HDM Seeks Submissions for Web-based Rural Transit ITS Information Exchange

For Immediate Release

WASHINGTON, DC…. Harvard Design and Mapping (HDM) is seeking small urban and rural transit systems to share their experiences in Transit ITS implementation. This information will be used to develop an interactive web site for the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) called the Rural ITS Transit Success Electronic Story Booklet.

The Rural ITS Transit Success Electronic Story Booklet will be an online collection of rural Transit ITS experiences. Current and potential users of Transit ITS will be able to post information, and review the experiences of other systems. This site will serve as an Internet-based information exchange system to help identify best practices and lessons learned in rural Transit ITS implementation.

This site is an extension of a study and report that HDM recently completed for the Federal Transit FTA and the Federal Highway Administration (FWHA) entitled Technology in Rural Transit: Linking People with Their Community. The report provides rural transit system managers with a synopsis of contemporary knowledge to help plan and implement Intelligent Transportation System (ITS) technologies. (An online version of the report can be found at http://www.hdm.com/content.php?content=projects/rural_its.xml.)

Recognizing that Transit ITS is constantly changing, and new lessons will be learned and best practices identified, the FTA charged HDM with the development of this online repository of Transit ITS experiences to maintain and expand the body of knowledge established in Technology in Rural Transit: Linking People with Their Community.

“It is our hope that through this information exchange system, rural transit systems seeking to implement Transit ITS technologies will gain valuable information and insights,” explains Kija Kim, HDM’s President and CEO.

To help make the Rural ITS Transit Success Electronic Story Booklet a living document, small urban and rural transit systems, at any stage of implementation, are encouraged to share their experiences in implementing any type of Transit ITS applications. HDM’s team of transportation professionals is eager to support the submission of information by visiting your site and/or conducting interviews. To learn more about this project or submit your experiences, visit www.hdm.com/ruralitsweb.

With extensive experience in transportation analysis and systems design, HDM has provided innovative technology solutions for transportation professionals, and delivered national level transportation strategies and policy documents with advanced thinking and new ideas. For more information, visit www.hdm.com or contact Marina Melchiorre, HDM Transportation Task Manager at 703-224-1414 x238 or mmelchiorre@hdm.com.