The University of Florida Transportation Institute (UFTI) had a booth at this year’s Transpo 2016 exhibit hall showcasing the Institute’s latest research and tech transfer initiatives, and software from McTrans.

Vishal Khanapure is a software developer and manager at the UFTI’s McTrans Center; he ran the booth at Transpo’s exhibit area, showcasing McTrans’ upgraded Highway Capacity Software (HCS7). Although he regularly attends and manages the booth at the annual meetings of the Transportation Research Board (TRB) in Washington, D.C., this was McTrans’ first time attending Transpo 2016.

“Transpo had interesting technical sessions, exhibit booths, and provided excellent networking opportunities for McTrans,” Khanapure said. “Overall it was a beneficial and productive event.”

Graduate students from the UFTI’s transportation program attended as well. It was Gustavo Riente’s second time at the conference. Riente, who is currently the ITE student chapter president at UF, and a second year doctoral student working on a traffic engineering project, said that one of the important consequences of this event was meeting the many transportation professionals in the private and public sectors at this event. He was also impressed by the products and services showcased in the exhibit hall.

“By attending Transpo as a student, I was exposed to the most recent trends in our profession, both in terms of services, software, and equipment,” Riente said. “In addition to the presentations, the exhibition becomes a great opportunity for learning, both at technical and administrative levels.”

Transpo’s theme this year, “Integrating a Transitional Society: From Bicycles to Connected Vehicles”, focused on the future of automated and connected vehicles and its impact on pedestrians, bicycles, and its effect on transportation systems management and operations. Engineers, consultants, planners and other industry representatives attended the event. The conference was sponsored by ITS Florida, the Florida Section of ITE and the Women’s Transportation Seminar (South Florida Chapter).

Maria Cahill, AICP, director of the UFTI’s T2 Center attended the event along with Matthew Muller, T2’s research coordinator. Cahill sat in on a variety of the sessions offered at the Transpo such as a presentation on the Tampa-Hillsborough Expressway Authority (THEA) connected vehicle pilot deployment project, bike and pedestrian sessions, and a presentation on FDOT District Five’s GIS-based tool, to name a few of the many sessions she attended.

“What a great conference, full of informative and timely sessions,” Cahill said. “We had the opportunity to hear form government and industry leaders on the state of transportation practice, everything from the future of space and connected vehicles to bicycles and pedestrian travel.”