The second and final day of Road User Charging Conference Americas 2021 kicks off later today with more transportation leaders from across North, Central and South America coming together via Zoom to discuss the latest advances in tolling technologies, road pricing projects and intelligent transport systems.
Day 2 begins at 14:50 GMT (06:50 PST / 09:50 EST / 15:50 CET) with opening remarks from morning session chair John Thornton, editor of CiTTi Magazine. Yesterday’s chair, Steve Morello, partner at Milestone Solutions, will return to moderate the afternoon session before closing the conference with his final remarks ( 21:45 GMT / 13:45 PST / 16:45 EST / 22:45 CET).
A total of 10 sessions will be delivered on Day 2 comprising eight presentations and two panel discussions.
Harold Condori Arias, legal advisor – general directorate of programs and projects in communications for Peru’s Ministry of Transport and Communications, will begin proceedings with a provocative presentation that questions whether Peru’s toll suspension during the Covid-19 pandemic was unconstitutional.
CiTTi Magazine editor John Thornton will then lead a panel discussion on the future of autonomous vehicles in the USA alongside Brian Kelley, chief technology officer at the Ohio Turnpike & Infrastructure Commission, Blaine Leonard, transportation technology engineer at the Utah Department of Transport, James Owens, former acting administrator at the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, and Hilary Cain, vice president, technology, innovation and mobility policy at the Alliance for Automotive Innovation.
The morning session panel will discuss the impact of the Biden administration, the policy recommendations needed to advance testing and deployment of autonomous vehicles and the obstacles that exist in the uptake of these vehicles, including regulatory frameworks, consumer acceptance, safety concerns and technological developments.
The afternoon session panel discussion concerns the role of metropolitan planning organisations (MPOs) in road-user charging (RUC) planning and the lessons learned along the way. Erin Aleman, executive director at the Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning will lead a discussion among her peers who are in different stages of RUC planning, including Julie Bjornstad, transportation planner at Wasatch Front Regional Council (Salt Lake City), Josh Brown, executive director at Pugent Sound Regional Council (Seattle) and Trish Hendren, executive director at The Eastern Transportation Coalition.
Day 2 will also see a truly international line-up of speakers deliver key presentations, including Fabio Rogério Carvalho, director of the Department of Partnerships at Brazil’s Ministry of Infrastructure, who will provide an overview of new concessions and toll road projects in Brazil; Luis Felipe Elton, head of the development and bidding division at Chile’s General Directorate of Public Works Concessions, who will share the Chilean government’s plans to re-tender interurban road PPP projects and develop new road concessions in the country; and Tanya Bedward, senior director, transport policy (international and land) at Jamaica’s Ministry of Transport and Mining, who will discuss Jamaica’s experience with the development of toll roads within the last decade, some of the wins, challenges and lessons learnt.
Meet some of our Day 2 speakers:
- Brian Kelley, chief technology officer, Ohio Turnpike and Infrastructure Commission
- Erin Aleman, executive director, Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning
- Patricia Hendren, executive director at The Eastern Transportation Coalition
- Tanya Bedward, senior director, transport policy (international and land), at the Jamaican Ministry of Transport and Mining
- Freddy Naranjo, assistant bureau chief – quality control, at the Alabama Department of Transportation
- Tyler Milligan, partner at Milligan Partners
You can view the full agenda here. Please note, all times for Day 2 are shown in EST (GMT-5). All sessions will be available to view after the conference to view on demand.
Public sector attendees interested in attending can register for free at https://lnkd.in/d7nnDyK.
Private sector attendees interested in attending should contact daniel.jessop@akabomedia.co.uk to discuss registration.
To find out more go to: www.roaduserchargingconference.co.uk/ruc-americas.
