One of the benefits of being an International ITE member is the ability to read and participate in the online forums / discussions.  The forums typically focus on technical topics in which professionals from the US and international community weigh in with the best practices and recommendations.

Every so often, there are a few topics that catch our attention as being more conceptual, forward thinking, or just simply interesting.

The topic that recently caught our attention was titled “”Surprisingly few people, even within the transportation planning world, are talking about this pending revolution.” Take a look at the author’s original take below and feel free to comment on our site:

————————–

(The article the author links is: http://www.freakonomics.com/2012/12/11/from-horse-power-to-horsepower-to-processing-power/)

This is going to be the biggest thing in transportation since the invention of the car itself.  It will be a paradigm shift – it will change not just our roads but will impact on almost every aspect of society in some way.

The criticism in the subject title and above has been levelled at my profession and this Institution.  Is the author correct?  Are we talking about this pending revolution?……. (I tried many weeks ago, with a single response).

I have been doing my level best to raise awareness in Alberta and in Canada – and there are a few other tranpsortation professionals that I know of that are now talking about this.  But there is so much more that needs doing  – we need to research this subject – develop policies and guidelines – we need to be the first port of call for our clients when they want to know how this will affect them.

If you want to find out more – then please view my latest presentation as a sort of ‘autonomous vehicles 101’.

Transportation and personal mobility is going to become an increasingly hot topic over the coming months and years and I for one am very excited that I am a Transportation Engineer at this pivotal point in history.  I hope that you can learn enough about this coming revolution to share in my enthusiasm, raise awareness within our profession and help lead the way into a transformative future on our roads.

Regards,  Paul

——————————————-
Paul Godsmark
Senior Transportation Specialist
EBA, A Tetra Tech Company
Edmonton AB