CETIN JOINS RAVENBAKHT TO DISCUSS SIMULATION'S TRAFFIC BENEFITS

When Camelia Ravenbakht, deputy executive director of Hampton Roads Transportation Planning Organization, signed up to talk about transportation and logistics using modeling in simulation, little did she know that the area would experience one of the worst preventable traffic jams several days before.

The talk came during a three-day modeling and simulation event and followed the Sept. 14 to Sept. 16 closing of the Hampton Roads Bridge Tunnel and James River Bridge, which both connect the Peninsula to South Hampton Roads. The tunnels' closing put a huge burden on the only other route between the two sides - the Monitor Merrimac Memorial Bridge Tunnel.

Ravenbakht, along with Mecit Cetin, associate professor of civil engineering, and John Horner, professional engineer with Open Roads Consulting, spoke about how the science can benefit transportation. Noting that transportation is an important issue in Hampton Roads, the trio said it affects more than just daily commutes. It also plays a role with foreign trade and tourism. Plus the military - a primary employer in the area - is affected because personnel need to make a morning and afternoon commute.

A challenge for Hampton Roads is that there are so many daily work commutes.

"We don't just have a downtown, where most people work," Ravenbakht said. "We have a downtown in Norfolk, Town Center in Virginia Beach, Greenbrier section in Chesapeake and then there is the Naval Base, which employs many people. We have a sprawl system."