Past Events

Mineta Transportation Institute researchers convened a workshop on "Surface Transportation Supply Chain Security," bringing together subject matter experts from international, federal and state governments and the private sector, and academic researchers. The goal of the conference was to understand the current state of the practice in surface transportation supply chain security, and to consider areas of needed research to address new and developing challenges. Areas of focus included risk estimation, geopolitical aspects, and modal relations. The keynote speaker was Professor Joseph Szyliowicz of the University of Denver, with presentations on geopolitical challenges by Capt. Manual Raras, USCG (Ret.), security planning by Cdr. Romulus Matthews, USCG, and maritime management cybersecurity by LCdr. Robert Cole, USCG. Power outage and the supply chain was presented by Col. Mitch Medigovich, USNG (Ret.), deputy director of the California Office of Emergency Services. Challenges of cargo security and port management was presented by Kevin Krick of Matson Lines. Cybersecurity and future challenges for supply chain security was presented by Ash Padwal of Allied Telesis. Jan Benini, retired from the US Department of Transportation, provided the dinner speech on the work of the Asia Pacific International Cooperation Group in supply chain security. Gzim Ocakoglu, European Union representative to the United States, discussed the strategies employed by European nations to achieve supply chain security. Discussants for the workshop included Daniel Goodrich, Senior Transportation Security Scientist at MTI; Herby Lissade, Deputy Director, Caltrans; Cdr. Greg Callaghan, USCG; and Professor Len Lira, USA (Ret.). Professor Frannie Edwards, deputy director of the National Transportation Security Center, was the facilitator for the event. The outcome of the workshop was the creation of a blueprint for future research in surface transportation supply chain security.

With new bike infrastructure rolling out in cities across the U.S., how is bike infrastructure evaluated by both cyclists and experts? Enter the popular and widely used "Level of Traffic Stress" (LTS), but how does this method measure up against popular bike review apps like Ride Report? Join us in a conversation with MTI researchers, Dr. Kevin Fang, Dr. Daniel Rodriguez, and Chester Harvey to discuss the validity of LTS when compared to results from Ride Report and their findings from "Evaluating Alternative Measures of Bicycling Level of Traffic Stress Using Crowdsourced Route Satisfaction Data.”

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Thirty years ago the San Andreas Fault ruptured near Loma Prieta Peak, creating the largest urban earthquake in over 80 years. The M 6.9 earthquake took 63 lives and injured another 3,757. Many of those due to the destroyed urban infrastructure, such as the Cypress structure on I-880 in Oakland, and the collapse of homes in San Francisco's Marina District. These catastrophes provided civil engineers and public policy leaders with a multitude of lessons to apply in the event of another "Killer Quake."
MTI and San Jose State University's (SJSU) College of Engineerin welcomed Dr. Anne Wein, US Geological Survey, Operations Research Analyst, who delivered the pivotal keynote address. Dr. Frances Edwards, MTI's Deputy Director of the National Transportation Security Center, chaired the discussion with Dr. Steven Vukazich of SJSU's Material and Civil Engineering Departments and Ash Padwal Chief Risk Officer of Allied Telesis leading panels on changes over the last 30 years that have enhanced seismic safety, as well as future developments needed to improve the Bay Area's earthquake resilience.

California is in the midst of several ambitious shifts in its transportation infrastructure, funding, and vehicle fleet composition. Governor Jerry Brown set a target of reaching 5 million zero-emission vehicles (ZEVs) by 2030. Such a rapid increase of electric cars would mean fewer drivers paying fuel taxes, the state’s largest source of transportation revenue. But, in 2017 the passage of SB1 added annual road improvement fees, some of which vary with the value of the vehicles. Researchers compared the revenue lost to the state because electric vehicles with revenue gained by the new fees and found surprising results. The switch to electric vehicles will not necessarily reduce the state’s future revenue for transportation programs. 

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