Capitol Hill panel on smart roads, smart cars to open Auto Show
In keeping with its theme The Power of Mobility, the 2016 Washington Auto Show will start its Public Policy Days on Wed., Jan. 20, with MobilityTalks, a Capitol Hill panel that will explore how technology is making roads and vehicles safer and the infrastructure smarter. Held at the Rayburn House Office Building Gold Room, the talks will explore cybersecurity, spectrum sharing, data analytics and shared-use mobility in relation to connected and autonomous vehicles.
Organized in partnership with the Intelligent Transportation Society of America (ITS America), the panel will be moderated by Thomson Reuters Transportation Editor Joseph White and will feature a cast of notable speakers:
« Maureen K. Ohlhausen, commissioner, Federal Trade Commission
« Dr. John B. Kenney, director, Network Div., Toyota InfoTechnology Center
« Cordell Schachter, chief technology officer, New York City Department of Transportation
« Ken Athanasiou, vice president and chief information security officer, AutoNation
« Dr. Regina Clewlow, director of transportation research and policy, RideScout
« Sen. Gary Peters (D-Mich.), Co-Chair, Senate Smart Transportation Caucus, will provide opening remarks.
The panel will be followed by an on-road demonstration of the latest connected vehicle technologies, driving from Capitol Hill to the Auto Show venue in the Walter E. Washington Convention Center. Adding to the pageantry, the demonstration will host high-level government officials and also feature a vintage 1915 Ford Model T, entered in the National Historic Vehicle Register by the Auto Showês strategic partner, the Historic Vehicle Association. HVA recently replicated the same road trip in this Model T driven a century ago by Edsel Ford and his friends from Detroit to San Francisco.
Media/Industry Day events will continue the next day, Thurs., Jan. 21, on the floor of The Washington Auto Show for a daylong schedule of press announcements, culminating in the Auto Show Sneak Preview Reception that evening. The day launches with a morning keynote address from John Mendel, executive vice president of American Honda Motor Co., and continues with a keynote presentation from NHTSA Administrator Mark Rosekind. Numerous OEM product press announcements will also occur during the day, and a plenary session by SAE Internationalês Government/ Industry Conference. The Sneak Peek Reception — by invitation only– commences at 5:00 pm running until 8:00 pm.
As Mendelês address follows Hondaês world premiere of its Clarity Fuel Cell at the Tokyo Motor Show this fall, he will likely discuss Hondaês vision of a hydrogen energy society and its contribution to empowering drivers and societies to take the wheel of a greener, cleaner world.
Featuring more than 700 vehicles from more than 40 manufacturers, The Washington Auto Show opens to the public from Friday, Jan. 22, through Sunday, Jan. 31. For more information, visit www.washingtonautoshow.com.
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