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WASHINGTON, Jan. 5, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- As the public policy show on the auto show circuit, The Washington Auto Show will launch its 2016 edition, "The Power of Mobility," with two days of exclusive briefings on issues at the intersection of the automotive industry and public policy.

Geared toward elected officials and policymakers, industry professionals and media, these special events will launch Wednesday, Jan. 20 with "MobilityTalks," a Capitol Hill Panel that will explore how technology is making our nation's roads and vehicles safer and infrastructure smarter and transforming the way we live, work and travel. Held at the Rayburn House Office Building Gold Room, the specific topics of cybersecurity, spectrum sharing, data analytics, and shared-use mobility will be discussed around connected and autonomous vehicles.

Organized in partnership with the Intelligent Transportation Society of America (ITS America), the panel will be moderated by ThomsonReuters Transportation Editor Joseph White and includes the following speakers:

• Sen. Gary Peters (D-MI), Co-Chair, Senate Smart Transportation Caucus will provide opening remarks.
• Commissioner Maureen K. Ohlhausen, Federal Trade Commission;
• Mr. Ken Athanasiou, Vice President, Chief Information Security Officer, AutoNation
• Dr. Regina Clewlow, Director of Transportation Research and Policy, RideScout;
• Dr. John B. Kenney, Director and Principal Researcher, Network Div., Toyota InfoTechnology Center;
• Harry M. Lightsey. Executive Director, Global Connected Customer Experience,
• General Motors and
• Mr. Cordell Schachter, Chief Technology Officer, New York City Department of Transportation.

The panel will be followed by an on-road demonstration of the latest connected vehicle technologies that are making our roads safer and our infrastructure smarter, from Capitol Hill to the show site, the Walter E. Washington Convention Center. Adding to the pageantry, the demonstration will host high-level government officials and also feature a vintage 1915 Ford model T named to the National Historic Vehicle Register by the show's partner, the Historic Vehicle Association (HVA). This car has just completed the same road trip completed a century ago by Edsel Ford and his friends from Detroit to San Francisco.

The events will continue Thursday, Jan. 21 at the show site for a daylong schedule of press announcements along with a sneak preview of the show floor. The day launches with a morning keynote address from John W. Mendel, executive vice president of American Honda Motor Co., keynote government address by Mark Rosekind, NHTSA Administrator, press conferences, a plenary session by SAE International and concludes with an evening VIP Sneak Peek Reception. To register, please visit http://registration.experientevent.com/ShowWAA161/.

As Mendel's address follows Honda's world premiere of its Clarity Fuel Cell at the Tokyo Motor Show this fall, he will discuss Honda's vision of a hydrogen energy society and its contribution to empowering drivers and societies to take the wheel of a greener, cleaner world.

Produced by The Washington Area New Automobile Dealers Association (WANADA), The Washington Auto Show features more than 700 vehicles from over 40 manufacturers. The show opens to the public on Friday, Jan. 22 and runs through Sunday, Jan. 31. For more information, please visit the show online at www.washingtonautoshow.com.

SOURCE The Washington Auto Show