TREC at PSU

The Toronto Transit Commission (TTC)—the third-largest transit agency in North America—is implementing transit priority measures through its RapidTO initiative, including bus priority lanes and transit signal priority.

NACTO is excited to welcome five new members!

Belgrade, MT, and four transit agencies—the Jacksonville Transportation Jacksonville Transportation Authority, @mcdotnow.bsky.social, the Spokane Transit Authority, & the Toronto Transit Commission—have joined our network.

nacto.org/latest/nacto...

Making a success of rail reform The aim of this survey is to find out how the public feels about the railways as they are, and what needs to change to make them better. We will share the survey results with key decision makers in go...

The aim of this survey is to find out how the public feels about the railways as they are, and what needs to change to make them better.

Did you know CargoB is working with the @boston.gov to pilot a city staff fleet program called “City Hauls”? It’s true! Excited to play a role in demonstrating the utility of e-cargo bike share for municipal services and resident engagement; this helps city staff put more work on two wheels.

"The results [of fixed speed cameras on high-crash corridors] were dramatic:

71% decrease in speeding (drivers going 1 mph or more over the limit)
94% decrease in extreme speeding (11 mph or more over the limit)
43% reduction in both total crashes and speed-related crashes"

Impressive safety gains

Why Reproducibility Matters Researchers Empower Your "Future Self": Avoid the frustration of relearning your own code months later. Proof, Not Just Promises: Allow others to verify your claims instantly. Accelerate Science: Enable others to stand on your shoulders, not just stare at your graphs. Scientific Integrity: The best defense against accidental p-hacking, bias, and fraud Practitioners Stop "reinventing the wheel" -implement validated methods immediately Eliminate translation gap: Move from Paper to Product faster Build trust: Trust that the method works on more than just the author's laptop

We talk about reproducibility all the time in research, but in practical terms, here's a great snapshot of why it matters to you in terms of your own work.

Liming Wang stands at the front of a classroom in front of a screen displaying slides

Just getting started with today's Transportation Seminar, Assessing Reproducibility in Transportation Research with Large Language Models, with Liming Wang of PSU! trec.pdx.edu/events/psu-t...

Free for first 20 #TransPort members:
@oregondot.bsky.social @trimet.org @oregonmetro.gov @multco.bsky.social @clackcoea.bsky.social @washingtoncounty.bsky.social @pbotinfo.bsky.social @fhwa.bsky.social @cityofbeaverton.bsky.social @cityoftigard.bsky.social @thestreettrust.org @apanoaf.bsky.social

Structure Query Language: TRANSPORTATION DATA EDUCATION SQL Workshop Online Workshop December 2025 9 AM - 12:30 PM (Pacific)

Join us next month for a multi-day online workshop on databases and SQL. Each day will be a combination of a lecture & practical, covering the basics plus how to setup a PostgreSQL database on your local machine and use it to analyze #PORTAL data.

trec.pdx.edu/events/sql-w...

5 Big Things That Cities Could Learn from Barcelona Bonus: Join the upcoming webinar of Urban Cycling Institute's new course with ZICLA, ‘Redesigning Streets: Tools to Empower Action”

📢 🛠️ Free Webinar on Redesigning Streets for All 🛠️ 📢

We break down the #5 big lessons #cities worldwide can learn from #Barcelona

If you're inspired to learn how to apply these principles, we're offering an immersive course and a free webinar to dive deeper.
us06web.zoom.us/webinar/regi...

graphic of a street with pedestrians

🚸 How we design roads dictates the speeds that drivers adopt, regardless of the posted speed limit.

👟 🚲 🚌 Research shows that narrowing vehicle travel lanes can reduce speeds and create #saferstreets in communities.

Read more in our latest blog ➡️ buff.ly/xxKOAxu

Speed bumps installed on SE 174th Avenue next to Powell Butte Elementary School

Fixing Our Streets is slowing down traffic in Portland’s Centennial neighborhood.

Crews completed building speed cushions (aka speed bumps) on SE 174th Avenue from Haig to Marie streets, right next to Powell Butte Elementary, part of PBOT’s effort to reduce speed on neighborhood cut-through routes.

Yay!!

Love it!!

Do you work for (or with) a community that is leading the way in prioritizing pedestrian and bicyclist safety for children and youth where the risk is greatest?

Nominate them for the 2026 Vision Zero for Youth Leadership Award by December 15!

Apply at buff.ly/WoBcsfg

Sign on Portland's Powell Boulevard saying 'Traffic Laws Photo Enforced'

Results from a Qualtrics survey conducted by the researchers. Caption: Transparency and accountability: Should the operating agency report the results of speed safety cameras in terms of speeds, crash, and injury reductions? Graph shows majority of respondents are somewhat supportive or very supportive.

PSU & @oregonstate.edu researchers are helping @oregondot.bsky.social shape the future of speed safety camera use across Oregon.

A 2025 report offers guidance on location choice, transparency, & strategies for interventions that focus on high-risk drivers: trec.pdx.edu/news/psu-res... #VisionZero

9th annual mobility matters summit: Charting new paths: Self-determination, disability-driven access, and mobility. Save the date: Thursday, Feb 26, 2026. 8:30 AM to 3 PM PDT.

The 2026 Mobility Matters (virtual) conference will be held on Thursday, February 26th, 2026!

Explore the connections between transportation accessibility, navigation, and community—Early Bird Pricing is available until December 15: sites.google.com/pdx.edu/mobi...

Screenshot from BikePed Portal showing data and a photo of bikes

#BikePedPortal, the non-motorized data archive housed at Portland State, provides a centralized standard bicycle/pedestrian count database which includes automated and manual counts from across the country, along with a suite of custom tools and products. Learn more: trec.pdx.edu/news/learn-h...

How do walkability and public transit go together? 🤔🚌👟 Well, in many cities both big and small, transit is the middle leg of a walking trip!

Learn more: buff.ly/wCy3KyY #ActivePeople

JOIN US THIS FRIDAY ONLINE OR IN PERSON, With: Liming Wang Nov 14, 2025 11 AM (Pacific) PSU TRANSPORTATION SEMINAR Assessing Reproducibility in Transportation Research with Large Language Models

Reproducibility is fundamental to the scientific process.

This Friday, join us at PSU as Liming Wang shares a comprehensive, data-driven understanding of the current state of reproducibility & open science practices in transportation research: trec.pdx.edu/events/psu-t...

As always, if you weren't able to catch today's Transportation Seminar in person, you can see a recording & copies of the slide decks in our events archive: trec.pdx.edu/events/archive

Thanks to Brendon Haggerty & Matthew Bozigar for a great presentation, and we hope you all have a nice weekend!

Serve as a Transportation Research Record (TRR) handling #editor. This vitally important volunteer role ensures a thorough peer review process and recommends what is published.

https://ow.ly/cJ8T50Xo6Au

As a result of this study, Portland now has a rich measured noise dataset. The researchers also identified four "noise profiles" in the city with highly local spatial patterns. Many thanks to Brendon Haggerty and Matthew Bozigar for this insightful investigation into urban noise in Portland!

Heat map showing urban noise levels

High noise exposure is correlated to lower income neighborhoods, with high-traffic roadways as the largest contributor to urban noise in Portland.

Today at 11, learn about the impacts of urban road noise at the Portland State University transportation seminar:

Today we are celebrating National #TransitCareer Day! More than 437,000 Americans work for public transportation agencies and the industry supports millions of private sector jobs across the United States.

Talking Headways Podcast: How Can Transit Agencies Help Homeless Residents? — Streetsblog USA Talking Headways spoke with Cortni Desir of the Connecticut Department of Transportation about buses, curiosity, and homelessness.

New #TalkingHeadways podcast! Cortni Desir of the Connecticut Department of Transportation joins the show. link.theoverheadwire.com/q6pwe New bus stops, rider experience, and the importance of curiosity. @usa.streetsblog.org

RESULTS SUMMARY: NATIONAL STREET IMPROVEMENT STUDY KEY FINDINGS While growth in retail employment and sales revenue was observed in the years following the construction of the protected bike lane on Massachusetts Avenue, we are unable to calculate pre- and post-construction growth rates due to zero retail employment in some of the years. However, the DID and ITS approaches both indicate that the bike lane installation did not significantly impact retail employment, either positively or negatively, along this corridor. Retail employment increased: The ITS approach shows a positive growth trend from the bike lane construction using LEHD data and QCEW wages data. No causal impact of bike lane construction on retail employment. The corridor saw a dramatic jump in retail sales immediately after bike lane installation, indicating a positive impact of bike lanes on retail sales. However, the great jump could also be related to other one-time changes, such as a large new store opening. Further investigation needed. All three approaches indicate a significant positive impact on retail sales in the improvement corridor. Retail employment and total wages in the retail sector appear to be growing at a faster pace in the improvement corridor, possibly indicating a shift in the type of retail businesses in the area. However, evidence from the ITS approach shows a statistically non-significant causal relationship between bike lane installation and employment growth. LEHD data analysis shows increase of retail service employment, but the ITS approach suggests that this increase is because of economic growth in the region and not because of the street improvement. Retail service-related sales dropped while restaurant sales grew. We suspect a shift from retail business toward more food service businesses after the street improvement. Given mixed results, analysis was inconclusive.

Madison performed worse than two of the three control corridors and worse than city-wide, indicating that the street improvement on Madison may have had a negative impact on retail employment. Contradictory data patterns: Some sources show increase in retail sales and employment, but results are not conclusive. Bike lane installation did not significantly impact retail employment, either positively or negatively. Significant positive impact on food services employment following protected bike lane construction, indicating an improvement in business vitality. Food services employment growth significantly outpaced growth in Indianapolis as a whole. Dramatic increase in restaurant sales, along with increase in food service employment following installation (confirmed by both trend analysis and the ITS approach). Positive and significant impact of bike lane installation on food employment. Food service employment increased gradually after the street improvements. Food employment greatly increased two years after bike lane installation, exceeding the growth rate of both the control corridor and greater city trends. Restaurant sales increased and food service employment grew, but rigorous econometric approaches indicate that these increases may not be caused directly by the street improvement on this corridor. Given mixed results, the analysis was inconclusive. Significant positive impact on food employment: After bike lane installation, food employment dropped significantly in level, but dramatically recovered & surpassed previous levels over the next two years. Strong positive impact on food employment, supported by the aggregated trend analysis and ITS estimation results across both the LEHD and QCEW employment data sources. The corridor shows significant and substantial growth in all food service industry metrics—employment, sales, and wages—indicating a positive effect on business vitality following the street improvements.

#TBT to an oldie but a goodie: Our 2020 study with
@peopleforbikes.bsky.social calculated the economic outcomes that bike lanes & walking infrastructure can produce for cities.

Food service sales? Retail? Employment? Most 💲 were impacted positively, or not at all. trec.pdx.edu/news/study-f...

"What’s in print, on our TVs, and shared on social media informs decision-making and shapes perceptions."

Thoughtful piece on messaging from @smartgrowthusa.bsky.social

It's here! Find exactly what you'll attend at #TRBAM in the program with full descriptions of more than 250 lectern sessions, poster sessions, and workshops, covering all transportation modes. Filter by subject or search by keyword, to build your personal itinerary.
https://ow.ly/bJUQ50XkwI9