The Families and Work Institute (FWI) and the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) recently honored RSG again with the prestigious When Work Works Award for 2016, recognizing RSG’s use of effective workplace strategies to increase business and employee success. Applicants are evaluated on six research-based ingredients of an effective workplace: opportunities for learning; a culture of trust; work-life fit; supervisor support for work success; autonomy; and satisfaction with earnings, benefits, and opportunities for advancement—all factors associated with employee health, well-being, and engagement.

RSG welcomes receiving this national honor for the second year in a row—reflecting the company’s evolution and national footprint. This award also comes on the heels of being recognized again as a certified Great Place to Work company (http://reviews.greatplacetowork.com/rsg).

Last week, RSG Senior Engineer Kordel Braley presented at the Institute of Transportation Engineers (ITE) Intermountain Section 56th Annual Meeting in Jackson, Wyoming. His presentation was on using market segment analysis to improve transit service, sharing some of our work with the Utah Transit Authority (UTA).

RSG Senior Director Bill Woodford spoke at the Canadian Urban Transit Association (CUTA) annual conference in Halifax, Nova Scotia this week. The conference theme was titled “Transforming Transit: The Next Generation,” focused on how the new generation sees and approaches urban mobility and quality of life and how their lifestyle and mobility behaviors are forcing the industry to adapt to the new reality. Bill delivered both a keynote address on factors affecting transit ridership as well as a follow-up on ridership at a by-invitation transit leader session.

RSG’s Steve Gayle will be presenting this week at the 2016 Institute of Transportation Engineers (ITE) Northeastern District Annual Meeting in Portsmouth, NH. His presentation, titled “State and Metropolitan Freight Plans: National Priority, Local Focus,” will share RSG’s work on the Capital District Transportation Committee (Albany, NY) Freight and Goods Movement Plan, and the New York State Freight Transportation Plan. RSG is a silver sponsor of the event.

We are honored to sponsor and contribute to the 2016 Innovations in Travel Modeling (ITM) conference in Denver, Colorado next week. We look forward to leading or helping lead 18 different sessions throughout the event.

The ITM conference is designed to facilitate sharing information and experiences on current models and modeling research. It will also explore the integration of social factors, land-use, transportation supply, and technology into the modeling process. RSG is a bronze patron of the event.

RSG’s Corey Mack is to present today at the Vermont Society of Engineers (VSE) annual meeting in Killington, VT. His presentation will discuss RSG’s work on the Burlington Waterfront Skate Park, exploring the unique challenges and solutions sought to bring a world-class skate facility to Burlington, VT.

The Institute of Transportation Engineers, in cooperation with FHWA, the Congress for New Urbanism (CNU), and the National Association of City Transportation Officials (NACTO), is working to produce a new “Practitioners Guide to Context Sensitive Solutions in Thoroughfare Design.” RSG’s Steven Gayle has been invited to participate in the Technical Advisory Committee for the project as a representative of the Association of Metropolitan Planning Organizations (AMPO). He is joined by representatives from AASHTO, Smart Growth America, the US Access Board, Owner Operators Independent Drivers Association, the National Association of Development Organizations, and the Association of Pedestrian and Bicycle Professionals. The report is expected to be finalized in early 2017.

RSG’s Ellen Rovelstad co-authored the article “Indicators and Standards of Quality for Viewing the Night Sky in the National Parks,” which was published in the latest issue of Park Science. With night skies recognized as an important park resource, this research identified the indicators and standards for stargazing and identified a range of standards of quality for light pollution.

Since the research was conducted in Acadia National Park in 2011 and 2012, the park has replaced all the lighting in Acadia’s Blackwoods Campground with respect to good lighting practices.

RSG’s Ellen Rovelstad co-authored the article “Indicators and Standards of Quality for Viewing the Night Sky in the National Parks,” which was published in the latest issue of Park Science. With night skies recognized as an important park resource, this research identified the indicators and standards for stargazing and identified a range of standards of quality for light pollution.

Since the research was conducted in Acadia National Park in 2011 and 2012, the park has replaced all the lighting in Acadia’s Blackwoods Campground with respect to good lighting practices.

RSG’s Peter Plumeau authored a chapter in the American Planning Association’s new publication, “On the Horizon: State of Transportation Planning in 2016.” Peter’s chapter is titled, “The Evolving World of Freight and Goods Movement: Implications for Transportation Planning and Community Design.”