Local agencies have the opportunity to receive federal funds to spend on improving the federal aid routes in their communities. The challenge in taking advantage of these funds is that projects eligible for this funding must be designed and constructed according federal guidelines. And because of the many policies and procedures involved in the process,…
“We are engineers; we are not gamers”
Over the past several years, most people I knew in the industry chose to ignore what was going on with 3D immersive technology. At one point they might have taken a quick look, realized gaming engines like Second Life were not easily compatible with the CAD products we used, and moved on. Until more recently this…
Infographic of the Month – September 2013
This month we have a bike-related infographic supplied by Online Masters in Public Health. Whether it's to improve health or save money, people seem to be hopping on their bikes more than ever. And cities and states are working to accommodate these increased demands for bicycle facilities. As the Infographic shows, one initiative experiencing great success throughout…
Unconference Session to be held at 2013 APWA Congress
This year when the APWA Congress opens up in Chicago the week of August 25th, there will be a new type of session offered to attendees called a Public Works Camp. This event is held in an unconference style where the "presenters" serve more as hosts and the "attendees" create and drive the session. Because our local branch,…
Chicago Map Tour
Over the last few days I have been working on building mobile applications for Android devices as part of the August 3D Game Lab Teacher Camp. It hasn't been as difficult as I thought it would be as there are a lot of tutorials out there. There are also some applications that allow you to emulate a…
City of Cleveland Division of Water Requesting Help
Below is an urgent request for assistance from the City of Cleveland Division of Water. If you can help, contact information is provided in their message: The City of Cleveland Division of Water is in urgent need of two 24” Victaulics couplings. We have contacted Victaulic but have been informed it will take about…
Infographic of the Month – July 2013
Several years back Waterloo, Ontario, Canada, started discussing the installation of a light rail transit system. Snapsort, a tech company based on that community, supported that proposal and came up with this infographic to help educate people about light rail transit. It's a good example of how agencies can use infographics to educate the public about proposed projects….
Balancing – the key to a successful bike sharing program
Most major cities have implemented some level of bike sharing programs in their community. And based on usage reports, these programs have shown to be well received by people in these communities. The idea behind the setup is fairly simple: install bike docking stations at key locations through a city and allow people to rent the…
Educating the Public about Bed Bugs
As if we don't have enough problems in the world to worry about, now we are facing a resurgence of bed bugs in our communities. And while people may not agree on the cause of their rise from obscurity, they do seem to agree we need to find ways to control their spread. Part of this…
Solar Roadways, Bike Paths, and Parking Lots
For the past few years, Solar Roadways has been working on developing solar panels as surface materials for roadways. Today the company posted the video below on their Facebook page. In it Scott Brusaw summarizes their work to date and looks ahead to the future. In the past, the company seemed to primarily focus on roads, but based on the video,…