JANUARY 2017 • Volume 13 • Issue 1 Queens: Meet your new Wendy’s franchisees for TGI Fridays, Marriott and Hilton. The Briad Group also owns Zinburger Wine and Burger Bar, an upscale gourmet burger and wine concept that is rapidly expanding on the East coast. Giving back to the local communities has been a part of Briad’s DNA since the company was founded. Briad has been an avid advocate for children in foster care by partnering with the Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption, created by Wendy’s founder Dave Thomas. Through its Annual Golf Tournament, now in its 18th year, The Briad Group has raised more than $3.3 3 million for the Foundation. Just recently, Briad shopped for 66 Casa kids and 21 National Adoption kids to make their wishes for Christmas come true. They wrapped over $15,000 worth of gifts for the kids at the Annual Founder’s Day celebration. Also, the New York Market Wendy’s donated $50,000 to Casa this year and $50,000 to the Dave Thomas Foundation as part of a partnership with the N.Y. Giants. Other Briad community involvement includes raising money for the Breast Cancer walk; supplying 500 lbs. of turkeys to soup kitchens around the area; hosting fundraisers for local organizations, schools and churches; as well as providing sponsorships for athletic teams, educational events and community events. Improving Roadway Safety using the NYS Accident Location Information System (ALIS) Larry Spraker VHB Applied Technology Manager Northeast Region One of the most important goals for the New York State Department of Transportation (NYSDOT) is to reduce the number and severity of vehicle crashes on all public roads. To this end, NYSDOT utilizes the Accident Location Information System (ALIS), which is comprised of a robust series of applications that assist end users with capturing, managing and analyzing the location of accidents within New York State. The ALIS applications, which were developed by and currently maintained by VHB, store and manage all crash locations within a centralized Oracle database, leveraging Geographic Information System (GIS) technology from Esri to effectively locate the accidents, visualize the crashes on a map display, and perform advanced queries and spatial analysis of the accident locations and associated characteristics. More specifically, when a crash occurs, a police agency or motorist records the crash details on the NYS Department of Motor Vehicles (NYSDMV) MV104 form. NYS DMV staff then utilizes the Location Coding and Data Entry (LCDE) application to enter the crash data and locate the crash. LCDE can translate the various locational elements which are captured on a crash report into a coordinate location. Next, NYSDOT staff utilizes the Location Editing (LE) application to review the crash data, and refine/adjust the accident location, allowing NYS DOT to significantly improve the precision and accuracy of where the crash occurred. Finally, the Query, Reporting and Analysis application (QRA) provides users with the ability to perform complex queries, spatial analysis and reporting on the accident locations in combination with various data on crash characteristics, such as vehicle type and contributing factors. The query and analysis capabilities of ALIS are used by safety professionals at both the state and local (County, MPO, City, Town and Village) levels to review crash histories at specific sites, as well as to identify areas with an unusually high crash experience. Once a problem area has been identified, QRA allows the user to take a virtual tour of the site using a combination of aerial photographs, Bing “Bird’s Eye” View, and Google StreetView. The ultimate goal, of course, is to improve the safety on NYS roadways by identifying areas that need to be addressed, and to design and implement modifications to roadway characteristics, signage, traffic signals, etc. that will result in a significant reduction in future accident rates. The ALIS applications have been in operation for over 10 years and are continually enhanced, upgraded and improved by VHB. ALIS has proven to be an essential technology to assist the NYS DOT in improving roadway safety within the State. With its grand opening on December 5, the Jackson Heights Wendy’s, located at 72-32 Broadway, features a bold new look with a revitalized décor, comfortable seating, large windows, multiple seating options, and a Wi-Fi bar, TV and fireplace. “The restaurant was built using an innovative interior and exterior design, which is part of a comprehensive brand transformation to reinvent the Wendy’s restaurant environment from food innovation, to building design, to new packaging,” said Brad Honigfeld, Founder and Co-CEO for Briad Wenco LLC, a licensed Wendy’s franchisee. Remodeling and building new restaurants with this inviting, ultra-modern design is part of a multi-year strategy to reinvigorate the Wendy’s brand throughout North America and the way customers interact with Wendy’s. The new Jackson Heights location is one of eight Wendy’s locations recently acquired by Briad, bringing the total number of Wendy’s in Queens to 11. The Jackson Heights location employs 45 people with more than 500 employees in total for all Queens’ locations. Briad is the largest Wendy’s franchisee in New York City. “Queens is a great place to live and do business; so we are excited to expand our Wendy’s presence in here Figure 1: Screenshot of LCDE illustrating the location coding of an accident Figure 2: Screenshot illustrating the analysis of accident locations based on crash criteria in Queens,” said Honigfeld. “We look forward to partnering with the local community and working with the Queens Chamber of Commerce.” The Briad Group is one of the fastest growing hospitality companies in the U.S. In addition to owning 104 Wendy’s, The Briad Group’s entities are licensed
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