OmniAir member Atkins helps accelerate Nevada’s Go-NV Summit

Atkins, one of the world’s leading design, engineering, and project management consultancies, helped Nevada organize a first-of-its-kind transportation summit in collaboration with CES®2017 on January 3 at Mandalay Bay. CES® is a global consumer electronics and consumer technology tradeshow that takes place every year in Las Vegas, Nev. with total attendance of more than 175,000.

Nevada’s GO-NV Summit brought together industry executives and leaders who have pioneered the implementation of advanced transportation technology and are leading the charge to accelerate progress on a global scale. Themed around the Elvis Presley lyric: “a little less conversation, a little more action please,” the event showcased recent accomplishments of those making tangible strides in advancing mobility, and helped Nevada advance its position as a national leader in the implementation of transportation technology.

“While we are focused on achieving statewide benefits, Nevada recognizes that mobility changes are taking place on a global scale,” said Tina Quigley, general manager of the Regional Transportation Commission of Southern Nevada. “We’re looking to cultivate new partnerships and collaborations across the US and around the world to help rapidly advance capabilities for Nevada’s residents and 42 million annual visitors.”

Atkins has a strong presence in Nevada, employing more than 100 in the state and serving as lead designer on Project Neon, the largest public works project in Nevada’s history. Jim Hanson, director of intelligent mobility for Atkins in North America stated, “Atkins is dedicated to helping make our cities ready for connected and autonomous vehicles, and we’re excited to bring our clients and partners together to help spur collaboration and progress.”

“OmniAir and its members like Atkins strive to develop technical specifications and requirements to promote interoperability for tolling, connected vehicle, and other ITS technologies, to help the drive the nation forward to reduce crashes and move traffic more efficiently through technology, “said Jason Conley, executive director for OmniAir. “To achieve this goal OmniAir develops and manages robust certification programs and exclusively issues OCS-Certified awards to devices and systems that pass its rigorous test programs at independent test labs.”

Atkins collaborated with five Nevada agencies to organize and host the event, including the City of Las Vegas, the Nevada Department of Transportation, the Regional Transportation Commission of Southern Nevada, Nevada Governor’s Office of Economic Development, and the Nevada Institute for Autonomous Systems. Presenters included Carolyn Goodman, mayor of the City of Las Vegas; Mark Hutchison, Nevada lieutenant governor; Dr. Mark Rosekind, administrator, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA); Jay Rogers, CEO of Local Motors; Michael Talbot, head of strategy at the Centre for Connected and Autonomous Vehicles (United Kingdom); Kirk Steudle, director, Michigan Department of Transportation; and Carlos Braceras, executive director, Utah Department of Transportation.