Young Professionals x Industry Experts Debate: 'private cars will always be king in Australia'
Friday 15 September 2023 1:15pm-2:30pm
Ever since it was introduced to Australian shores, the presence of the private car has dominated and shaped our built environment. Will this ever change and when or how will this happen? Come along and listen to this contentious topic being addressed in a light-hearted, fun and thought-provoking debate between two superstar panels of Young Professionals and Industry Experts. Bring your own popcorn!
Session Outline
Session Moderator – Mary Haverland, Senior Technical Director | Arcadis
Young Professionals:
- Jessica Tong, Transport Engineer | WSP
- Will Finlay, Transport Modeller | Stantec
- Zoe O’Malley, Senior Traffic and Transport Engineer | Jacobs
Industry Experts:
- Bill Allen, Independant Consultant (previously Bentley Systems) (US)
- Laura Procter, Team Leader Victorian Transport Planning & Advisory team | SMEC
- Ingrid Burkett, Professor & Director, Griffith Centre for Systems Innovation | Griffith University
Young Professionals:
Jessica Tong - Transport Engineer | WSP
Jessica Tong
Transport Engineer | WSP
Jessica is a Transport Engineer at WSP Australia and works in the Victorian Planning & Mobility team. She graduated from the University of Melbourne with a Master of Engineering (Civil with Business) in 2020, where she worked concurrently as a research assistant in the Transport Technologies Group. Jessica's continued interest in the transport industry stems from her current experience in transport engineering and planning as well as future technologies research. She is interested in future mobility and transport data analytics - specifically, the application and integration of new transport technologies, including data and policy, for future mobility and safety.
Will Finlay - Transport Modeller | Stantec
Will Finlay
Transport Modeller | Stantec
William is a transport modeller at Stantec based in WA working with both the WA transport and national modelling teams. Will’s love of transport modelling began having been exposed to a small amount studying aerospace engineering and mathematics and has never looked back. While at Stantec Will has worked on a range of modelling projects scaling from detailed microsimulation, hybrid modelling and to the strategic level. Ultimately, Will’s interests lie in the analytical space with a motivation for the optimal use of space and transport networks. Being the current AITPM YPN WA Chair Will is thrilled to be on Young Professionals team and can’t wait for the great debate.
Zoe O’Malley - Senior Traffic and Transport Engineer | Jacobs
Zoe O’Malley
Senior Traffic and Transport Engineer and Team Leader – Transport Planning (Northern) | Jacobs
Zoe graduated from the University of Queensland with a Bachelor of Civil and Environmental Engineering (Honours) in 2017. Zoe started working with Jacobs as an undergraduate in late 2015 and is now a senior transport engineer and team leader in the Brisbane transport planning team. Zoe has a passion for sustainable transport solutions having worked on a range of transport planning, modelling and engineering projects over the last seven years with a particular focus on public and active transport. Milestone projects for Zoe include Brisbane Metro and the 2018 Commonwealth Games which have helped develop her proficiency in data analytics and visualisation of project outcomes.
Industry Experts:
Bill Allen - Independent consultant (formerly Bentley Systems) (US)
Bill Allen
Independent consultant
(formerly Bentley Systems)
Bill has bachelor’s and master’s degrees in civil engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and worked for consulting firms before running his own practice from 1988 to 2016. He is now retired from full-time consulting but works on small projects from time to time. During his long career, Bill has worked in nearly every aspect of travel modelling including estimation, validation, application, evaluation and review, subarea, sketch planning, and cycling. He considers the development in 2010 of the Simplified Tour-Based Model his key career development. This development uses a straightforward discrete structure that is a reasonable and efficient way to improve existing four-step models.
Bill, who has authored or co-authored more than 35 papers and presentations at professional conferences, believes stepping back to view the ‘big picture’ is vital in travel forecasting. Bill and his wife Kim have been married for nearly 50 years and live on a horse farm in North Carolina. He is passionate about carriage driving and competing and will soon compete in two US national championships.
Laura Procter - Team Leader Victorian Transport Planning & Advisory team | SMEC
Laura Procter
Team Leader Victorian Transport Planning & Advisory team | SMEC
Laura is a Certified Engineer with over 15 years' experience in traffic engineering, transport planning, road safety, project development, project management, and evaluation. Since joining SMEC in 2019, Laura has been the Traffic Engineering Lead on several landmark projects including the Pound Road West Extension and Camms Road Level Crossing Removal Projects and has recently led SMEC’s Road Safety Advisory Services for Transurban’s Burnley Tunnel Enhancement Project.
Laura is the Team Leader of Traffic Engineering & Road Safety for SMEC’s Transport Planning and Advisory team in Victoria. She is passionate about leading by example and encouraging her team to develop safe and innovative solutions for SMEC’s clients.
Ingrid Burkett - Professor & Director, Griffith Centre for Systems Innovation | Griffith University
Ingrid Burkett (Australia)
Professor and Director of the Griffith Centre for Systems Innovation (formerly The Yunus Centre) Griffith University
Ingrid is Professor and Co-Director of the Griffith Centre for Systems Innovation, Griffith University. She is a social designer, designing processes, products and knowledge that deepen social impact and facilitate social innovation. She is passionate about developing more effective ways to foster 'the business of social impact'. With qualifications in design, social work, economics, and business, much of Ingrid’s work has focussed on addressing complex problems - from place-based inequities to shifting how we invest and contract better for deeper impact. Ingrid has particular expertise in the design of economic processes and products and is recognised internationally for her work in community finance, social investment, social procurement, social enterprise, and not-for-profit sustainability.
Ingrid has built five social businesses, contributed to the design of practice models, policy, and processes in a diversity of fields, including local economic development, ageing, disability, procurement, impact finance and impact investment. She considers her career highlights to be creating foundations for social procurement in Australia and doing groundwork for Australia’s entry into social and impact investment.
Ingrid led the design of several key place-based initiatives aimed at addressing entrenched disadvantage including the Geelong Regional Opportunities for Work initiative, an innovative, award winning approach to engaging business in addressing disadvantage. She is Past President and Honorary Ambassador of the International Association for Community Development and continues to be committed to fostering deep local and international dialogue about designing innovative and participatory methodologies for regenerative futures.
