Dr. Costin Named Chair of the US National Standard Data Dictionary (the USDD) Working Group of buildingSMART USA

Dr. Aaron Costin is overseeing the development of the first national data dictionary (DD) to facilitate information exchange for various transportation domains. Dr. Costin is leading a project that will advance the U.S. bridge industry focusing on open data standards and enabling entities to exchange information with greater reliability, predictability, and efficiency. This is part of the Building Information Modeling (BIM) for Bridges. Read more here.

Google ratings and reviews can not only help people pick destinations but also inform policymaking in public transit. UFTI researcher Dr. Xiang ‘Jacob’ Yan published a paper that uses a variety of big datasets, such as GTFS and Google ratings and reviews, to evaluate the transit network in Chicago. The study developed an accessibility-based methodological framework that helps transit agencies identify last-mile network gaps.

This paper brings an accessibility-based approach to last-mile performance evaluation at the parcel level by measuring desirable destinations reasonably reachable through accessible transit stations. Read more here.

Congratulations to the #UF #ITE student chapter for winning second place at the the virtual 12th Annual ITE Collegiate Traffic Bowl Grand Championship Tournament. Traffic Bowl is a Jeopardy-style game where students test their knowledge in transportation topics against other teams.

The virtual event was broadcast live July 21, 2021 via YouTube. A recording is available here 

The Central Florida Chapter of the Women’s Transportation Seminar (WTS) awarded Elizabeth Staten the 2021 Frankee Hellinger Memorial Graduate Scholarship. The scholarship is awarded to women pursuing graduate studies in transportation who exhibit a desire to pursue a career in transportation, have strong leadership qualities, and a high GPA. Staten is completing her Masters of Urban Planning at UF. Her passion is transportation, particularly in connecting rural and urban communities and improving accessibility. She is involved in several organizations on campus, which include the WTS and serves as the organization’s Secretary and Treasurer. She is also on the Student Safety Committee and UF Not One More. Learn more about the scholarship here.

Abstracts are now being accepted for the Research to Practice Transit Symposium, which will take place October 12-14, 2021. This symposium will be online and with optional in-person field visits to agencies in Gainesville and Jacksonville, Florida. As the transit industry strives to Build Back Better after COVID-19, the symposium will provide a platform where transit experts share insights into how evidence-based research has been or can be translated into practice. The symposium is organized by the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans), the University of Florida Transportation Institute (UFTI), the T-SCORE/GaTech and the American Public Transportation Association (APTA). For more information and to upload your abstract, visit the event's website here.

The Southeastern Transportation Research, Innovation, Development and Education Center (STRIDE) at the University of Florida Transportation Institute needs your help to complete a survey related to the State of Transportation Workforce Development Practice in the Southeastern United States. The intent for this survey is to understand and document best practices in workforce development for the transportation sector and develop a workforce training framework and plan for the southeast region. The survey takes 10 to 20 minutes to complete.