AGENDA

Monday December 7th

8:00 AM	REGISTRATION AND BREAKFAST OPENS
8:30 AM	WELCOME REMARKS
8:50 AM	HOW SHOULD WE BE MEASURING URBAN MOBILITY? Street-level activity and mobility tools have progressed beyond static paper surveys and manual counters to dynamic, real-time data across varying spatial and temporal dimensions and improved forecasting capacity. This multi-discipline panel will examine critical questions and opportunities arising as a result of these advancements. Just what is urban mobility? How does it differ from measures of activity? What new data sources exist? How might cities use new measures of urban mobility to impact decision-making and planning? Moderator: Ruthbea Yesner Clarke – Research Director, Smart Cities at IDC Azer Bestavros – Professor of Computer Science, Boston University and Director, Hariri Institute for Computing and Computational Science & Engineering Chris Osgood – Chief of Streets, City of Boston Chris Scofield – Chief Scientist, INRIX Alex Winter – Founder & CEO, Placemeter
10:00 AM	*BREAK*
10:15 AM	KEYNOTE/TED TALK: ITAI VARDI, Adjunct Professor of Sociology, Boston University “Do We Accept Traffic Fatalities? A Socio-Historical Perspective”
10:35 AM	DESIGN FOR FLOW: LOW & HIGH TECH REMEDIES TO EASE CONGESTION AND IMPROVE SAFETY Urban streetscapes have become testing grounds for new technologies along with design and reclamation experiments that ameliorate traffic congestion and enhance pedestrian and cyclist safety. This panel will examine both experimental and proven changes to the built environment along with new ways to access real-time information about what’s happening on the street. How much can cities accomplish with paint and planters, and when are those low cost interventions not enough? What street-level technologies are emerging that improve mobility? Which have moved from ideas that need testing to proven interventions worth replicating? Moderator: Kristopher Carter – Co-Chair, Boston Mayor’s Office of New Urban Mechanics Christos Cassandras – Professor of Engineering and Head of the Division of Systems Engineering, Boston University Regina R. Clewlow – Director of Transportation Research and Policy, Ridescout Nick Jackson – Vice President and Regional Director, Toole Design Group Anne Lusk – Research Scientist, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health
11:45 AM	*LUNCH AND POSTER SESSION*
12:30 PM	LUNCH KEYNOTE: KAYE CEILLE, President of Zipcar
1:00 PM	DISCOURAGING POOR CHOICES: PRICING, ENFORCEMENT AND EDUCATION The behavioral sciences, from economics to psychology, have provided us with new ways of thinking about human behavior – and how to change it. Which experiments, from congestion pricing and dynamic parking pricing to automated speed enforcement, have proven effective at changing transportation behaviors? Which are politically viable in America’s cities? When does enforcement deter less desirable behaviors, whether among drivers, walkers or cyclists? When is it not enough?Moderator: Cathy Wissink – Senior Director, Technology and Civic Engagement, Microsoft New England Saugato Datta – Managing Director, ideas42 Gina Fiandaca – Commissioner, Boston Transportation Department Matthew Gibson – Assistant Professor of Economics, Williams College Scott Kubly – Director, Seattle Department of Transportation
2:10 PM	BREAK
2:25 PM	AFTERNOON KEYNOTE GARRETT EMMERSON, Chief Operating Officer, Transport for London
2:55 PM	REWARDING BETTER BEHAVIOR: INCENTIVES, GAMIFICATION AND SOCIAL NETWORKING Dynamic commuter incentive systems have emerged as a gentler and potentially broader platform for positively reinforcing and changing mobility behaviors. This panel will feature experimental systems that have moved from the lab to the streets, both in the U.S. and abroad. How do these nudge engines actually change commuting patterns and choices of individuals? How far can incentives and social reward systems take us? Which populations do they reach and which do they miss?Moderator: Monica Tibbits-Nutt – Executive Director, 128 Business Council Hari Balakrishnan – Founder & CTO, Cambridge Mobile Telematics and Professor of Electrical Engineering & Computer Science, MIT Marcel Meeuwissen – Senior Consultant for Smart Mobility and Cities, City of Enschede, Netherlands Kristin Slaton – Director, MassRIDES
3:55 PM	CLOSING REMARKS

This conference is being hosted by the Boston University Initiative on Cities, the Boston University Hariri Institute for Computing & Computational Science and the Boston Mayor’s Office of New Urban Mechanics.