2019 Best of ITS
2019 ITS Large Project of Significance Award
2019 ITS Small Project of Significance Award
2019 Innovation: Outside the Box Award
2019 Outstanding Agency Contribution Award
2019 Outstanding Individual Contribution Award
2019 ITS Large Project of Significance Award
2019 ITS Large Project of Significance Award
Presented To: Augusta-Richmond County
Project: Augusta-Richmond County ATMS Expansion Project
Project Manager: John Ussery
The City of Augusta recently completed the construction of its $6.5 million ATMS expansion project. The ribbon-cutting ceremony for the Traffic Management Center was held on March 19. The TMC was immediately put-to-use as part of the 2019 Masters Tournament. Due to the extensive size and scope of this project, an extensive stakeholder process was required, including the City Traffic Engineering Department, IT Department, Utilities Department, Augusta/Richmond County Sheriff’s Office, Augusta Fire Department, Augusta Public Transit, and GDOT. All of these users were included to verify that their needs would be met from a functional and technological perspective.
The project included the following elements: a new traffic management center co-located with the Augusta Engineering Department’s office, including video wall; 15 miles of fiber-optic cable; 129 intersections locations outfitted with Ethernet switches; 109 intersections outfitted with emergency vehicle preemption; and 55 intersections outfitted with surveillance cameras. The project was designed by AECOM and constructed by RJ Haynie and Associates.
2019 ITS Small Project of Significance Award
2019 ITS Small Project of Significance Award
Presented To: Aerotropolis Atlanta CIDs
Project: Virginia Avenue Smart Corridor
Project Manager: Kirsten Mote
The Aerotropolis Atlanta CIDs and their consultant, Modern Mobility Partners with KCI as a subconsultant, examined options for technology elements to improve safety, walkability and mobility along 2-miles of the Virginia Avenue corridor near the world’s busiest and most efficient airport, Hartsfield-Jackson. The outcome of the study is a vision for technology along the corridor, as well as a phasing and implementation plan. To develop the implementation plan, a menu of over 30 emerging technology strategies was developed and evaluated, including a best-practice report to obtain lessons learned and considerations from across the country and abroad. Building on the need’s assessment and the menu of strategies, the study team developed a set of site-specific and corridor-wide technology recommendations that will facilitate the current and future development of a smart and highly integrated, multi-modal urban transportation corridor. A project prioritization framework was developed that accounted for anticipated return on investment, project readiness, telecommunications and other implementation considerations and costs. The final report includes an implementation plan, 100-day action plan, and potential funding sources for project recommendations.
2019 Innovation: Outside the Box Award
2019 Innovation: Outside the Box Award
Presented To: City of Peachtree Corners
Project: Curiosity Lab
Project Manager: Greg Ramsey
The Curiosity Lab is a 1.5-mile intelligent mobility and smart city laboratory located within a 500-acre technology park in the City of Peachtree Corners. Curiosity Lab is one of North America’s only real-world testing environments where people, autonomous vehicles and smart city technologies interact. The lab’s 5G wireless network coupled with its dedicated short-range communications channels also allows for companies to test Vehicle-to-Everything (V2X) communications. Smart poles with video cameras are located throughout the corridor to provide complete video coverage as well as a location to install additional technologies as needed. The track includes two vehicular lanes for bi-directional traffic and two outside lanes for testing of autonomous vehicles and intelligent mobility technologies. Also located along the laboratory is Prototype Prime, a city-funded technology incubator that provides 25,000 square feet of innovation space for early-stage software and hardware startups as well as companies who want to move from ideation to proof-of-concept testing to commercialization. The City of Peachtree Corners is the sole operator and owner of the Curiosity Lab, enabling a quick and easy approval process for testing and demoing.
2019 Outstanding Agency Contribution Award
2019 Outstanding Agency Contribution Award
Presented To: Smart Cities and Inclusive Innovation at Georgia Tech’s Institute for People and Technology
Project: Georgia Smart Communities Challenge
Director of GA Smart: Greg McCormick
The Georgia Smart Communities Challenge has supported communities across Georgia to 
envision and plan for their “smart” future with grant funding, partnership with a Georgia Tech research team and connections to peers across the state. These technologies include intelligent infrastructures, information and communication technologies, Internet of Things devices, and other computational or digital technologies, such as data centers and portals, web and smartphone applications, and automated digital services. For the communities involved in the Challenge so far, several have had projects with transportation benefits. From the 2018 participants, the City of Chamblee studied the issues, technology, and best practices related to the use of Shared Autonomous Vehicles; and Gwinnett County developed a Connected Vehicle Technology Master Plan. From the 2019 GA Smart Communities Challenge participants, the City of Milton will study and develop a smart-interactive app for smartphones to provide real-time group communication for parents of kids who want to walk to school in a group with other kids, also known as a “Walking School Bus”; the City of Woodstock will develop a master plan and a Smart Corridor Study for optimizing infrastructure needs and modeling land use changes; and Columbus Consolidated Government will develop “Smart” technologies for their Uptown district to promote safety, security and an intelligent transportation system through a coalition for data sharing and infrastructure improvement.
2019 Outstanding Individual Contribution Award
2019 Outstanding Individual Contribution Award
Presented To: Jenny Johnson of Kimley-Horn
Jenny has worked tirelessly to promote, support, and implement the goals and objectives of 
ITSGA as the organization’s youngest and first female President. Jenny has exhibited exceptional leadership while serving as the Registration Committee Chair for the 2013 ITSGA Annual Meeting, the Awards Committee Chair from 2014-2019, ITSGA Secretary from 2014-2017, and most recently as ITSGA President from 2018-2019. Over the last two years, she has worked to support and encourage chapter growth and development, helping the organization reach over 100 membership companies for the first time in the chapter’s history; sought to broaden the interests of the organization, including a more diverse membership and technical program; focused on fostering a community for those excited to develop and innovate within the industry; and lastly, but likely most important, made sure things got done!
2019 President’s Award
Presented To: Winter Horbal of Temple
Winter, has not only proven a dependable Vice President and a tremendous asset to ITSGA, but you have become a respected mentor and fearless leader to many of the people in this room today, including myself. Over the last few years, you have been a trusted advisor for me, someone I greatly admire and someone I aspire to one day become like, as a professional and as a wife, mother, and friend. Being President of ITSGA has been an incredible experience, and I owe much of that to you. You’ve been a reliable leader – helping to ensure our elections process was conducted appropriately as the Elections Committee Chair and working to provide an amazing technical program month-after-month as the Activities Committee Chair. Since 2013, you have served on the ITSGA board in a number of capacities, including roles on the Scholarship, Elections, Technical Coordinating, and Membership Committees. I can think of no one more deserving to become ITSGA’s next President, and I am honored to be a part of the board for the next two years under your leadership. Thank you for everything that you have done and for playing such a special part in my life over the last several years.
The project included the following elements: a new traffic management center co-located with the Augusta Engineering Department’s office, including video wall; 15 miles of fiber-optic cable; 129 intersections locations outfitted with Ethernet switches; 109 intersections outfitted with emergency vehicle preemption; and 55 intersections outfitted with surveillance cameras. The project was designed by AECOM and constructed by RJ Haynie and Associates.
The Aerotropolis Atlanta CIDs and their consultant, Modern Mobility Partners with KCI as a subconsultant, examined options for technology elements to improve safety, walkability and mobility along 2-miles of the Virginia Avenue corridor near the world’s busiest and most efficient airport, Hartsfield-Jackson. The outcome of the study is a vision for technology along the corridor, as well as a phasing and implementation plan. To develop the implementation plan, a menu of over 30 emerging technology strategies was developed and evaluated, including a best-practice report to obtain lessons learned and considerations from across the country and abroad. Building on the need’s assessment and the menu of strategies, the study team developed a set of site-specific and corridor-wide technology recommendations that will facilitate the current and future development of a smart and highly integrated, multi-modal urban transportation corridor. A project prioritization framework was developed that accounted for anticipated return on investment, project readiness, telecommunications and other implementation considerations and costs. The final report includes an implementation plan, 100-day action plan, and potential funding sources for project recommendations.
The Curiosity Lab is a 1.5-mile intelligent mobility and smart city laboratory located within a 500-acre technology park in the City of Peachtree Corners. Curiosity Lab is one of North America’s only real-world testing environments where people, autonomous vehicles and smart city technologies interact. The lab’s 5G wireless network coupled with its dedicated short-range communications channels also allows for companies to test Vehicle-to-Everything (V2X) communications. Smart poles with video cameras are located throughout the corridor to provide complete video coverage as well as a location to install additional technologies as needed. The track includes two vehicular lanes for bi-directional traffic and two outside lanes for testing of autonomous vehicles and intelligent mobility technologies. Also located along the laboratory is Prototype Prime, a city-funded technology incubator that provides 25,000 square feet of innovation space for early-stage software and hardware startups as well as companies who want to move from ideation to proof-of-concept testing to commercialization. The City of Peachtree Corners is the sole operator and owner of the Curiosity Lab, enabling a quick and easy approval process for testing and demoing.
envision and plan for their “smart” future with grant funding, partnership with a Georgia Tech research team and connections to peers across the state. These technologies include intelligent infrastructures, information and communication technologies, Internet of Things devices, and other computational or digital technologies, such as data centers and portals, web and smartphone applications, and automated digital services. For the communities involved in the Challenge so far, several have had projects with transportation benefits. From the 2018 participants, the City of Chamblee studied the issues, technology, and best practices related to the use of Shared Autonomous Vehicles; and Gwinnett County developed a Connected Vehicle Technology Master Plan. From the 2019 GA Smart Communities Challenge participants, the City of Milton will study and develop a smart-interactive app for smartphones to provide real-time group communication for parents of kids who want to walk to school in a group with other kids, also known as a “Walking School Bus”; the City of Woodstock will develop a master plan and a Smart Corridor Study for optimizing infrastructure needs and modeling land use changes; and Columbus Consolidated Government will develop “Smart” technologies for their Uptown district to promote safety, security and an intelligent transportation system through a coalition for data sharing and infrastructure improvement.
ITSGA as the organization’s youngest and first female President. Jenny has exhibited exceptional leadership while serving as the Registration Committee Chair for the 2013 ITSGA Annual Meeting, the Awards Committee Chair from 2014-2019, ITSGA Secretary from 2014-2017, and most recently as ITSGA President from 2018-2019. Over the last two years, she has worked to support and encourage chapter growth and development, helping the organization reach over 100 membership companies for the first time in the chapter’s history; sought to broaden the interests of the organization, including a more diverse membership and technical program; focused on fostering a community for those excited to develop and innovate within the industry; and lastly, but likely most important, made sure things got done!
Winter, has not only proven a dependable Vice President and a tremendous asset to ITSGA, but you have become a respected mentor and fearless leader to many of the people in this room today, including myself. Over the last few years, you have been a trusted advisor for me, someone I greatly admire and someone I aspire to one day become like, as a professional and as a wife, mother, and friend. Being President of ITSGA has been an incredible experience, and I owe much of that to you. You’ve been a reliable leader – helping to ensure our elections process was conducted appropriately as the Elections Committee Chair and working to provide an amazing technical program month-after-month as the Activities Committee Chair. Since 2013, you have served on the ITSGA board in a number of capacities, including roles on the Scholarship, Elections, Technical Coordinating, and Membership Committees. I can think of no one more deserving to become ITSGA’s next President, and I am honored to be a part of the board for the next two years under your leadership. Thank you for everything that you have done and for playing such a special part in my life over the last several years.