Four Canadian Transportation Awards were conferred at the closing event of the 2014 Transportation Association of Canada (TAC) Conference & Exhibition in Montreal.
The awards were presented by newly-inaugurated TAC President, Gerry Chaput, Assistant Deputy Minister, Ontario Ministry of Transportation, with the help of Sherry Sullivan, Director, Transportation and Built Environment, Cement Association Canada.
Dr. Susan Tighe, Mr. David Lettner, Dr. Jake Kosior and Mr. Fahad Shuja accept their awards from TAC President Gerry Chaput (right) and CTAP partner Sherry Sullivan, of the Cement Association of Canada (left).
Award winners were:
The Canadian Transportation Awards Program (CTAP) recognizes leadership, excellence and achievement in all modes and segments of the transport sector. An independent panel of judges with multi-modal representation selected the award recipients after reviewing nominations from across Canada.
The Transportation Person of the Year award recognizes individuals who have assumed leadership roles during their career that have contributed to the advancement of the transportation industry as a whole or any one of its modes or segments.
During her more-than-30 year career, Ms. Angela Iannuzziello, Vice-President, Canada National Transit Market Sector, of AECOM, has been dedicated to supporting the development of sustainable transportation across Canada and North America. Maintaining a strong leadership role in transit advocacy, she encourages debate, innovation and exploring new ideas in everything she does.
Ms. Angela Iannuzziello of AECOM gives her acceptance speech as 2014 Transportation Person of the Year.
“Recently, I worked with prominent industry associations to bring together leading experts from around the world to take part in an International Practicum on Innovative Funding and Financing,” said Angela. “I’m also very proud to have launched the Women’s Transportation Seminar (Toronto Area Chapter) which provides a forum for both women and men to network with and mentor their industry peers.”
Angela’s work has focused on both transportation planning's link to sustainable and accessible neighborhoods and successfully integrating transit into the transportation fabric of communities across Canada.
“After 35 years in the industry, I’m thrilled to see that the importance of transit in the lives of our citizens and in the growth of our communities is finally being acknowledged in a big way,” added Angela. “I think this recognition goes beyond an award for a single individual; it’s a testament to all our people who are absolutely dedicated to the creation of better, more sustainable transportation solutions that will enhance our communities and grow our economies across Canada.”
The Award of Academic Merit recognizes a long-term contribution to the advancement of the academic field and to the development of tomorrow’s transportation leaders.
“I strongly believe that the transportation sector provides many exciting and high impact career opportunities,” said Dr. Susan Tighe, recipient of the Award of Academic Merit. “These opportunities need to be communicated to our students as many do not seem to see this area as a sector which is challenging and worthwhile. This can lead to very interesting career paths where they work on technically complex problems and help improve the quality of life for citizens.”
Susan’s approach to teaching helps students recognize which skills will help them succeed in their transportation-related careers.
“I have always enjoyed teaching,” added Susan. “I enjoy the challenge of young minds and I do my best to communicate our latest research to them so they are up-to-date and current. I also try to teach them problem solving skills that will serve them well in their careers and encourage them to think about how they can improve current state of the practice and ultimately improve our state of the art.”
The Award of Achievement, which recognizes innovation and initiative on a particular project or program, positive and measurable improvements of significant and enduring benefit to transportation, was presented jointly to Dr. Jake Kosior and Mr. David Lettner, as well as to Mr. Fahad Shuja.
Dr. Kosior and Mr. Lettner were recognized for their development of a level-of-service (LOS) methodology for land-based ports of entry (POE).
Methodologies to assess the impacts of port delays had not kept pace with the growing significance of key surface transportation assets such as ports-of entry, which are major choke points in the global supply chain. The duo developed a new planning tool for transportation planners, engineers and policy makers to evaluate port performance.
The LOS methodology was used during the 2012 Pembina-Emerson POE study to provide a means to assess overall port performance in relation to various port improvement scenarios. It was determined that if a $30M investment was made by 2020, it would yield approximately $500M in transportation system user benefits over the next 15 years of the planning period (2020-2035).
“In 2012, the top 20 POEs in North America accounted for $630 billion of the total $659 billion in two-way truck-based NAFTA trade,” stated David. “If this methodology was applied, the potential transportation system savings for the North American supply chain would be in the billions.” Jake added that, “ The LOS methodology can also be adapted to toll highways / plazas, military access control points, ferry terminals and other facilities that experience similar vehicle queuing patterns.”
Mr. Fahad Shuja received the Award of Achievement for the development of the Winter Web App.
“This tool is primarily intended for public works directors or those who oversee day-to-day winter operations for their respective municipalities,” explained Mr. Shuja. “One of the largest challenges was designing an interface for all types of users. The Winter Web App is easy to use, saves precious municipal time and helps generate a comprehensive planning document.”
To date, one-hundred and eleven (111) Ontario municipalities have been using the tool and 11% of all winter operations’ documents during the 2013/2014 winter season have been created via this application. OGRA is working closely with key individuals and agencies in U.S. and Canada to expand this offering beyond Ontario.
“The Winter Web App asks the users questions about different aspects of winter operations and planning,” added Fahad. "Responses are used to populate a customized winter planning document including route maps. The app also helps municipalities plan their winter strategies, material usage, personnel management and internal and external communications. Efficient planning results in better organized municipalities and ultimately provides safer roadways for motorists during the winter season.”
TAC congratulates the 2014 award recipients and thanks the Cement Association of Canada for its support of the CTAP program.
Thank you to our Premier Sponsors
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