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New North American Transportation Atlas Data Released on CD-ROM

15 July 1998

NEW NORTH AMERICAN TRANSPORTATION
ATLAS DATA RELEASED ON CD-ROM

        U.S. Secretary of Transportation Rodney E. Slater today announced
the release of the department's first atlas to provide information about
transportation facilities in all three countries of  North America.

        The atlas is called the North American Transportation Atlas Data
(NORTAD), and it is a CD-ROM produced by the department's  Bureau of
Transportation Statistics (BTS).

        "This atlas will help planners and researchers from all entities
of transportation, " said Secretary Slater.  "Producing it would have
been impossible without help from other nations, especially active
participation from the governments of Canada and Mexico."

        According to BTS Deputy Director Robert A. Knisely, the NORTAD is
a set of geographic data of transportation facilities for each country on
the continent.  These data include geospatial information for
transportation modal networks and intermodal terminals, and related
attribute information.  Each dataset includes documentation that meets
Federal Geographic Data Committee (FGDC) metadata content standards.  In
addition, the metadata has been translated into French and Spanish.

        The data includes geography and attribute files in a standard
ASCII text format. The CD-ROM supports research, analysis, and decision making across all
modes of transportation.  The data will be most useful at the national
level, but will also have major implications at the international,
regional, state, and local scale throughout the transportation community.

        This CD-ROM provides transportation planners and researchers
valuable geographic and attribute information for 20 datasets.  These
datasets include information about public use of airports, water ports,
highway networks, railway networks, and state boundaries.

        The NORTAD includes both DOS/Windows and UNIX compatible files on
one CD-ROM.  The data are designed for use within a Geographic Information
System (GIS). To allow those without a GIS to view the data graphically,
BTS is releasing a Windows NT/95-based data viewer on the CD-ROM.  For those with a GIS, the
data viewer will convert the geospatial data to a number of popular GIS
formats.  The data viewer is available through the Internet at
http://www.bts.gov/gis/ntatlas/translation.html.

        To order a copy of the CD-ROM, contact the Bureau of
Transportation Statistics by phone on (202) 366-DATA, by FAX on (202)
366-3640, by email to orders@bts.gov, or by writing to the Bureau of
Transportation Statistics at BTS/DOT, 400 Seventh Street, S.W.,
Washington, D.C. 20590.  The data also may be accessed via the Internet
at http://www.bts.gov/gis/ntatlas.

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        Visit the DOT Public Affairs Web Site at:
                http://www.dot.gov/briefing.htm