1

CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS TO

IMPACT PARKING SPACES

There is no denying it – parking on the NIH Bethesda

campus is fast becoming a major quality of work issue.

While the NIH has been fortunate in receiving

support for new research facilities and security improvements to foster the expanding research mission, with

this progress comes new construction, affecting an

already strained parking situation.

The NIH has several construction projects

underway or planned this summer that will significantly

reduce the availability of parking on the main campus.

Although the NIH is taking steps to improve the situation,

including plans to build two new multi-level parking

garages, the upgrading of current facilities and construction of new facilities will mean the loss of many existing spaces until the parking garages are finished in late

2004.

Currently under construction, the Edmond J.

Safra Family Lodge broke ground in February 2003

adjacent to the Building 60 (Convent).This construction

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4 ISSUE JULY 2003 

NEWS2USE

OFFICE OF RESEARCH SERVICES 

CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS

TO IMPACT PARKING SPACES

HIGHWAY ADVISORY RADIO COMING

TO THE NIH ON AM 1610

FIRE LANES ON CAMPUS

IS ESI ESSENTIAL FOR THE NIH?

K-9 GRADUATES ADDED TO THE FORCE

NIH LAUDED FOR TRAVEL SYSTEM INNOVATIONS

GOVERNMENT EXECUTIVE’S TRAVEL MANAGERS

OF THE YEAR AWARD

EARTH DAY EVENT – NIH CELEBRATES

RECORD TURNOUT FOR E-CYCLING

ARE THE SECURITY METAL DETECTORS SAFE?

HOW ABOUT IF I AM PREGNANT?

OUR LATEST CHAMPION TREE:

SALIX BABYLONICA

1700 TOTAL PARKING LOSSES IN 2003

Month Project Lost Spaces

FEBRUARY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Family Lodge . . . . . . . . . . . .110 

MARCH . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Building 6 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30 

JULY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Stormwater Facility . . .350 

JULY-AUGUST . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Bldg. 10 Utility Vault 200 

AUGUST-SEPTEMBER . . . . CVI/Gate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .450 

AUGUST-SEPTEMBER . . . .Building 33 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .560 
NEWS2USE

resulted in the loss of about 100

parking spaces but was offset in part

because of additional parking available in Lot 41 and some parking

garages that were underutilized.

Several new research-driven

construction projects are scheduled to

commence in July/August 2003 that

will further reduce parking availability.

The construction of the Zebrafish

Addition to Building 6 will impact

parking spaces at the traffic circle in

front of the building and possibly

several spaces at the loading dock.

Also, a new Utility Vault will be built

near Building 10 to serve the west

side of campus removing significant

parking spaces.

Finally, three major projects will

remove over 1,000 parking spaces in

the 31 Lots. State and local regulations

require the NIH to build a new

Storm Water Management Facility as

part of the Clinical Research Center

project to address storm water run-off.

The construction of the new

Infectious Diseases Research Lab,

known as Building 33, will also

remove significant parking spaces in

the 31 Lots. Finally, as part of the

NIH Perimeter Security System, a

new Commercial Vehicle Inspection

(CVI) Facility will be built on existing

parking lots near Rockville Pike to

comply with security requirements.

The CVI will facilitate the inspection of all commercial vehicles in

one central location, separate from

employee entrances.

Over the long term, the construction of two new multi-level parking garages should help remedy the

parking shortage.The planned construction of MLP-9, the Northwest

Parking Garage, will replace almost

1000 spaces lost to the CRC and

Building 50 since 1995. In addition,

MLP-10, part of the Building 33

complex, will add 1230 parking spaces

and should help offset current and

previous losses, particularly in the

northeast section of campus where the

31 Lots are impacted. In total, the

addition of MLP-9 and MLP-10 will

return 2170 spaces to campus.

Until the parking garages are

built, all NIH Parking Permit holders

are going to be affected.To the extent

possible, the NIH will attempt to

reallocate spaces in other areas, but

this may not serve all employees.

Parking attendants will be placed

in Lot 41 to assist with employee

parking. However, the addition of

attendants will only make up approximately 250 of the lost spaces.

The NIH strongly encourages

all employees and other individuals

working on the main campus to

consider using alternative methods of

transportation. Several alternative

transportation options include:

■ The NIH Transhare Program -

established in 1992 as a means of

reducing traffic congestion and

relieving energy and environmental

concerns in the metropolitan area.

Participants in the program are eligible

to receive up to $100 per month in a

commuting subsidy (Metrocheks).

Metrocheks can be redeemed for

Metro, bus and numerous public

transportation modes.

■ Carpooling and Vanpooling –

these programs remain integral components of reducing the demand on

campus parking spaces. Carpoolers

may park in preferred areas until

9:30 a.m. Registered vanpools

receive a reserved space in the lot of

their choice.Vanpool participants

may be eligible for the NIH

Transhare Program to reduce the

monthly cost.The NIH Ridefinders

Network assists employees interested

in carpooling and vanpooling by

providing a list of individuals interested in ridesharing who live and

work in the same area.

■ Express Buses – there are 

currently 3 express bus routes that

serve the NIH campus: 1) Metrobus

J-9 from Lakeforest Mall; 2) Ride-On

Route 70 from Milestone Park &

Ride; and 3) Metrobus Smartmover

from Tysons Corner.

■ Bicycling and Walking – these

transportation modes historically have

played a large part in reducing vehicular traffic on campus roadways, and

even regionally, by removing vehicles

from already clogged traffic arteries.

In all, current and upcoming construction projects will impact 

1,700 employee parking spaces on the main campus.

The sections with shaded lines on the map show the areas that will be 

impacted as a result of these projects.
2

■ Satellite Parking Areas – The

NIH maintains satellite parking

spaces at the Mid-Pike Plaza

Commuter Parking Lot. Parking is

free for employees and shuttle service

operates throughout the day to the

campus and leased facilities.

Again, the NIH is strongly

encouraging employees to consider

using one of the above alternative

transportation modes.To obtain

information on all forms of alternative

transportation, please contact the

Employee Transportation Services

Office at 2-RIDE (7433).

The NIH is exploring ways to

help lessen the impact of the parking

shortage.An NIH Parking Advisory

Committee chaired by Dr. Michael

Gottesman with representation from

broad segments of the NIH community will be working on interim

solutions to address the situation.

More information will be available

in the near future. In the meantime,

suggestions and comments are

welcome.

INFORMATION:

NIH Parking Information Line

E-mail: parkinginfo@mail.nih.gov

Voice: 301-594-6677

TTY: 301-435-1908

HIGHWAY ADVISORY RADIO

COMING TO THE NIH ON

AM 1610

The Office of Research Facilities

(ORF) and the Office of Research

Services (ORS) have been working

on numerous transportation related

improvements designed to assist NIH

employees, contractors, visitors and

guests traveling to, and circulating

throughout, the main campus. One

innovative improvement coming later

this summer is the acquisition of a

Highway Advisory Radio system

(HARS), currently being worked on

by the Division of Facilities Planning

(DFP), ORF.

The HARS consists of a low

power radio transmitter that will

broadcast traffic related information

over your car radio. The station will

transmit on frequency 1610 on your

AM radio.The HARS has been

designed to also incorporate Variable

Message Signs (VMS) – a type of

electronic message board –located on

the campus and flashing beacon signals

located at off-campus locations.

HARS messages can be broadcast by

a pre-recorded message, or in the

event of an emergency, through ‘live’

broadcasts.

In initial testing the NIH system

transmitted approximately four miles

from the main campus.This range

allows NIH to maximize the target

audience on major traffic arteries

serving the campus such as the Old

Georgetown Road and Rockville

Pike traffic corridors to the north,

and East West Highway at Wisconsin

Avenue to the south. Our hope is

that this will allow motorists ample

time to react to traffic conditions

prior to committing to a clogged

traffic artery. In the future, our goal is

to enhance the system using

‘repeaters’ to expand the range of the

AM signal to include off-campus

facilities at Rockledge, Executive

Plaza and surrounding leased buildings.

Motorist would be able to listen

to repeated messages while passing

through the broadcast zone. Due to

unforeseen circumstances such as a

motor vehicle accident, unusually

heavy traffic volume, broken down

vehicles, security threat levels, etc.,

information can be relayed to

employees quickly through their

vehicle’s AM radio. Useful traffic

information re-directing employees

to another entrance or exit will

expedite their commute to the campus.

Other types of messages being considered for broadcast include special

event information, parking lot 

information, and more importantly,

emergency information. Because the

transmitter broadcasts on the AM

radio band, virtually every car radio

is able to receive the signal.

The system can be linked

directly to several VMS message signs

placed strategically on campus to

assist motorists in navigating around

congested areas, construction and to

relay other important information to

those not listening to the radio station.

Traffic advisories can be sent without

delay. For special events, motorists

can receive directions to the correct

building or designated parking areas.

VMS signs placed at exit locations

could direct motorists to alternative

exits in the event of accidents or

traffic jams.

In the event of an emergency

requiring an evacuation, DFP has

been working with the Division of

Public Safety (DPS) to implement a

plan to help safely guide individuals

from the campus in an orderly fashion.

The evacuation plan includes the use

of the HARS AM radio system and the

VMS signs to aid in communicating

emergency evacuation instructions.

The NIH is working with various

state/local agencies to integrate the

system into a regional emergency

broadcast system in the future.

INFORMATION:

Thomas Hayden

301-496-5037

ISSUE 4 JULY 2003 
3

5 4

NEWS2USE

FIRE LANES ON CAMPUS

We have all noticed cars illegally

parked in designated fire lanes. It

happens everywhere, unfortunately,

including the NIH Bethesda campus.

These lanes are absolutely essential

for effective emergency response.

Blocked emergency access places our

people and facilities at risk.

The signs that scream “NO

PARKING - FIRE LANE” should

be simple and straightforward

enough.

When there is an emergency,

fire, rescue and police vehicles need

to get close to the buildings, fire

hydrants, and sprinkler/standpipe

connections.

Leaving your vehicle in a fire

lane may seriously hinder firefighting

and rescue efforts, making this a very

serious offense.At the NIH, this 

violation results in a fine plus towing

and impoundment charges. Make no

mistake:All parking in designated

fire lanes is against the law and there

are no exceptions.

INFORMATION:

Fire Prevention Section

301-496-0487

IS ESI ESSENTIAL

FOR THE NIH?

Conducting cost-benefit analyses of

library resources is challenging, especially when we don’t know whether

NIH staff are in fact benefiting from

a costly resource.That is why the

NIH Library needs your input about

the value of ISI Essential Science

IndicatorsSM (ESI) to your institute,

grants administrator, laboratory, or

working group. If this database is

important to your work we need to

know about it, or it may be cancelled.

Or if you haven’t tried it yet, please

take the time to do so and let us

know if you think you will use it in

the future. In either case we would

like to know more about how you

use ESI.

ISI Essential Science Indicators

provides Internet access to science

performance statistics and science

trends data compiled by the Institute

for Scientific Information (ISI).

Covering 8,500 journals from around

the world, ESI enables you to view

rankings of highly cited scientists,

institutions (university, corporate,

government research lab), nations,

and journals. Links are provided

from within ESI to papers found in

ISI Web of Science®. ESI is updated

bimonthly.

ISI Essential Science Indicators

can be accessed from the NIH

Library homepage via the Databases

page, http://nihlibrary.nih.gov/Elecres/

databases.htm, located behind the

Electronic Resources icon.The 

webcast “NIH Library Presents

Essential Science Indicators,” from

March 21, 2002, gives an overview

of ESI including vendor answers to

questions posed by NIH staff. It is

available at: http://videocast.nih.gov/

PastEvents.asp?c=4.

INFORMATION:

Karen Smith

301-594-6273

K-9 GRADUATES

ADDED TO FORCE

Graduation Day arrived on June 12,

2003 for a group of students who

received bones and dog treats rather

than caps and gowns.

Three new NIH Police Canine

Teams completed an exhaustive,

demanding training program to enter

the daily workforce of the NIH

Police.They are on campus every

day, serving and protecting.

The new graduates bring the

NIH Police canine complement to

10 explosive detection teams and

one narcotic detection team.These

teams are all engaged in strategic

operations that enhance the operational

security of the NIH campus.

The effective combination of

dedicated human handler and welltrained dog present a very effective

weapon against crime and potential

terrorist attacks.

During periods of elevated

security levels, these teams are

invaluable in the inspection of the

thousands of items, packages, parcels

and vehicles that enter our campus

every day. Their presence is a clear

deterrent.They also enhance and

speed up the inspection process to

facilitate the safe entry to the campus

of all the important scientific, medical,

administrative, and operational staff

that make the NIH a world-class

facility.

The new graduates join existing

K-9 teams that have repeatedly

proven themselves as valued components of the overall security plan for

the NIH campus.While the teams

are used primarily for NIH on- and

off-campus facilities, they also support

other local public safety agencies in

crime prevention and other techniques.

One of the K-9 graduate teams:

Officer Nigretti and K-9 Ceasar.
6

ISSUE 4 JULY 2003 

During this past calendar quarter, the

NIH Police Canine Unit not only

performed all necessary tasks at the

NIH, but they also supported the

Maryland State Police, the Rockville

City Police, and the Naval Medical

Center in narcotic enforcement

activities.

When you see one of our

graduates working somewhere on

the campus you need not offer formal

or traditional expressions of congratulations.A simple pat on the head or

dog treat is more than sufficient.

INFORMATION:

Richard Johnston

301-594-9636

NIH LAUDED FOR TRAVEL

SYSTEM INNOVATIONS

GOVERNMENT EXECUTIVE’S

TRAVEL MANAGERS OF THE YEAR

AWARD

In June, six agencies were recognized

for their success in government travel

management.The 2003 Travel

Managers of the Year award, sponsored

by Government Executive magazine,

honored the NIH along with the

Postal Service, National Oceanic and

Atmospheric Administration, Secret

Service,Veterans Affairs, and the

Food and Drug Administration.The

award program encourages innovation

and celebrates excellence in government travel management.

Historically, the General Services

Administration (GSA) contract provided the NIH, like most government

entities, with travel management

center services. However, given the

unique travel requirements at the

NIH, it was difficult to administer

and measure the value and quality of

service through this arrangement.

Complaints escalated as the NIH

travel requirements increased and the

Travel Management Center (TMC)

was unable to add needed staff and

technology due to the structure of

the contract.

The NIH decided to go its

own way for travel services, and

sought a travel agency with experience serving patient and government

travelers, advanced accounting and

reservation systems, multiple methods

for making reservations, lowest fare

guarantees, upgraded telecommunications systems, 24-hour emergency

customer support, and other travel

amenities. Since May 2001, these

services have been provided through

a performance based contract with

Omega World Travel.

In fiscal year 2002, 75,000

reservations were processed.That

translates into $24 million spent on

transportation.The NIH will save

Recipients of the Travel Managers of the Year Award from left, Cheryl Shipe, Carole Harman, Belinda Cowling,Timothy Tosten,

Mark Fryman, Ellen Grant, Patience Hadley (Omega World Travel) and Connie Forkkio (Omega World Travel). (All individuals

are from the NIH unless otherwise noted.)

cddphotography.com
7

approximately $150,000 this fiscal

year through internal administration

and oversight. This includes the

Project Office working closely with

the TMC to ensure compliance in

providing the GSA’s contract CityPair fares that charges government

travelers a price of approximately 65

percent of full fares.The NIH also

benefits from a three-tiered fee

structure (http://www.nih.gov/od/ors/

dss/special/travel.htm#fees), so IC 

travel arrangers have options that

immediately allow them to save on

internal travel depending on which

method is used to make reservations.

Omega World Travel has a 

software program (MegaCatch) that

locates unused portions of electronic

tickets (E-tickets).Travelers that are

issued E-tickets often neglect to

inform their travel coordinator or

travel agent that they did not take a

particular flight(s). During travel in

FY 02 at the NIH, Omega was able

to locate 1,093 such occurrences,

resulting in $225,000 in refunds.

Previous programs and systems

required an exorbitant amount of

paper. Introducing online request

forms by fax or e-mail has reduced

paper usage.Also of note is the

option to enter a personal travel 

profile online.The reduction in calls

placed to the TMC allows more

requests to be processed and also

saves time for the travel arrangers.

One of the key aspects in 

the success of this new travel contract was developing performance

standards. Prior to Omega, NIH

consumers lacked confidence based

on experiences with telephone

response times, accuracy of requests 

and other essential service area 

components.The Project Officer's

standards were designed to ensure

that expected service levels were met

by the TMC, and monetary penalties

would be imposed if any of the 

standards fell below the Allowable

Quality Levels set in the contract.

Based on feedback from our

information sessions, NIH travel

arrangers have shared that they are

more confident in the system

because the Project Office is accessible

and accountable.They appreciate

having contact people who are 

willing to listen, take advice and

implement changes, take action and

seek resolution for all issues received,

and especially the way they keep the

community updated on all 

relevant information, particularly

through the bi-monthly electronic

newsletter (Travel-Tips).

INFORMATION

Tim Tosten, Chief,Worksite Enrichment

Programs Branch

Ellen Grant,TMC Project Officer

301-402-8180

www.nih.gov/od/ors/dss/special/travel.htm

EARTH DAY EVENT

NIH CELEBRATES RECORD

TURNOUT FOR E-CYCLING 

On April 12, the NIH held its first

electronics recycling (e-cycling)

event at White Flint Mall in North

Bethesda. Open to government

employees and the public, the event

provided an opportunity to recycle

all types of personally owned electronics ranging from cell phones to

televisions and computers.

The event’s original location,

the Building 31F parking lot on the

NIH Campus, had to be changed on

short notice when the security level

was raised due to the start of the war

in Iraq. Event organizers scrambled

to find a new site for the event at a

non-government facility.White Flint

Mall management generously offered

the use of one of their parking lots

for the collection site.They provided

free advertising for the event on their

website and with announcements on

the electronic sign at the entrance to

the mall. NIH organizers re-publicized

as well.They feared turnout would

be low.

Car loads of “e-junk” began to

come to the collection site before it

was open. By mid-morning there

were so many cars arriving that one

service line couldn’t handle the traffic

and two more lines were set up. By

mid-day all three lines were busy and

at times backed up to the street.

Finally, it was closing time. Exhausted

event volunteers thought they could

slow down and start packing the

materials away for transport, but the

cars kept coming.

It was determined that an estimated 670 deliveries of electronics

were made that day. Most of them

came by cars and trucks – 644 -- the

remainder of the deliveries came by

bicycles, pedestrians and even a couple

of backpackers.A total of 34 tons of

equipment was delivered! According

to Jim Richmond, Maryland

Department of the Environment

representative, this set a new

NEWS2USE
8

statewide record for the largest

amount of recyclable materials collected in a single day event.

Most of the equipment collected

will be disassembled and recycled.

Some equipment that is in working

condition and not obsolete will be

refurbished and donated or sold. For

example, 103 cell phones and related

accessories collected at the event will

been turned in to the Wireless

Foundation to be reconfigured as

emergency call phones and donated

to abuse prevention programs.

Few would have predicted the

potential adverse environmental 

consequences of the Computer Age.

Gazing over the small mountains of

collected dead TVs, PCs, printers and

other electronics, Ed Rau, the NIH

coordinator of the event, mused that

just 10 years ago most of this toxic

“detritus of technology” did not

even exist. In the next 10 years several

hundred million more computers

will become obsolete and require

disposal. Clearly they will keep on

coming.

Even the White House took

notice. Juan Lopez, the chief of staff

for the White House Task Force on

Waste Prevention and Recycling sent

congratulations “on such a successful

event.”

INFORMATION:

Ed Rau

301-496-7775

ARE THE SECURITY METAL

DETECTORS SAFE? 

HOW ABOUT IF I AM PREGNANT?

Robert Zoon, Radiation Safety

Officer, has received numerous

inquiries asking the above questions,

particularly when the national threat

level shifts from yellow to orange

and further security measures are

instituted on campus.

The bottom line, as a result of

the field strength measurements and

the standards of exposure that have

been established, it is prudent to

conclude that no adverse biological

effects would be expected to occur

as a result of exposure to these magnetic field strengths.

A recent article in the journal

Health Physics has provided the

information needed for the public to

better answer the questions. Zoon

summarized that material for this

article.

A series of measurements of the

magnetic field strengths produced by

both hand-held and walk-through

metal detectors (also called magnetometers) was made by a group of

scientists from the FDA’s Winchester

Engineering and Analytical Center.

Eight models of hand-held detector

and 10 models of walk-through

detectors were measured in actual

security screening locations such as

airports and Federal buildings.

For the hand held metal detectors the range of magnetic field

strengths was 13-30 milligauss (mG),

while for the walk-through units the

range was 171-756 mG.As a frame

of reference for these magnetic field

strengths, the earth’s magnetic field

ranges from 250 to 650 mG, depending on location.Thus, the metal

detector magnetic field strengths are

on the order of those to which all of

us are exposed our entire lives as a

result of living on this planet.

The journal article also highlights that these magnetic field

strengths are well below the exposure

limits recommended by the American

Conference of Government

Industrial Hygienists (ACGIH),

which range from 2000-6000 mG,

based on the frequency of the field.

Contributing further to their safety is

the relatively low frequencies at

which the metal detectors operate.

EXCEPTION FOR IMPLANTED

MEDICAL DEVICES

Although no adverse biological

effects would be expected to occur

as a result of exposure to these 

magnetic field strengths, there is a

precaution that should be observed.

If you have an implanted medical

device, such as a cardiac defibrillator,

pacemaker, spinal cord stimulator or

an ambulatory infusion pump, the

metal detectors have been reported

to cause electromagnetic interference

(EMI) with such devices. Effects

reported were reprogramming,

inactivation, battery depletion,

ventricular fibrillation, shocking,

over-stimulation or over-infusion. If

you have such a device, you should

request to be cleared through security

by a method other than magnetometer

scanning, particularly a walk-through

unit, where the field strengths are

higher.

INFORMATION:

Robert Zoon

301-496-2254

ISSUE 4 JULY 2003 
9

The NIH now has six Montgomery County

Champion trees.The latest one was recognized at the

Montgomery County Earth Day celebration in April.

The weeping willow (Salix babylonica), tree tag

#2330, is located along the creek between East Drive

and Parking Lot 31G.

The interesting thing about this tree is that our

grounds maintenance and landscaping people planted

it in 1983 for stream bank stabilization.With only 20

years of age, it must love where it lives to have thrived

so well.The tree is 88 inches in circumference and 45

feet tall, with a 57 foot crown spread giving it 147

points and the current championship.A plaque will

soon be placed near the tree to properly identify it.

INFORMATION

Lynn Mueller

301-496-4817

4 ISSUE JULY 2003 OFFICE OF RESEARCH SERVICES 

WE WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU! Mr. Steve Ficca, Office of Research Services Director, encourages

you to submit questions, comments and suggestions about the services the ORS provides to the NIH 

community. Either Mr. Ficca or someone from the ORS staff will personally respond to each question. Just 

e-mail, phone or fax your comments and questions to the appropriate location listed below.

For questions or comments about ORS services to the

NIH community, contact the ORS Information Line:

E-mail: ORSInfo@mail.nih.gov

Phone: 301-594-6677 

Fax: 301-402-2204 

Website: http://www.nih.gov/od/ors/security/index.htm

For questions or comments about articles in the

News2Use or to suggest future story ideas:

E-mail: ORSNews2Use@mail.nih.gov

NEWS2USE

News2Use is published on recycled paper by the 

OFFICE OF RESEARCH SERVICES

NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH

DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

EDITOR Bradley Moss

WRITER Ann Cochran

ORS DIRECTOR Stephen A. Ficca 

LAYOUT DESIGN Medical Arts and Photography Branch

INTERNET ADDRESS www.nih.gov/od/ors

OUR LATEST CHAMPION TREE: SALIX BABYLONICA