The Talking Operations Forum - Information and Posting Guidelines

The new Talking Operations Forum has a dual role:

1. To complement and support the new Talking Operations Web Conference Series, and
2. To serve as a place where managers and practitioners can share their own ideas, thoughts and insight on how we can collectively operate and manage our surface transportation system better.

Through this open forum, your colleagues will be able to review and respond to your ideas, thereby continuing the dialogue that will lead to increased productivity and safety of the surface transportation network in the U.S. We encourage you to take part in vigorous discussions on issues raised at the monthly Talking Operations Web Conferences or other key issues or challenges that you face related to transportation management and operations. The Talking Operations Forum is a product of the National Transportation Operations Coalition (NTOC) and is funded by the U.S. Federal Highway Administration and maintained by the Institute of Transportation Engineers (ITE).

To make the Talking Operations Forum as effective and enjoyable to its users as possible, we ask that you follow a few simple rules:

1. Make sure that your message postings are "on topic," that is, that they relate to some aspect of transportation operations and management or provide insight into a topic raised at a recent web conference.
2. Limit your discussions to professional issues and conduct those discussions in a professional manner.
3. Refrain from posting messages related to positions available, positions wanted, advertisements for your firm's products or services, or other promotional material. Those types of messages are strictly prohibited.

Posting new comments on the Talking Operations Forum's on-line bulletin board is very easy -- simply go to the home page (link), which contains a discussion index where all of the recent comments are listed, and click on the link at the top entitled "Post New Message." A posting form will then display on your browser. Simply fill in the boxes. You can "preview" the message and then post it, or post it directly. Replying to existing messages is likewise very easy: simply click on the "Post Response" link at the top of a message that you wish to respond to, fill in the form provided, and then preview or post your message. Your browser will return to the Talking Operations Forum home page after you have submitted your message or response.

The Talking Operations Forum is a moderated discussion forum, which means that all new message postings are put in a queue for the content moderator to review and approve or reject. That process may take as little as a few minutes or as much as a day or two, depending on the moderator's availability. Your message has a high likelihood of approval if you have followed the few simple rules described above.

We encourage you to visit the Talking Operations Forum home page (link) often to view the new discussion topics and threads. As an added bonus, you can sign up to receive an email digest (single email message) containing all new messages at 7 AM (Eastern Time) each morning, Monday through Friday. Simply click on the "(Un)Subscribe" link at the top of the Talking Operations Forum home page, provide your email address in the space provided, then press the "Send Address" button. Use the same process to unsubscribe, except make sure that the "Delete Address from List" radio button is checked.

The Talking Operations Forum home page (which lists recent message postings) can be customized to change both the order of the message index (chronological, by-thread, etc.) as well as the number of messages that are visible. Simply click on the "Set Preferences" link from the forum's home page and follow the instructions that are provided.

We encourage your feedback and welcome your questions and inquiries. Please forward any questions related to the forum's content or usage guidelines to the forum moderator (Richard Easley, reasley@e-squared.org), and any questions related to the larger National Transportation Operations Coalition (NTOC) to Zia Burleigh, Operations Community Builder, FHWA Office of Operations (Zia.Burleigh@fhwa.dot.gov).

Welcome to the Talking Operations Forum!