Out of My Lane

Rakesh Rangaswamy talks to Wayne Garcia about his inspiring journey through the world of transportation engineering, highlighting his experiences at the University of South Florida.

The second of two special episodes with our NICR colleagues in Puerto Rico, and en español!

Guest host Steve Malave, a veteran Hispanic broadcaster now teaching at the University of South Florida in Tampa, speaks with Dr. Benjamín Colucci, the director of the Transportation Technology Transfer Center at the University of Puerto Rico at Mayagüez.

Topic: S1E4 UPRM Part 2

Executive Producers: Christina Van Allen, Phil Winters, Sean Barbeau, Wayne Garcia

The first of two special episodes with our NICR colleagues in Puerto Rico, and en Español!

Guest host Steve Malave, a veteran Hispanic broadcaster now teaching at the University of South Florida in Tampa, speaks with Alberto M. Figueroa Medina, Ph.D., P.E., about transportation problems on and off the island. Dr. Figueroa is the director of the Civil Infrastructure Research Center and associate director of Research and Graduate Studies at the University of Puerto Rico at Mayagüez.

Topic: S1E3 UPRM Part 1

Executive Producers: Christina Van Allen, Phil Winters, Sean Barbeau, Wayne Garcia

We're featuring an episode from our partners at the University of California Berkeley's Institute of Transportation Studies, one of five universities that comprise the National Institute for Congestion Reduction. The topic is transportation network companies, or TNCs. These non-governmental businesses provide on-demand transportation mobility that can add to public transit and personal vehicles. TNCs have the potential to provide more mobility equity. Enjoy this episode from UC Berkeley.

Topic: S1E2 Transportation Network Companies
Guests: UCB Civil and environmental engineer professor Susan Shaheen; UCB doctoral student, Wesley Darling; and Clarissa Cabansagan, former director of Programs at TransForm in Oakland, California.

Berkeley host: Amanda Cairo, Director of Communications at the Institute of Transportation Studies Berkeley
USF host: Wayne Garcia
Executive Producers: Christina Van Allen, Phil Winters, Sean Barbeau, Wayne Garcia

Florida's rapid growth is not the only thing challenging for the state's transportation officials. The hurricanes that strike the peninsula can cause roadway and bridge havoc, just as the state saw on two occasions in 2022. For the start of our second season of transportation podcasts, Out of My Lane talks with Florida's top transportation official, FDOT Secretary Jared Perdue. From stories about repairing bridges in record time to the challenges of keeping Florida moving, Secretary Perdue tells a fascinating narrative about an industry pulling together.

Topic: S2E1
Guests: Jared W. Perdue, Secretary, Florida Department of Transportation
Producer: Wayne Garcia
Sound editing: Wayne Garcia
Executive Producers: Christina Van Allen, Phil Winters, Sean Barbeau, Wayne Garcia

Why does the field of transportation have problems attracting and retaining women as researchers and engineers? Jodi Godfrey of CUTR talks about the gender gap and what is being done to address it.

What does it mean for transportation to be equitable and diverse? How can transportation systems accommodate and encourage inclusion in the many modes it offers? CUTR research Tia Boyd talks about how engineers and planners work to ensure that the systems take everyone into account. 

Topic: S1E10 Transportation Equity
Guests: Tia Boyd
Producer: Christina Loizou
Sound editing: Christina Loizou
Executive Producers: Christina Van Allen, Phil Winters, Sean Barbeau, Wayne Garcia

It is the automotive equivalent of victim blaming. But studies show that the language used to describe accidents involving cars or trucks is widely different from the descriptions of accidents with pedestrians, bicycles and motorcycles. Researchers say the language shifts the blame onto the users of alternatives to autos, blunting calls to change policy and systems for safer use for all modes of transportation. 

Topic: S1E9 The Way the Media Talks About Crashes
Guests: Julie Bond, MPA, and Erin Scheffels, Ph.D.
Executive Producers: Christina Van Allen, Phil Winters, Sean Barbeau, Wayne Garcia
Producer: Blake Smallen
Sound editing: Blake Smallen

Best Workplaces for Commuters promotes environmentally-friendly commuting by encouraging multi-modal transportation and alternatives to reduce stress and traffic congestion. That's the description on the BWC website, and in this episode we feature the administrator of the program, Julie Bond of CUTR, and a member company, Intuit and its Tom Harrington. What can companies and large organizations do to encourage all kinds of commuting options?

Topic: S1E8 Best Workplaces for Commuters
Guests:
Executive Producers: Christina Van Allen, Phil Winters, Sean Barbeau, Wayne Garcia
Producer: Christina Loizou
Sound editing: Christina Loizou

CUTR's Jason Jackman talks about mobility options that are not cars, trucks or trains. They are part of the world of micromobility, including bicycles, e-bikes and powered scooters and other personal modes that typically operate less than 25 miles per hour. What is their role in the multimodal mix?

Topic: S1E7 I share, you share, we all share: micromobility on roads and sidewalks
Guests: Jason Jackman
Executive Producers: Christina Van Allen, Phil Winters, Sean Barbeau, Wayne Garcia
Producer: Blake Smallen
Sound editing: Blake Smallen

Motorcycles account for an outsized number of accidents and deaths on the highways, and our researchers have long looked at ways to make travel more safe for those on two wheels. What can be done to assist those using this very efficient method of commuting?

Topic: S1E6 What we know about motorcycle risks and safety
Guests: Fred L. Mannering, Ph.D., CUTR Executive Director, Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Chanyoung Lee, Ph.D.
Executive Producers: Christina Van Allen, Phil Winters, Sean Barbeau, Wayne Garcia
Producer: Christina Loizou
Sound editing: Christina Loizou

Topic: S1E5 Bus 54, Where are you? The OneBusAway app (open source project from Pacific NW)

Guests: Sean Barbeau (CUTR), Kari Watkins (University of California-Davis)
Producer: Christina Loizou, Wayne Garcia
Executive Producers: Christina Van Allen, Phil Winters, Sean Barbeau, Wayne Garcia
Sound editing: Christina Loizou

Topic: S1E4 Forward to the future: connected vehicles
Guests: Dr. Sisinnio Concas, senior economist (CUTR); and Dr. Shaw Li, director of NICR
Executive Producers: Christina Van Allen, Phil Winters, Sean Barbeau, Wayne Garcia
Producer: Christina Loizou
Sound editing: Christina Loizou

Topic: S1 E2 Putting the “Smart” into the Tampa Bay Smart Cities Alliance

S1E1 What are CUTR and NICR?

Our inaugural episode talks with the directors of the Center for Urban Transportation Research and the National Institute for Congestion Reduction at the University of South Florida about how those two research centers help commuters.

Guests: Xiaopeng “Shaw” Li, Ph.D., previous NICR Director, Professor; Fred L. Mannering, Ph.D., CUTR Executive Director

Executive Producers: Christina Van Allen, Phil Winters, Sean Barbeau, Wayne Garcia
Producers: Christina Loizou, Blake Smallen
Audio engineering and editing: Wayne Garcia