IN THIS ISSUE

• Commemorating 40 Years of Service to America
• Volpe Center Promotes Walking and Bicycling Options
• Maritime Vessel Traffic Tracking Along the Mexican Gulf Coast
• Assisting DHS to Strengthen Cyber Security Across Modes
• Volpe-organized Aviation Security Workshop Brings Together Stakeholders in Government, Industry and Academia
• New Volpe Library Embraces Accessibility and Knowledge-Sharing
• Contributors

In honor of its 40th anniversary as an integral part of the U.S. Department of Transportation, the Volpe Center held an Open House on Friday, October 15 in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

In a keynote speech at the event, U.S. Chief Technology Officer Aneesh Chopra described how the White House is committed to tapping into the creativity of the Nation's entrepreneurs:

Aneesh Chopra, U.S. Chief Technology Officer. (Photo courtesy of Linda Haas Photography)

President Obama has given me one clear instruction: in this Administration, entrepreneurs are welcome. Entrepreneurs at the Volpe Center, entrepreneurs in the community, entrepreneurs in Silicon Valley and Route 128, you are welcome.

You are...going to design something incredible, that will improve our transportation experience not in ten years, but tomorrow… That's the entrepreneur in your heart, we want to tap into your mojo!

Aneesh Chopra
U.S. Chief Technology Officer

Volpe Center Director Robert C. Johns, U.S. Transportation Deputy Secretary John D. Porcari, Research and Innovative Technology Administration Administrator Peter H. Appel, and U.S. Congressman Michael E. Capuano also spoke of the important contributions Volpe Center staff have made to transportation innovation since research first began here in 1970.

Volpe Center Director Robert C. Johns, U.S. Transportation Deputy Secretary John D. Porcari, Research and Innovative Technology Administration Administrator Peter H. Appel, and U.S. Congressman Michael E. Capuano. (Photo courtesy of Linda Haas Photography)

John Porcari, U.S. Transportation Deputy Secretary. (Photo courtesy of Linda Haas Photography)

The Volpe Center is a great example of an experiment in government that's worked. Every day, you collaborate within every mode within the Department of Transportation, as well as with the larger industry to give form, shape and direction to innovation. You are truly the laboratory of innovation.

John D. Porcari
U.S. Transportation Deputy Secretary

Volpe Center staff presented a showcase (pictured below) of over twenty projects to local, state and Federal officials, representatives from industry and academia and the Volpe Center community. For a full list of the projects in our showcase, visit: Volpe Center 40th Anniversary Open House Project Showcase. Guided tours took visitors to demonstrations of our Traffic Flow Management System, an emergency bus egress simulator, and the Cab Technology Integration Laboratory, a state-of-the-art rail locomotive simulator.

Staff members of the Structures and Dynamics Division provided a showcase of the Volpe Center's research in rail equipment crashworthiness. (Photo courtesy of Linda Haas Photography)

Mark Strout from the Traffic Flow Management Division provided a demonstration of our Enhanced Traffic Management System, a Volpe-created product on behalf of the Federal Aviation Administration that provides strategic planning for our National Airspace System. (Photo courtesy of Linda Haas Photography)

The Cab Technology Integration Lab is a state of the art locomotive simulator housed in the Volpe Center's Human Factors lab. During the Open House, visitors such as Greg Winfree, RITA Chief Counsel and Rand Pixa, MARAD Deputy Chief Counsel visited the lab for demonstrations by staff on how Volpe's work with simulators informs researchers' understanding of human-automation interaction. For more information on the CTIL simulator, visit the previous Highlights story. (Photo courtesy of Linda Haas Photography)