Articles

Technical Session-T&DI May 2021

Transportation and Development Institute (T&DI)

Topic: Complete Streets at Varying Scales - Challenges and Opportunities

Speakers: 

Ram Maddali, PE, AICP, PMP

Steve Linhart, AICP

Chris Weber, PE

Robert Guthart, AICP

Jenifer Palmer, AICP, PMP

Ram Maddali, PE, PMP offers 25 years of diverse programmatic expertise in corridor studies, transportation planning, traffic and revenue studies, federal funding programs and requirements, and financial analysis. Ram is a success-driven, innovative, and accomplished professional, with career-long history of leading and accomplishing small- to large-scale, and multimillion-dollar infrastructure projects. Ram is an expert at leading multidisciplinary teams of professionals toward the successful attainment of delivery milestones. Ram served as Project Manager for the US 67 Corridor Master Plan for the TxDOT El Paso District, a large rural corridor study in the state of Texas. The study was focused on current and future transportation needs of systemwide corridors within the study area and developing prioritization strategies for corridors.

Steve Linhart, AICP is a senior planner and project manager in the Transportation Planning and Programming Division of the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) headquartered in Austin, Texas. He leads project teams in the development of transportation planning studies statewide, including corridor studies, relief route studies, preliminary roadway design and environmental impact analyses. TxDOT's planning process can include, but is not limited to, crash analysis, intelligent transportation systems, capacity analysis, identification of environmental features, pedestrian and bicyclist considerations, freight movement, multi-modal considerations and outreach to the public. He collaborates with elected officials, industry representatives, interest groups and the public to identify issues of concern and develop potential solutions to address transportation needs.

Chris Weber, PE is the Alpine Area Engineer in the El Paso District, for the Texas Department of Transportation.  With a bachelor’s degree in Engineering from Michigan State University, Chris has worked for TxDOT for 22 years and has an area of responsibility covering almost 21,000 square miles in West Texas.  He is responsible for the Design, Construction, and Maintenance of over 2,000 miles of Texas Highways. Customer service is a key part of his role as an Area Engineer.

Robert Guthart is a Transportation Planner at CDM Smith in Houston, Texas. He has a background in long-range transportation planning, international freight logistics, pedestrian-bicycle planning, and corridor studies. Robert has a Master of City and Regional Planning from the Georgia Institute of Technology, where he was a graduate research assistant at the Center for Quality Growth and Regional Development. His bachelor’s degree is in environmental science from the University of Florida.

Jenifer Palmer has more than 14 years of transportation corridor planning and project management experience across the United States, focusing on large-scale federal Capital Investment Grant (CIG) program-funded transit projects. She has provided comprehensive, multimodal transportation planning, analysis, and environmental assessments for approved, funded transit projects across the nation and has worked in all major modes of transportation, including buses, bus rapid transit (BRT) systems, heavy rail systems, and high speed rail, as well as roadway and bicycle and pedestrian studies. Jenifer’s diverse experience working with transit agencies, metropolitan planning organizations (MPOs), state departments of transportation (DOTs), and the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) has provided her with an ability to develop integrated and multi-modal solutions for both corridor-specific projects and larger policy level decision making processes. Jenifer has also provided support for all elements of public involvement planning, including development of community outreach plans, outreach strategies and scheduling, website development, and preparation of collateral materials for complex transportation projects.