Planning & Enabling Smart Transportation Summit - List of Speakers

Andrew Bowerbank is the President and Chief Strategy Officer for the EC3 Initiative, a respected authority on green buildings, industrial design, energy & environmental conservation, and low-carbon economics. From 2007-2009 Mr. Bowerbank was the founding Executive Director of the World Green Building Council and a member representative for the United Nations Environmental Programme with a specific goal to deliver a framework for global carbon reductions through infrastructure development.  
 
Mr. Bowerbank operated his own design firm from 1993 to 2000 and is a published author recognized on Canada’s "Best Sellers" list. He was recently honoured by an invitation to participate in the “Birmingham Charter”, an international protocol designed to bring together the “100 greatest minds” in the world and create a new model for defining global sustainability. On June 23 2010, Mr Bowerbank proudly received an honourary Bachelors in Technology from Humber College in recognition of his professional accomplishments.

Read Speaker's Session

Andy Harvey is the Manager of Traffic Engineering and Operations at the City of Mississauga. Andy received his bachelors degree in engineering at Queen's University in 1987 and a masters of business administration at York University in 2001. He has over 23 years experience in the transportation industry and is an active professional engineer. Andy is a member of various engineering associations and enjoys being involved in the transportation industry. Andy's work experience includes consulting engineering, and positions in both regional and municipal governments.

Mississauga is Canada's sixth largest city, and is home to 730,000 residents and 55,000 businesses. Mississauga is committed to innovation, operational excellence and fiscal responsibility. The City is continuing to grow rapidly and is leveraging innovative transportation technologies to help facilitate mobility and environmental responsibility. Andy has been working with the teams planning and developing such infrastructure as bus rapid transit, light rapid transit, a traffic management centre, and various related intelligent transportation system applications. Andy's traffic operations experience provides good insight into the various stakeholder groups, including residents, businesses and politicians.

Read Speaker's Session

Prof. Baher Abdulhai has 20 years of experience in transportation and highway engineering including 15 years experience in Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS).  He has been a faculty member in the Department of Civil Engineering at the University of Toronto (U of T) since 1998. Dr. Abdulhai is specialized in Intelligent Transportation Systems with emphasis on advanced traffic control and management in congested urban areas.  Abdulhai has a Ph.D. from the University of California at Irvine in 1996, and training experience at the California PATH of the University of California Berkeley, and additional professional training at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), the University of Rome, and the Technical University of Crete.   He is the founder and the current Director of the Toronto ITS Centre and Testbed at the University of Toronto.  He is the Chair of the Board of the University of Toronto Urban Transportation Research and Advancement Centre (UTRAC). Abdulhai received several awards including an IEEE Outstanding Service Award, Early Career Teaching Excellence award, a Canada Foundation for Innovation New Opportunities award and an Ontario Innovation Trust New Opportunities award.  He served on the Board of Directors of the Government of Ontario (GO) Transit Authority from 2004 to 2006.  Since 2005 he has been appointed as a Canada Research Chair (CRC) in ITS.  In 2005 the ITS Centre won the Ontario Showcase Merit Award of Excellence and the National GTEC Bronze Medal Award.

Abdulhai is the co-founder of IntelliCAN Transportation Systems Inc., a U of T spin off company (www.intellican.ca).  IntelliCAN is specialized in advanced modeling and simulation of complex transportation systems and the development of Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) software solutions for traffic and transit systems control and management.  IntelliCAN was established in 1999 and incorporated in 2003.  IntelliCAN's mission is to fuse state of the art and state of the practice for effective transportation solutions for the 21st century.  The IntelliCAN team has led a numerous high profile projects in Canada. 

Read Speaker's Session

With a B.A.Sc in Electrical Engineering from the University of Waterloo and an M. Sc. in Business from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Bob has spent his career in executive, marketing and R&D positions in the telecommunications and automotive industries. He has held world wide product line responsibility with Motorola, been the founding sales, marketing and network technology executive for a national wireless provider, and the CEO of IPTV startup Elysium Broadband. As founder and manager of a software intensive automotive safety system division of Magna International Bob has interacted with automotive OEMs around the world. He currently serves as the CEO of G4 Apps, a software company providing mobile broadband and GPS based safety and driver assistance applications for OEM embedded systems and smart phones. Bob is a Director and Executive Committee member of ITS Canada and the chair of its IntelliDrive Task Force.

Read Speaker's Session

Dr KK Chin is an engineer by training, and has been involved in the planning, designing, implementing and constructing of various road and traffic management projects in Singapore. He was intimately involved in the Electronic Road Pricing (ERP) project, which started full-scale operations in Sept 98 with 33 charging gantries. This scheme has now been expanded to 68 charging gantries.

He is now the Group Director, Road Operations and Community Partnership; and concurrently the Group Director of Transportation & Ticketing Technology. Given his technical background, he is also the Chief Engineer, Transportation. In these positions, he is responsible for all road and traffic operations and management issues in Singapore, including the planning, implementation and management of Intelligent Transport and Road Pricing Systems. 

Read Speaker's Session

Daniel Haufschild, Director, Policy and Planning

Daniel Haufschild joined Metrolinx in March of 2010 as Director, Policy and Planning, overseeing the newly combined portfolio of Strategic Policy and Systems Planning and GO Service Planning.

Daniel's background spans public and private sector globally at the local and regional scale. Before joining Metrolinx, Daniel was a partner with McCormick Rankin Corporation consulting engineers. Prior to this, he spent 10 years in the Seattle region in both the public and private sector including time with Metro King County, the major transit operator in Seattle.

As a consultant to Siemens Corporate Development in Germany, Daniel served as the research Project Manager and a contributing author for the "Megacity Challenges" publication, edited by the Economist Intelligence Unit and released at the 2007 World Economic Forum. More recently, he was Project Manager for Canadian Urban Transit Association's (CUTA) document, Transit Vision 2040. He also managed the Transportation Plan for the Holy Cities Comprehensive Plan project in Saudi Arabia which considered major pilgrim movements in Makkah and Madinah in relation to the annual Hajj and Umrah.

Daniel is Member of the Canadian Institute of Planners, the American Institute of Certified Planners, and the Chartered Institution of Highways and Transportation in the UK. He holds a Master of Urban Planning from McGill University and a Bachelor's Degree from Concordia University.

Read Speaker's Session

David Pascoe is the Vice-President of Electric Vehicle Technology for Magna E-Car Systems where he participates in Magna International's electric and hybrid vehicle development and integration programs.  He also manages Magna International's Corporate Engineering group at Magna's global headquarters campus in Aurora, Ontario, Canada.

Pascoe joined Magna in 1987 and has been involved in advanced engineering projects, business case development, production programs, company acquisitions and advising on business opportunities. 

Pascoe was a design engineer at Magna for the first 10 years of his career and worked on product design and development in various areas of automobiles including full vehicles, body, chassis, hardware, powertrain, interiors and mirrors.  He has been awarded several patents for developments and improvements made to automotive products.

Pascoe graduated from the University of Western Ontario with a Bachelor of Engineering Science Degree in 1987.

A native of Canada, Pascoe was born in 1964.

Read Speaker's Session

Read Speaker's Session

Frank Douma is the Assistant Director of the State and Local Policy Program at the Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs and a Research Scholar at the Center for Transportation Studies, both located at the University of Minnesota.  He manages research projects related to several different areas of transportation policy, including impacts of developments in information and communications technologies (ICT) and urban corridor development. 

In addition to working at the Humphrey Institute, Mr. Douma has a wealth of experience in transportation, having worked for the Canadian Pacific Railway, the Metropolitan Airports Commission and the Minnesota Department of Transportation.  While working for these organizations, he gained experience in the legal aspects of transportation policy and an appreciation for the roles that different modes play in urban and rural transportation systems.  Mr. Douma has a Masters Degree in Public Affairs and a Law Degree from the University of Minnesota, and a Bachelor's Degree in Political Science from Grinnell College.

Read Speaker's Session

John Toone has worked for King County Metro in Seattle, Washington since 1992; through 2009 in the Transit Speed & Reliability program. He is now the Transit Intelligent Transportation Systems Program Manager. The program encompases ITS architecture, project development and systems operation. Metro ITS includes wired and wireless communications, Transit Signal Priority (TSP), passenger information, off-board fare payment and security video.
 
John is a Seattle native, with a BA in political science and a Master of Public Administration (MPA), both from the University of Washington. His specific area of study was transportation, especially statistical analysis of transportation. John is also a former Army Corps of Engineers officer, serving in the Army Reserves through the rank of Captain.
 
John has presented at several ITS and Transit Signal Priority conferences and workshops for ITS Washington, ITS America, Toronto region transportation agencies, TRB and APTA. He has been a member of the TCIP standards development committee and the USDOT Public Transportation Forum, and authored "Reality Bytes" published in the July/August 2009 edition of ITS International.

Read Speaker's Session

Julie has been with INIT for about 3 years and in the transit technology industry for about 10 years. She is well versed on the different transit technologies available and helps transit agencies across North America to gain efficiencies and increase passenger ridership with the aid of these technologies.

Read Speaker's Session

Read Speaker's Session

Read Speaker's Session

Read Speaker's Session

Kornel Mucsi has worked for 20 years in transportation engineering and planning in the academia, the private sector, and the government. He has been focusing on the development and implementation of more sustainable transportation engineering and planning methods. With his traffic engineering colleagues from the City of Ottawa, he has developed a number of innovative Intelligent Transportation techniques to provide priority to transit vehicles. Kornel has also interest in the development of the required theoretical and philosophical support for implementing multimodal transportation management. Kornel has Master's and PhD degrees in transportation planning and engineering and is currently employed by the City of Ottawa.

Read Speaker's Session

Kristine Burr joined Transport Canada as Assistant Deputy Minister, Policy in August 2002. She is responsible for the provision of advice to the Minister of Transport on a wide range of policy issues involving all modes of transportation as well as economic analysis, strategic planning and all international and intergovernmental coordination. Previously, she worked for the Department of the Solicitor General as Assistant Deputy Solicitor General, Strategic Planning and Programs.

Prior to that, Mrs. Burr was Director General, Surface Transportation Policy at Transport Canada where she was responsible for economic policies pertaining to rail, motor carriers, intelligent transportation systems and highways. As Head of Delegation for Canada for the NAFTA Land Transportation Standards Subcommittee, she also led Canada's efforts to ensure harmonized standards and regulatory practices governing rail and motor vehicle activities in the three NAFTA countries.

Before joining Transport Canada, Mrs. Burr held several positions within the Privy Council Office, she has also worked in a number of other federal departments over the years.

Mrs. Burr is a graduate of Carleton University and the University of Western Ontario.

Read Speaker's Session

Read Speaker's Session

Michael Bailey is Chairman of the Board of Directors of ITS Canada.  He holds degrees in Engineering from the University of New Brunswick and has served on Boards of a number of prominent national and regional transportation industry organizations.

Mr. Bailey has worked in senior management and executive positions in the public and private sectors for more than 30 years.  He is currently Director of Pedestrian Product Operations, with NAVTEQ, and is based in Toronto. 

Read Speaker's Session

Mr. Moore is a co-founder of the Company's recently acquired Grey Island subsidiary and has had a fifteen-year career in the technology industry. As President, and one of Grey Island's founders, Mr. Moore's direct responsibilities included sales, business development, operations as well as finance/investor relations. He has risen over $25 Million in debt and equity while leading the company to an excess of $100 Million in total sales through both organic growth and acquisition. Prior to founding GIS he was employed with Tele-Ride Sage and was involved with large system sales and implementation with clients such as Go Transit and the Toronto Transit Commission. Mr. Moore has a Ms in Science from York University and a BSc. from the University of Toronto.

Read Speaker's Session

Pam Ferguson is Director, Machine-to-Machine and Partner Programs for Rogers Communications. She is responsible for the machine to machine & connected devices portfolio as well as partner programs, the Rogers Data Alliance. Prior to Rogers, Pam worked for solution providers in the Fleet Management & Dispatch solution areas and prides herself in bringing best-in-breed solutions with a strong focus on understanding customer needs and requirements.

Read Speaker's Session

Mr. Masters is a Licensed Professional Engineer in the Province of Ontario and received his Bachelor of Applied Science from the University of Toronto in 1979.

Mr. Masters is presently responsible for the planning, development, design, construction, operational procedures, operational policy and design standards for all advanced traffic management systems in the province.  During a two and a half year leave of absence from MTO, he worked for a US based engineering consultant and was responsible for the implementation of an ATMS in Salt Lake City in preparation for the 2002 Winter Olympics.  This project included an award winning web site and North America’s first fully voice enabled 511 telephone traveler information system.  To date projects directed by Mr. Masters have received 14 awards from organizations such as ITS America, GTEC, Showcase Ontario and Public Sector Quality Fair.

In addition to the 22 years working in the Advanced Traffic Management area, Mr. Masters spent the initial nine years of his career in traffic signal policy, legislation, design and operations including three years as Head of the Traffic Signals Section with ultimate responsibility for all traffic signal installations in Ontario.  One of his major achievements during this time was the introduction of amber arrows to signal displays in Ontario.  

Mr. Masters often lectures to students from the undergraduate through to post graduate levels at a number of universities and colleges in the province.  He is Chair of the Transportation Research Board’s Freeway Operations Committee and has chaired NCHRP  and TAC Panels working on research reports and manuals in the Intelligent Transportation Systems area.

Phil is the author of a number of papers on freeway traffic management design, operation and evaluation and is recognized internationally as a leader in this field.  This recognition has also resulted in invitations from Taiwan, Chile, Argentina and China, as well as a number of North American agencies, to speak on Freeway Traffic Management.  A recent article in the publication Traffic Technology International identified Mr. Masters as a congestion “Freedom Fighter” and one of the industry’s foremost authorities.

Read Speaker's Session

Mr. Chan graduated from the University of Toronto in 1987 with a Bachelor of Applied Science Degree. He has over 20 years of experience in Intelligent Transportation Systems and during his career with the Ministry of Transportation of Ontario has worked in the areas of Equipment Maintenance Designs and Advanced Traffic Management Section, which recently changed its name to ITS Program Section.

Robert is currently the Supervising Engineer for the Implementation Unit of the ITS Program Section. He is responsible for the deployment of over $100 million worth of Intelligent Transportation Systems across Ontario. This system has received recognition awards that acknowledge the high level of innovation in projects, from external organization such as Showcase Ontario, the Public Sector Quality Fair and GTEC. Robert is currently leading the initiative to implement next generation Variable Message Signs across the Province's to facilitate bilingual messaging as well as major rehabilitation and expansion of the COMPASS Systems across the Province.

Read Speaker's Session

Responsible for transportation planning on a regional basis related to Toronto's role in he Greater Toronto Area and on a local basis in the former municipalities.  Rod has practiced Transportation Planning in the Toronto area for 36 years.  He started in 1974 with the former Metropolitan Toronto Planning Department, went to the City of Scarborough in 1981 and assumed his current position in 1998 with the amalgamation of the City of Toronto.  Key, among Rod's many challenges, is the implementation of sustainable transportation policies in the City's Official Plan.

Rod teaches Urban Transportation Planning to graduate students in the faculty of environmental studies at York University.  Rod's long term contribution to the Transportation profession was acknowledged by the Institute of Transportation Engineers when he was made a Fellow of the Institute. Rod was the second only Canadian Planner to ever receive this prestigious honour.

Read Speaker's Session

Ross McKenzie oversees automotive research and outreach activity at the University of Waterloo, facilitating industry-academic relationships in existing and emerging automotive technologies. He joined the Waterloo Centre for Automotive Research (WatCAR) as Managing Director in September 2007.  

Ross has over 25 years experience in investment attraction, market development and international trade. Prior to joining WatCAR he was responsible for securing a series of key assembler and automotive parts manufacturing production commitments with the Ontario Ministry of Economic Development.

WatCAR

WatCAR has the largest academic concentration of automotive researchers in Canada, undertaking applied research activities to enhance the innovation and competitiveness of automotive materials suppliers, parts manufacturers and assemblers.  Waterloo's Green Intelligent Transportation Systems (Green ITS) research program is a strong example of this, working with industry to develop advanced electric propulsion and ITS technologies.

Read Speaker's Session

Stephen Erwin has worked in a number of different roles with the Ontario Ministry of Transportation for 24 years and currently leads the development of Policy, Planning and Programming for its Intelligent Transportation Systems program.   In this current role he is responsible for understanding the opportunities presented by the rapidly advancing technological developments around the world, and for integrating these opportunities in to the plans of the ministry and its transportation partners.

A key focus of the work of Stephen's group this year is the Connected Vehicle – a broad concept that takes advantage of higher function communications and intelligence with and between vehicles, mobile devices, and the roadside, to provide a range of safety, mobility, convenience and entertainment services to the traveller.  Emerging from this concept are tremendous opportunities to transform the management of transportation services by public and private sectors.

Stephen is a Professional Engineer in Ontario and has a Bachelor of Applied Science in Civil Engineering from the University of Waterloo.   He is a member of ITS Canada; ITS America; the Institute of Transportation Engineers; a friend of TRBs ITS Committee, and Member of the Board of Directors for the University of Waterloo's Green ITS Program.

Read Speaker's Session

Read Speaker's Session

Susan Spencer is the Director of Transport Canada’s Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) Policy Office.  The ITS Office maintains responsibility for Canada’s ITS Strategic Plan “En Route to Intelligent Mobility” and the ITS Architecture for Canada.  Through its activities under the Strategic Plan, the ITS Office acts as the principal policy advisor to the Minister of Transport on matters related to ITS.  The ITS Office has helped promote ITS research and development projects as well as promoting the actual deployment of ITS technologies across Canada.   

Over her 28 year career, Ms. Spencer has presented papers on Canadian federal public policy and a range of ITS-related topics at several Canadian and international fora.
She has a Bachelor’s degree from Queen’s University at Kingston and a Master’s in Public Administration from Carleton University in Ottawa.

Read Speaker's Session

Dr. Teresa Scassa is a Canada Research Chair in Information Law at the University of Ottawa, Faculty of Common Law.  She holds undergraduate law degrees in civil and common law from McGill University, as well as an LL.M. and an S.J.D. from the University of Michigan.  She taught at Dalhousie Law School for 15 years before joining the Faculty of Law at the University of Ottawa as a full professor in July 2007.  She is a former editor of the Canadian Journal of Law and Technology, and is co-author of the book Electronic Commerce and Internet Law in Canada, (CCH Canadian Ltd., 2004).  She is also a member of the External Advisory Committee of the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada and a Member of the Geoconnections Privacy Advisory Group. Her research and scholarship is primarily in the areas of intellectual property law, law and technology, and privacy, and she has written numerous articles in these areas. 

Read Speaker's Session

Tom George is the Executive Director of the Niagara International Transportation Technology Coalition (NITTEC) providing overall leadership and management responsibilities for the multi-agency international Coalition in Southern Ontario and Western New York.

As Executive Director of the Coalition, Tom is responsible for multi-agency ITS facility operations and technology deployment, information dissemination, strategic planning, incident management, regional transportation operations and regional collaboration across international boundaries. 

Tom is a graduate of Michigan Technological University and is a Licensed Professional Engineer in the State of New York. Tom is an active member of ITE and ITS-NY and a member of TRB's  Freeway Operations and Regional Transportation System Operations Committees.

Read Speaker's Session