With humor and a straightforward approach, the new director of TxDOT’s Research and Technology Implementation (RTI) Office, Shannon Crum, conducted a question-and-answer session with TTI employees Feb. 8. The much-anticipated visit comes three months after Crum took over RTI amid rumors about major changes within the TxDOT research program — many of which were addressed […]
Heartfelt Donations at TTI Blood Drive Help Save Lives
Purposely held close to Valentine’s Day, TTI’s first blood drive of 2013 could be responsible for saving 102 lives. A total of 34 blood products were donated by TTI employees and other donors February 12. Usually a 3 to 1 return is estimated for blood donations. “We wanted to make it fun, so we played […]
TRB Poster Session Highlights I-35 Model Outreach Effort
It’s common, even required at stages to engage the public during the planning and development of a transportation project. But to continue that effort throughout the construction phase is rare. The Texas Department of Transportation’s (TxDOT’s) I-35 Mobility Initiative lets motorists and business owners along the interstate know what improvements are coming, what the impacts […]
TTI Wins Multiple Outstanding Paper Awards at TRB
Several employees have received Outstanding Paper Awards at this year’s Transportation Research Board (TRB) Annual Meeting, held in Washington, D.C., Jan. 13-17. Lead authors Stacey Bricka, Nauman Sheikh and Adam Pike were the respective winners of the Charley V. Wootan, K.B. Woods and Young Professional awards. Established in 2004, the Charley V. Wootan Award is […]
TTI in the News
There have been numerous mentions of TTI and our experts in recent media reports. Here are links to some of the stories. The motivation for speeding, KUHF Radio, Jan. 10 Port of Tampa gets new shipping line, Tampa Bay Times, Jan. 10 Eliminating Virginia’s gas tax?, CNN, Jan. 9 Message signs for gun shows, Houston […]
Photo Database Designed to Help Employees
TTI employees have access to a web-based repository of transportation-related and internal TTI employee photos. These images can be downloaded to your computer or shared with colleagues outside the agency (e.g., TxDOT). TTI’s Digital Image Archive consists of a growing database that contains over 38,000 transportation and 12,000 Institute-related photographs to date. The archive is […]
A&M, Blinn Students Key in Planning Future B-CS Travel
Students from Texas A&M University and Blinn College will soon be helping planners decide future mobility needs in the Bryan-College Station area by taking part in a travel survey conducted by the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) with help from the Texas A&M Transportation Institute (TTI). “Obviously students account for a considerable amount of traffic […]
Door Decoration Contest Sparks New TTI Tradition
It started out as a simple but friendly holiday competition between two TTI departments housed close together at SHRB. Now it might just become an intense annual rivalry. Employees with Network and Information Systems (NIS) and Human Resources (HR) were given less than a week to decorate their doors with a Christmas holiday theme. The […]
A Star is Born: Employees Recognized in First-Time Awards Program
Thirty-four employees have been named recipients of the inaugural TTI STAR Awards, designed to honor staff that go above and beyond their regular duties. The nomination process began in September, an anonymous committee (appointed by Agency Director Dennis Christiansen) reviewed the nominations, and winners were notified in November and December. There are three levels of […]
TTI’s AWAM Getting Deployed Worldwide
The Texas A&M Transportation Institute’s (TTI’s) invention known as AWAM — which stands for Anonymous Wireless Address Matching— is a perfect example of the old saying “success is the intersection of hard work and luck.” Though AWAM might never become a household word, for those in the transportation business, it’s quickly becoming the next breakthrough […]
TTI in the News
There have been numerous mentions of TTI and our experts in recent media reports. Here are links to some of the stories. Funding ideas for state roads, The Rancher, Oct. 31 Inland waterway interactive map, Farm Futures, Oct. 30 Nation’s fastest roadway opened in Central Texas, KUT Radio, Oct. 24 Pedestrian improvement in Mason, Mason […]
Employees Unite for SECC
The final figures are in: TTI employees raised $23,459.05 for the 2012 State Employee Charitable Campaign (SECC). In fact, just two weeks into the campaign, TTI surpassed its goal of $16,900, supplying critical funding to local organizations in our communities. The campaign began September 1 and ended October 31. “When I heard the news, I […]
Halloween Day Blood Drive First for TTI
For the first time in TTI history, the October blood drive this year occurred on Halloween Day. To celebrate the occasion, organizer Nancy Stratta wanted to put donors in the appropriate mood to give blood. A smoking caldron of witch’s brew greeted donors at the front door, Halloween decorations adorned the room, lights were turned […]
Another TTI First: Broadcasting Crash Tests
On Sept. 26, for the first time in Texas A&M Transportation Institute (TTI) history, a crash test at TTI’s Proving Grounds was broadcast live via the Internet to clients and stakeholders across the country. Providing live streaming crash tests was the brainchild of Dean Alberson, assistant agency director and manager of the TTI Crashworthy Structures […]
Support Staff Views Crash Test, Learns Riverside Campus History
There was record attendance for the latest TTI Support Staff Development Seminar, Sept. 26. For the first time, the group — which meets every other month — attended a crash test at the Riverside Campus. Members witnessed an 18-wheeler plowing into a guardrail retaining wall at a speed of 50 miles-per-hour. “Most of our members […]
California High School Students Join Teens in the Driver Seat
In the first public event announcing the Texas A&M Transportation Institute (TTI)-developed Teens in the Driver Seat (TDS) program in California, Franklin High School students in Elk Grove conducted a news conference for Sacramento-area media Sept. 19. The students outlined their efforts in combating teen car crashes, which is the number one killer of teens […]
Driving: Once a Dream, Now a Reality for Franklin McMurrian
In 1995, 16-year-old Franklin McMurrian had dreams of becoming a sports star — the NBA or NFL, it really didn’t matter. Achievable, perhaps, but for Franklin it suddenly became impossible. “A friend and me were horsing around with a gun,” McMurrian recalls of the incident that changed his life. It turned out the gun was […]
TTI in the News
There have been numerous mentions of TTI and our experts in recent media reports. Here are links to some of the stories. Infrastructure conference announced: Ultimate Fort Bend, Sept. 12 State’s most congested roads: The Texas Tribune, Sept. 7; San Antonio Express-News, Sept. 5 Roundabout considered for congestion relief: Houston Chronicle, Sept. 3 Infrastructure costs […]
NIS Introduces New Staff, Initiatives at Q&A
Large scale improvements have been made within TTI’s Network and Information Systems over the last year, according to TTI Chief Information Officer (CIO) Brad Hoover. He detailed some of that progress during a briefing and Q&A with TTI employees Sept. 6. Hoover, who was appointed CIO one year ago, described the progress that’s been made […]
Hawkins Honored with Educator Award
Dr. Gene Hawkins, associate professor in the Texas A&M Zachry Department of Civil Engineering, is the recipient of a prestigious educator award from the Institute of Transportation Engineers (ITE). Hawkins, who is also a research engineer with the Texas A&M Transportation Institute (TTI), received the 2012 Wilbur S. Smith Distinguished Transportation Educator Award at the […]