Norfolk Southern Exhibit Car to Tour 23 Cities

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NORFOLK, Va., May 6 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ — The Norfolk Southern Exhibit Car, a traveling showcase highlighting the Thoroughbred of Transportation, will tour 23 cities in 2008.
The nine-state May-December itinerary for the rebuilt passenger coach will include a five-city whistle-stop train operated by Norfolk Southern to promote safe transportation of hazardous materials, as well as three special trains supporting Operation Lifesaver, the national rail safety education group.
The Exhibit Car, which has hosted some 1.5 million people in several hundred communities since 1971, houses interactive displays featuring Norfolk Southern’s transportation network. New for the 2008 tour is an updated locomotive simulator that puts guests in the engineer’s seat in control of a virtual train.
Here is the 2008 Exhibit Car tour schedule:
— May 10: Roanoke, Va., O Winston Link Museum Rail Heritage Festival
— May 17: Old Fort, N.C., Old Fort Rails and Trails
— May 23, 24: Shenandoah, Va., Memorial Day Festival and Parade
— June 7: Manassas, Va., Manassas Heritage Railway Festival
— June 14: Delphi, Ind., Heritage Transportation Festival
— June 21: Roanoke, Va., Virginia Museum of Transportation
African-American Railroad Celebration
— July 2-7: Altoona, Pa., Railroaders Memorial Museum
— July 16: Operation Lifesaver train round trip Roanoke - Lynchburg, Va.
— July 31-Aug. 4: Jasper, Ind., Strassenfest
— Aug. 6: Operation Lifesaver train round trip Delaware - Chillicothe,
Ohio
— Aug. 13: Operation Lifesaver train round trip Toledo - Bellevue, Ohio
— Aug. 30, 31: Scranton, Pa., Lackawanna Railfest 2008 at Steamtown
National Historic Site
— Sept. 12-19: TRANSCAER Whistle-Stop Tour: Austell, Ga.; Greenville,
S.C.; Charlotte, N.C.; Greensboro, N.C.; Roanoke, Va.
— Sept. 26-28: Spencer, N.C., Thomas the Tank Engine at North Carolina
Transportation Museum
— Oct. 2-5: Toccoa, Ga., Currahee Military Weekend
— Oct. 8-20: Chattanooga, Tenn., Tennessee Valley Railroad Museum
— Nov. 1: Meridian, Miss., Railfest
— Nov. 5-23: Duluth, Ga., Southeastern Railway Museum
— Dec. 5-7: Strasburg, Pa., Thomas the Tank Engine at Strasburg Railroad

Norfolk Southern Corporation is one of the nation’s premier transportation companies. Its Norfolk Southern Railway subsidiary operates approximately 21,000 route miles in 22 states and the District of Columbia, serving every major container port in the eastern United States and providing superior connections to western rail carriers. Norfolk Southern operates the most extensive intermodal network in the East and is North America’s largest rail carrier of metals and automotive products.
Norfolk Southern Corporation

INRIX Announces Comprehensive Connected Services Platform Integrating Traffic, Map, Routing and Other Content Into a Complete Solution for Navigation Applications

KIRKLAND, Wash., May 20 /PRNewswire/ — INRIX(R), the leading provider of traffic information, today announced a comprehensive suite of INRIX Connected Services solutions for navigation devices, telematics services and other in- car applications. The INRIX Connected Services platform encompasses the world’s first ‘third generation’ routing engine, dynamic traffic data covering 800,000 miles of roadways, additional location-relevant content, and a developer zone designed to greatly simplify creation of location-based service applications.
(Logo: )

World’s First ‘Third Generation’ Routing Service

INRIX is introducing the world’s first ‘third generation’ routing service which goes beyond current state-of-the-market “traffic avoidance” routing algorithms to incorporate real-time, predictive and historical traffic information providing consumers with accurate fastest-route calculations. INRIX technology has developed a platform that enables the ability to anticipate traffic and road conditions along potential routes, over the course of time. INRIX routing algorithms can intelligently evaluate multiple routes and apply the most relevant fusion of traffic information available across each segment of roadway along the entire route. This groundbreaking service looks into the future to determine how traffic is expected to change along the course of travel — a breakthrough in providing better routes and more accurate travel times to consumers.
Total Fusion
INRIX also announced the availability of INRIX Total Fusion, the first traffic data service that intelligently combines real-time, predictive and historical traffic information for over 800,000 miles of roadways across the U.S. INRIX Total Fusion is the ideal solution for a rich connected navigation experience, providing speed information for busy city streets and congested arterials in addition to major freeways and the entire U.S. interstate highway system.
Connected Services Content and Developer Zone
The INRIX Connected Services platform seamlessly integrates Total Fusion traffic data and time-intelligent, traffic-influenced routing with other dynamic content aggregated by INRIX including map data, fuel prices, weather, movie times, local search and more. INRIX has partnered with best-of-breed companies — including Tele Atlas, deCarta, Clear Channel, OPIS and others — to aggregate the highest quality location-relevant content and geospatial services available.
Customers of INRIX will gain direct access to the INRIX Connected Services platform and content via the INRIX Developer Zone (devzone.inrix.com). In addition to sample applications and code libraries, the developer zone provides API access to the INRIX Connected Services platform, routing engine and content, greatly simplifying the creation of location-based service applications. Example applications customers can integrate include traffic flow and incident information with other content to create targeted applications including integrating traffic-influenced routing based upon real- time, historical and predictive traffic; enabling traffic-based alerts customized to individual users; highlighting road speeds or fuel prices along a potential route or in a region; and displaying traffic on a map.
“Today’s announcement marks an important evolution for INRIX from being solely a traffic data information provider to a company focused on delivering customized solutions — with traffic at its core — for connected devices,” commented Bryan Mistele, INRIX president and CEO. “We are enabling our customers to swiftly achieve their go-to-market strategies by providing a one stop shop for location-relevant content along with a suite of developer tools for easy access to our content and services. As costs come down across all segments, device makers need to differentiate — this is their catalyst to stay competitive.”
INRIX Connected Services platform offers an unparalleled suite of content services providing navigation OEMs and location-based service application developers with private label, go-to-market solutions for in-vehicle, personal navigation device (PND), wireless phone and other connected devices. The company has several customers for its connected services platform which will be formally announced in the coming months.
Rising consumer awareness, declining unit prices and rapid technological advances are driving exponential growth of navigation devices and applications. According to a recent study published by ABI Research, real- time, two-way connected versions of navigation devices (PNDs, automotive OEM, and aftermarket) will show strong growth, reaching nearly 100 million units shipped by the end of 2012. Handset-based navigation will also experience explosive growth over the next 5 years — from under 500,000 users worldwide at the end of 2007 to more than 70 million at the end of 2012.(1)
INRIX Connected Services will be available to INRIX customers in June, 2008.
About INRIX
INRIX(R) is the leading provider of accurate real-time, historical and predictive traffic information in North America and Europe, with over 55 customers and industry partners including TomTom, MapQuest, Microsoft, Clear Channel Radio’s Total Traffic Network, TeleNav, I-95 Corridor Coalition, Tele Atlas, deCarta, ITIS Holdings, Mio, Navigon, TCS, Telmap, ANWB, ARC Transistance, and TNO. INRIX delivers the highest quality data and broadest coverage available for personal navigation, mapping, telematics and other location-based service applications in the car, online and on mobile devices.
INRIX Traffic Services leverage sophisticated statistical analysis techniques, originally developed by Microsoft Research, to aggregate and enhance traffic-related information from hundreds of public and private sources, including traditional road sensors and the company’s unique network of over 750,000 GPS-enabled vehicles and cellular probes. INRIX delivers traffic information today for over 100 markets in North America and via ARC Transistance for 16 European countries. To experience the traffic technology revolution behind the next generation of navigation and location-based service applications, visit .
INRIX is a registered trademark of INRIX, Inc. in the United States and/or other countries.
The names of actual companies and products mentioned herein may be the trademarks of their respective owners.
(1) ABI Connected Navigation Research Brief - - Q42007

INRIX, Inc.

Lost Landmarks: Greyhound Survey Reveals Surprising Behaviors of U.S. Travelers

DALLAS, May 8 /PRNewswire/ — Americans making their summer travel plans will likely skip some of the nation’s most popular landmarks. That’s one of the surprising findings from Greyhound’s first-ever “Hit the Road” survey, a poll of 1,000 nationally representative American adults exploring how often they travel, where they go and how they get there.
The survey found that Americans like to travel regularly for pleasure, with 82 percent taking at least one leisure trip each year. But while they may be itching to hit the road, few Americans have visited the nation’s iconic landmarks such as Mount Rushmore (19 percent), the Liberty Bell (27 percent) and Niagara Falls (35 percent). Even the Washington Monument in our nation’s capitol has been seen by less than half (42 percent) of Americans.
“We’re surprised to find that more U.S. travelers aren’t choosing to visit some of our nation’s wonderful monuments,” said Kim Plaskett, director, corporate communications, Greyhound. “We encourage travelers to see America by hitting the road this summer, but leave the car behind. The bus provides a safe, inexpensive and environmentally friendly way to take in the sights, especially in light of high gas prices.”
The survey also found that 37 percent of Americans have been to less than 10 U.S. states in their lifetime. Florida tops the list of the most-visited states (62 percent), followed by California (56 percent) and New York (51 percent). Despite its beautiful scenery, Alaska is the least visited state in the country with just 13 percent venturing that far north.
Finally, Americans planning their vacations this summer are also more likely to travel someplace new, with 62 percent saying they would prefer a destination that they haven’t previously visited. Midwesterners in particular seem more adventurous, with more than seven in ten (71 percent) preferring to go to a new destination.
“With sky-high gas prices, congested airports and fewer amenities on airlines despite higher fares, summer travelers are looking for ways to get the best value for their money,” said Plaskett. “Greyhound offers a relaxing and cost-effective alternative for exploring new vacation destinations.”
The Greyhound “Hit the Road” Survey was conducted online by Kelton Research from March 19 to March 24, 2008. Quotas are set to ensure a reliable and accurate representation of the total population of Americans ages 18 and over. Results of any sample are subject to sampling variation. In this particular study, the chances are 95 in 100 that a survey result does not vary, plus or minus, by more than 3.1 percentage points from the result that would be obtained if interviews had been conducted with all persons in the universe represented by the sample.
About Greyhound
Greyhound is the largest North American provider of intercity bus transportation, serving more than 2,300 destinations with nearly 13,000 daily departures across the continent. The company also provides Greyhound PackageXpress (GPX), as well as charters and shore services. For fare and schedule information and to buy tickets call 1-800-231-2222 or visit the Web site at .
About Kelton Research
Kelton Research is a full service market research consultancy with offices in Los Angeles, New York, and Washington DC. Kelton serves as a strategic partner to both Fortune 500 corporations and smaller companies, utilizing a wide range of qualitative and quantitative methodologies to drive tactical recommendations for clients. For more information about Kelton’s services, please call (310) 479-4040 or visit .
Greyhound Lines, Inc.

Slow Down! Following Speed Limits Good for Safety and Your Wallet

WASHINGTON, May 13 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ — As millions of Americans take to the roadways for the busy Memorial Day Weekend and summer driving season, the Governors Highway Safety Association (GHSA) reminds drivers that slowing down will not only reduce the amount of money they have to spend on gas, but also could save their life.
According to the Department of Energy, aggressive driving (speeding, rapid acceleration and braking) can lower gas mileage by 33 percent at highway speeds and 5 percent around town. The agency also estimates that, as a rule of thumb, drivers can assume that each 5 mph they drive above 60 mph is like paying an additional $0.20 per gallon for gas.
Despite the benefits of slowing down, the public has not yet gotten the message. According to an informal GHSA survey(1) of state highway safety agencies, only Wisconsin reports a noticeable trend of reduced speeds as a result of high gas prices. Wisconsin officials report that while traffic volume is down slightly, speeds are also down, directly impacting both the frequency and seriousness of crashes across the entire state. State troopers report speeds along the freeways are moderating especially with commercial vehicles, many of which have slowed to travel at or even below the speed limit. A handful of other states note the reduced speed of commercial vehicles, likely resulting from more trucking companies setting policies that require their drivers to stay below a set speed, such as 67 mph.
In addition to helping fight the cost of record-high gas prices, slowing down also increases the likelihood of surviving a crash. According to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, in a high-speed crash, a passenger vehicle is subjected to forces so severe that the vehicle structure cannot withstand the impact of the crash and maintain survival space in the occupant compartment.
Further evidence comes from a 2005 study that showed even a small reduction in speed can have a big impact on lives saved. In the report, published in the Transportation Research Record, author Rune Elvik found that a 1 percent decrease in travel speed reduces injury crashes by about 2 percent, serious injury crashes by about 3 percent and fatal crashes by about 4 percent. These reductions are critically needed as speeding remains a serious highway safety problem–nearly 13,500 people died in speed-related crashes in 2006.
According to GHSA Chairman Christopher J. Murphy, “Nationally, GHSA members report that we are not seeing any noticeable decreases in travel speeds by passenger vehicles. However, given the extremely high gas prices and life-saving benefits of slowing down, we urge the public to ease off the accelerator.”
For tips to improve gas mileage, visit the U.S. Department of Energy’s website at or download AAA’s Gas Watcher’s Guide, f.
(1) GHSA conducted an e-mail survey of state highway safety agencies May 7-9, 2008. States were asked if they were seeing any noticeable decrease in travel speeds by either passenger vehicles or commercial vehicles. If data didn’t exist, the agency was asked its opinion based on observation by its staff and law enforcement personnel.
CONTACT: Jonathan Adkins, 1-202-789-0942
Governors Highway Safety Association