Thinking Transportation: Engaging Conversations about Transportation Innovations

Latest Episodes:

All Aboard? When unions, management, and Congress dodged a nationwide rail strike. Dec 15, 2022

Show notes

Rail industry employees and management were at odds for months and on the verge of a nationwide shutdown, until Congress and the White House invoked an arcane 1926 law to settle the dispute in only a few days.

It Takes a (Big) Village: How a community of transportation pros is making mobility better. Nov 29, 2022

Show notes

The Institute of Transportation Engineers is wrapping up a pivotal year in its history. Jeff Paniati, the organization’s CEO, and TTI's Beverly Kuhn, its outgoing president, talk about lessons learned from the past 12 months and how the transportation profession is evolving -- along with society.

Border Balancing Act: Finding harmony between commercial efficiency and security demands. Nov 08, 2022

Show notes

Along America’s 2,000-mile border with Mexico, there’s plenty of room for things to go awry when it comes to the secure, efficient movement of people and goods. Myriad public and private partnerships and the latest research are helping ensure that they don’t.

Sharing the Load on Texas Roads: Are overweight trucks paying their fair share? Oct 25, 2022

Show notes

Big trucks cause more damage to transportation infrastructure, but they pay less to use roads and bridges than passenger vehicles do. New research findings – with input from the freight industry – can inform how policy makers might change that.

Big and Bright: The view from TxDOT CEO Marc Williams’ chair. Oct 10, 2022

Show notes

Despite some Texas-sized mobility challenges and worldwide supply-chain obstacles, the guy in charge of the Texas Department of Transportation wants you to know he’s never been more optimistic about our transportation future.

Drilling for Solutions: A gusher of new data is helping cut crash numbers in Texas’ Permian Basin. Sep 27, 2022

Show notes

Large vehicle collisions in and around the giant West Texas oil patch in recent years have been alarmingly frequent and serious. Through a partnership approach, local transportation agencies and industry leaders are turning the tide.

Under the Influence of Youth: Most teens are eligible to drive at age 16, but are they ready? Sep 15, 2022

Show notes

Young drivers face greater risks on the road than any other group. Some of the reasons for that are unlikely to change, but one thing that’s clearly open to revision is the manner in which we approach the problem.

Of Needles and Haystacks: For truck drivers, finding a parking space is tougher than ever. Aug 30, 2022

Show notes

The COVID-19 pandemic helped to expose a chronic shortage of truck drivers in America – and a scarcity of places for those truckers to park, too. That has big implications for how we get the products we need, and how much we pay for them.

All over the Map: Just two car guys talking about transportation. Aug 16, 2022

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From self-driving tech to safety culture and power grids. When a transportation research leader and an auto industry journalist cross paths, the conversation can go in many directions.

Safety in Numbers? As bicycle use grows more popular, crash numbers carry mixed messages. Aug 02, 2022

Show notes

Along with the growing popularity of bicycling comes an increased need for safety. But while the number of bicycle crash injuries dropped during 2020, that was not the case for bicycle crash fatalities. TTI researchers Bahar Dadashova and Joan Hudson take a close look at that pattern, and what can be done about it.