Transportation systems have fascinated me since childhood, and they continue to do so. As such, the career path I have chosen is within the field of Transportation Engineering. To get onto this path, I obtained a B.S. degree in Civil Engineering at the University of Washington, and then earned a M.S.C.E. Degree in Transportation Engineering in March 2004. I am a certified Professional Engineer in the State of Washington and I also have Professional Traffic Operations Engineer certification. I currently work for King County Metro Transit in Seattle, WA, where I work on projects to improve the speed and reliability of buses, such as bus lanes and transit signal priority. My speciality is in traffic analysis, traffic modeling, bus stop capacity and travel time analysis. The overarching direction that I want to take my work is towards the enabling of sustainable modes of transportation and reducing automobile dependence in our society. My blog occasionally contains some musings about my perspectives and personal views of transportation and land use issues. After all, Transportation Engineering isn't rocket science, but rocket scientists generally don't have to deal with complaints from astronauts about having to walk a few more blocks to get to their shuttle.
Visit my portfolio for some examples of my work.
For personal transportation, my primary vehicle is a bicycle. I have two bikes: One is a beefy touring bike equipped with heavy-duty cargo racks and a hitch upon which I can attach a Bob Yak trailer. The other bike is an old mountain bike converted to a fixed gear that I use for roving around town. I use one of these bikes to ride to and from work almost every day, to the grocery store and most other day-to-day errands, and sometimes just for fun. I live in a fairly dense mixed-use neighborhood, so almost everything that I need is just a quick bike ride away. If I do need to venture out into the suburbs, I find an express bus and use the bike rack to shuttle myself to someplace within the general vicinity (and preferably uphill of) of my final destination. With this method, I can get to almost any location in the greater Puget Sound Region almost as quickly as driving a car.
I have been known to edit some transportation-related articles on Wikipedia. Here are some of the articles that I have made contributions to:
Transportation Links:
- WSDOT traffic flow map and cameras: Showing why you should really find other ways of getting around.
- OneBusAway & MyBus: Real-time bus location and arrival information for the Puget Sound Region, fairly accurate most of the time.
- Seattle Transit Blog: Current events related to transit in the Puget Sound Area.
- Human Transit: Another more-wonky transit blog with a worldwide perspective.
- Innovative Transportation Technologies: Some fantastical transportation systems, both conceptual and operating; some seeming a bit ridiculous.
- Seattle Department of Transportation Bicycle Program
- Puget Sound Regional Council: an organization with some great ideas and funding for comprehensive transportation and land use management for the region.
- American Public Transit Association: The leading force in advancing public transportation. I have presented at several of their conferences; see my portfolio page for details.
