TxDOT-Statewide Podcast

By now, it's no secret that the Panama Canal is being expanded and when that expansion is complete, more shipping tonnage than ever will be able to pass through en route to ports in the Gulf of Mexico. But will that specifically mean to more ports in Texas? In a word? Maybe. For more, I spoke with Harris County Judge Ed Emmett, who also serves as the chair of TxDOT's Panama Canal Stakeholder Working Group.

When summer vacation ends and school starts again each fall, it can be a shock to the system. Whether you're a student, a parent or a teacher, the start of school means big changes. It also means big changes if you're a motorist because of the reactivation of school zones, and school buses on the roadway. With so many changes happening so quickly, safety can sometimes get overlooked. For the cheat sheet on how to stay safe this school year, I spoke with Doug Shupe with AAA-Texas. For more on the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety, log on to www.aaafoundation.org.

Nearly 10 years ago, Texas voters gave the Texas Transportation Commission, TxDOT's governing body, the authority to issue $3 billion in bonds to pay for state highway improvements. The law stipulated that 20 percent of that amount be spent on projects that would reduce crashes and improve safety across the system. The $3 billion was later increased to $6 billion. Since then, that funding has helped the department make significant improvements to more than 1,150 miles of roadways, but it begs the question: did it work? A recent study by the Texas Transportation Institute says it did, and for more on that study, I spoke with John Barton, TxDOT's Deputy Executive Director.

Several years ago, Texas Highways magazine, the official travel magazine of Texas, began running an annual feature called "True Texas." The idea was to highlight specific places or activities that make Texas unique. Due out in the September 2012 issue, this year's True Texas feature has a different twist. For more, I spoke with Texas Highways magazine Publisher and Editor-in-Chief Charles Lohrmann. For more information on Texas Highways Magazine, including how to subscribe, log on to www.texashighways.com.

Former Pennsylvania Governor Ed Rendell is on a mission to modernize American infrastructure, everything from sewers to highways to air traffic control. It's one of those missions that everyone agrees with until they see the price tag. But, the former governor told me at this year's Texas Transportation Forum, money spent on repairing and improving our national infrastructure will buy a gift that keeps on giving. This episode originally posted in February.

In 2008, The Massachusetts Department of Transportation received $3 billion in dedicated funding to make statewide repairs, improvements and upgrades to its bridges. Since then, the Accelerated Bridge Program has helped reduce the number of structurally deficient bridges by 20 percent, and has done so by using a variety of innovative techniques. One such technique, called a "Heavy Lift", reduced the replacement time for one bridge in Hyde Park from months to mere hours. For more on this technique and the MassDOT bridge program, I spoke with Eliza Partington, a bridge technical coordinator.

Every year, the American Automobile Association, or Triple-A, conducts a nationwide study to determine the actual per-mile cost of owning and operating a motor vehicle. It's probably no surprise that as gasoline prices have risen in the 62 years in which the study has been done, the costs of owning a vehicle have risen exponentially, including an increase of 1.9 percent from last year. While each individuals costs may vary depending on a host of factors, from gas prices to insurance costs to congestion, the benchmark, per-mile cost of owning and operating a motor vehicle in the United States may surprise you. For more on the study, I spoke with Doug Shupe, Senior Public Affairs Specialist with AAA Texas.

So you're sitting at a traffic light waiting to turn left. But while the light in the thru-lanes stays red, the signal presents you with a flashing yellow arrow. You tell yourself, "that's new. I guess that means I need to yield?" To find out, I spoke with Carol Rawson, the director of TxDOT's Traffic Operations Division. This episode originally posted in 2011.

It's hard to imagine Texas without the petroleum industry, and it's equally as difficult to picture Texas without a state-of-the art transportation system. In theory, the two work together, the highways allowing access to petroleum exploration and exploitation, which in turn brings money to Texas for more roads. Only that's not quite how it works in practice. In fact, the energy sector of the Texas economy, which now includes wind energy, is growing so quickly that the highway system is having trouble keeping up with repairs, let alone improvements and expansion. That reality prompted TxDOT's executive director, Phil Wilson, to take the lead in forming the Task Force on Texas' Energy Sector Roadway Needs in March of this year, with the stated goals of bringing together state agencies, local governments and the energy industry to improve not only the conditions of the roadways impacted by the energy sector, but the safety and longevity of those roads as well. For more information on the task force and its mission, log on to www.roadsfortexasenergy.com.

At one time or another, we've all asked for directions only to be told, "you can't get there from here." That may have been true at one time, but not in this day and age of technology at your fingertips. Earlier this week, TxDOT unveiled its new DriveTexas.org site, which is a comprehensive highway conditions reporting system providing web and mobile device users with real-time, visual information on the TxDOT system, including everything from construction and maintenance work, to weather conditions and accident information. For more on this exciting development, I spoke with Margo Richards, director of TxDOT's Travel Information Division. To view the site, or to plan your next trip, log on to the TxDOT website and click on the "Highway Conditions" button under the Quick Links header, or visit www.DriveTexas.org.

Dr. Franz-Josef Ulm, Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology was stumped when his daughter asked him what on its face sounded like a reasonable question: "What kind of mileage does a highway get?" That question sparked Dr. Ulm's imagination and led to a study he completed recently looking at the impact roadways have on fuel consumption, and how that relationship might be improved to the betterment not only of the motorist's pocket book, but the environment as well.

Ever since Hurricanes Katrina, Rita and Ike pounded the Texas coastline, the Texas Department of Transportation has been preparing for the next storm. Meanwhile, Gilbert Jordan, TxDOT's Emergency Management Coordinator, has helped the department support efforts to fight wildfires, plow snow and deliver water to communities in need. I spoke with Gilbert recently to talk about his first year as the department's emergency management coordinator. For TxDOT updates during an emergency, follow us on Twitter, @TxDOTalert.

From the 2012 Texas Transportation Forum: Intelligent transportation systems, which range from synchronizing traffic signals to adaptive cruise control, have been on the rise around the world for the past several years. How they affect you depends on where you live and how you move between your destinations. For more on the technology behind today's - and tomorrow's - transportation systems, I spoke with Scott Belcher, President and CEO of the Intelligent Transportation Society of America. For more information on the Intelligent Transportation Society of America, log on to their website, www.itsa.org. Note:This episode originally posted in February 2012.

Summertime in Texas has come to be wildfire time, especially in the last few years, and it's no surprise that those fires have been helped along by statewide drought conditions despite recent spring rains. But what if there was a way to identify the areas of the state most likely to burn in a given year and act early to help prevent or at least minimize the risk? As it turns out, there is such a tool, called TxWRAP, or Texas Wildfire Risk Assessment Portal, provided by the Texas Forest Service. For more on the TxWRAP program, I spoke with Tom Spencer with the Texas Forest Service. To view the TxWRAP site, log on to www.texaswildfirerisk.com.

They say what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas, but that's no longer true of the entire state of Nevada. For the past year, an experimental self-driving car created by Google has been crisscrossing the state - and chances are that one day, and probably sooner rather than later, they'll be everywhere. For more on this unique advance in personal transportation, I spoke with Tom Jacobs, Chief Public Information Officer for the Nevada Department of Motor Vehicles. For more information on the Google Car, log on to the Nevada Department of Motor Vehicles website at www.dmvnv.com.