News and Announcements
Pedestrian and Evacuation Dynamics (PED) conference
The 5th International Pedestrian and Evacuation Dynamics (PED) conference will occur March 8-10, 2010, in the Washington, DC area. The Web site is http://vulnerableroadusers.d-u.co.il/. A second call for abstracts has been issued; the deadline for submission is October 31. This is the leading conference on pedestrian dynamics research and 2010 marks the first time it is being held outside Europe. Jake Pauls is on the program committee for the 2010 conference.
FHWA's Environment & Planning Office issues call for research ideas related to bicycles, pedestrians and health
FHWA's Environment and Planning areas of research – including bicycle/pedestrian and health topics – have relied on a single funding source called STEP (Surface Transportation Environment and Planning Cooperative Research Program). The Bicycle and Pedestrian Team at FHWA is seeking input and suggestions for the lines of research that should be pursued within this emphasis area. To submit comments, please visit http://knowledge.fhwa.dot.gov/cops/step.nsf/home/ and click on “Bicycle/ Pedestrian and Health” underneath the “Environment” heading. Please fill out the one-page form with short, succinct comments. The deadline is December 3, 2009. FHWA does not seek specific, detailed research proposals and discourages researchers from submitting proposals of that nature. Specific research work statements for this suggestion, if pursued under the STEP, would be crafted by FHWA, after careful consideration of stakeholder views. For more information, please contact Gabe Rousseau at Gabriel.rousseau@dot.gov or 202-366-8044.
ITE Wiki
The ITE Pedestrian and Bicycle Council has developed a new "wiki" site that will be the new virtual home for the PBC. This interactive Web site provides users an opportunity to view and contribute content on issues related to pedestrians and bicyclists. All members of ITE are eligible to join and use this site. Users will be required to first log in with their ITE membership login information to access the wiki. Additionally you must create an account specific to the wiki with an independent username and password. The wiki includes:
- The Council's quarterly newsletter
- Pedestrian and bicycle-related resources, including reports, articles, links, and analysis tools
- Listing and updates for the Council-led technical projects
- Information regarding upcoming Council meetings
- An interactive “Innovative Practices” discussion board where you can submit examples and review cutting edge practices submitted by other ITE members
- An open discussion board/ blog (replacing the Council’s previous listserv)
The wiki is now available to all ITE members via the Pedestrian and Bicycle Council Web page. Please check it out, leave a blog post, submit an innovative practice, and let us know your suggestions for improving the usability and usefulness of this site. Contact: Jeff Riegner, PBC Vice Chair, at +1 302-571-9001.