Michael Baker Corporation : Baker Wins Honorable Mention for Transportation Research Board's Competition

PITTSBURGH - January 18, 2012

Michael Baker Jr., Inc., an engineering unit of NYSE Amex: BKR), has been recognized for its development of the "Planning Framework for the Evacuation of Transportation Needs Population of Central Ohio" Project for the Mid-Ohio Regional Planning Commission (MORPC).  Baker received an honorable mention for the Transportation Research Board's 5th Annual Competition and Call Communicating Concepts with John and Jane Q. Public: Transportation During Emergency Situations.

"The project was one of only two pilot programs funded by the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) that examined evacuation issues for transportation needs populations," said Ken Zaklukiewicz, project manager. "In 2005, Hurricanes Katrina and Rita revealed a number of shortcomings in evacuating transportation needs populations and emphasized the importance of having such plans in place."

"The Planning Framework for the Evacuation of the Transportation Needs Populations in Central Ohio" provides strategies to communicate with a diverse population in a seven-county region with focuses on the transportation needs populations who cannot drive or do not have access to a vehicle and require transportation support to evacuate.

MORPC is the federally designated Metropolitan Planning Organization for the Columbus, Ohio, region. In 2007, MORPC was awarded $357,000 from the FTA to create a seven-county evacuation plan in central Ohio. The project was completed in September 2010, and has been distributed throughout the region. To find out more about the plan, visit .

Baker will be honored during the 2012 TRB 91st Annual Meeting, January 22-26, in Washington, D.C., and will also conduct a poser session to highlight communications strategies from the project.

) provides engineering, design, planning and construction services for its clients' most complex challenges worldwide.  The firm's primary business areas are architecture, aviation, defense, environmental, geospatial, homeland security, municipal & civil, oil & gas, rail & transit, telecommunications & utilities, transportation, urban development and water.  With more than 3,250 employees in nearly 110 offices across the United States, Baker is focused on creating value by delivering innovative and sustainable solutions for infrastructure and the environment.

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David Higie

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