The World in Motion Newsletter - Volume 2, No. 4 Winter 1996

	The World in Motion
	Volume 2, No.4	Winter 1996
	An official publication of the International Institute for Surface Transportation Policy Studies

Table of Contents

Profile of Lawrence D. Dahms IISTPS Board of Trustees
Education
Banks Elected TRB Vice-Chair
Camph, Siwek to Write ISTEA Report to Congress
Diridon Elected to Prestigious International Transit Positions
IISTPS To Lead ISTEA Re-Authorization Coalition
Technology Corner

Profile of Lawrence D. Dahms IISTPS Board of Trustees

Larry Dahms was elected to the IISTPS Board of Trustees in June, 1993. Mr. Dahms has been the Executive Director of the Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC) for 19 years. He serves the 19 governing board member who represents the nine counties and 100 cities of the San Francisco Bay Area.
Mr. Dahms has been employed by the Army Corps of Engineers, California Legislative Analyst, BART, Arthur D. Little, Inc. and Caltrans. He is Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Eno Foundation for Transportation, Inc. and past Chairman of the Transportation Research Board (TRB) Executive Committee. He serves as past Chairman of the Board of directors of Intelligent Transportation Society of America and actively supports the work of the National Association of Regional Councils (NARC) and American Public Transit Association (APTA).
He has a BS in Civil Engineering from San Diego State University and an MBA from Sacramento State University.

Education
October 7, 1996 was the kickoff date for the first transportation course presented via distance learning and in the accelerated format. Using the accelerated format, students who maintain a steady pace of course completion can earn the proposed Masters of Science in Transportation Management in two years. These courses are offered as "special sessions" through the San Jose State University College of Business Graduate Programs Office.
The first course, Fundamentals of Transportation Management, presented by Dr. Eric Mohr, originates from Caltrans offices in Oakland, California, and is received by students in San Jose, Santa Ana, Sacramento, and San Diego, as well as Oakland. The ten-session course will be completed on December 12, 1996. New students and students completing this course will be able to enroll in courses starting in the third week of January 1997. The tentative spring schedule offers the Fundamentals course to new students in January, while Transportation Policy and Regulation will be offered to students who have completed the Fundamentals course in December. Students in both of these classes will be able to take Leadership and Management of Transportation Organizations beginning during the second week of April.
Student reaction to the program has been positive, and there have been requests for additional reception points for courses. Assuming there is sufficient student demand, Caltrans/Los Angeles is a likely addition in the Spring term.
Our efforts now are focused on approval of the program by the Chancellor's Office and marketing of the program to a broader constituency. Anyone interested in establishing a remote reception site or enrolling in the program should contact Rob Vitale, Education Director, at (408) 924-5582, or Matt Laherty, Program Coordinator at (408) 924-3408.

Banks Elected TRB Vice-Chair
Sharon Banks, current Chair of the IISTPS Board of Trustees, has been named Vice Chair for the Transportation Research Board's Executive Committee for 1997. She will officially take over in that position at the January 1997 TRB Annual Meeting. It is expected that she will become Chair of the TRB Executive Committee in 1998.
This appointment makes Ms. Banks the first African-American and only the second woman to be named to such a position with TRB (Lillian Borrone served in 1995 as Chair) in the organization's 76 year history.
"Sharon has brought a commitment to innovation and a fresh perspective to her 'volunteer' efforts at TRB, and we are looking forward to working with her as she takes on this added responsibility," said Robert Skinner, Executive Director of TRB.
Ms. Banks has been active on TRB's Executive Committee, its Subcommittee on Planning and Policy Review, and the TCRP Oversight and Project Selection (TOPS) Committee, which oversees TRB's Transit Cooperative Research Program.

Camph, Siwek to Write ISTEA Report to Congress
IISTPS Board of Trustee member Donald Camph and IISTPS Research Associate Sarah Siwek have been chosen by the Office of the Secretary of the U.S.Department of Transportation to write the Report to Congress which sets the stage for reauthorization of Federal transit and highway program in 1997. The Report will synthesize what DOT heard from hundreds of participants at 13 Regional Forums on ISTEA (Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act of 1991) reauthorization held by the Department during 1996.
According to Camph, "Debate about the ISTEA's many new policy directions and initiatives began almost before the ink of the President's signature had dried, and that debate has continued up to the present. That fact alone could be counted among ISTEA's successes, for one of its goals was to stimulate more informed and participatory processes for determining how America's transportation priorities would be set."
During 1996, the U.S. Department of Transportation sponsored a series of 13 Regional Forums with the goal of listening to and learning from real world experiences of how the policy vision of the ISTEA has translated into reality. Testimony was heard from wide diversity of stakeholders, including members of Congress; governors, mayors and other elected officials; transportation practitioners at all levels; business people and organized labor; community activists and environmentalists; and shippers and transporters of freight.

Diridon Elected to Prestigious International Transit Positions
Rod Diridon was recently elected to the two most important positions for the United States within the international transit community: UITP's Vice President for North America and Chair of the North American Committee. He also serves as a member of the Executive Committee. UITP, based in Brussels, Belgium, is the international association for public transport authorities, operators, political decisionmakers, scientific institutes and the public transport industry.
"I am honored to be able to promote international cooperation within the WorldÕs transit community. As a past Chair of APTA, I hope to promote the sharing of advanced transit concepts between these two massive transit associations," Mr. Diridon recently said. He is past Chair of APTA, and has been an advisor to the Federal Transit Administration and Chair of the National Research Council's TCRP Oversight and Project Selection (TOPS) Committee.

IISTPS To Lead ISTEA Re-Authorization Coalition
The sweeping 1991 Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act (ISTEA) stands as a landmark victory for surface transportation research. Not only did ISTEA establish funding for a wide spectrum of enhancement projects, it also created seven University Research Institutes and four Centers that are responsible for the research of multi-modal transportation policies and efforts.
IISTPS has taken the lead in an effort to form a national advocacy group that represents the most powerful and influential surface transportation organizations in the United States. Joining IISTPS in the ISTEA Research, Education and Training Reauthorization Consortium (RETRC) are the American Association of State and Highway Officials (AASHTO), American Public Transit Association (APTA), Intelligent Transportation Society of America (ITSA), ISTEA Institutes and Centers Directors Association, Transportation Development Corporation (TDC), Transportation Trades Department AFL/CIO and others.
The Consortium has formulated a platform that supports many of our transportation research, education, and training objectives for the next century. If you would like to become involved in the Consortium, or would like more information, please call Rod Diridon at (408) 924-7560.

Technology Corner
Transweb Search:The Table of Contents has been enhanced using Javascript-based pull- down menus and frames. This has greatly improved its ease of use in navigating Transweb's resources. Transweb receives over 200 visits a day, a large portion of which are from off-campus sites. New links have been added to connect to biographical and other information about retired Congressman Norman Y. Mineta.
IISTPS Information: IISTPS publications are listed at Transweb. There is now an order form with instructions on costs and submitting the order. Currently five reports are identified for ordering through the Web site.
Internet Use Survey: The Institute will be sending a survey on use of Transweb and the Internet for transportation resources to Research Associates and transportation professionals. Watch your mail. Responses can be mailed or faxed. The survey will appear soon at transweb.sjsu.edu and can be completed on-line and submitted through the Internet.
Library Holdings: The Institute's copy of Transport CD is now available for use in Clark Library, San Jose State University. The database indexes important federal and international documents, reports and journals. There are two compact discs covering 1946- 1988 and 1988-present. Citations, some with abstracts, can be printed or downloaded.

Profile of Lawrence D. Dahms IISTPS Board of Trustees Larry Dahms was elected to the IISTPS Board of Trustees in June, 1993. Mr. Dahms has been the Executive Director of the Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC) for 19 years. He serves the 19 governing board member who represents the nine counties and 100 cities of the San Francisco Bay Area. Mr. Dahms has been employed by the Army Corps of Engineers, California Legislative Analyst, BART, Arthur D. Little, Inc. and Caltrans. He is Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Eno Foundation for Transportation, Inc. and past Chairman of the Transportation Research Board (TRB) Executive Committee. He serves as past Chairman of the Board of directors of Intelligent Transportation Society of America and actively supports the work of the National Association of Regional Councils (NARC) and American Public Transit Association (APTA). He has a BS in Civil Engineering from San Diego State University and an MBA from Sacramento State University.
Education October 7, 1996 was the kickoff date for the first transportation course presented via distance learning and in the accelerated format. Using the accelerated format, students who maintain a steady pace of course completion can earn the proposed Masters of Science in Transportation Management in two years. These courses are offered as "special sessions" through the San Jose State University College of Business Graduate Programs Office. The first course, Fundamentals of Transportation Management, presented by Dr. Eric Mohr, originates from Caltrans offices in Oakland, California, and is received by students in San Jose, Santa Ana, Sacramento, and San Diego, as well as Oakland. The ten-session course will be completed on December 12, 1996. New students and students completing this course will be able to enroll in courses starting in the third week of January 1997. The tentative spring schedule offers the Fundamentals course to new students in January, while Transportation Policy and Regulation will be offered to students who have completed the Fundamentals course in December. Students in both of these classes will be able to take Leadership and Management of Transportation Organizations beginning during the second week of April. Student reaction to the program has been positive, and there have been requests for additional reception points for courses. Assuming there is sufficient student demand, Caltrans/Los Angeles is a likely addition in the Spring term. Our efforts now are focused on approval of the program by the Chancellor's Office and marketing of the program to a broader constituency. Anyone interested in establishing a remote reception site or enrolling in the program should contact Rob Vitale, Education Director, at (408) 924-5582, or Matt Laherty, Program Coordinator at (408) 924-3408.	Banks Elected TRB Vice-Chair Sharon Banks, current Chair of the IISTPS Board of Trustees, has been named Vice Chair for the Transportation Research Board's Executive Committee for 1997. She will officially take over in that position at the January 1997 TRB Annual Meeting. It is expected that she will become Chair of the TRB Executive Committee in 1998. This appointment makes Ms. Banks the first African-American and only the second woman to be named to such a position with TRB (Lillian Borrone served in 1995 as Chair) in the organization's 76 year history. "Sharon has brought a commitment to innovation and a fresh perspective to her 'volunteer' efforts at TRB, and we are looking forward to working with her as she takes on this added responsibility," said Robert Skinner, Executive Director of TRB. Ms. Banks has been active on TRB's Executive Committee, its Subcommittee on Planning and Policy Review, and the TCRP Oversight and Project Selection (TOPS) Committee, which oversees TRB's Transit Cooperative Research Program.