“Bill is in perfect alignment with our mission at ATI21,” said Paul Brubaker, President and Chief Executive Officer of the Alliance for Transportation Innovation. “At this critical moment in transportation technology, Bill and GRIDSMART are embracing innovation and challenging their competitors to do the same. That kind of thinking will be crucial to success as we create a path to the future of transportation.”

Malkes echoed the sentiment. “The Alliance for Transportation Innovation is bringing together the organizations, advocating for innovation and asking the difficult questions that will help define the future of mobility. At GRIDSMART, that’s exactly the kind of leadership we value and we’re extremely honored to have a voice in that conversation.”

Malkes will likely be busy in his new role. In the last year, ATI21 has published a comprehensive National Strategic Framework for accelerating the deployment of autonomous vehicles, undertaken America’s first coast to coast tour of autonomous vehicle technology and testified before Congress and multiple state legislatures on the critical need for adoption of emerging transportation technologies. “The transportation industry is evolving rapidly. Over the next decade, we’ll see incredible advances in technology, convenience and safety and in ATI21, we have a catalyst and a servant of the public good,” said Malkes.

GRIDSMART Technologies, Inc. is a leader in intelligent transportation systems as the world’s only single camera solution for intersection actuation, traffic data collection, and situational awareness. The GRIDSMART System uniquely collects and interprets vital traffic data to adjust signal timing and traffic flow strategies and enables real-time remote monitoring and visual assessment.

The GRIDSMART System is currently deployed in 22 countries and 49 states. For more information about GRIDSMART, please visit www.gridsmart.com.

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About GRIDSMART Technologies, Inc.:

Founded in 2006, GRIDSMART is a Knoxville, Tennessee based company backed by venture capital investment from across the United States. GRIDSMART systems include the industry’s only open API, built-in replay functionality, and a published change log. GRIDSMART products are built to be Simple, Flexible, and Transparent. For more information, visit gridsmart.com.

The Alliance for Transportation Innovation (ATI21)

ATI21 is a Washington D.C. based association that brings together transportation technology innovators, subject matter experts, and researchers committed to accelerating the adoption of innovative technologies that will transform the safe and efficient movement of people and goods. For more information visit the ATI21 website at www.ati21.org.

INTERSECT17

INTERSECT, the annual high-tech transportation conference created by GRIDSMART Technologies, Inc., will be held on November 14-16 at the company’s global headquarters in Knoxville, TN. Presented this year by the non-profit Alliance for Transportation Innovation (ATI21), INTERSECT17 will bring together top-tier industry and government leaders, distributors and innovators to ask tough questions, address difficult issues and seek solutions that will position the intelligent transportation industry and general public for success as it evolves. Over the course of three days with the theme “It’s time we had ‘The Talk,’” INTERSECT17 will attempt to map out and predict the path from transportation-now to transportation-future. For more information, please click here.

January 9, 2017

The Honorable John Thune
Chairman
Committee on Commerce, Science & Transportation
United States Senate
Washington DC, 20510

The Honorable Bill Nelson
Ranking Member
Committee on Commerce, Science & Transportation
United States Senate
Washington DC, 20510

Dear Chairman Thune, Ranking Member Nelson, and Honorable Members of the Committee:

I am writing to you on behalf of the members of the Alliance for Transportation Innovation (ATI21) to urge your swift confirmation of the Hon. Elaine L. Chao as the nation’s next U.S. Secretary of Transportation.

We believe her record of strong leadership and her familiarity with transportation issues will serve the American people well. Furthermore, we are encouraged by her experience gathered from working in several federal agencies over her career, which we think will especially help the incoming Administration tackle the very important issue of self-driving vehicles and coordinate the best approach among numerous jurisdictions for enabling these life-changing technologies as soon as possible.

Secretary-designate Chao enters the position at a time when technology is a viable yet under-utilized solution for advancing our important transportation safety and mobility objectives. The lack of a workable federal standard and an increase in the number of misguided individual state regulatory schemes has resulted in the current policy quagmire that to date has slowed the deployment of self-driving solutions.

The nominee, however, is reason for hope in this era of stifling regulation and government overreach, as we believe she will choose progress over heavy-handed regulation, and work with our industry to find a way to let innovators create a safer driving experience – without delay – for the benefit of all citizens, especially those who are unable to drive themselves.

Our members consider Ms. Chao an ally in the drive to change the lives of the enabled and disabled, restore freedom of mobility to senior citizens, and save countless lives of people from coast to coast – forever. It is for these reasons that the members of the Alliance for Transportation Innovation ask you to move ahead confidently with the approval of Ms. Chao as our next Secretary of Transportation so that we can get to work with her on the issues that will revolutionize and improve every facet of American life.

Sincerely,

Paul R. Brubaker
President & CEO
The Alliance for Transportation Innovation
1250 Connecticut Avenue, NW Suite 200
Washington, D.C. 20036

The members of the national Alliance for Transportation Innovation look forward to working with Secretary-designate Chao on development of the regulatory and policy framework needed to take full advantage of technology that today is capable of safely driving our cars, flying our aircraft, delivering goods to businesses and homes, and increasing the capacity of our congested urban freeways.

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About The Alliance for Transportation Innovation (ATI21.org)

The Alliance for Transportation Innovation (ATI21.org) is a visionary association dedicated to advancing transportation technology from self-driving cars to aviation, futuristic transit to drones, all while collapsing the innovation cycle which is a critical link in the safe and timely deployment of Intelligent Transportation solutions. For more information, please visit www.ATI21.org.