Shows
Amped UpTheory & Practice: Wes Marshall on Why We Design Streets the Way We DoJoin Ellen Zavisca, AMPO’s transportation planning manager, for a conversation with Wes Marshall, professor of civil engineering at the University of Colorado in Denver, where he holds a joint appointment in urban planning and directs the CU Denver Human-Centered Transportation program and the Transportation Research Center at CU Denver. Wes is a licensed Professional Engineer with a PhD in Civil Engineering, and he is the author of the 2024 book “Killed by a Traffic Engineer.”You can check out Wes’s new podcast here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/look-both-ways-with-david-wes/id1827364420
2025-07-2941 min
Amped UpTheory & Practice: Wes Marshall on Why We Design Streets the Way We DoJoin Ellen Zavisca, AMPO’s transportation planning manager, for a conversation with Wes Marshall, professor of civil engineering at the University of Colorado in Denver, where he holds a joint appointment in urban planning and directs the CU Denver Human-Centered Transportation program and the Transportation Research Center at CU Denver. Wes is a licensed Professional Engineer with a PhD in Civil Engineering, and he is the author of the 2024 book “Killed by a Traffic Engineer.”You can check out Wes’s new podcast here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/look-both-ways-with-david-wes/id1827364420
2025-07-2841 min
Amped UpPaved Paradise: How Parking Shapes TransportationSeason two episode four of Amped Up is now available!In this episode, AMPO Transportation Planning Manager, Ellen Zavisca, chats with Tony Jordan of the Parking Reform Network about what led him to the fairly niche field of parking reform and how parking policies effect walkability, transit access, and transportation planning in general.A few helpful links related to the conversation:The Parking Reform NetworkThe High Cost of Free Parking by Donald ShoupSmart Growth American on how parking influences travel behaviorPSRC’s strategies for parking reductionPortland’s Transportation WalletAustin’s Reside...
2025-05-0631 min
Amped UpPaving a Low-Carbon Future: Transportation & Climate Policy in MinnesotaEllen chats with the friendly folks of Minnesota about the state’s greenhouse gas regulations that are just starting to have an effect on transportation projects across the state. Her guests are: Jonathan Ehrlich, Senior Manager of Transportation Research with the Metropolitan Council, the MPO for the Twin Cities region; Stephanie Halford, Executive Director of the MPO in Grand Forks, ND, which is a bi-state MPO in both MN and North Dakota; and Chris Berrens, GHG Impact Assessment Director with Minnesota DOT.The podcast mentions Colorado’s GHG law, which predates Minnesota’s by a couple of years...
2025-03-1934 min
Amped UpThe Road Ahead: Scenario Planning in OregonAMPO Transportation Planning Manager, Ellen Zavisca, chats with Adam Argo from the Oregon DOT about how the state uses scenario planning to face an uncertain future, and how it engages MPOs along the way.Helpful links:Oregon Transportation Plan:https://www.oregon.gov/odot/planning/pages/plans.aspx; and State of the System dashboard:https://www.oregon.gov/odot/state-of-the-system/Pages/default.aspxAdam references the book Scenario Planning for Cities and Regions:https://www.lincolninst.edu/publications/books/scenario-planning-cities-regions/He also mentions the VisionEval scenario planning tool:Vision...
2025-02-1336 min
Amped UpBallots & Budgets: A Review of 2024 Transportation Referenda with Yonah FreemarkAMPO Transportation Planning Manager, Ellen Zavisca, talks with Yonah Freemark from the Urban Institute to get his take on why some transportation ballot measures succeeded and other failed.Learn more about Yonah here: https://www.urban.org/author/yonah-freemarkCheck out his Bluesky threads on 2024 ballot measures:https://bsky.app/profile/yfreemark.bsky.social/post/3laeg52565z2nhttps://bsky.app/profile/yfreemark.bsky.social/post/3laeg52565z2nhttps://bsky.app/profile/yfreemark.bsky.social/post/3laer73onwc2rStreetsblog also has a summary of local transpo...
2025-01-2229 min
Amped UpWorking Together: Rethinking Arterials in the St. Louis RegionWe are excited to announce the release of the fourth and final episode of Amped Up for 2024!This episode is the result of a collaboration between AMPO and AASHTO. It explores the novel Blueprint for Arterials that is a partnership between Missouri DOT and East-West Gateway MPO and is a collaborative vision on how to design ideal roadways – especially arterials – that meet the needs of an ever growing urban and suburban landscape in Missouri. Covering topics such as improved access, safety, and mobility, the Blueprint will ensure that MoDOT builds roads to satisfy all users. In this epis...
2024-12-1623 min
Amped UpData on the Delaware: Geospatial Mapping at DVRPCIn this episode, our Transportation Planning Manager, Ellen Zavisca, sits down with Chris Pollard, Manager of the Office of GIS at DVRPC in Philadelphia. Together, they dive into the fascinating world of geospatial mapping and data—unwrapping the tools and techniques that shape the region's transportation landscape.We hope you enjoy the episode!
2024-12-1640 min
Amped UpMaui’s Path Forward: MPOs and the Road to ResilienceAMPO's podcast Amped Up returns, with an episode focused on the role of MPOs in disaster response and recovery. More than a year after wildfires ravaged Maui, you'll hear from the Maui MPO about how they are getting back on track, and their director's advice for other MPOs preparing for or recovering from natural disasters. You can listen via Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you find your podcasts. Helpful links: Maui's Long-Term Recover Plan and other recovery information; FEMA's Natural Disaster Recovery Framework
2024-11-1814 min
The Planning CommissionLet's Get Regional, Regional...MPOs with Ellen ZaviscaMetropolitan Planning Organizations are an important partner in the transportation planning world. But, not everyone is familiar with they responsibilities and overall roll. Ellen Zavisca is the Transportation Planning Manager for AMPO, where she coordinates their interest group webinars and administers the ActivitySim model. Prior to taking that position, she served as staff at the MPO in Knoxville, TN, for 18 years where her focus as an MPO planner was on safety for all modes of transportation, multimodal planning, Safe Routes to School, and the health impacts of transportation. Her projects have included creating multiple pedestrian and bicycle plans; building...
2024-03-0457 min
Amped UpTraffic Safety Data with Seth LaJeunesseIn the episode, Ellen Zavisca (AMPO Transportation Planning Manager) talks with Seth LaJeunesse from UNC’s Highway Safety Research Center about the role of data in roadway safety, including the Safe System, FHWA’s Safe Streets and Roads for All program, and the design of vehicles.Helpful Links:Seth’s bio, including links to publications: https://www.hsrc.unc.edu/team/lajeunesse/David J. Ederer’s publication on the Safe System Pyramid, where he identifies speed as the “pathologic agent” in traffic fatalities and serious injuries: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2590198223001525...
2023-12-1341 min