[ABJ30-Friends] Discussion Items for the Mid-Year Agenda (ABJ30: TRB Urban Data Committee)

Hi! Kate Lawson and I were emailing about the agenda for the Mid-Year Meeting at NATMEC in June in Seattle and I was thinking that it may make sense to have discussions among the participants (in-person and on the phone). I came up with the following discussion topics. Please feel free to edit these (responding to the listserve or me: emily.parkany(a)gmail.com ) and add your own suggestions. 1) Do we need new sources of data? Have people been following the status quo or is the practice moving towards using archived ITS data for planning, GPS surveys, location-based data, etc. 2) Do we have the right skills? What skills do we need new hires to have? Can a TRB workshop or other training address this? 3) Do we have the right subcommittees? What is the impact of census data and archived data among the participants? Should the commitee be considering other subcommittees (for example: travel time, speed, and reliability---and the SHRP 2 Reliability efforts)? 4) Is the urban data committee the right "home" for Travel Time, Speed, and Reliability? [I lean towards yes.] Is there much coordination between these researchers (for example, folks on SHRP 2 Reliability projects) and the committee? Do these topics interest you? Kate suggests that they fit under a "Preparing for the Annual Meeting/State of the Committee" Discussion theme. The mid-year meeting is not very long but this may be our chance to raise some of these issues. When we put an agenda together, I will ask you to think about these topics and I'll solicit opinions that we can put into a Powerpoint presentation to start the discussion. This way, I hope that people can participate before the meeting, in the room, and on the phone. I look forward to hearing from you. Emily Emily Parkany Secretary, ABJ30 Urban Transportation Data and Information Systems