COMMUNICATION - ADMINISTRATOR'S MESSAGE Still Time to Help Those In Need During the Operation Orange Food Drive At MDOT SHA, we believe in action. Once again, we have joined the fight against hunger in Maryland during the Operation Orange Hunger Action Month Food Drive. September is dubbed "Hunger Action Month" because it is a prime time to donate food in preparation for the holidays ahead. In Maryland, one out of eight people experiences hunger and lacks adequate food. Our partner, the Maryland Food Bank, knows that the emotional toll of hunger is higher during the holidays, when families come together for big meals and traditional celebrations. That makes our contributions this month very impactful. Over the past seven years, our participation has made a difference. Last year, we collected an impressive 30,000 pounds of food, or approximately 26,000 meals, to help our fellow Marylanders in need. THERE IS STILL TIME TO HELP! The Operation Orange Food Drive continues through Monday, September 30. You can donate non-perishable food in one of the food collection containers located at headquarters, the district offices, and the Hanover complex. While you are out this weekend shopping for your family, please consider picking up something extra to donate. Prefer giving online? You can contribute right now with our Virtual Food Drive, where you can purchase items in bulk or make a monetary donation. Go to https://mdfoodbank.fenly.org/drive/mdot19/ to make your contribution. Thank you for all you do each and every day to serve our customers, and thank you for going the extra mile to help families in need.

Greg Slater

Thanks to Team MDOT SHA for participating in Operation Orange, collecting donations for the Maryland Food Bank. In this photo District Engineer Tony Crawford and District Community Liaison Shelley Miller collect food donations at a local shopping center.

MODERNIZATION
Keeping Pace with Connected and Automated Vehicles

Maryland is among 14 states testing automated vehicles, says CAV Program Manager Carole Delion.

Whether you're reading about Uber testing automated vehicles or hearing that connected cars approaching an intersection can detect one another even before they're in sight, you know that Connected and Automated Vehicles (CAV) are on the horizon.

CAV Program Manager Carole Delion is working with a team of 50 MDOT SHA employees to move Maryland highways forward with CAV as auto makers, the federal government, and other states make incremental advances. And Maryland is at the forefront. Last year, Bloomberg News cited Maryland as only one of 14 states that have testing grounds for self-driving cars.

At an August Lunch 'N Learn, MDOT SHA staff provided CAV 101 to interested employees and reviewed MDOT SHA's recent CAV accomplishments.

There have been many.

In 2017, MDOT SHA created its first CAV Strategic Plan.

"The strategic plan is a living document," says Carole. "We attend lots of national committee meetings and bring back great ideas."

CAV is now a subject for Transportation Systems Management & Operations (TSMO) planning.

During the last snow season, MDOT SHA used connected technology to collect details about wintery road conditions, making it possible to dispatch needed equipment via the Mobile Advanced Road Weather Information System (MARWIS).

Currently, at US 1 in Howard County, MDOT SHA is testing smart signaling as part of what AASHTO calls the SPaT (Signal Phasing and Timing) Challenge. SPaT will introduce a technology called Dedicated Short Range Communications (DSRC), which MDOT SHA will use to communicate with connected vehicles as they interact electronically on the road.

And soon, the CAV planning group will provide MDOT SHA personnel with online training in CAV. MDOT SHA staff can visit the CAV at MDOT SHA SharePoint site and read blog posts by team members about research, the very latest technology, and surveys about what drivers really think CAV will mean out on the road.

INNOVATION
Creative Bridge Building

The new MD 213 Bridge over Old Mill Stream Branch takes shape in the background adjacent to the older bridge it will replace.

Replacing two bridges along a single key local route with little room to work and a mandate to maintain traffic during the weekdays may seem a formidable challenge, if not for the creativity that is MDOT SHA.

The MD 213 bridges over Gravel Run and Old Mill Stream Branch essentially bookend the town of Centreville in Queen Anne's County and carry 10,000 vehicles a day, mostly cars with commuters accessing US 301 just south of town.

With the bridge substructure in good condition at Gravel Run, engineers replaced the superstructure — or bridge deck — during just three weekend closures. With the first closure, the contractor elevated the roadway to create workspace and installed a temporary steel “jump bridge” to maintain traffic while crews formed the new deck underneath. To complete the deck, they removed the jump bridge on a Friday evening, placed and finished concrete on Saturday and reinstalled the jump bridge in time for the Monday morning commute. Once the concrete cured, the third weekend closure was used to remove the jump bridge and restore MD 213 to its original grade.

At the south end of town, the bridge over Old Mill Stream Branch is slated for complete replacement. Steel plates across MD 213 provide weekend access for the critical abutment work. By mid-summer, the new bridge began taking shape over the creek, just a few yards upstream from the existing structure. In October, a unique rail system will be constructed, and, during a long weekend, the old bridge will be removed, and the new bridge will roll along the rails and into place.

District 2 and Office of Structures staff expect the "bridge on rails" will be a big event for the town and a chance to see MDOT SHA innovation in action!

CUSTOMER SERVICE EXPERIENCE
VOTE for MDOT SHA's Dover Bridge Project

Vote for the Dover Bridge in the ATA Awards and help our MDOT SHA team win well-deserved national accolades. The project is up for this year's America's Transportation Award. Special: You can vote for MDOT SHA daily through October 6.

We're finalists and contending for the People's Choice Award! Vote Daily Through October 6th!

Our 3,000 men and women work hard to deliver innovation, modernization, communication and an outstanding customer experience to drive change for Marylanders. And it's great when our team's hard work is recognized! Congratulations to the Dover Bridge Project team, whose work has earned the attention of the America's Transportation Awards (ATA). As one of 12 finalists from around the country, the MD 331 Dover Bridge Project in Easton is competing for the People's Choice Award, as well as for the Grand Prize!

So, now we need your help!

We need you to cast your vote DAILY for our finalist entry so we can take home the People's Choice Award!

Don't wait – go today to https://americastransportationawards.org/maryland-department-of-transportation-dover-bridge-project/ and cast your vote DAILY. Balloting ends at 11:59 p.m. eastern time on Sunday, Oct. 6, so please vote each day. Cast your vote and make sure that MDOT SHA's team wins this prestigious prize!

PHOTO OF THE MONTH

MDOT SHA assisted with the travel arrangements for Easton's 18th century Galloway House, which traveled by truck along US 50 and other State routes to a more pastoral setting in Queenstown.