The ITE Toronto, Hamilton and Southwestern Ontario Sections are joining forces this year and are pleased to announce a Mini Transportation Conference! We are delighted to host a partnered event enjoyed by many in previous years and are welcoming anyone involved in the transportation industry – from transportation professionals to students in the public, private and academic communities. Please join us on:

DATE: Wednesday, October 28, 2026

TIME:  8:00 am to 3:15 pm EST

LOCATION: Oakville Conference Centre, 2515 Wyecroft Road, Oakville

The conference centre is accessible by transit using GO Transit and Oakville Transit services (closest GO station is Bronte GO) and has direct access at the interchange of the QEW (Hwy 403) and Bronte Road, with free parking available on-site.

This all-day event is packed with 4 technical sessions presented by 9-12 speakers and two breaks to foster social networking and student-industry engagement opportunities through student posters. A breakfast and lunch will be provided as part of your admission.

You can earn 5.5 PDH credits for your participation at the conference.

HOTEL ACCOMMODATION

AGENDA

SPONSORSHIP

Six GOLD Level Sponsorships ($500) are available to support the mini conference. In exchange for your generous contribution as a sponsor, the ITE Sections are collectively inviting sponsors to bring a roll-up board with banner stand (24” to 33” by 80”) to promote their transportation services. The company’s logo will be pre-assigned to either the breaks, the keynote portion or one of the three technical sessions, and the company/organization will be recognized verbally in the proceedings. One free individual member registration is included with the sponsorship package.

STUDENT POSTER SESSION

Students are invited to showcase their research, capstone projects, transportation studies, and emerging ideas through the conference’s Student Poster Session. Posters will be displayed throughout the day in a dedicated networking area and available for viewing during breaks and lunch. Each participant will be provided with an easel and coroplast display board (min. dimensions 24″ x 36″ and max. dimensions 36″ x 48″) for mounting presentation materials. Students are encouraged to be present during networking breaks to discuss their work, answer questions, and connect with transportation professionals, academics, and fellow students. The poster session offers a valuable opportunity to share ideas, receive feedback, and expand your professional network within the transportation industry. Students intending to bring a poster are asked to indicate this during registration so that display space and materials can be accommodated.

GUEST SPEAKERS

It would not be a sectional conference without our guest speakers, who have graciously volunteered their time and efforts in making this event possible. We are honoured to host this year’s selection of speakers:

Keynote Speakers

James Perttula is Director of Transportation Planning for the City of Toronto, with oversight of long- range planning for Toronto’s multimodal transportation system.  James is passionate about building a great city through the integration of transportation and land use planning.  James also leads the City’s engagement with the Provincial government on Transit Oriented Communities projects which is focused on creating complete communities around transit.  Prior to shifting to planning the transportation system for the City of Toronto in December 2014, James spent most of his career exploring transportation, economic and municipal policy issues with the Ontario government.  He alternates between transit and cycling in his commute to City Hall, and much of his travel around this city.

Fahad Khan is with the City of Toronto, where he is working closely with the Chief Congestion Officer on city-wide strategies to address Toronto’s congestion challenges. He previously led the City’s automated vehicle program and more recently worked with the Virginia Department of Transportation and the MTO (Ontario), advancing connected, automated, and emerging mobility initiatives and ITS solution. His experience spans transportation operations, innovation, tolling and technology-enabled mobility solutions in both Canada and the United States.

Active Transportation Session

Kate Whitfield, P.Eng., MCIP, RPP, RSP1 is one of the co-owners of Take Consulting Ltd, a small consulting firm with offices in Ottawa, Kitchener and Kingston. Based in Ottawa herself, Kate primarily works for municipal clients in communities across Canada and enjoys the perspective of being both a Professional Engineer and a Professional Planner. Kate is currently seeking additional letters to go after her name as part of the MBA program at Carleton University.

Danny Pimentel brings over 15 years of experience in Transportation Engineering, with more than half of his career focused on Active Transportation. A graduate of Mohawk College’s Transportation Engineering Program, Danny began applying his education immediately with the City of Kitchener before returning to his hometown of Hamilton to continue his municipal career. Throughout his career, Danny has held a variety of roles within municipal transportation, gaining diverse experience in master plan development, cycling facility design and operations, and the delivery of innovative transportation solutions. He is passionate about creating safe, accessible, and connected transportation networks and strives to incorporate industry best practices into every project he undertakes.

Zibby Petch, M. Pl., P. Eng. is a transportation planner and engineer focusing on all aspects of complete streets, active transportation and urban street design, including policy, planning and design. She is a Director at CIMA+ within the mobility team and applies a safety lens to her work with vulnerable road users as a certified Level 1 Road Safety Professional (RSP1). She is a passionate practitioner committed to improving sustainable transportation options in our cities.

Planning and Engagement Session

An Associate of RV Anderson Associates, Andrew McGregor is a Senior Planner and Project Manager with extensive experience in managing environmental assessments (EAs) and obtaining approvals for transportation and municipal infrastructure projects. As an EA practitioner for over 20 years, Andrew has gained significant knowledge and experience in effective communication with stakeholders, Indigenous communities and technical agencies. Through the application of various approaches to community engagement, Andrew has helped secure approvals for municipal, provincial and federal projects, particularly in the field of transportation. Andrew is well versed with environmental and planning legislation including the Ontario Environmental Assessment Act, Impact Assessment Act, the Ontario Environmental Protection Act and the Planning Act.

Jill Juhlke is a Certified Engineering Technologist and Professional Transportation Planner with over 25 years’ experience in transportation planning and engineering. She is the Acting Manager of Transportation Planning at the City of Hamilton where she oversees the Development Approvals and Mobility Planning teams. The development approvals team reviews all applications through a transportation lens to ensure they are safe, accessible, and encourage travel by all modes, regardless of users’ ages and abilities. The Mobility Planning team undertakes short and medium-term transportation projects and special initiatives such as the truck route master plan, functional design studies and environmental assessments. She has worked for both public and private sector employers in Canada and the United States, including Hamilton Street Railway, Maryland Mass Transit Administration, and consulting firm Paradigm Transportation Solutions Limited. She is an active volunteer and advocate for the transportation profession, Fellow of ITE, current Past President of the Hamilton Section of ITE Canada and a 2022 graduate of the LeadershipITE program.

Ethan McCaw is a Transportation Planner at R.J. Burnside & Associates Limited with experience across a wide range of transportation planning projects, including rail safety, traffic calming, road needs studies, and traffic impact assessments. He has led numerous rail safety projects for private developers and has represented multiple municipalities in the review and approval of rail safety reports.

Julia Pannolino is a Project Manager at Paradigm Transportation Solutions Limited with more than 10 years of experience delivering transportation planning projects across a range of transportation sectors. She has worked on many master plans, environmental assessments, and rail safety studies, with specialized expertise in railway safety, active transportation, and accessibility. Beyond her consulting work, Julia is an active member of ITE Hamilton, serving as Treasurer of the Executive Committee.

Safety and Speed Management

Sheyda Saneinejad is a Professional Engineer and Road Safety Professional (RSP1) with over 17 years of experience in the field of road safety and active transportation. She is the Manager of Vision Zero Projects at the City of Toronto, and has led several projects involving policy making, planning, designing, operating and monitoring the right of way, particularly for vulnerable road users. She also shares her expertise as an educator in the field. Sheyda holds a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering and a Master’s degree in Transportation Planning and Engineering.

Reza Aminghafouri, PhD, P.Eng., RSP1, is a Transportation Engineering Data Analyst with the City of Guelph, where he supports the City’s Vision Zero program through data-driven road safety analysis. Reza earned his PhD in Transportation Engineering from the University of Waterloo, where he continues to research proactive road safety methods using near-miss (conflict) data. Across both his research and municipal work, he applies statistical modeling and machine learning to find where risk is highest and what actually makes streets safer. He is also active in the national road safety community through his roles with ITE Canada and the Transportation Association of Canada (TAC).

Mr. Aaron D. Blata, M.Eng., P.Eng., PTOE, RSP1 is a 13-year employee and Partner of RC Spencer Associates Inc.  In addition to managing the corporation’s Leamington Office, he is corporately responsible for the design and management of major engineering projects (particularly as it relates to any transportation planning, traffic operations, or traffic safety elements). Within Southwestern Ontario, Mr. Aaron D. Blata is one of a very few select holders of the Consulting Engineer, Professional Traffic Operations Engineer (PTOE), and Road Safety Professional (RSP1) designations, and he is currently pursuing his Professional Transportation Planner (PTP) designation. Most of his time is spent authoring traffic reports and managing the design of corridors, traffic signals, and active transportation facilities, but he occasionally offers technical presentations through the University of Windsor, the University of Waterloo, and the Ontario Traffic Council; he is also very active in the Institute of Transportation Engineers (ITE) Southwestern Ontario Section. In 2024, Mr. Blata was recognized as a Top 3 Young Professional by the Windsor-Essex Regional Chamber of Commerce and continues to strive for technical excellence in providing safe and operational robust transportation systems.

Jeff Jongsma is a Senior Transportation Technologist with the City of London, specializing in Road Safety.  A graduate of Fanshawe College’s Civil Engineering Technology program, he started as a highway designer with Stantec Consulting before joining the City of London in 2021.  Most of Jeff’s day is devoted to neighbourhood traffic calming concerns, including safety in school zones.  Jeff has helped devise London’s Road Safety Initiatives Fund (RSIF) traffic calming measures in addition to bringing new traffic calming measures to the City’s list of options.  Jeff is the immediate Past President of ITE Canada Southwestern Ontario Section, and is the co-chair of the 2028 ITE Canada conference, hosted in London.

REGISTRATION