Transportation Experts From Around the World to Meet and Share Best Practices in Halifax, Nova Scotia

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: September 9, 2019
CONTACT: Bill Cramer, Communications Director
[email protected] – 202.210.2962 mobile
MEDIA ADVISORY: Halifax, Nova Scotia -- September 15 - 17   

Transportation Leaders from 25 Countries to Gather at the International Bridge, Tunnel and Turnpike Association’s 87th Annual Meeting

Attendees Will Visit Newly Renovated Macdonald Bridge for a Technical Tour

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Transportation experts from 25 countries will gather to share best practices during the International Bridge, Tunnel and Turnpike Association's (IBTTA) 87th Annual Meeting & Exhibition in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. IBTTA is the worldwide association representing toll facility owners and operators and the businesses that serve them. 

Click here to view the Agenda and a full list of speakers.

The meeting will bring together more than 600 transportation leaders from around the globe, including colleagues from local, state and international transportation systems, to share best practices from their transportation authorities, while discussing advancements and improvements in tolling and rapidly developing transportation technologies providing drivers with greater mobility and enhanced safety.

Sunday morning, September 15, transportation experts will participate in a technical tour of the completed “Big Lift” project responsible for the newly renovated Macdonald Bridge, one of two toll bridges and a toll road in Nova Scotia operated by IBTTA member Halifax Harbour Bridges. 

This year’s 87th Annual Meeting and Exhibition will feature a diverse list of speakers on a range of topics including autonomous vehicles, world mobility, tolling and transit, public policy and funding mobility.  Highlights include:

Keynote Speaker: Charles Fishman, author of “One Giant Leap,” the rollicking tale of the race to the Moon in the 60’s and how it shapes our world today.  Also, author of “The Big Thirst” and “The Wal-Mart Effect” (Monday, September 16, 9:30 – 10:30AM)

Toll Excellence Awards: Presenting the tolling industry’s top transportation projects of 2019 (Monday, September 16, 2:30 – 3:45 pm)

Worldwide Showcase: This session will highlight presenters from across the world who will highlight innovative technologies and proven programs, allowing attendees to soak up as much information as possible in a short amount of time. (Monday, September 16, 3:45 – 5:00 pm)

Breakout Sessions

Technology and Customer Track: Autonomous Vehicles and Tolling Agencies
Autonomous Vehicles are currently being developed by more than a dozen entities. Auto manufacturers, transportation network companies and software development firms are all getting in on the act. As development continues over the next decade, autonomous vehicle manufacturers and tolling agencies can certainly benefit from an exchange of information, ideas and strategies. (Tuesday, September 17, 10:30 am – 12 Noon)

The Business of Mobility Track: Tolling & Transit
Around the world, people want quality, reliable and safe transportation options. People are looking for seamless transitions, easy connections and dependable choices that help get them where they need to go. More and more, agencies are looking to provide multimodal options that maximize existing right of-way and encourage more people to efficiently travel throughout a given corridor. (Tuesday, September 17, 10:30 am – 12 Noon)

Technology and Customer Track: Making the Complex Understandable
From interoperable networks to systems which only toll heavy trucks to traditional, barrier-based systems that still collect cash, there is great diversity in how tolling is being implemented and how toll systems are operated around the world today. (Tuesday, September 17, 4:00 – 5:30pm)

The Business of Mobility Track: What is Mobility-as-a-Service (MaaS) and Why Must Toll Agencies Care?
Our traditional views of mobility and the technology of transportation are changing at a furious pace and toll facilities must be prepared for mobility being about moving people and freight holistically within a coordinated and easy to use system that can no longer be focused on just the vehicle. (Tuesday, September 17, 4:00 – 5:30pm)

MEDIA CONTACT
Registration is complimentary for journalists with press credentials. To arrange for an interview with IBTTA Executive Director and CEO Patrick Jones, IBTTA President Chris Tomlinson or Halifax Harbour Bridges General Manager and CEO  Steve Snider, please contact Bill Cramer, Communications Director at [email protected] or 202-210-2962.

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About IBTTA

The International Bridge, Tunnel and Turnpike Association (IBTTA) is the worldwide association for the owners and operators of toll facilities and the businesses that serve tolling. Founded in 1932, IBTTA has members in 23 countries on six continents. Through advocacy, thought leadership and education, members are implementing state-of-the-art, innovative user-based transportation financing solutions to address the critical infrastructure challenges of the 21st Century. For more information, please visit www.ibtta.org.

Halifax Harbour Bridges (HHB) is the Nova Scotia crown corporation responsible for operating and maintaining two tolled suspension bridges that span the Halifax Harbour. The Angus L. Macdonald Bridge opened in 1955 and the A. Murray MacKay Bridge opened in 1970. The combined annual crossings exceed 34 million. One hundred percent of all toll revenue is used to operate and maintain the bridges ensuring the long-term safety of the structures and the safety of the travelling public. HHB’s vision is to be recognized as world-class for providing innovative transportation solutions. Learn more about Halifax Harbour Bridges at www.hdbc.ca