A “case study” newly contributed to the IBTTA website by Kansas Turnpike Authority technology director Bruce Meisch and HNTB engineering executive Derek Vap explores how the toll agency, with the collaboration of key partners HNTB and TransCore, planned and executed a strategy for modernizing tolling technology. The project — it included an efficient transition to cashless collection — was first envisioned in 2014 and came to fruition last summer. The article summarizes how a patient and methodical approach to requirements planning, design, and procurement ensured the new system would serve the needs of both KTA and its customers.
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Trump Administration Policies Start To Impact Transportation Research
Bloomberg CityLab reports, the Trump administration’s “multipronged assault on scientific research across an array of fields” has impacted agencies and experts in the transportation field. Government actions over the past six weeks have alarmed researchers and industry experts, and caused concern about the future of the federally supported Transportation Research Board (TRB). Specific administration-triggered actions include:
- dozens of layoffs at USDOT’s Volpe Center and Bureau of Transportation Statistics, and a Department of Energy office focused on vehicle technologies;
- TRB cancellation of at least 14 research projects deemed not to conform to administration edicts on diversity, equity, and inclusion;
- advice to TRB-affiliated researchers to “halt parts of ongoing projects and adjust written language” seen to be in conflict with presidential executive orders; and
- an FHWA directive that its staff ensure that the TRB committees and panels in which they participate comply with Trump administration priorities.
TRB, its parent entity, the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, and USDOT have not issued public statements about turnover or changes in the direction of research. According to the article, that lack of communication has raised concerns about which projects and fields of research may be at risk. And, “Looking ahead, questions about funding, censorship and data access could push aspiring researchers into other fields, diminishing the quality and quantity of future transportation discoveries.”
Trump: Canada And Mexico Tariffs, An Additional Tariff On China, Will Take Effect Next Week
The New York Times reports, President Trump said this afternoon that tariffs on imports from Canada and Mexico will take effect next Tuesday, March 4, because, in his view, those countries still aren’t doing enough to stop drug trafficking. He also said he will impose an additional 10 percent tariff on imports from China, which are already subject to an impost levied earlier this month.
However, the Canadian Press (via BNN Bloomberg) notes that “Canadians confused about Trump’s plans aren’t alone, with the U.S. president at times contradicting himself about his own tariff plans. Timelines for when countries are hit with what level of tariffs have shifted since the original threats were made and orders were signed, and it remains unclear whether Canada can negotiate exemptions or further delays.”
Associated Press covers reaction to Trump’s announcements, noting, “The prospect of escalating tariffs has already thrown the global economy into turmoil, with consumers expressing fears about inflation worsening and the auto sector and other domestic manufacturers suffering if Trump raises import taxes. But Trump has also at times engaged in aggressive posturing only to give last-minute reprieves. . . .”
This morning, The New York Times reported that the US economy “is starting to show signs of strain as President Trump’s abrupt moves to shrink federal spending, lay off government workers and impose tariffs on America’s largest trading partners rattle businesses and reverberate across states and cities.”
NBC News and CNBC report on market reactions to Trump’s latest tariff pronouncements.
Trump Officials Contemplate Reversing Fundamental Climate Change Policy And Slashing EPA’s Budget
POLITICO reports, “The Environmental Protection Agency [EPA] will move to reverse its 2009 declaration that greenhouse gases endanger human health and welfare — a step that would threaten most major climate regulations and make it harder for future presidents to enact new ones. Three people granted anonymity to discuss the action said EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin has recommended to the White House that the agency overhaul the finding, which underpins all Clean Air Act climate regulations.”
Sources tell POLITICO the policy change is likely to be pursued through a regulatory review process. The Trump administration is internally weighing “how far it is willing to go to attack the foundational science underlying the endangerment finding, a step that would generate political and public backlash.” However, the sources add Trump officials are expected to “reject the bedrock justification for regulating greenhouse gas emissions in some fashion to give agencies freer rein to dismantle climate rules.”
The Washington Post first broke this story. Its article adds that Trump yesterday told reporters Administrator Zeldin plans to recommend cutting 65 percent of the EPA workforce. White House sources later contradicted Trump, saying Zeldin and the “Department of Government Efficiency” instead intend to eliminate 65 percent of what they consider to be wasteful EPA spending.
Kapsch Announces Innovation In License Plate Recognition Technology For North American Market
Kapsch TrafficCom announced it has created an Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) engine specifically for the North American market that offers “unparalleled accuracy and reliability.”
According to Chris Jones, Kapsch North America’s Director of Video Transaction Optimization, the engine’s “newly developed deep neural network . . . ensures precise identification of license plates from 58 jurisdictions, including all mainland US states, Hawaii, Mexico, and the most relevant Canadian provinces.” Kapsch TrafficCom North America President JB Kendrick notes that the engine can accurately recognize the variety of characters seen on more than 150 plate types, “focusing on the most widely used designs and ensuring easy scalability to include additional types as needed.” She adds that the engine, which isn’t a stand-alone product, will be “a key building block” in Kapsch systems for existing and future roadside tolling clients. It is already being implemented in several of the company’s projects.
Because of its accuracy, the ANPR engine will help toll entities reduce costs for manual transaction review. It was developed through a cross-regional collaboration of Kapsch experts and built on ANPR advances the firm previously introduced in Europe and Australia.