A Conference on Open Data Exchange to Improve Multimodal Travel
The University of Washington’s Transportation Data Exchange Initiative (TDEI) will host the 8th annual OpenThePaths conference from March 27-28, 2025.
OpenThePaths is a dynamic gathering of advocates, planners, researchers, and policymakers dedicated to expanding and sustaining pedestrian-friendly infrastructure. Over the past decade, we’ve made incredible strides in prioritizing walkability, accessibility, and active transportation. As the landscape of transportation policy evolves, this conference will explore how data-driven insights, cross-sector collaboration, and community advocacy can help us continue building on that progress.
This year, we are proud to launch OS-CONNECT, the first-ever statewide, standardized accessibility-first sidewalk dataset for Washington State, funded by the WA state legislative proviso. OS-CONNECT is the largest connected pedestrian graph schematized and annotated dataset of pedestrian ways, providing a critical foundation for improving pedestrian infrastructure, accessibility planning, and transportation.
📅 March 27-28, 2025
📍 Bill and Melinda Gates Center at the University of Washington, Seattle Campus (or on Zoom!)
(CSE2) Plan your way to the event with Accessmap.app!
Registration is open and completely free! Follow this registration link.
In-person attendee registration closes Monday March 24, 2025. Please complete the food option survey by that date.
Registration for virtual attendees closes Wednesday March 26, 2025.
OpenThePaths 2025 Agenda,
Advancing Complete Streets Through Data, Collaboration, and Advocacy
Day 1 – Thursday, March 27, 2025
📍 Zillow Commons (CSE2), Bill & Melinda Gates Center
| Time | Session | Details |
|---|---|---|
| 9:00 – 9:30 AM | Welcome & Coffee | Networking over coffee |
| 9:30 – 10:30 AM | Keynote: Community-First Autonomy | 🎤 Speaker: Armand Shahbazian How AVs impact safety, congestion, and equity 🔗 Slide Deck |
| 10:30 – 10:45 AM | Coffee Break | – |
| 10:45 AM – 12:15 PM | Data-Driven Barrier-Free Transportation | 🎤 Speakers: Anat Caspi, Thomas Craig, Tanisha Sepulveda – OS-CONNECT: WA’s first statewide pedestrian dataset – WA state DOT’s multimodal system – Open data & collaborative governance |
| 12:15 – 1:30 PM | Lunch & Poster/Demo Session | Explore transportation tools & research |
| 1:30 – 3:00 PM | Future of Non-Motorized Mobility | 🎤 Speakers: Brian Ferris, Eric Plosky, Bryan Housel – Digital tools shaping accessibility – Open-source routing – Equitable pedestrian and cycling infrastructure |
| 3:15 – 5:00 PM | Designing Inclusive Travel Tools | 🎤 Speakers: Laura Loe, Kunal Mehta, Tom Pey, AccessMap, WayMap, GoInfoGame, GoodMaps – Live tool demos – Community-led UX for accessible navigation |
| 5:00 PM | Wrap-Up & Networking Social | Informal networking & refreshments |
Day 2 – Friday, March 28, 2025
📍 Zillow Commons (CSE2), Bill & Melinda Gates Center
| Time | Session | Details |
|---|---|---|
| 9:00 – 9:30 AM | Check-in & Networking | – |
| 9:30 – 10:30 AM | Keynote: Multisolving in Transportation | 🎤 Speaker: Adair Hawkins, Mayor of Carnation Holistic approaches to accessibility |
| 10:30 – 10:45 AM | Coffee Break | – |
| 11:00 AM – 12:00 PM | Complete Streets for All | 🎤 Speakers: Nick Abel, Kathy Fitzpatrick Implementation in Skamania, Klickitat & King Counties |
| 12:00 – 1:15 PM | Lunch & Poster/Demo Session | – |
| 1:15 – 2:30 PM | Policy & Funding Partnerships | 🎤 Speakers: Greg Nance, Kirk Hovenkotter – Policy cycles & pedestrian advocacy – Building coalitions for equity |
| 2:30 – 3:15 PM | Funding Complete Streets Initiatives | 🎤 Speakers: Clara Cheeves, Cameron Steinback Aligning funding & policy for implementation |
| 3:20 – 4:30 PM | Workshop: Multi-Solving Equity | 🎤 Facilitator: Anat Caspi Interactive strategy session |
| 5:00 PM | No-Host Happy Hour | 📍 Eureka, 2614 NE 46th St, Seattle |
Speakers
Speakers: Keynote addresses by Armand Shahbazian and Mayor of Carnation, Adair Hawkins,
In alphabetical order:
Anat Caspi, Director at Taskar Center
Thomas Craig, Washington State Department of Transportation
Justin Deno, Innovation
Adair Hawkins, Mayor of Carnation
Bryan Housel, OpenSource contributor including iD Editor, RAPiD Editor, and the OpenStreetMap tech stack
Brian Ferris, originator of OneBusAway, GTFS community leader and Google Transit Engineer
Kirk Hovenkotter, Executive Director at Transportation Choices Coalition
Laura Loe, Program Manager at Hopelink for Find a Ride.
Mike May, National Federation of the Blind
Kunal Mehta, UX Specialist at Taskar Center
Representative Greg Nance, Kitsap
Tom Pey, CEO and Founder at WayMap
Eric Plosky, Executive Director at Mobility Data
Tanisha Sepulveda, Empower Movement Washington and Taskar Center
Armand Shabahzian, Electric and Automated Mobility Policy Advisor at the City of Seattle’s Department of Transportation
Cameron Steinback, visionary educator at Front and Centered
Wisam Yasen, Developer at Taskar Center
Check back often and follow us on Instagram, LinkedIn, and Twitter for the latest updates, details and deadlines.
If you missed last year’s event, watch our OpenThePaths 2024 playlist on YouTube!
We are grateful for Community level sponsorship by Hopelink and King County Metro
The Transportation Data Exchange Initiative is an open data project by the Taskar Center for Accessible Technology (TCAT) at the University of Washington in Seattle, WA.
The Taskar Center for Accessible Technology (TCAT) develops open source universally accessible technologies with a focus on benefiting populations with motor limitations or speech impairment—uwtcat@uw.edu.