Tina S. Geiselbrecht

Geiselbrecht, Tina

Program Manager
Associate Research Scientist

Public Engagement
Texas A&M Transportation Institute
505 East Huntland Drive, Suite 455
Austin, TX 78752
ph. (512) 467-0946 Ext. 12116 · fax (512) 467-8971
t-collier@tamu.edu

Short Biography

Ms. Geiselbrecht joined TTI in 1995 and has been active in a variety of research projects, including those focusing on HOV/HOT lane planning and evaluation, value pricing, toll roads and managed lanes. Ms Geiselbrecht has relevant experience in researching the impacts of new types of transportation project delivery from a policy and public outreach perspective.

Ms. Geiselbrecht has been the lead researcher on several projects that have explored public opinion through the use of stakeholder interviews and focus groups. She has facilitated over 100 focus groups for both internal and external audience. The subject matter has ranged in in scope, including strategic planning, road safety needs, decision-making regarding alternate routes, project implementation and delivery, pricing and new transportation funding options. In addition to focus groups, Ms. Geiselbrecht is an experienced interviewer, having conducted more than 50 different interviews.

Ms. Geiselbrecht has extensive experience as a workshop moderator and facilitator. Ms. Geiselbrecht has developed and taught several workshops for the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) based on the research she has conducted. She participated in the development of a series of workshops that focused on the development of toll road projects in small urban/rural areas. Ms Geiselbrecht has also developed and delivered workshops to TxDOT and other agencies on the economic impacts of toll roads. She also facilitated a discussion group for FHWA that explored issues related to local road safety and the needs of the local technical providers. She has moderated two workshops that focused on the implementing provisions from SAFETEA-LU that link the planning process and NEPA. Recently she worked to develop a workshop held in conjunction with the National Road Pricing Conference in Houston, Texas. She also brings valuable experience in preparing guidebooks and handbooks.

Ms. Geiselbrecht is currently leading a legislatively-mandated effort for the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT). The work involves facilitating innovation in public engagement to ensure an open and transparent process in developing solutions for congested corridors in four regions across the state. Ms. Geiselbrecht is also leading a research effort that explores methods in maximize toll revenues. This effort includes conducting focus groups and stakeholder interview with the trucking community. Ms. Geiselbrecht is assisting on a research project for the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) that is preparing and conducting several forums which seek to provide input on strategic investment in freight gateways and corridors.

Ms. Geiselbrecht recently led a research effort to assess the public's opinions and perceptions of theTxDOT new Strategic Plan. This effort was the first of its kind undertaken by TxDOT. The work involved moderating focus groups that included a funding allocation activity to determine spending priorities and performance metrics to measure success.

Ms. Geiselbrecht developed TxDOT's first ever Customer Satisfaction Program. One unique component of the program is a "Ride the Road with TxDOT" program that assesses the public's perception of TxDOT's performance against technical measures used by the department.

Ms. Geiselbrecht is currently working with FHWA on the development of HOT Lane marketing materials that include a video, fact sheets, case studies and technical articles. She also co-authored Managed Lanes Cross-Cutting Study, and Managed Lanes: A Primer for FHWA.

Ms. Geiselbrecht also has expertise in the area of Environmental Justice. She is a member of the Transportation Research Board's Committee on Environmental Justice in Transportation. She is recently provided technical support to the TxDOT - Austin district in developing a methodology for the analysis of the system-wide effect of toll roads on Environmental Justice populations. In this capacity she provided technical support to a multi-agency work group to build consensus on EJ assessments and methodology.

Ms. Geiselbrecht served as co-principal investigator on TxDOT Research Project RMC 0-6396 which developed a software tool to use in pre-determining performance based operational toll rate setting measures.

Ms. Geiselbrecht's research also includes several areas of transportation finance. She completed research activities that included an assessment of the economic impacts of toll roads on a regional economy and an analysis of transportation investment on the economy. Both research projects produced outreach materials that will be used to communicate the research results. Ms. Geiselbrecht has completed research that was used in the development of a transportation finance website which highlights types of project financing available from the local to the national. The website may be accessed at http://utcm.tamu.edu/tfo/index.stm.

Ms. Geiselbrecht received her undergraduate degree in Economic Geography from the University of Texas and a Masters degree of Applied Geography and Planning from Southwest Texas State University.

Education

  • M.A.Geo., Geography, Southwest Texas State University, 2001.
  • B.A., Economic Geography, University of Texas at Austin, 1988.

Experience

  • Program Manager, Public Engagement, Texas A&M Transportation Institute, April 2013 - Present.
  • Associate Research Scientist, Mobility Management, Texas A&M Transportation Institute, September 2012 - Present.
  • Assistant Research Scientist, Mobility Management, Texas Transportation Institute, September 2008 - September 2012.
  • Associate Transportation Researcher, Austin Office, Texas Transportation Institute, September 2005 - August 2008.
  • Assistant Transportation Researcher, Agency Liaison Office, Texas Transportation Institute, January 2002 - August 2005.
  • Research Associate, Agency Liaison Office, Texas Transportation Institute, December 2000 - December 2001.
  • Administrative Assistant, Agency Liaison Office, Texas Transportation Institute, July 1995 - November 2000.

Affiliations

  • Member, Transportation Research Board (TRB), Sub-Committee on Pricing Outreach.
  • Member, Transportation Research Board (TRB), Committee on Environmental Justice in Transportation.
  • Member, American Association for Public Opinion Research.
  • Member, International Association for Public Participation (IAP2).

Selected Publications

S.R. Vadali, R. Aldrete, A. Bujanda, S. Samant, Y. Li, B.T. Kuhn, T.S. Geiselbrecht, S. Lyle, M. Zhang, K. Dalton, S. Tooley. Planning Tools to Assess the Real Estate Leveraging Potential for Roadways and Transit. 0-6538-S. Texas Transportation Institute, College Station, TX. 2013.

V.D. Goodin, M.W. Burris, T.J. Lomax, T.S. Geiselbrecht, R.E. Brydia, J.C. Pourteau. Pre-Determining Performance Based Operational and Toll Rate Setting Measures. 0-6396-S. Texas Transportation Institute, College Station, TX. 2011.

J.C. Lowery, M.W. Burris, T.S. Geiselbrecht, V.D. Goodin. Reaction to Value Pricing by Different Suburban Populations. Transportation Research Record, Vol. 2221, 2011, pp. 74-82.

J.H. Overman, P.L. Ellis, W.E. Frawley, R.F. Taylor, T.S. Geiselbrecht, V.D. Goodin. Rural Planning Organizations - Their Role in Transportation Planning and Project Development in Texas: Technical Report. 0-6483-1. Texas Transportation Institute, College Station, TX. June 2011.

J. Farris, T.S. Geiselbrecht. Strategic Directions for Performance Management in TxDOT: Customer Satisfaction as a Key Driver of Success. SRP-RB 004. Texas Department of Transportation, TX. June 2011.

T.S. Geiselbrecht. Tell TxDOT: Customer Satisfaction Program. TTI-2011-3. Texas Transportation Institute, College Station, TX. March 2011.

V.D. Goodin, M.W. Burris, T.J. Lomax, T.S. Geiselbrecht, R.E. Brydia. Operational Performance Management of Priced Facilities. 0-6396-1. Texas Transportation Institute, College Station, TX. March 2011.

R.T. Baker, L. Ding, J. Epps, C.K. Estakhri, G. Fry, T.S. Geiselbrecht, V.D. Goodin, J.G. Hudson, T.J. Lomax, C.A. Morgan, J.P. Orsak, D.L. Schrank, T. Scullion, W.R. Stockton, S.P. Venglar, J.C. Villa, B.A. Wood, D.M. Winterich, R.E. Lee, J. Zietsman. TxDOT Administration Research: Tasks Completed FY2010. 0-6581-TI-2. Texas Transportation Institute, College Station, TX. February 2011.

S.R. Vadali, R. Aldrete, A. Bujanda, S. Samant, Y. Li, T.S. Geiselbrecht, B.T. Kuhn, S. Lyle, K. Dalton, M. Zhang, S. Tooley. Planning Tools to Assess the Real Estate Leveraging Potential for Roadways and Transit: Technical Report. 0-6538-1. Texas Transportation Institute, College Station, TX. January 2011.

T.S. Geiselbrecht, T.J. Lomax, D. Oxley, E.W. Lindquist, K.M. Miller, C.P. Beaty. Results from the "Ride the Road with TxDOT" Customer Satisfaction Pilot Program. TTI-2010-6. Texas Transportation Institute, College Station, TX. December 2010.

T.S. Geiselbrecht, K.M. Miller. Best Practices in the Field of Customer Satisfaction Input/Surveys: Technical Memorandum. Texas Transportation Institute, Houston, TX. August 2010.

T.S. Geiselbrecht, J.G. Hudson, T.J. Lomax, J.C. Villa, D.M. Winterich, J. Zietsman. TxDOT Administration Research: Tasks Completed in FY2009. 0-6581-TI-1. Texas Transportation Institute, College Station, TX. January 2010.

L. Zhou, M.W. Burris, R.T. Baker, T.S. Geiselbrecht. The Impact of Incentives on Toll Road Use by Trucks. Transportation Research Board 88th Annual Meeting Compendium of Papers. Transportation Research Board, Washington, DC. 2009.

L. Zhou, M.W. Burris, R.T. Baker, T.S. Geiselbrecht. Impact of Incentives on Toll Road Use by Trucks. Transportation Research Record, Vol. 2115, 2009, pp. 84-93.

T.S. Geiselbrecht, J.G. Hudson. TxDOT's Project Tracker: Use of the Internet for Project Information. Texas Transportation Institute, Houston, TX. April 2009.

D.H. Ungemah, T.S. Geiselbrecht, C.M. Dusza. 2008 HCTRA Toll Road user Focus Groups Report. Harris County Toll Road Authority, Houston, TX. February 2009.