May 16, 2014 3:00 pm - May 16, 2014 4:30 pm
Where: Cramer Hall 250 at PSU
Speaker: Mitch Green
Topic: Of Railroads & Finance: The Making of Market Society in the Pacific Northwest
Pedestrian Safety and Culture Change
May 16, 2014 12:00 pm - May 16, 2014 1:00 pm
Where: Room 204, Distance Learning Center Wing of the Urban Center at PSU
Speaker: Ron Van Houten, Western Michigan University
Topic: Pedestrian Safety and Culture Change
Summary: This session will describe the process and results of a NHTSA study that showed a change in driver culture of yielding to pedestrians in crosswalks on a citywide basis. The research won the Pat Waller award from the National Academy of Sciences, Transportation Research Board in January of this year. The approach to changing road user behavior focused on an integrated approach that include Enforcement, Engineering, and Educational efforts that were designed to be dovetailed together and that included a social norming component. Additional information will be provided on engineering solutions that can facilitate changes in pedestrian level of service and safety.
Stream the seminar live, or watch an archived video, when made available, through the link here.
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Analytical Efficiencies Through the Integration of Modeling and Simulation Tools
May 9, 2014 12:00 pm - May 9, 2014 1:00 pm
Where: Room 204 of the Distance Learning Center Wing of the Urban Center at PSU
Speaker: Steve Perone, PTV Group
Topic: Analytical efficiencies through the integration of modeling and simulation tools
Summary: Linking planning and operations is vital to improving transportation decision making and the overall effectiveness of transportation systems. In this seminar Steve will discuss data and modeling methods supported by the PTV Vision software suite to facilitate integrated planning for operations.
Stream the seminar live, or watch an archived video, when made available, through the link here.
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Highlights from the Green Lane: A Comprehensive Evaluation of Protected Cycling Facilities
May 2, 2014 12:00 pm - May 2, 2014 1:00 pm
Where: Room 204 of the Distance Learning Center Wing of the Urban Center at PSU
Speaker: Chris Monsere and Jennifer Dill, Professors, Portland State University
Topic: Highlights from the Green Lane: A Comprehensive Evaluation of Protected Cycling Facilities
Summary: Cycling is on the rise across the U.S. and its popularity has grown beyond the usual leaders - Portland, OR, Seattle, WA, Davis, CA, Minneapolis, MN and Boulder, CO. New York City, NY Chicago, IL and Washington, DC are among those cities making significant investments in bike infrastructure in recent years and have realized substantial growth in people taking to the streets on two wheels. This presentation will summarize some results from our comprehensive assessment of the safety, operations, economic impacts, user experience, and perceptions of new protected bikeways in 5 cities U.S. cities (Austin, TX; Chicago, IL; Portland, OR; San Francisco, CA; and Washington, D.C.). To support this research, the team collected and analyzed 204 hours of video, 2,300 returned surveys of residents, and 1,111 returned surveys from people intercepted riding the new facilities.
*image by Greg Raisman
Stream the seminar live, or watch an archived video, when made available, through the link here.
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April 2014
Assessing Impacts of Time Use on Children’s Physical Fitness in Relation to Obesity & Diabetes Risk
April 25, 2014 12:00 pm - April 25, 2014 1:00 pm
Where: Room 204 of the Distance Learning Center Wing of the Urban Center at PSU
Speaker: Jessica Guo, Supervising Planner, Parsons Brinckerhoff
Topic: Assessing Impacts of Time Use on Children's Physical Fitness in Relation to Risk for Obesity and Diabetes
Summary: Researchers from the transportation, planning and health fields share the common goal of promoting physically active lifestyle. One challenge that researchers often face is the measurement of physical activity, particularly among children. This is because the sporadic nature of children’s physical activity patterns makes it difficult to recall and quantify such activities. Additionally, children’s lower cognitive functioning compared to adults prevents them from accurately recalling their activities. This presentation will describe the design and application of a novel self-report instrument - the Graphs for Recalling Activity Time (GReAT) - for measuring children’s activity time use patterns. The instrument was applied in a study of children’s risk for obesity and diabetes in a predominately Hispanic community in Milwaukee, WI. Time-use data for two weekdays and one weekend day were collected for various physical and sedentary activities. The data was then assessed against measurements of the children’s cardiovascular fitness, weight status and insulin resistance through exploratory analysis and structured equation modeling. Findings on GReAT’s reliability and new evidence on the impacts of time-use in different activities on children’s risk for obesity and diabetes will be discussed.
Stream the seminar live, or watch an archived video, when made available, through the link here.
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Transportation and Road Weather
April 18, 2014 12:00 pm - April 18, 2014 1:00 pm
*Image by Derek Bridges
Transit Planning Practice in the Age of Transit-Oriented Development
April 11, 2014 12:00 pm - April 11, 2014 1:00 pm
An Introduction to the NACTO Urban Street Design - Changing the DNA of City Streets
April 4, 2014 12:00 pm - April 4, 2014 10:37 am
Upcoming Events Snapshot
- June 28th, 2014 - PSU Delft Summer Program
- July 16th, 2014 - Health Impact Assessment (HIA) in Transportation Planning
- July 28th, 2014 - Comprehensive Bicycle Design & Engineering 1.0
- August 11th, 2014 - Symposium Celebrating 50 Years of Traffic Flow Theory
- August 25th, 2014 - Comprehensive Bicycle Design & Engineering 2.0
- September 15th, 2014 - 2014 Oregon Transportation Summit