Tag Archives: NTL

News from the US DOT

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There is always something going on here at the DOT HQ: presentations, seminars, lectures, pot-lucks, and of course talk about what has been in the press about DOT decisions. So, from now on, I’ll attempt to summarize all this stuff for you; I know that some people really like reading about our work here, so I am trying to make this a one-stop-shop location for important transportation-related events, news, press-releases etc.

This week we had two BTS press releases:
September 2011 Airline System Traffic Up 1.2 Percent from September 2010 and a new  Directive for 2012 On-Time Reporting. The second is something really exciting, because the On-Time data is one of the most popular data we have. It gives you information about (domestic) flights reported by large carriers (with at least 1% of domestic itineraries): If the flight was delayed and why, if it was diverted and if so, to where and why. You can also get a summary of which airlines/routes are the best/worst when it comes to timely flights. So  next time you plan to take a trip, check it out!

The arrest of the FAA Administrator R. Babbit was probably the event that caused the most confusion within the DOT. Here is the official statement from our Secretary, Ray LaHood:
DOT 160-11
Tuesday, December 6, 2011
Statement from U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood:

“As FAA Administrator, Randy Babbitt has been a dedicated public servant and outstanding leader. I’m proud to say that we have the safest aviation system in the world, and thanks to Randy’s stewardship, it became safer and stronger. He worked tirelessly to improve relations with the labor community and bolstered employee engagement among his 49,000 colleagues at the FAA. He led the FAA’s efforts to improve pilot training and enhance safety for the traveling public, as well as those that work in aviation. On behalf of the American people, I thank him for his service and his leadership.”
Interesting to read is also the summary of what was said about this in various newspapers and other media.

Last, but not least, for today: If you want to stay up-to-date with what is happening here at the US DOT, subscribe to the feeds that interest you the most.

Have a good weekend everyone!

Oh, those dang outdoor signs!

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Work is slowly coming to an end for this week, which does not mean that I am just sitting around, being lazy (okay,maybe just a little bit). So I went to roam the stacks, and found two books that looked funny, weird, and interesting at the same time: “Outdoor Advertising: The Modern Marketing Force. 1929” and “Signs out of control. 1964”. The first book is “A Manual for Business Men and Others Interested in the Fundamentals of Outdoor Advertising”. The second deals with “all this talk of the sign problem”. Enjoy and have a good weekend!

FHWA Turner-Fairbank Highway Research Center

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Oh I was SO Excited! Yesterday they researchers at the TFHRC scheduled a crash test, and employees from the DOT HQ here in DC can take a shuttle and watch the test. So two of my co-workers and myself went there, met another librarian, and first got a tour of their small but really cool library. It was interesting to  see the difference between their collection and the stuff that we have here at NTL. Of course, their collection is a lot more specialized, mainly dealing with FHWA publications, research papers, reports, and all kinds or stuff, which also means they usually have a complete collection of a series of reports etc.

After having lunch we went to the observatory hill … only to learn that the test had to be rescheduled due to the weather (at least that’s what we assumed). NO rain in over three weeksm, and on crash-test day the sky opened up. Of course -.-

Oh well, there is always another opportunity to see a car crash into a wall, a metal something etc … so in the meantime I wanted to share some pictures that I took. They show the crash test site as well as two labs where researchers test bridges, concrete, and all kinds of other cool stuff. Seriously, I need to be reborn and go into engineering … Enjoy the pix!

Librarians having fun at SLA

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NTL featured in “Public Roads”

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Shelfs at the NTL - Source: http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/publications/publicroads/11mayjun/01.cfm

Stacks of hardbound reference materials remain a staple among the resources available through NTL.

NTL is mentioned in an article published in “Public Roads”, May/June 2011, Vol. 74, No. 6: Masters of Information, by Jennifer Boteler.

The NTL staff (yes, I am one of them!) is proud to work for and with the transportation community and its great members, and to provide access to important documents, both as a physical and growing digital collection: http://go.usa.gov/DN1