MidwesternITEInside this issue

District News .................................2 - 5

Student Chapter News...............6 - 8

CREATE............................................... 9

Transportation Achievement AwardQualifications & Form .............10 - 11

Condolences .................................. 12

National News..........................12 - 14

Professional Services Directory ..... 14

District ‘09 - ‘10 Planner ................. 15

District Directory...............Back Page

The MidwesternITE is theofficial publication of theMidwestern District Institute ofTransportation Engineers.Opinions expressed herein donot necessarily reflect officialInstitute or Midwestern Districtpolicy unless so stated.Advertisements do not consti-tute endorsement of productsor services. Submission ofarticles, comments or lettersto the editor are encouragedand appreciated. Addresscommunications to Mark Rin-nan, Jacobs, One NorthFranklin, Suite 500, Chicago, IL60606 or e-mail to Mark. Rin-nan@jacobs.com

Recognizing Our Traffic and TransportationLegacyInternational Director Steve Manhart, North Central Section

“It so happens that the work which is likely to be our most durable monument,and to convey some knowledge of us to the most remote posterity, is a work ofbare utility; not a shrine, not a fortress, not a palace, but a bridge.”

-- Montgomery Schuyler, writing upon the opening of the Brooklyn Bridge, NewYork. 'The Bridge as a Monument', Harper's Weekly (26 May 1883), in David P. Billing-ton, The Tower and the Bridge: The New Art of Structural Engineering (1983), 17.

It is true that, for the most part, our life’s work goes unrecognized. The roads weplan, design and build; the studies we conduct for large corridor projects; the inter-sections we signalize; the signs we design, install and maintain; the traffic models wecalibrate and test; the reports we write and the meetings we attend – our efforts golargely unrecognized by the general public.

(Continued on page 2)

Autumn IssueOctober 2009

Volume 4, Issue 2

Institute of Transportation Engineers

District President’s MessageJohn Davis, Wisconsin Section

Greetings and Salutations. Fall is upon us. Football is starting to replacethe talk about the boys of summer at most of our water cooler conversa-tions. Stores and tents to sell Halloween items are starting to open up, andI even saw a display of Christmas items at the local Boston Stores, a suresign that the calendar year is drawing to a close.

Welcome once again to another installment of the Midwestern ITE news-letter or rather magazine as it has grown in size and content over theyears. We are closing in on the end of the good year for the MidwesternDistrict. So let’s look back quickly on the last eight months or so.

In the spring of the year, we conducted our annual awards program –student chapter, student paper, section activities, and section website.We had a higher than normal response to the student awards. I think inpart to the emphasis that was placed on developing student programsand fostering better communications with the student chapters. Thanksagain to Shawn Leight, Katie Belmore and John Crawford for their efforts.Also, a thank you to John and his crew of judges for their fine work inevaluating all of the entries for the awards.

(Continued on page 4)

2

Recognizing Our - Legacy (Continued)

Nevertheless, our work is a critical element of our civilization’s success. That’s whytransportation infrastructure improvements have been a key initiative in the Presi-dent’s Recovery Act.

And that is why ITE is important to us as transportation professionals. We exist tobe together with our compatriots, our mentors, our competitors and affiliates. Weexist to share the state-of-the-practice, as well as the state-of-the-art. We shareour lessons learned and our current standards. Through it all, we strive to have ourwork recognized.

It reminds me of the current television commercial for Intel, which features AjayBhatt, co-inventor of the USB (Universal Serial Bus for computers). Ajay, who fromthe outside appears to be a mild-mannered scientist, saunters through the breakroom, adored by his fans who are hounding him for autographs. The tag linereads, “Our rock stars aren’t like your rock stars.”

Who are our rock stars? What have they done to deserve “rock star” status?Over the nearly-three years I have served you as Midwestern District Director tothe International Board of ITE, I have come to meet several people I would clas-sify as “rock stars” in our district and profession.

Unbeknownst to many of you, and prior to every International Board meeting Iattend, ITE Headquarters asks district directors to identify “Rising Stars” in his/herdistrict. ITE HQ then uses those names for consideration for various committeesand task forces. My travels throughout the district have allowed me to nominateseveral members as “Rising Stars”. I am happy to say that we are blessed withmany talented and dedicated members who serve our district well as industryleaders.

So it is gratifying to see that our District Board is promoting the creation of a dis-trict-wide Transportation Achievement Award. It will be a way to publicly honorand recognize our “rock star” projects. As we recognize our district’s distin-guished projects, it will be important to share that information with all sectionsand with local media. Doing so will build our legacy among members in our dis-trict, and to promote our professional image to those outside our organization.

We are a great organization, and despite what you may think, we are doing well!My past three years has taught me that ITE is a solid organization that has weath-ered the economic storm. In fact, we have seen an increase in recent member-ship. The Annual Meeting in San Antonio garnered a greater attendance thanwas anticipated (final count -- over 1000 attendees).

And we are branching out. We have undertaken the first steps toward publishinga “learned journal” focusing on technical papers and research. We are publish-ing a traffic engineering textbook. We are also including the mega-issue of sus-tainability into our strategic plan.

While every organization has been hit by the economic downturn, the Interna-tional Board has taken steps to lessen the financial impact that the economy hashad on our membership. We voted to freeze 2010 member and agency dues at2009 rates. We voted to freeze 2010 Technical Conference and registration feesnot to exceed 2009 rates. We also voted to freeze the 2010 Annual Meeting reg-istration fees not to exceed the 2009 rates as a parameter for developing theannual meeting budget. Furthermore, ITE HQ has enacted a series of internalcost-saving measures to ensure that member services will not been adverselyaffected.

In addition, the International Board has brainstormed ways to make the AnnualMeeting more attractive to members. Strategies to accomplish this include thecreation of full tracks of professional training courses. These could include theoffering of live versions of the training topics found in the ITE Web Seminars. Thus,the Annual Meeting would become a more thorough and cost-saving profes-

(Continued from page 1)

(Continued on page 3)

Photo Journal - Relaxing at the 2009Midwestern District Conference

Conference attendees ready for atour of the beautiful Dells and Wiscon-sin River aboard the world famousDucks

The group gets a little “edgy’ whenInternational Director Steve Manhartjumps behind the wheel. “Hey Steve,are you sure you fully recovered fromlast night?”

The Hammerl’s are happy to seeSteve promoted to “assistant driver”

The group enjoys some spectacularscenery

3

Only 12% of Civil EngineeringStudents Chose Transportation as aProfession

A new study offers solutions to thegrowing shortage of professionalengineers and planners specializingin the transportation field in theUnited States. Paving the Way: Re-cruiting Students into TransportationCareers is based on surveys takenby civil engineering undergraduatesand masters' students and was con-ducted by the Mineta Transporta-tion Institute (MTI.) Key findings in-clude: Introduce transportation atfreshmen and sophomore levels;connect transportation engineeringand related fields, such as safety,transit, the environment and com-munity-based planning; improve thequality of courses and encourageexperienced faculty to teach basicengineering classes; promote goodinternships; provide more and bet-ter-publicized scholarships and re-search assistantships; showcasedynamic guest speakers on cam-pus; and encourage more womento enter the profession. Todownload the complete report, visithttp://transweb.sjsu.edu/mtiportal/research/publications/summary/MTI-0803.html

sional development opportunity for attendees than ever before.

One new service that ITE HQ is providing is the service of the professionalmeeting planning firm, Helms-Briscoe to assist chapters, sections and districtsin the selection and contracting of their meeting venues. Their expertise inplanning meetings, negotiating hotel rates, and evaluating contracts is un-paralleled. Best yet, they will assist ITE at no charge.

As I have traveled around our district, I have been amazed with the level ofenthusiasm that is growing in all levels of our district. Our meetings are at-tracting more attendees – even from those outside our organization. Despitethis time of budgetary cutbacks and restricted travel, we are seeing mem-bers finding ways to attend our meetings.

We remain a vital and important source of professional development. ITEand its Transportation Professional Certification Board remain great sourcesfor professional certification and learning. The Midwestern District currentlyhas 1765 members, or 9.75% or the total membership of ITE. Nevertheless, ourdistrict has certified:

381 Professional Traffic Operations Engineers® (or 16.9% of all PTOEs),

24 Professional Transportation Planners® (or 10.8% of all PTPs),

4 Traffic Operations Practitioner Specialists® (or 7.3% of all TOPS), and

5 Traffic Signal Operations Specialists® (or 6.8% of all TSOSs).

As I complete my elected role as Midwestern District Director at the end ofthe year, I thank all of those who have assisted me during my term, espe-cially my MWITE mentors on the International Board – ITE International PastPresident Earl Newman, and 2009 ITE International President Ken Voigt.Thanks, too, to the Midwestern Board of Directors, ably led these last threeyears by Kyle Anderson, Jeff Young and John Davis. I also thank each sec-tion of the Midwestern District – Illinois, MOVITE, NCITE and Wisconsin, whowere each gracious and accommodating when I attended their meetings. Ithank Tom Campbell, MWITE District Administrator, for providing the Districtwith continuity and history. I thank Todd Szymkowski for his efforts in manag-ing the MWITE website. I also thank our scribe, Mark Rinnan for doing a greatjob as MWITE Newsletter Editor. I especially thank you, the membership ofMWITE, for allowing me the privilege to serve as the conduit of informationbetween the International Board and the District.

I wish to thank my employer, Jacobs Engineering Group, Inc., and especiallymy supervisor, Dave Warzala, for allowing me to serve the profession as Dis-trict Director during these three years. I appreciate their support.

As I close, I cannot forget to thank my wife, Teresa, and my daughter, Kristen.I greatly appreciate their love and understanding as I travelled (often toomuch) to various meetings.

The friendships I have made while serving this office will last a lifetime. Thecamaraderie that I have been able to develop with Board members fromaround the world has been quite rewarding. The ability to see and be a partof the inner workings of an international professional organization has beenawe-inspiring. I will treasure these times always.

And so to bring this discussion of legacy full circle, as midnight December 31,2009 becomes the morning of January 1, 2010, I will pass the torch of MWITEDistrict Director to Robert K. Seyfried, P.E., PTOE. The page turns, and thechapter begins anew. Good luck, Bob, as you carry on. Our district will be ingood hands!

Stephen J. Manhart, P.E., PTOE, PTPMidwestern District Director (2007-2009)

(Continued from page 2)

Recognizing Our - Legacy (Continued)

4

We turned our attentions to the annual elections of the district in May. This yearwe had both the election of a new officer to the entry position of secretary/treasurer and also for the position of district director to the ITE InternationalBoard. Peter Lemmon and Robert Seyfried respectively will be taking on theseresponsibilities at the beginning of the New Year. We look forward to their contri-butions to the continued growth of the district.

June 19th finally arrived and the local arrangements committee (John Brugge-man, Marcus Januario, Mike Grulke, Brian Porter, Eric Frailing, and Mike May)from the Wisconsin Section took a collective sigh of relief and collapsed. No…they relaxed, but not before putting on yet another great annual meeting of thedistrict over the previous three days. Our meeting was well attended in bothnumber and demographics. We had greater numbers of folks attending overalland from not only outside of Wisconsin, but also from outside of the MidwesternDistrict! We also continued to raise the bar for our meetings, each year getting alittle better, offering something new, and continuing to grow in size. I think weshould have a goal of over 200 participants attending our meetings by the year2014.

At the annual meeting, we held our first student traffic bowl with the University ofKansas taking top honors at that event. Steve Manhart was great as the emcee,and it was great to see so many students and chapters at the meeting. Thisevent will be conducted again in 2010 at our meeting next June in Minneapolis.We would like to expand the field to nine teams. So all you student chaptersstart getting ready! Also at this year’s annual meeting, we conducted a studentposter session. It was very successful and well attended by the students, and wehope to do it again next year. Thanks to Katie Belmore for coordinating thisevent.

Now we are in the sunset of the year, but at the same time a transition to nextyear begins. Steve Manhart will be retiring from his post as District Director to theInternational ITE Board, and we want to thank Steve for his many contributions,his enthusiasm, his spirit of fellowship and his drive to advance the Institute andprofession over the past three years. We look forward to his continued involve-ment in the future years and can not wait to see Steve’s wardrobe changes. JeffYoung will be completing his tenure as an officer. Jeff has the distinction of be-ing the first person to be elected in as secretary/treasurer and advance througheach of the successive positions, and he has really served as an officer now forfive successive years as he was treasurer in the year we transitioned to electedofficers! Well done, and thank you for your service to the profession.

Over the next several months, we will start to transition the officers into their newroles. Bob Seyfried will take his place at the table as district director. John Craw-ford will move to become district president and Doug Ripley to vice president.Peter Lemmon will assume the secretary-treasurer duties, and I will move to therole of immediate past president. Our section representatives will transition aswell. The Board will be examining the strategic plans for 2009 to see what wehave accomplished and what is still to do, and we will make plans for 2010 andbeyond. We plan in 2010 to award for the first time our district’s transportationachievement award as well as continue to enhance the annual meeting.

I want to simply say, thank you. It has been an honor and a privilege to serve asyour district president in 2009. Best wishes to you in the upcoming year, and Ihope that you will find a minute or two to contribute your time and talent to ITE

as the effort you put in will come back 100 fold to you.

John A. Davis, PE, PTOE, FITE

(Continued from page 1)

President’s Message (Continued)

The Depot Minneapolis MarriotHotel - host site for the 2010 ITEMidwestern District conference

2010 Midwestern District ConferenceWebsite Active

The Annual Meeting of the Institute ofTransportation Engineers MidwesternDistrict will be held on June 27-29,2010, at The Depot Minneapolis Mar-riott Hotel in downtown Minneapolis,Minnesota.

Building for Tomorrow is the theme ofthe 2010 conference. With the eco-nomic crisis of 2008/2009 past, andincreases in infrastructure funding,especially through the AmericanRecovery and Reinvestment Act of2009, underway, 2010 promises to bean important year for forming thefoundation of the infrastructure of thefuture.

The conference site is at Chicago,Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific DepotFreight House and Train Shed. Thecirca 1899 Renaissance Revival struc-ture is listed on National Register ofHistoric Places. Redeveloped in 2001,the depot includes two hotels, anindoor water park, and an enclosedice skating rink in the trainshed. Con-ference room rates start at $149 pernight. Ask for the Midwest Dis-trict group rate. Meeting registrationand hotel reservations are separate.

Watch the conference website athttp://www.2010mwite.org/ for addi-tional details and the soon to be an-nounced call for abstracts.

5

International Director electRobert K. Seyfried, P.E., PTOE, FITE

Midwestern District Election ResultsElectronic balloting results for the 2010 elections are in. Beginning January1, 2010 Robert Seyfried begin a three year term in the position of Interna-tional Director representing the Midwestern District and Peter Lemmon willbegin a one year term as District Secretary/Treasurer. A summary of candi-date qualifications provided for the election is repeated here for your infor-mation.

I N T E R N A T I O N A L D I R E C T O R E L E C T R O B E R T K . S E Y F R I E D ,

P . E . , P T O E , F I T E

Robert is the Past Director of Transportation Engineering Programs for theNorthwestern University Center for Public Safety in Evanston, Illinois. At theCenter, he was responsible for developing and teaching traffic engineeringcontinuing education training classes on-campus and throughout NorthAmerica.

He is serving as a member of the Board of Directors of the TransportationProfessional Certification Board, and has served ITE as Prinicipal developerand presenter of the PTOE, TOPS, and TSOS Refresher Courses, member of thereview team for Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices, and authoredseveral publications, including the “Signs and Pavement Markings” chapterof Traffic Engineering Handbook.

D I S T R I C T S E C R E T A R Y / T R E A S U R E R E L E C T P E T E R

L E M M O N , P . E . , P T O E

Peter is currently a Senior Transportation Engineer with Metro TransportationGroup in Chicago, Illinois. He received a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engi-neering from Purdue University in 1998. His professional experience has in-cluded a wide variety of public- and private-sector projects. His focus hasbeen working on studies in urban contexts considering multimodal opportuni-ties and projects with educational, cultural, hospital, and other institutionalclients.

As a member of the District Board is goals are to support the implementationof the District’s Strategic Plan, strengthen the role of the District and its valueto each Section, continue efforts to increase the development and involve-ment of Student Chapters, and promote opportunities to enhance the trans-portation engineering profession

Midwestern District Secretary-Treasurer elect Peter Lemmon

“As District Director, I will faithfully: Com-municate information from InternationalITE back to Sections and Chapters, andcommunicate issues and concerns raisedby Sections and Chapters to InternationalITE”

“As a member of the Midwestern DistrictBoard, I will: Incorporate new methodsavailable to improve communication andinteraction among Sections within the Dis-trict.”

6

By Charlotte Richter, Chapter President. Iowa State University's Transportation StudentAssociation (TSA) is the parent organization of the student chapters of ITE and ITS-America. The organization is open to undergraduate and graduate students in civilengineering, community and regional planning, and the multidisciplinary masterstransportation program. In promoting TSA's mission to introduce students to a varietyof transportation topics in industry, government, and academia, the club holds bi-weekly speaker meetings. Upcoming presentations this fall include transportationprofessionals from national consulting firms, the Iowa DOT, and the Iowa legislature.TSA also hosts a variety of social events for members throughout the semester.Planned activities for this fall are a home game tailgate and haunted forest tour. Lastsummer, several students participated in a canoe trip near Ames.

Many TSA members are active in research projects on campus as undergraduateassistants or graduate students and have the opportunity to present their research atregional and national conferences. Last year, the club had 15 members attendingthe TRB conference in January and also had members present at the MidwesternDistrict ITE meeting and the Mid-Continent Transportation Research Forum. Severalstudents have won national and international fellowships and student paper compe-titions, sponsored by organizations like the International Road Federation and US DOT.TSA was honored this summer with a first place finish in the 2009 MOVITE studentchapter competition. For more information on the Iowa State University TSA visit theirwebsite at: http://www.ctre.iastate.edu/transa/

Chapter Shout Out - Iowa State University

The annual National Engineers Week Future City Competition each year invites mid-dle school students nationwide to create cities of tomorrow. The competition encour-ages interest in math, science and engineering through hands-on applications.

The National Engineers Week Future® City Competition (www.futurecity.org) is anexample of problem based learning with computer simulation. It is an integrated,multidisciplinary, holistic approach to relevant issues and is a strong example of STEM(Science, Technology, Engineering, & Mathematics) education that addresses na-tional and state academic content standards. The program asks 7th and 8th gradestudents from around the nation to team with engineer-volunteer mentors to create— first on computer and then in large, three-dimensional models — their visions of thecity of tomorrow. To truly affect the ways students and general public perceive engi-neering it is important for engineers to use the right messages. Too often engineersfocus their messages to young students on the process of becoming an engineer andoverlook messages on the value of an engineering career. The National EngineersWeek Foundation has been engaged with two projects specifically to research anddevelop messages around messages to convey that engineering is a helping profes-sion. These messages also convey the value of teamwork and creativity. Learn morefrom ‘Engineer Your Life’ and ‘Changing the Conversation’ at www.eweek.org

Registration deadlines vary by region but many are coming due soon. For informa-tion specific to each metropolitan region, check the Future City website at http://www.futurecity.org/contact_region_state.asp. See www.futurecity.org for more de-tailed information on the competition.

Future City ContestStudent Chapter Contacts

Iowa State Universityhttp://www.ctre.iastate.edu/transa/Nadia GkritzaPhone: (515) 294-2343nadia@iastate.edu

Kansas State UniversityDr. Robert W. StokesPhone : (785) 532-1595Drbobb@ksu.edu

Marquette Universityhttp://www.eng.mu.edu/%7Edrakopoa/ite/MU_chapter/chapter.htmDr. Alex DrakopoulosPhone : (414) 288-5430Alexander.Drakopoulos@Marquette.edu

Missouri University of Science &TechnologyDr. Hojong BaikPhone (573) 341-4693baikh@mst.edu

North Dakota State University -FargoDr. Donald AndersonPhone : (701) 231-7725Donald.Andersen@ndsu.edu

Northwestern UniversityDr. Joseph SchoferPhone : (847) 491-8795j-schofer@northwestern.edu

Oklahoma State UniversitySamir A. AhmedPhone : (405) 744-5261sahmed@okstate.edu

South Dakota State UniversityDr. Ali SelimPhone : (605)688-6355selima@sdstate.edu

Southern Illinois University -EdwardsvilleDr. Huaguo (Hugo) ZhouPhone : (618) 650-2815hzhou@siue.edu

University of ArkansasProfessor J.L. GattisPhone : (479) 575-3617Jgattis@uark.edu

Bocce ball tournament on thelawn of InTrans (ISU’s transporta-tion research facility)

TSA Students take a break fromTRB at the WWII Memorial inWashington DC

The Great Midwestern-ITE Challenge Collegiate Traffic Bowl was the feature event onWednesday evening at the 2009 District Annual Meeting. The University of Kansasemerged as the champion of this first event. A special thanks to students from IowaState University, Kansas State University, Southern Illinois University at Edwardsville,University of Illinois at Urbana – Champaign, and University of Wisconsin – Madison fortheir participation. We look forward to expanding the field by another three studentchapter teams in 2010!

A special thanks to Steve Manhart, Doug Ripley, Katie Belmore, Brian Scharles, andJohn Davis for their special efforts. We would like to thank John Kugel and BrianScharles of TAPCO for building the competition board. We would also like to thankTraffic Control Corporation for the countdown timer.

I T E I N T E R N A T I O N A L C O L L E G I A T E T R A F F I C B O W L

There’s something new and exciting coming in 2010 to the International ITE AnnualMeeting in Vancouver, Canada. It is a competition amongst ITE student chapters, theITE International Collegiate Traffic Bowl. It is an event similar to the TV game shows,such as the College Bowl or Jeopardy, but with a transportation planning and engi-neering flavor for the clues, questions and answers. We hope that your student chap-ter will consider testing your knowledge against other schools by participating in thisinaugural event!

The event will be limited to student chapter teams, each representing one of the ITEdistricts. It is anticipated that each district will conduct a similar competition sometime over the next 10 months to select its representative to the international event.

For the Midwestern District, our student traffic bowl will be conducted at the District’sAnnual Meeting in Minneapolis from June 27-29, 2010. Look for details in the comingmonths.

C A L L F O R T R A F F I C B O W L Q U E S T I O N S

By John Davis, Chair - International ITE Collegiate Traffic Bowl Task Force. Interna-tional ITE is assembling a database of questions to be used by ITE International, dis-tricts and sections in conducting student traffic bowl competitions. In the comingyears, ITE is planning on conducting an Institute-wide competition among the studentchapters, culminating with a competition among the district winning student chap-ters. Individual members, companies and student chapters may submit questions.

All who submit questions are entered into a drawing for $500 worth of ITE Script, whichcan be redeemed for meeting registrations, professional development courses, publi-cations, etc. The more questions you submit, the greater your chances. Submit aquestion now using the on-line form at http://www.ite.org/news/TrafficBowl.pdf. Ifyou would like to contribute your time and talent to this effort by contributing to thepool of questions or to help to assemble the questions for the 2010 MWITE studenttraffic bowl, contact John Davis by email at DavisJ@AyresAssociates.com or byphone at 262.522.4905.

7

Student Chapter Contacts

University of Illinois Chicagohttp://www.uic.edu/~kourosDr. Kouros MohammadianPhone : (312) 996-9840kouros@uic.edu

University of Illinois UrbanaChampaignhttp://www.cee.uiuc.edu/groups/ite/Dr. Ray (Rahim) BenekohalPhone: (217) 244-6288rbenekoh@uiuc.edu

University of KansasDr. Steven SchrockPhone : (785) 864-3418schrock@ku.edu

University of Minnesota - Twin CitiesCampushttp://www.tc.umn.edu/~itso/Henry LiuPhone (612) 626-0024henryliu@umn.edu

University of Missouri - ColumbiaDr. Carlos SunPhone (573) 884-6330csun@missouri.edu

University of Nebraska - Lincolnhttp://www.nuite.orgKaren SchurrPhone : (402) 472-2233kschurr@unlserve.unl.edu

University of OklahomaProfessor Richard S. MarshmentPhone : (405) 325-2399Rmarshment@ou.edu

University of Wisconsin - Madisonhttp://www.cae.wisc.edu/~uwits/Professor David NoycePhone : (608) 265-1882uwits@cae.wisc.edu

University of Wisconsin - MilwaukeeDr. Alan J. HorowitzPhone : (414) 229-6685horowitz@uwm.edu

University of Wisconsin - PlattevilleDr. Samuel Owusu-AbabioPhone : (608) 342-1554owusu@uwplatt.edu

Washington Universityhttp://www.movite.org/Adjunct Professor Shawn LeightPhone : (314) 878-6644sleight@cbbtraffic.com

2009 Great Midwestern-ITE Challenge

2009 Midwestern District Traffic Bowlwinners from U of Kansas with com-petitors at the District Conferencein the Wisconsin Dells

Poster competition winners(from left) Nikhil Sikka (U of Iowa)Nishitha Bezwada andSreekanth Akepati ( both fromKansas State)

8

9

The Chicago Region Environmental and Transportation Efficiency program, orCREATE, is a first-of-its-kind partnership between U.S. DOT, the State of Illinois, Cityof Chicago, Metra, Amtrak, and the nation's freight railroads. Chicago is the onlyplace in North America where six of the seven major railroads converge. All sixare partners in CREATE: BNSF Railway, Canadian Pacific Railway, CN, CSX Trans-portation, Norfolk Southern Corporation and Union Pacific Railroad.

A project of national significance, CREATE will invest billions in critically neededimprovements to increase the efficiency of the region's rail infrastructure and thequality of life of Chicago-area residents. CREATE will reduce train delays and con-gestion throughout the Chicago area by focusing rail traffic on five rail corridors.The work includes:

25 new roadway overpasses or underpasses at locations where auto and pe-destrian traffic currently crosses railroad tracks at grade level

6 new rail overpasses or underpasses to separate passenger and freight traintracks

Viaduct improvements

Grade crossing safety enhancements

Extensive upgrades of tracks, switches and signal systems

Selecting the improvements for CREATE was a collaborative process between thefreight railroads, State of Illinois Department of Transportation, City of ChicagoDepartment of Transportation, Metra and Amtrak.

Recommendations were developed for three types of projects through differentprocesses. The Illinois Commerce Commission and Chicago Area TransportationStudy helped to identify the most congested railroad grade crossings, wheretrains cross the roads and traffic must periodically wait for trains to pass.

The process of identifying railroad infrastructure projects started with the creationof computer models to measure existing rail bottlenecks in the region. Each rail-road then submitted recommendations for improvements. Additional recommen-dations came from the State and City. A working group made up of representa-tives of all the CREATE partners refined the recommendations into the CREATEProgram, ensuring that the concerns of all parties were taken into consideration.

Viaduct improvements are being identified and prioritized based on an ongoingsurvey of viaduct conditions.

For area residents, CREATE means reduced traffic congestion, shorter commutingtimes, better air quality and increased public safety. For workers and businesses, itmeans more jobs and economic opportunity.

Program Goals:

Reduce rail and motorist congestion

Improve passenger rail service

Enhance public safety

Promote economic development

Create jobs

Improve air quality

Reduce noise from idling or slow-moving trains

The CREATE partners designed a web site to provide you with information aboutthe CREATE Program and the benefits it will bring to Chicago-area residents. Theyinvite you to explore http://www.createpro-gram.org/to learn more about CRE-ATE -- and to return often for project updates, public hearing information andother CREATE news.

KEEP YOUR MEMBERSHIPINFORMATION CURRENT...

...by accessing the ITE Interna-tional web-site at http://www.ite.org/ then clicking onthe MY PROFILE selection in theleft menu bar, You will thendirected to the log in pageand be prompted for your login ID and Password. After click-ing the SIGN ON button you willbe directed to your profilepage. Click on the EDIT buttonto make changes to your ac-count. After making changesclick on SUBMIT. It’s as easy asthat!

CREATE

CREATE focuses on five principalrail corridors in the Chicago re-gion.

10

ITE Midwestern District

2010 Transportation Achievement Award

Deadline: March 1, 2010

The Transportation Achievement Award is awarded annually for excellence in the advancement oftransportation to meet human needs by entities concerned with transportation such as governmental agencies,legislative bodies, consulting firms, industry and other private sector organizations.

MWITE will select winners at the District level. Separate application to those interestedshould be made to ITE International.

AWARD: Recognition at the MWITE District Annual Meeting and in MWITE Newsletter Plaque

AWARD CATEGORIES: Awards will be presented to outstanding transportation achievements in the following categories:

Facilities, Operations, and Safety. All applicants are limited to submitting under one category only; applications may not be

submitted under multiple categories.

ELIGIBILITY OF APPLICANTS: To be an eligible recipient for the proposed awards, the candidates can be: a government agency,

transportation consulting firm, private business or corporation, combined public/private institution,academic institution or any other appropriate entity.

SUBMITTAL: Each submittal may be no longer than 3 total pages in length (the submittal form, plus two

additional pages). Each application must be submitted electronically in one document with the submittal form as page

one, formatted in Adobe Acrobat. Please send submission electronically (in Adobe Acrobat) no later than 5:00pm on March 1, 2010

to MWITE Vice-President Doug Ripley (dripley@trafficcontrolcorp.com) Re: TransportationAchievement Award.

EVALUATION CRITERIA: Development of an innovative concept in transportation planning, design or operations; The innovative application of a proven concept in transportation planning, design or operations; The implementation of a “difficult” transportation program through perseverance in its development

and promotion; A program or project having a significant effect on transportation; A multi-faceted transportation program or project, combining many innovative and/or well-applied

concepts; A program or project promoting a major advance in the efficiency and/or economy of transportation .

11

ITE Midwestern DistrictTransportation Achievement Award

Submittal Form

Deadline: March 1, 2010Title of Project:

1. Description of Project (To include Objective, Status, Outcomes, etc):

2. Why do you feel this project is worthy of this award?

Please answer above questions each on a separate sheet not to exceed a page. The total applicationcannot exceed three pages which includes this submittal form.

Award Category (please check the appropriate category, ONE category only):

___Operations ___Facilities ___Safety

Agency / Client:

Address Information:

Contact Person:

Title:

Organization:

Telephone: E-mail:

Submitting Organization:

Full Address Information:

Contact Person:

Title: ___________________________________________________________________

Telephone: E-mail:

The sponsoring organization has been notified of this submittal.

NOTE: The Agency/Client, if not the submitting organ ization, must be notified that the project hasbeen submitted for consideration for this award.

Please complete the form and return by email no later than5:00pm on March 1, 2010

toMWITE Vice-President Doug Ripley dripley@trafficcontrolcorp.com

The purpose of the Transportation Achievement Award is to recognize an organization for: Development of an innovative concept in transportation planning, design or operations; Innovative application of a proven concept in transportation planning, design or operations; Implementation of a “difficult” transportation program through perseverance in its development and

promotion; Program or project having a significant effect on transportation; Multi-faceted transportation program or project, combining many innovative and/or well -applied

concepts; Program or project promoting a major advance in the efficiency and/or economy o f transportation.

12

Executive Program Course -PricingTransportation Infrastructure

Funding of transportation-relatedinfrastructure is at a crossroads.Traditional funding mechanisms,such as general and specific taxrevenues, are proving to be insuffi-cient to maintain existing facilitiesand fund expanded capacity. Atwo-and-half day course to explorethis issue is offered by the Transpor-tation Center at Northwestern Uni-versity.

This course is applicable to all trans-portation modes with large infra-structure costs to be recovered, beit highways, port facilities, airports,waterways, or railroads.

Who Should AttendThe course is aimed at professionalswho set or might set user charges;financial personnel; and engineersand project managers who over-see facility maintenance and newconstruction. It is also applicableto infrastructure consultants, andthose who finance infrastructureprojects.

Course FormatParticipants will emerge with acomprehensive understanding andperspective of transportation infra-structure pricing strategies Someprior knowledge of economics,such as that provided in an intro-ductory college level microeco-nomics course, will be useful.

Registration & Fee Program Fee (after 10.5.09)

$2,700

Early Registration Fee(if paid before 10.5.09) $2,160

Government & academicrate $2,160

Program fee includes tuition, allprogram materials, continentalbreakfasts, lunches and a wel-come reception. Register on-lineat http://transportation.northwestern.edu/exec/TIP09/registration.html#top

CondolencesIt is my sad duty to report to you NorthCentral ITE (NCITE) member and for-mer Executive Board Director Chad J.Smith passed away from cardiac ar-rest on June 27, 2009 at the youngage of 41, after battling cancer.Chad is survived by parents Ruth andJim Smith of Iowa; sister Beck (Loren)Schmidt; and niece and nephew,Sarah and Owen Schmidt.

Chad was born on November 1, 1967in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. IN 1986 hegraduated from Cedar Rapids Ken-nedy High School. He continued hiseducation at Iowa State University

and earned his Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering in 1991. He was a Regis-tered Professional Engineer in Iowa and Minnesota. Prior to joining the City ofBloomington (Minnesota) in 2002, Chad worked for several civil engineering firmsin Iowa and for the Iowa Department of Transportation.

Chad was a long standing member of the Institute of Transportation Engineersand was very active in NCITE, serving on several committees and the board. Priorto joining NCITE he was an active member of the Missouri Valley Section(MOVITE). He also served on many transportation committees including the Min-nesota committee on Uniform Traffic Devices and the Cedar Avenue Bus RapidTransit.

Chad had an interest in most any activity that involved the outdoors. Bird huntingin Iowa and fishing trips to Canada were a particular joy. He also enjoyed at-tending NASCAR and NHRA events and was actively working on conservationand habitat improvement for pheasants and quail on his Keokuk County, Iowafarm.

Chad loved his job and had a keen ability to include an element of humor andfun in his life. We extend our deepest sympathy to Chad’s family - he will bemissed. (Editor’s note: this announcement was reprinted from the Summer 2009edition of the inciter, the newsletter of NCITE.)

Editor’s Desk: Focus on Sustainable Mobility

By Mark Rinnan, MidwesternITE Editor, Illinois Sec-tion. OK, so Wikipedia may not be the most reli-able resource reference, but in the case of sus-tainable mobility it offers a pretty good startingpoint (reference http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sustainable_transport). The webpage ischocked full of references to other research andimplementing agencies Hint, Europe is wayahead of us (and by us, I mean the UnitedStates).

If a Google search using “sustainable transporta-tion” is a valid indicator, the North Americaneffort to begin to understand this issue is cen-tered in Canada, with the US effort led by Cali-fornia and other western states.

A return of way more than 20 pages of Google web links on sustainable mobility (108alone at http://www.ite.org) shows we have definitely started to wrap our armsaround the problem. Implementation is another matter. As climate change is a keyissue for ITE , I invite you to submit articles of interest for publication here. My contactinformation is on the back page. Watch here for future articles on this critical issue.

Ten transportation projects from across the country have been selected as final-ists in the 2009 America's Transportation Awards competition. Representing thebest in innovative management, accountability and timeliness, the projects arenow contending for the National Grand Prize, determined by an independentjudging panel, and the People's Choice Award, selected through popular on-linevoting. Each carries a $10,000 prize.

Two of the Top Ten Projects are represented by DOTs the ITE Midwestern District.Those project include:

Smart Bridge Technology: Minnesota Department of Transportation, I-35W Min-neapolis Bridge Replacement Project

Two States Trim Time and Costs on New Bridge: Nebraska Department ofRoads, Yankton Bridge Project

The tragic collapse of the Interstate 35W Bridge in Minneapolis, Minnesota, oc-curred on August 1, 2007. Realizing the urgent need to replace the bridge,MNDOT moved quickly to execute a contract that called for completion of thenew bridge in 141/2 months. The new $234 million, I-35W Bridge includes 10 lanesfor traffic, reconstructed interchange ramps, and room to accommodate a fu-ture light-rail line. The new bridge also has the world's largest anti-icing system anduses smart bridge technology. The project was completed in September 2008,three months ahead of schedule.

The Yankton Bridge Project replaced a bridge that had spanned the MissouriRiver between Nebraska and South Dakota for 84 years. The new $24 million,four-lane bridge spans 1,590 feet and is 74-feet wide. It has 14 decorative 50-foot-tall spires that are wired for lighting. It is the first time the tower design has beenused on a bridge. The project was completed one year ahead of schedule andcame in under budget due to close cooperation between NDOR, their partnersin South Dakota, and the contractors and subcontractors involved in this project.The old bridge will be converted into a pedestrian and bicycling path.

Overall in 2009, fifty transportation projects were submitted from 33 states in threecategories: "On Time," "On Budget," and "Innovative Management". Twenty-twoprojects were selected as winners in four regional competitions. The top ten final-ists scored the highest of all 50 projects. The awards are sponsored by AAA, theAmerican Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO),and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.

Regional winners in the ITE Midwestern District include:

On Budget, Medium Project: Oklahoma Department of Transportation, I-235Oklahoma City Interchange Project

On Budget, Small Project - $25 Million or Less: Missouri Department of Transpor-tation, I-44 Conway Welcome Center Project

On Time, Small Project: Oklahoma Department of Transportation, SH-20Keetonville Hill Reconstruction Project

On Time, Small Project - $25 Million or Less: Wisconsin Department of Transpor-tation, Lake Delton Highway Repair Project

"These projects show that states are being accountable for every dollar they re-ceive from the taxpayers. They are using the smartest technology in their projects,and they are investing in their communities by reducing congestion, protectingthe environment, and enhancing safety. In these tough economic times, thevalue of rapid and efficient highway construction gets magnified even more,"said John Horsley, AASHTO executive director.

Judging for the People’s Choice Award is now open and will continue throughOctober 23, 2009. Both winners will be announced at AASHTO’s Annual Meeting,October 25, in Palm Desert, California. For further information and to vote visithttp://www.americastransportationaward.org/ 13

America’s Transportation Awards

Aerial perspective of the I-235Interchange Project inOklahoma City

A view of the new I-35W bridge inMinneapolis Minnesota

The new Yankton Bridge connectsSouth Dakota and Nebraska viaUS 81 over the Missouri River

14

Professional Services Directory

How to Advertise or PostEmployment Opportunities

For details on how to includeyour firm in the MidwesternITEProfessional Service Directorycontact the District SecretaryTreasurer at the phone numberand e-mail shown on the backpage of this newsletter.

For $100 a business card size adis published in two successivesemi-annual editions of Mid-westernITE and posted on theDistrict website for 12 months.

The cost for Employment Op-portunity postings is paid perissue and varies by size of theadvertisement. A full page adcost $100, a half page is $50,and a quarter page ad is $25.Web only postings are $25 for 6months regardless of ad size.Your best value is a 6 monthweb posting combined with aquarter page ad in one edition,all for $65.

MidwesternITE is distributed toabout 1,300 transportationprofessionals and to studentchapters at 19 universitiesthroughout 11 states within theDistrict.

Photo courtesy HerringtonContractors, highway/infrastructure managementservices in the United Kingdom

TRB’s National Cooperative Highway Research Program (NCHRP) has issued a requestfor proposals to identify and evaluate research needs in the area of highway infra-structure and operations safety. The project will also develop a detailed plan thatcan be implemented by other entities within the transportation community to trans-form the identified research needs into a formal national research agenda.

The objectives of this research are to:

(a) Develop a detailed methodology for identifying and evaluating researchneeds in the area of highway infrastructure and operations safety. The methodol-ogy should: (1) include appropriate outreach to stakeholders and experts at alllevels of government, academia, and the private sector; (2) provide a quantita-tive analytical approach that examines clearly defined criteria to determine thepotential value of the research topics; and (3) identify estimated levels of invest-ment required, probability of success, likelihood of implementation, and otherappropriate pros and cons of each research topic.

(b) After objective (a) has been completed, reviewed, and approved by theNCHRP, implement the methodology to identify and evaluate research needs inthe areas of highway infrastructure and operations safety.

(c) Develop a detailed plan that can be implemented by other entities within thetransportation community to transform the identified research needs into a formalnational research agenda. This plan should identify and evaluate alternative insti-tutional structures that offer mechanisms for providing expert scientific advice insetting a prioritized national research agenda. The plan should also (1) identifymeans to encourage coordination of research activities, (2) evaluate quality ofresearch conducted, (3) monitor ongoing progress on the agenda and overallsuccess, and (4) update and refine the agenda over the long term. The planshould identify alternative models for sustaining a dynamic agenda and evaluatethe pros and cons of each

Proposals are due November 12, 2009. For additional information visit the TRB projectwebsite at http://144.171.11.40/cmsfeed/TRBNetProjectDisplay.asp?ProjectID=2727.

NCHRP Request for Proposals - Safety Research

DATE EVENT LOCATION

2009October 16-17 MWITE International Director at International Board Meeting Washington, DC

October 18 ITE International Nominating Committee Meeting Washington, DC

November 12-13 District Officer Workshop Minneapolis, MN

November 13 North Central Section Annual Meeting Marriot - St. Louis Park, MN

December 1 2009 District Annual Meeting final account due

December (TBD) Wisconsin Section Annual Meeting TBD

2010January 1 MWITE elected officers assume office

January 15 Annual Report due to ITE International

January 22 Illinois Section Annual Meeting and Awards Banquet White Eagle - Niles, IL

February 1 MWITE nominations & consent for new officer due

By February 28 MWITE nomination lists sent to section Presidents

March 12 - 13 MWITE International Director at International Board Meeting Savannah, GA

March 14 - 17 ITE National Technical Conference & Exhibit Convention Center - Savannah, GA

March 15 Deadline for articles: Spring edition of MidwesternITE

By March 31 Sections informed of MWITE nomination list

District Audit Committee report due

April 15 Outstanding Internet Web Page Award nominations due

April 29 - May 1 MOVITE Section Annual Spring Meeting Embassy Suites, Rogers, AR

By April 30 Petition for additional MWITE nominees due to Secretary-Treasurer

June 12 2011 District Annual Meeting budget due

June 27 - 29 Midwestern District Annual Conference The Depot Marriott - Minneapolis, MN

By July 27 District officer final ballot sent to eligible voters

August 8 2010 District Annual Meeting preliminary account due

August 8 - 11 ITE International Annual Meeting and Exhibit Convention Centre - Vancouver, BC

September 15 Deadline for articles: Autumn edition of MidwesternITE

September (TBD) MOVITE Section Annual Fall Meeting TBD

Midwestern District `09 - `10 Planner

Event dates are highlighted in blue

15

International DirectorSteve ManhartJacobs7300 Metro BoulevardSuite 400Minneapolis, MN 55439-2307(952) 835-6411Stephen.Manhart@jacobs.com

Newsletter EditorMark D. RinnanJacobsOne North FranklinSuite 500Chicago, IL 60606(312) 424-5419Mark.Rinnan@jacobs.com

Institute of Transportation Engineers, Midwestern DistrictInstitute of Transportation Engineers,Midwestern District

The Institute of Transportation Engi-neers is an international educationaland scientific association of trans-portation professionals who areresponsible for meeting mobility andsafety needs. ITE facilitates the ap-plication of technology and scien-tific principles to research, planning,functional design, implementation,operation, policy development andmanagement for any mode oftransportation. Through its productsand services, ITE promotes profes-sional development of its members,supports and encourages educa-tion, stimulates research, developspublic awareness programs andserves as a conduit for the ex-change of professional information.

Institute of Transportation Engineers, Midwestern District

PresidentJohn DavisWisconsin SectionAyres AssociatesN17 W24222 Riverwood DriveSuite 310Waukesha, WI 53188(262) 523-4488davisj@ayresassociates.com

Section RepresentativeMatthew J. LetourneauIllinois SectionJacobsOne N. Franklin, Suite 500Chicago, IL 60606(312) 424-5424matthew.letourneau@jacobs.com

Section RepresentativeDavid M. JolicoeurWisconsin SectionFederal Highway Administration -Wisconsin Division525 Junction Road, Suite 8000Madison, WI 53717(608) 829-7520david.jolicoeur@dot.gov

Vice PresidentJohn CrawfordNCITE SectionURS Corporation100 South Fifth Street , Suite 1500Minneapolis, MN 55402(612) 373-6871John_Crawford@URSCorp.com

Section RepresentativeShawn J. LeightMOVITE SectionCrawford, Bunte, Brammeier1830 Craig Park Court; Suite 209PO Box 28727St. Louis, Missouri 63146(314) 878-6644 ext. 21sleight@cbbtraffic.com

Secretary—TreasurerDouglas A. RipleyMOVITE SectionTraffic Control CorporationP.O. Box 1051Ankeny, IA 50021(515) 289-4114dripley@trafficcontrolcorp.com

Section RepresentativeWayne H. SandbergNCITE SectionWashington County11660 Myeron Road N.Stillwater, MN 55082(651) 430-4339wayne.sandberg@co.washington.mn.us

Past PresidentJeff R. YoungIllinois SectionMcHenry County Division ofTransportation16111 Nelson RoadWoodstock, IL 60098(815) 334-4969JRYoung@co.mchenry.il.us

AdministratorThomas E. Campbell976 TransitRoseville, MN 55113(262) 786-4176te.campbell@comcast.net

WebmasterTodd SzymkowskiTraffic Operations and Safety (TOPS)

LaboratoryUniversity of Wisconsin-MadisonB239 Engineering Hall1415 Engineering DriveMadison, WI 53706(608) 265-4921szymkowski@engr.wisc.eduwww.midwesternite.org