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Transportation Under Secretary Shane and APL's Widdows honored U. of Maryland recognizes transportation leaders for raising awarenessCollege Park, Maryland, Oct. 27, 2006 – The University of Maryland's Robert H. Smith School of Business today honored Department of Transportation Under Secretary Jeffrey N. Shane and APL Chief Executive Officer Ron Widdows for thrusting freight transportation into the public spotlight. Public-private sector partners over the last 2 years, Shane and Widdows received awards from the university's Logistics, Transportation and Supply Chain Management Society for "bringing freight transportation into focus in the U.S. public sector transportation community." The pair was honored before an audience of transportation industry leaders, university alumni and supply chain management graduate students on the Maryland campus. This was the second honor in a month for Widdows, who was given the National Transportation Award Sept. 27, by the National Defense Transportation Association. "It is especially gratifying to be recognized alongside someone with the stature, vision and ability of my friend Jeff Shane," said Widdows. "His foresight has put the needs of the U.S. freight transport system on Washington's radar screen." Together, Widdows and Shane have elevated awareness about the challenges facing transport infrastructure in the U.S. They've engaged with top American importers and exporters, Capitol Hill leaders and key Bush Administration policymakers about the need to modernize and expand the nation's network of rails, ports and highways. Under Secretary Shane has initiated work on a draft National Freight Policy Framework to address the issue. Global container shipping leader APL -- along with others from the shipper, service provider, engineering and academic sectors -- has been invited to serve on the Transportation Research Board's Executive committee to provide the perspective of the freight industry in transportation deliberations. "Jeff Shane can justifiably feel proud of his efforts, and those of his administration, to catalyze action and kick-start the process of focusing attention on an issue that has a significant impact on the U.S. economy and on America's competitiveness," said Widdows. Addressing students in the audience, Widdows added: "Many of you here today are about to embark on exciting and rewarding careers in this dynamic sector. The challenges to building a more efficient transportation system in the U.S. are enormous, requiring new products, services and technology, and solutions that will not only improve the velocity of our customers' supply chains, but address the need to handle the growth in transportation demand in a way that also improves the environment. "You will have a crucial role to play in continuing the work of collaboration between government and the private sector to find more innovative ways to increase the scale and the pace of development that will be critical to the health of the U.S. economy in the years to come." About APL Media Enquiries Americas |
