A global summit of road mobility thought-leaders and innovators was convened in Las Vegas, Nevada on November 7th-9th at the invitation of the Washington-based IRF Global
Nevada DOT director Rudy Malfabon, ASCE president 2018 Kristina Swallow, AASHTO executive director Bud Wright, Dubai Traffic & Roads Agency CEO Eng Maitha bin Adai, Bechtel engineering operations manager Steven Curtis and Jacobs Highway/Bridge director Susan Martinovich were all present. They figured among 200 leading international specialists who shared best practices, research findings, case studies, and though-provoking ideas during the three-day event.
The IRF Global R2T Conference & Expo is articulated around policy roundtables, scientific sessions, and the presentation of signature initiatives all aimed at setting an ambitious strategic agenda for 21st century road mobility.
Highlighted issues addressed during the Conference include connected and autonomous mobility, innovations in road funding and procurement, leveraging big data in support of preventive road diagnosis and treatment, and environmental stewardship through new pavement design processes.
Former director of the ITS Joint Program Office Shelley Row noted in her opening address, “Disruptive technology and a data avalanche are creating an upheaval in transportation. Some of these disruptions have started; others will arrive within 10 years. In the meantime, many capital investments for transportation infrastructure last 50 years or more. Transportation planning and businesses cannot continue business-as-usual when business is anything but usual.”
“We have dubbed this event Roads to Tomorrow, or R2T for short, because, as an industry, we understand the importance of setting a long-term agenda for our research activities and capital investments” according to IRF president and CEO C Patrick Sankey. “With rapidly changing societal aspirations, we will only be successful in our efforts to build tomorrow’s transportation infrastructure and mobility services by embracing the positive values of leadership and innovation.”
“In overcoming the sector’s increasingly complex mobility challenges, new partnership models need to be identified. By bringing together the private sector, acadaemia and public agencies under the same roof, IRF remains the organisation where these industry partnerships can be built,” concluded IRF vice chairman Dr Bill Sowell.
