The 2012 MAFC Annual Meeting materials are now available, including:

• Presentations and videos
• Photo gallery
• Twitter archive
• Conference agenda and packet materials

Visit the 2012 MAFC Annual Meeting page for the latest updates.

The Illinois Department of Transportation recently kicked off a state-wide long-range transportation planning effort. The results of this effort will serve as a master plan for all transportation modes in Illinois, including highways, waterways, aeronautics, mass transportation, bicyclists, pedestrians, and railroad systems.

The plan sets forth policies and goals that will guide the development of the state transportation system and identify issues and key needs for the state transportation system over the forthcoming twenty plus years.

The Illinois State Transportation Plan will be submitted to the governor, the general assembly, the Federal Highway Administration, and the Federal Transit Authority by December 31, 2012.

For more information about the Illinois State Transportation Plan, visit www.IllinoisTransportationPlan.org or the Illinois DOT.

Tuesday, April 24 & Wednesday, April 25, 2012
8:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m., both days
Cleveland, OH 44114-3204

The National Highway Institute’s Advanced Freight Planning (FHWA-NHI-139003) course is being offered on April 24th & 25th in Cleveland, Ohio at the offices of the Northeast Ohio Areawide Coordinating Agency (NOACA), themetropolitan planning organization in Northeast Ohio.

Cost

$400 per registrant for this two-day course. Registrants can earn 1.2 CEUs from the International Association of Continuing Education and Training (IACET).

Course description

This course expands on freight topics covered in other FHWA-developed freight planning courses to provide techniques and strategies designed for those individuals directly involved in the implementation of transportation planning, programming and allocation of resources. It provides participants with the skills needed to identify, prioritize, develop and implement freight supportive projects. This is an advanced level course and it focuses heavily on resources and solutions, and how those solutions can be applied to developing plans and programs for public and private sectors.

Course outcomes

Upon completion of the course, participants will be able to:

• Discuss how freight transportation needs differ for major industry sectors
• Describe the role of the freight transportation systems in supporting economic competitiveness
• List the economic drivers that influence private sector freight transportation decisions
• Discuss how private sector needs can inform public sector performance measures
• Summarize methods for identifying and prioritizing freight projects
• Discuss the benefits of engaging private sector stakeholders in project identification
• List potential funding mechanisms for freight projects

Prerequisites

Participants must successfully complete either FHWA-NHI-139001 (prior to 31 March 2008) or FHWA-NHI-139006 (after 1 April 2008) Integrating Freight in the Transportation Planning Process prior to attending 139003. Participants MUST bring a copy of their certificate of completion to their scheduled session of FHWA-NHI-139003 and provide it to the lead instructor. This online course is $50 and takes approximately six hours, but can be done at your own pace, and registrants can earn 0.6 CEUs.

Who should attend

Mid-level State DOT transportation and freight planners, City and County Planners (who deal with freight planning issues), MPO staff, mid- and high-level public sector transportation and freight planners, consultants, private sector Freight Managers, economic development analysts, and FHWA Employees.

Lodging

There are numerous hotels within a short distance of NOACA’s offices. A block of rooms has been reserved for the nights of April 23 & 24 for $117/night plus tax at the Embassy Suites Cleveland – Downtown at 1701 E. 12th St., Cleveland, Ohio 44114. A free cooked-to-order breakfast is served daily and there is a complimentary beverage reception nightly. Call the hotel directly at 216-523-8000 or 1-800-EMBASSY, or book online at www.embassysuites.com#mce_temp_url# by March 24th and use code “NHI Freight Course” The Embassy Suites is located directly across the street from NOACA.

Questions

Please contact Meredith Davis at 216.241.2414, ext. 350 or mdavis@mpo.noaca.org

The deadline for reserving rooms in the MAFC block at the Hilton Minneapolis Hotel has been extended to Tuesday, March 27.

For more information about how to register and reserve your room, visit the 2012 MAFC Annual Meeting page.

March 14-16, 2012
Norfolk, Virginia

It’s not to late to register for the 2012 Freight in the Southeast Conference, to be held on March 14-16, 2012 in Norfolk, Virginia.

Check out the agenda, list of speakers, and information on a USACE listening session held in conjunction with the conference.

For more information and to register, visit the Institute for Trade and Transportation Studies.

March 20, 2012
Columbia, Missouri

The 2012 MoDOT transportation research forum will be held on March 20, 2012 in Columbia, Missouri. This forum includes research project presentations, achievement awards, a discussion of MoDOT research needs, and a tour of lab facilities at the University of Missouri-Columbia.

This event is free of charge to all registered participants. The registration deadline is March 15, 2012. For more information and to register for the research forum download the registration form.

You can also contact Bill Stone (william.stone@modot.mo.gov) or Marjorie Frank (marjorie.frank@modot.mo.gov) if you have questions.

Registration is now open for the 2012 MAFC Annual Meeting, to be held in Minneapolis, Minnesota on April 18-20, 2012.

Download the conference flyer, which includes information about conference fees, registration, and agenda themes. This flyer is suitable for distribution in print and electronically.

Note: The deadline for reserving rooms in the MAFC room block has been extended to Tuesday, March 27.

Visit the conference page for registration information, and the latest updates about the meeting.

Today’s Milwaukee Journal Sentinal’s Opinion page is carrying two opposing views about how to fund improvements to the I-39/90 corridor between Madison and the Wisconsin-Illinois state line.

The MJS editors contend that “Barrett’s plan to fix roads takes the right approach” while Dan Cunningham of the I-39/90 NOW Coalition, says “Don’t shift road money to repair local streets.”

(Follow the links to read the articles in full.)

The planning committee for the 2012 MAFC Annual Meeting has been hard at work putting together a stimulating agenda that covers a wide range of freight issues in the Midwest and nationally.

You can also download the lastest version of the DRAFT agenda.

Freight Advisory Committees

Freight advisory committees will form a special focus at this year’s MAFC Annual Meeting. In addition to a panel discussion about freight advisory committees to discuss how they work, their benefits, the opportunities they present, and obstacles to their implementation, the Minnesota Freight Advisory Team will also attend the meeting and provide a unique opportunity for interaction.

Presentations and Sessions

We’ve scheduled presentations and discussion sessions, including:

• Air cargo in the MAFC region
• Supply chains and the electronic economy
• How to access and implement freight research
• The importance of border crossings for MAFC states
• Cost-benefit analysis: how to use it (and when not to use it)

And other freight transportation topics across all the modes.

Tours

This year’s annual meeting will include two tours: a cruise on the Mississippi River and a visit to a Minneapolis rail yard.

Sponsors

The 2012 MAFC Annual Meeting is sponsored by the National Center for Freight and Infrastructure Research and Education (CFIRE), the Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT), and the ten states of the Mid-America Freight Coalition (MAFC).

The Mid-America Freight Coalition is entering into a collaborative partnership with the Institute for Trade and Transportation Studies (ITTS).

This interregional partnership encompasses more than half of the United States and includes nearly every core industry—agriculture, automotive, manufacturing, mining, commodities, logistics, shipping, and warehousing.

Representatives from the MAFC and ITTS will work together to further encourage cooperative freight development between the two coalitions and their member states.

About ITTS

The Institute for Trade and Transportation Studies examines the effects of commercial freight movements on domestic and international activities, with reference to infrastructure and transportation needs, and safety implications.

Current membership consists of the State Departments of Transportation from the following States: Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia and West Virginia.

ITTS also sponsors the yearly Freight in the Southeast conference.

For more information about ITTS, visit ittsresearch.org.