U.S. Department of Transportation

Research and Innovative Technology Administration

Points of Pride

John A. Volpe National Transportation Systems Center

FY 2006

CONTENTS 

LETTER FROM THE DIRECTOR .........................................................................................................V

VOLPE CENTER SUPPORTS DOT GOALS..........................................................................................1

SAFETY.....................................................................................................................................................1 

AVIATION ............................................................................................................................................1 

Voice Enhanced Safety Logic............................................................................................................1 

Runway Status Lights System............................................................................................................1 

Airspace Simulation and Analysis Tool Capability Development ....................................................1 

Fire Life Safety Upgrades to the Honolulu International Airport Air Traffic Control Tower...........2 

Aviation Safety Metrics .....................................................................................................................2 

Runway Visual Range........................................................................................................................3 

Aviation Safety Systems ....................................................................................................................3 

RAIL ......................................................................................................................................................4 

Federal Railroad Administration R&D Evaluation............................................................................4 

Evaluating the Risk of Rail Transport of Hazardous Materials .........................................................4 

Passenger Rail Equipment Crashworthiness......................................................................................5

Track Geometry Requirements for High-Speed Rail.........................................................................5 

Design Standards for Passenger Railcar Wheels ...............................................................................5 

Confidential Close Call Reporting System ........................................................................................6 

TRANSIT...............................................................................................................................................6 

Drug and Alcohol Management Information System ........................................................................6 

Transit Safety Statistics......................................................................................................................6 

MOTOR VEHICLE..................................................................................................................................7 

Rollover Crashes ................................................................................................................................7 

Roadway Departure Crash Warning System .....................................................................................7 

Intersection Violation Warning System Evaluation...........................................................................7 

Child Safety Research Project............................................................................................................8 

Side Impact Testing and Data Analysis .............................................................................................8 

Preventing Alcohol Impaired Crashes ...............................................................................................8 

MOTOR CARRIER..................................................................................................................................8 

Identifying and Targeting High-Risk Drivers....................................................................................8 

Motor Carrier Safety Program Effectiveness Measurement ..............................................................9 

COMPASS Program Information Technology Support ....................................................................9 

National Household Goods Motor Carrier Consumer Complaints..................................................10 

PIPELINE..............................................................................................................................................10 

Safety Monitoring and Reporting Tool............................................................................................10 

REDUCED CONGESTION ....................................................................................................................11 

National Strategy to Reduce Congestion .........................................................................................11 

Air Traffic Flow Management—ETMS Release .............................................................................11 

Air Traffic Flow Management—Traffic Situation Display .............................................................12 

Cobb County Driver Satisfaction Study...........................................................................................12 

Universal Transit Farecard Standards Program ...............................................................................12 

GLOBAL CONNECTIVITY...................................................................................................................15 

National Positioning Navigation Timing Architecture ....................................................................15 

FAA Terminal Facilities Support.....................................................................................................15 

Innovative Transportation Systems Solutions i
Engineering, Integration, and Installation—USAF PACAF............................................................15 

Engineering, Integration, and Installation—USAF, DoD, NAS......................................................16 

ENVIRONMENTAL STEWARDSHIP ..................................................................................................17 

Corporate Average Fuel Economy Research and Analysis .............................................................17 

DOT’s Center for Climate Change and Environmental Forecasting —Strategic Plan....................17 

Eco-Logical: An Ecosystem Approach to Developing Infrastructure Projects ...............................17 

Alternative Transportation Programs and Systems for National Parks and Public Lands...............18 

Ballast Water Discharge Standard Rulemaking Program ................................................................18 

Tire/Pavement Noise and Quieter Pavement Applications..............................................................19 

New International Airplane Noise Standard ....................................................................................19 

Aviation Environmental Design Tool (AEDT)................................................................................20 

SECURITY, PREPAREDNESS AND RESPONSE ...............................................................................21 

Emergency Response—Hurricanes Katrina and Rita ......................................................................21 

U.S. Coast Guard Legacy Fleet Maintenance Effectiveness Program.............................................21 

U.S. Navy Sixth Fleet Automatic Identification System .................................................................22 

New DOT Headquarters Security System Implementation .............................................................22 

Nuclear Ship Savannah Decommissioning Project..........................................................................22 

Support to U.S. DOT’s Pandemic Preparedness Planning...............................................................23 

ORGANIZATIONAL EXCELLENCE ...................................................................................................25 

On Behalf of Our Clients .....................................................................................................................25 

Professional Capacity Building........................................................................................................25 

FAA Telecommunications Infrastructure Modernization................................................................25 

Transportation Security Administration Training Evaluation..........................................................26 

Telecommunications Information Management System .................................................................26 

Lease Information Management System..........................................................................................26

State Pipeline Processing System ....................................................................................................27 

Safety and Fitness Electronic Records e-Authentication.................................................................27 

Support to the U.S. DOT Small Business and Innovative Research Program.................................27 

Volpe Center Management Initiatives .................................................................................................28 

Customer Satisfaction Survey..........................................................................................................28 

Internal Control of Business Processes............................................................................................28 

Project Management Improvements ................................................................................................28 

Transfer of Accounting Services......................................................................................................29 

Audit of FY 2005 Financial Statements...........................................................................................29 

Transportation Information Project Support Contract .....................................................................29 

Work Acceptance Website...............................................................................................................29 

New Incentive Awards Program ......................................................................................................29 

Recruitment of High-Caliber Technical Staff..................................................................................30

Management/Technical Staff Development and Succession Planning............................................30 

Small Business Administration’s Small Business Program Surveillance Review...........................30 

Transportation Safety Institute e-Gov Assistance............................................................................31 

Enhanced Systems Security Posture ................................................................................................31 

Real Property Management..............................................................................................................31 

Human Capital Survey .....................................................................................................................31 

Reducing Energy Cost Increases......................................................................................................32 

Innovative Transportation Systems Solutions ii
VOLPE CENTER CUSTOMERS............................................................................................................33

U.S. Department of Transportation......................................................................................................33 

Other Federal........................................................................................................................................33 

State and Local.....................................................................................................................................33 

Foreign Entities ....................................................................................................................................33 

Other Customers ..................................................................................................................................33 

DOT SECRETARY’S AWARD CEREMONY, NOVEMBER 10, 2005..............................................35

Volpe Center Recipients ......................................................................................................................35 

Individual Awards............................................................................................................................35 

Team Awards ...................................................................................................................................35 

Innovative Transportation Systems Solutions iii
iv
Letter from the Director 

As we start another fiscal year at the Volpe Center, I commend all our employees for their contributions 

to our mission of improving the transportation enterprise. The Center’s talented staff is dedicated to 

making a difference by identifying and enabling creative and practical responses to the full range of our 

customers’ concerns. 

This compilation of Fiscal Year (FY) 2006 accomplishments illustrates the Volpe Center’s vital role as a 

unique Federal resource within the U.S. Department of Transportation’s (DOT) Research and Innovative 

Technology Administration (RITA). As a Federal entity, we have provided objectivity and a true 

understanding of our customers’ missions. Often teaming with our customers, we are trusted advisors on 

long-term projects as well as rapid-response tasks, and we have shown that starting new work with us is 

straightforward. 

With a systems perspective and awareness of relevant issues, we at the Volpe Center provide our customers 

with innovative solutions to transportation problems. Complementing our knowledge of the latest 

technologies and our ability to use these technologies creatively is our understanding of the social and 

economic factors that affect the transportation enterprise. 

We are proud of all the projects we undertake at the Center, so selecting the Points of Pride presented here 

was not an easy task. These projects are only a small part of our overall portfolio, yet they exemplify our 

ability to offer pragmatic solutions and to respond to new or continuing requirements quickly. 

Each accomplishment is aligned with the Department’s strategic national transportation goals of safety; 

reduced congestion; global connectivity; environmental stewardship; security, preparedness and response; 

and organizational excellence. For the purpose of this document, activities are listed under one strategic 

area; however, many projects, programs, and initiatives benefit the objectives of more than one (DOT?) 

national goal. The Center is committed to helping its clients achieve these goals through safer, simpler, 

smarter transportation solutions. 

The Volpe Center's many years of experience are a source of continuity, stability, and institutional memory 

for many long-term customers and a valuable resource for new ones. In June, the DOT Secretary and the 

RITA Administrator both attended a special ceremony at the Volpe Center to mark our 35th anniversary. 

Both speakers congratulated the Center on its long history of support to DOT and the innovative ways in 

which the Center has contributed to addressing pressing national transportation issues. 

It is gratifying to realize that our employees’ sense of commitment and public service extends beyond their 

official employment at the Center and that they are always willing to respond to the needs of others and to 

offer support to the local community. For example, with an 82 percent participation rate, the Volpe Center’s 

2005 Combined Federal Campaign raised over $123,000. 

The Volpe Center community is also involved in several educational outreach efforts where staff volunteer 

their time. The Kendall Square Learning Project is an after-hours program that provides classes in English 

as a Second Language (ESL) primarily to immigrants in the community; Volpe Center staff also participate 

in a volunteer reading program, Lunch Buddies, in collaboration with the nearby Kennedy-Longfellow 

School; other staff members participate in the tutor-mentor program and the Science Olympiad at the 

Cambridge Rindge and Latin High School; and another group takes part in the Reading for the Blind and 

Dyslexic program where they read and record books. 

Innovative Transportation Systems Solutions v
The Points of Pride described in this document epitomize the Volpe Center’s tradition of 

providing outstanding support to the DOT, other organizations in the Executive Branch 

(other Federal, state, and local agencies, and some international entities), and the broader 

transportation community. 

Curtis J. Tompkins 

Director and RITA Associate Administrator 

Innovative Transportation Systems Solutions vi
Volpe Center Supports DOT Goals 

SAFETY 

Enhance public health and safety by working toward the 

elimination of transportation-related deaths and injuries 

AVIATION 

Voice Enhanced Safety Logic 

Safety remains FAA’s number one priority and 

success story, with trends in both commercial 

and general aviation showing consistent 

improvement. One way that FAA addresses this 

priority is by continually working to improve 

runway safety. Airport surface safety systems 

such as the Airport Movement Area Safety 

System (AMASS) are used to provide an early 

warning to air traffic controllers of a possible 

runway accident. Currently, AMASS requires that 

one or both aircraft be moving before a warning 

will be issued. Often, one or both of the aircraft 

are moving at high rates of speed prior to the 

warning being issued. Consequently, the options 

available to FAA controllers to avoid an accident 

are limited. 

To address these safety concerns, the Volpe 

Center, on behalf of FAA, has developed a 

concept called Voice Enhanced Safety Logic 

(VESL). VESL is a voice recognition tool that 

will monitor air traffic control frequencies for 

specific air traffic commands such as “cleared for 

takeoff” or “cleared to land.” The voice 

recognition software will convert the voice 

command into information for the safety logic to 

identify a potential runway accident. Once a 

controller clears an aircraft for takeoff, the safety 

logic will designate the runway as “hot” prior to 

the aircraft moving. If any other aircraft/vehicle 

enters the “hot” runway or if a controller issues a 

takeoff clearance on an intersecting runway, an 

alert will immediately be issued. Since this alert 

will sound prior to actual aircraft movement, the 

controller has a greater opportunity to avert a 

potential collision. (Sponsored by DOT/FAA)

Runway Status Lights System 

Runway Status Lights (RWSL) will play a major 

part in reducing future runway incursions, which 

is FAA’s current number one safety priority. The 

Volpe Center has been a key player for 

implementation of RWSL at the San Diego 

International Airport (SAN). RWSL is installed at 

critical airport runway intersections and will 

provide pilots with a red stoplight when a runway 

is occupied or in use. The lights are directly 

driven by airport surface radar and address a 

National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) 

call for a positive indication of runway 

occupancy to air crews, independent of air traffic 

control. 

The Volpe Center was an integral part of the 

FAA team to install and integrate the lights with 

airport surface radar and airport operations. In 

FY 2006, the Volpe Center improved the 

software and readiness of the system for 

Operational Evaluation. This evaluation of 

RWSL at SAN will start in October 2006. 

(Sponsored by DOT/FAA) 

Airspace Simulation and Analysis Tool 

Capability Development 

The Volpe Center is developing a Monte Carlobased computer simulation capability to enable 

rigorous analysis and certification of terminal 

procedures, equipment, and airspace in the 

1
National Airspace System (NAS) for the FAA 

Flight Standards Office. This simulation 

capability will play a critical role as FAA seeks to 

safely implement new terminal arrival procedures 

based on Automatic Dependent SurveillanceBroadcast (ADS-B) technology to meet the 

expected capacity gains anticipated for the Next 

Generation Air Transportation System. Unique 

elements of this capability are the stochastic (i.e., 

random but with known probability 

distributions) models of almost every component 

of the NAS—mechanical, electronic, and 

human—including navigation aids, surveillance 

systems, pilots, aircraft, air traffic controllers, and 

weather, combined with known, discrete artifacts 

such as runway size and configuration, and 

obstacles. Due to the complexity and aviation 

safety-critical nature of the simulation 

development effort, the Volpe Center consulted 

with FAA, industry, and Massachusetts Institute 

of Technology experts to plan it. (Sponsored by 

DOT/FAA)

Fire Life Safety Upgrades to the Honolulu 

International Airport Air Traffic Control Tower 

The Volpe Center, on behalf of FAA’s Western 

Pacific Region, recently completed Fire Life 

Safety (FLS) upgrades at the Honolulu 

International Airport Air Traffic Control Tower 

(ATCT). These upgrades have significantly 

enhanced the occupational safety of air traffic 

controllers and other tower occupants in the 

event of fire emergency, through the hardening 

of emergency egress routes and the upgrading of 

fire detection and notification systems. ATCTs 

are unique structures whose type of occupancy 

and design does not match traditional building 

codes. The goal of this work was to bring the 

ATCT into compliance with an alternate 

Occupational Safety and Health Administration 

(OSHA) standard written specifically for ATCTs. 

The Volpe Center handled all aspects of this 

“turnkey” projects from initial field surveys to 

identification of noncompliance issues, to design, 

including development of plans and 

specifications and on through to construction, 

and final compliance certification. The project 

was logistically complex and technically 

challenging, requiring working in tight spaces 

under stringent (and often changing) work 

activity restrictions and security requirements 

aimed at minimizing adverse impacts to air traffic 

control operations. (Sponsored by DOT/FAA)

Aviation Safety Metrics 

One way that FAA can determine if the overall 

level of safety in the system is improving is by 

monitoring the magnitude of these errors over 

time. The Volpe Center is developing a method 

of measuring separation standard conformance 

that will provide FAA with a tool to monitor this 

aspect of system performance. In addition to 

measuring performance over time, this measure 

could also be used to assess the effects of 

changes (in equipment, procedures, etc.) in the 

National Airspace System. This project provides 

FAA with a measure that assesses the degree to 

which separation standards were violated as the 

result of controller error. Currently, air traffic 

controllers must keep airplanes a prescribed 

distance from each other. Occasionally, an error 

occurs and airplanes come closer together. FAA 

strives to minimize errors to the extent possible.

(Sponsored by DOT/FAA)

Aircraft Wake Turbulence

Flight restrictions intended to minimize wake 

turbulence encounter are major limitations to 

more intensive use of existing runways. To 

mitigate this limitation, FAA and NASA chose to 

address the restriction on the use of Closely 

Spaced Parallel Runways (CSPRs) (where 

centerlines are separated by less than 2500 feet) 

for approaches under reduced ceiling/visibility 

conditions. Only a single arrival stream is 

permitted, essentially halving CSPR capacity. 

Lambert–St. Louis Airport (STL) was selected 

for evaluating a proposed procedure involving 

simultaneous approaches to both runways under 

reduced ceiling/visibility. The procedure is 

limited to large-class aircraft (e.g., Boeing 737). 

The Volpe Center conducted an extensive 

measurement program, beginning in the summer 

of 2003 and still continuing. Wakes have been 

measured at seven altitudes, using lidars (laser 

radar), sodars (acoustic radar), and arrays of 

Innovative Transportation Systems Solutions 2
propeller anemometers. Volpe Center staff 

analyzed these data from both wake behavior and 

aircraft safety perspectives. Results of these 

analyses have been presented to sponsors at nine 

reviews, and refined results have been presented 

to regulatory and industry stakeholders. 

Based largely on the Volpe Center’s findings, a 

waiver to the CSPR approach rule was requested 

by FAA’s STL Air Traffic Manager. Should the 

waiver be approved and the resulting operations 

prove beneficial, FAA Air Traffic Managers 

intend to implement the same procedure at other 

major U.S. airports that have CSPRS—e.g., 

Atlanta, Boston, and Newark. (Sponsored by 

DOT/FAA)

Runway Visual Range 

Airports having Instrument Landing Systems 

(ILS) require highly reliable means of monitoring 

visibility at critical locations near ILSinstrumented runways. This capability is 

automated using Runway Visual Range (RVR) 

systems that report values of RVR to controllers 

who then establish the category of flight 

conditions at the airport and communicate with 

pilots. For nearly two decades, the Volpe Center 

has provided RVR-related services to FAA 

consisting of scientific, engineering, and technical 

contributions as well as support in the 

procurement and operation of RVR systems. 

RVR is determined based on a combination of 

measurements of atmospheric extinction 

coefficient, background luminance, and runway 

light conditions. The traditional means of 

obtaining extinction coefficient is via the 

transmissometer. Although fundamentally sound, 

transmissometers are less desirable for use at 

airports than sensors based on the more modern 

forward scatter technology, which require less 

space and are more easily maintained. 

Approximately 12 years ago, the Volpe Center 

provided FAA with expertise that led to the 

replacement of transmissometers with 

approximately 1,000 forward scatter meters at all 

major airports in the NAS. These systems have 

proven highly reliable and cost-effective. 

The Volpe Center is now working with FAA in 

developing and procuring a lower-cost forward 

scatter meter RVR system for deployment at new 

ILS installations. The Center hosted a six-month 

operational test of candidate RVR systems at the 

Otis Weather Test Facility (WTF) on Cape Cod, 

Massachusetts; conducted inspection visits to 

candidate vendors’ facilities; and served as 

subject-matter expert on the proposal evaluation 

team. (Sponsored by DOT/FAA) 

Aviation Safety Systems 

The Volpe Center is working closely with FAA 

aviation safety staff in performing ongoing 

analysis and developing information systems to 

enhance, expand, and integrate its aviation safety 

decision support systems. Aviation safety 

inspectors (ASIs) use the systems to organize and 

support their inspection activities of air 

operators, aircraft, air agencies, and air personnel. 

The System Approach for Safety Oversight 

(SASO) Program, which is in the process of 

defining its requirements and design, will expand 

and integrate current functions, including major 

programs and initiatives that the Volpe Center 

supports. The SASO is a multiyear program 

aimed at redesigning the oversight processes of 

the FAA Flight Standards Service (AFS) and the 

U.S. aviation industry by implementing a 

comprehensive set of world-class system safety 

practices. 

The functionality of the following aviation safety 

systems, developed by the Volpe Center, will be 

incorporated into the SASO: 

• Safety Performance Analysis System (SPAS)—

Accommodates inspectors’ information needs 

by highlighting potential problem areas, using 

safety performance measures and providing 

timely, reliable access to existing data.

• Air Transportation Oversight System 

(ATOS)—Supports ASI surveillance of the 

major air carriers, enabling FAA to identify 

safety trends and to correct problems at their 

roots, thereby preventing accidents.

• Flight Standards Automation Subsystem 

(FSAS)—Compiles automated information 

systems used by the Flight Standards Service to 

Innovative Transportation Systems Solutions 3
plan, record, and track aviation surveillance, 

certification, and other safety-related activities.

• Flight Standards Information Management 

System (FSIMS)—Provides FAA with a webbased electronic library of aviation-safetyrelated publications and a portal to other 

related documents. The new Electronic 

Handbook, currently being defined, will 

combine three inspector handbooks into one 

FSIMS-managed document.

• Enforcement Information System (EIS)—

Maintains data on FAA enforcement actions 

against airlines, pilots, mechanics, designees, 

and other certificated aviation personnel and 

entities. The Volpe Center’s key project goal is 

to migrate EIS from a mainframe environment 

into a readily accessible web-based FAA 

application. 

 (Sponsored by DOT/FAA)

RAIL 

Federal Railroad Administration R&D 

Evaluation 

The Volpe Center supported the FRA Office of 

Research and Development (R&D) to respond to 

recommendations from the Transportation 

Research Board (TRB) Committee for Review of 

the FRA R&D Program. The project focus, 

based on the Committee's recommendations, has 

been to provide a rational linkage between 

railroad safety data (i.e., fatalities and injuries) 

and the direction of FRA Safety R&D. To 

confirm this linkage, the Volpe Center efforts 

include assembling and analyzing rail safety data 

from FRA and other sources, developing rating 

techniques for FRA R&D projects, and 

providing the linkage between the data and the 

projects. This report captured FRA’s R&D 

accomplishments in more than 12 areas, from 

System Safety to Crashworthiness Research. The 

Volpe Center led coordination with FRA and 

industry program managers. 

In July and August 2006 meetings organized by 

the U.S. House's Transportation and 

Infrastructure Subcommittee on Railroads, the 

Volpe Center's role in supporting research and 

training in safety related programs was appraised 

by speakers from FRA, the Association of 

American Railroads (AAR), and the United 

Transportation Union (UTU). These testimonies 

mentioned the Volpe Center by name six times 

and highlighted the Center's initiatives in the 

following areas: 

• Reducing human factor-related accidents 

• Developing the railroad industry's "close call" 

reporting database 

• Improving track safety 

• Improving HAZMAT transportation safety 

• Improving tank car integrity 

• Improving highway-rail grade crossing safety 

• Identifying technology for rail dark territory 

• Conducting risk assessments and tests of 

optimized train control systems 

• Developing guidelines on collision hazard 

analysis 

• Developing Crash Energy Management (CEM) 

systems 

• Improving fire safety 

• Improving emergency response capability 

• Workers' security training 

(Sponsored by DOT/FRA) 

Evaluating the Risk of Rail Transport of 

Hazardous Materials 

The Volpe Center has provided technical support 

to FRA in its Rail Equipment Safety Research 

Program for over 20 years. One part of this 

research program is a project on the Structural 

Integrity of Railroad Tank Cars. During the past 

year, the Volpe Center has developed and is 

implementing a research plan and assessment 

methodology to support FRA in evaluating the 

risk of rail transport of hazardous materials. 

The work addresses safety recommendations 

made by the NTSB regarding a train derailment 

and subsequent release of hazardous materials 

that occurred in Minot, North Dakota, on 

January 18, 2002. One of the primary focal 

points of this work is the evaluation of the 

fracture toughness of the steels used in cars built 

before 1989. The Volpe Center’s work on this 

Innovative Transportation Systems Solutions 4
project began in March 2004, shortly after the 

NTSB released its investigation report on the 

accident. The plan addresses some of the most 

complex issues in materials engineering, collision 

and derailment dynamics, and risk management. 

(Sponsored by DOT/FRA)

Passenger Rail Equipment Crashworthiness 

In March 2006, a full-scale train-to-train test of 

specially modified rail cars was conducted at the 

Transportation Technical Center in Pueblo, 

Colorado, in support of FRA’s research into 

strategies for improving the crashworthiness of 

commuter and intercity rail passenger trains. A 

test of conventional equipment had been 

conducted in 2003, resulting in crushing more 

than 20 feet of the leading cab car and overriding 

the standing impacted train. The modified 

equipment demonstrated that by distributing the 

crush to unoccupied spaces within the train the 

survivable impact speed could be more than 

doubled. Crash Energy Management, as a design 

strategy, has been incorporated in the latest 

specifications for rail cars being purchased by 

Metrolink, the commuter rail operating authority 

in greater Los Angeles. FRA has asked the Volpe 

Center to assist Metrolink and the selected car 

builder, Rotem, in meeting the crash energy 

management goals for the new equipment. The 

results of this research have been used to develop 

the crashworthiness requirements for the Acela, 

Amtrak's high-speed trainset; the passenger 

equipment crashworthiness regulations issued by 

FRA in 1999; and the crashworthiness 

requirements in the American Public Transport 

Association (APTA) Manual of Standards and 

Recommended Practices. The results of this 

research are currently being used by the Railroad 

Safety Advisory Committee/Passenger Safety 

Working Group to develop recommendations 

for regulations. 

The goal of the Passenger Rail Equipment 

Crashworthiness Research is to develop and 

evaluate practical concepts for increasing 

survivability in passenger train accidents. 

Principal activities include field investigation of 

passenger train accidents to determine the causes 

of injury and fatality, design development of 

alternative strategies for increased occupant 

protection, and full-scale impact testing to 

compare the effectiveness of conventional and 

improved crashworthiness strategies. (Sponsored by 

DOT/FRA)

Track Geometry Requirements for High-Speed 

Rail 

The Volpe Center has been supporting FRA in 

the area of Vehicle Track Interaction for more 

than 25 years. The goal of this research is to 

reduce the number of track-geometry-related 

derailments by establishing track geometry limits 

and maintenance and inspection requirements. 

During FY 2006, the Volpe Center, in support of 

FRA’s Railroad Safety Advisory Committee 

(RASC) Track Vehicle Interaction Working 

Group, has conducted numerous simulation 

studies to predict the dynamic response of 

representative vehicles in order to identify critical 

geometry irregularities resulting in unsafe wheel 

forces and acceleration. The results are being 

used as the technical basis for developing track 

geometry limits for high-cant deficiency 

operations. As part of this effort, the Volpe 

Center also developed a process for using 

simulations to qualify vehicles for particular 

operating conditions. This simulation process, 

which involves predicting response over a series 

of defined minimally compliant geometry 

variations, is being recommended for use in FRA 

Track Safety Standards in place of expensive 

instrumented wheelset testing under certain 

conditions. The work is closely coupled with an 

effort to develop the next-generation vehicle 

track interaction simulation tool. FRA is 

providing funding to the University of Illinois at 

Chicago to develop this tool, and the Volpe 

Center has been providing critical detailed 

reviews of the code and established benchmark 

criteria to evaluate performance. (Sponsored by 

DOT/FRA)

Design Standards for Passenger Railcar Wheels 

The American Public Transportation Association 

(APTA) is developing safety standards for 

railroad passenger equipment. Many of these are 

based on former Association of American 

Innovative Transportation Systems Solutions 5
Railroads (AAR) standards, for which AAR has 

discontinued support. The Volpe Center, under 

sponsorship from FRA, is participating in the 

development of prototype design and application 

standards to ensure that wheels used in passenger 

operations perform safely under the conditions 

to which they are exposed in service. Volpe 

Center staff are applying analysis techniques used 

under previous FRA research programs in the 

development of the new standards. The first 

phase of the effort involved drafting a proposed 

recommended practice, which allows the 

selection of wheels appropriate for the 

envisioned rail service. This work was completed 

and presented to the full Passenger Rail 

Equipment Safety Standards (PRESS) Task 

Force in June 2006. The second phase will 

require the development of an analytical 

methodology to be applied by manufacturers in 

order to qualify new passenger car wheel designs. 

This methodology will replace a currently used 

AAR standard, which was originally designed 

with freight operations in mind. The new 

standard will take into account wheel loading and 

train handling characteristics, which are more 

representative of those observed in passenger 

applications. (Sponsored by DOT/FRA)

Confidential Close Call Reporting System 

A chain of events or circumstances, any one of 

which might have been prevented if the series of 

events had gone another way, precedes nearly all 

transportation-related fatalities and injuries. In 

many of these cases, operators are aware of these 

“close calls” or “near misses” and may have 

information that could prevent future mishaps. 

Volpe Center staff worked with railroad industry 

stakeholders from FRA, the Bureau of 

Transportation Statistics, railroad carriers, and 

labor organizations to develop a demonstration 

program to evaluate the effectiveness of a closecall reporting system. Consensus among key 

stakeholders was critical to the project moving 

forward because close-call reporting succeeds 

only when stakeholders volunteer information 

about close calls. This system will enable the 

railroad industry to take action to prevent 

hazardous events before they occur. Currently, 

three freight railroads, Union Pacific, Burlington 

Northern Santa Fe, and Canadian Pacific, have 

volunteered to participate in this project. The 

Close Call Reporting System expects to begin 

receiving reports this coming fall. (Sponsored by 

DOT/FRA)

TRANSIT 

Drug and Alcohol Management Information 

System 

The Volpe Center provided key technical and 

logistical support to FTA’s first-ever Drug and 

Alcohol National Conference, which was held in 

Las Vegas, Nevada and attracted over 400 

attendees from the transit and drug and alcohol 

testing industries nationwide. The conference 

was designed to provide essential facts and 

information to facilitate employers' compliance 

with DOT's 49 CFR Part 40 and FTA's 49 CFR 

Part 655 and to provide time-tested and proven 

best practices. The attendees traveled from 43 

states, the District of Columbia, and the Virgin 

Islands. They included representatives from 

many of the Nation’s largest transit systems and 

national contractors as well as from 17 state 

Departments of Transportation. The event 

included speakers from FTA, other government 

entities, and the private sector. The success of 

this conference has spurred FTA to have the 

Volpe Center conduct a second annual 

conference with an even larger number of 

attendees (500) in the spring of 2007 in New 

Orleans. (Sponsored by DOT/FTA)

Transit Safety Statistics 

The Transit Safety and Security Statistics 

Program consists of the analysis and 

dissemination of the transit safety and security 

data collected through the newly enhanced 

National Transit Database (NTD) Safety and 

Security Module. This is accomplished through 

the production of periodic reports with 

normalized data, trend data, and basic statistical 

information. The Volpe Center adds value to the 

NTD data through statistical analysis and 

dissemination of findings through the FTA 

Innovative Transportation Systems Solutions 6
Safety and Security Websites and annual report 

publications. 

The objective is to provide FTA and industry 

stakeholders with the basis for identifying key 

safety and security problems and determining the 

effectiveness of countermeasures. Stakeholders 

include Congress, NTSB, the Office of the 

Secretary of Transportation, the states and the 

Office of Management and Budget, and transit 

professionals. 

Ad hoc analyses are often very high visibility due 

to the sensitivity of the information or the 

requestor. As an example, annual strategic DOT 

and FTA performance measures and outcomes 

are validated. Rapid, quality responses by Volpe 

Center staff have been a hallmark of this ongoing 

initiative over the years. (Sponsored by DOT/FTA) 

MOTOR VEHICLE 

Rollover Crashes 

NHTSA has recently initiated a special study of 

rollover crashes to address data requirements, the 

causes of rollover crashes, and opportunities for 

avoidance and mitigation. The Volpe Center 

supports this initiative by assisting with the 

design of the study, analyzing the current state of 

the rollover problem, evaluating recent trends in 

crashes, and assessing the effectiveness of the 

newer vehicle safety features which address 

rollover. In performing this work, the Volpe 

Center partners with staff from NHTSA’s 

statistical, research, and rulemaking 

organizations. Rollover crashes, which are 

considerably more complex than, for example, 

rear-end collisions, represent a disproportionately 

large number of highway fatalities. Although they 

account for only 3 percent of vehicles in crashes, 

they lead to approximately one third of all 

occupant deaths. Some vehicle safety features 

(e.g., electronic stability control) recently 

introduced in the motor vehicle fleet may be 

contributing to a reduction in harm. (Sponsored by 

DOT/NHTSA)

Roadway Departure Crash Warning System 

The Volpe Center recently completed an 

independent evaluation of a Roadway Departure 

Crash Warning System (RDCW), which was 

done using data gathered in a Field Operational 

Test (FOT), estimating safety benefits, gauging 

driver acceptance, and determining system 

performance and capability. The RDCW warns 

drivers when they are in danger of 

unintentionally departing from their lane or the 

road or are approaching a curve at an unsafe 

speed. To meet these goals, the Volpe Center—

in collaboration with NHTSA and the University 

of Michigan Transportation Research Institute 

and its commercial partners—prepared an 

independent evaluation plan, designed system 

characterization and FOT experiments, 

conducted the characterization experiment, 

developed a series of software tools for 

processing and integrating data, established an 

evaluation database, analyzed driver surveys and 

focus group data, and prepared a final report. 

The Volpe Center presented preliminary results 

of the evaluation at a NHTSA-sponsored “public 

meeting” in April 2006 and is currently editing 

the report in response to reviewers’ comments. 

(Sponsored by DOT/NHTSA)

Intersection Violation Warning System 

Evaluation 

This project supports the Cooperative 

Intersection Collision Avoidance System 

(CICAS) initiative by DOT’s Intelligent 

Transportation Systems (ITS) program. By 

working cooperatively with industry partners and 

public agencies, DOT seeks to develop and 

demonstrate cooperative intersection-vehicle 

collision avoidance systems that address 

crossing-path crashes resulting from 

maneuvering through intersections or red 

light/stop sign violations. One of the main 

objectives of this initiative is to demonstrate and 

quantify the effectiveness of cooperative 

intersection collision avoidance systems. The 

Volpe Center will conduct an independent 

evaluation of a cooperative intersection-vehicle 

collision avoidance system that addresses 

crossing path crashes caused by red light or stop 

Innovative Transportation Systems Solutions 7
sign violations. The Center will assess key system 

deployment factors based on data collected from 

a field operational test, which include safety, user 

acceptance, system capability, mobility, 

institutional issues, and other factors that are 

deemed important to stakeholders. In addition, 

the Center will support verification testing of the 

system during the design phase of the program. 

(Sponsored by DOT/NHTSA)

Child Safety Research Project 

The Volpe Center supported and participated in 

a collaborative assessment of case studies of 

young children injured in automobile side impact 

crashes. NHTSA is considering rulemaking 

regarding child safety in side impact crashes, with 

particular attention to toddlers as represented by 

the three-year-old test dummy. A team that 

included representatives from the Volpe Center, 

NHTSA’s Structures and Restraints Research 

Division, Crash Injury Research Engineering 

Network (CIREN), Human Injury Research 

Division, and Vehicle Research Test Center, as 

well as the National Crash Analysis Center at 

George Washington University, analyzed a dozen 

case studies. The group’s report will summarize 

the injuries incurred and will assess the utility of 

various countermeasures. (Sponsored by 

DOT/NHTSA)

Side Impact Testing and Data Analysis 

Motor vehicle accidents result in more than 

40,000 fatalities and 3,000,000 injuries in the U.S. 

each year. To reduce deaths and serious injuries 

to motor vehicle occupants, NHTSA has been 

conducting research to assess harm-reducing 

concepts. Such an assessment depends upon the 

understanding of the mechanisms that generate 

the forces that act on, and the response of, these 

occupants during collisions. 

The Volpe Center provided support to NHTSA 

in the areas of vehicle crash tests and data 

analysis. In FY 2006, the Volpe Center provided 

test support and data analysis in the area of side 

impact occupant protection. A total of 32 side 

impact tests were conducted using adult male and 

small female side impact dummies. The reports, 

data, and film were evaluated for quality control 

to ensure utility to NHTSA. The data served as a 

basis for understanding the performance and the 

overall effectiveness of air-bag systems and the 

performance of different sized dummies in 

similar vehicle models. In addition, the data 

provided a foundation for the proposed upgrade 

of the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 

(FMVSS 214). (Sponsored by DOT/NHTSA)

Preventing Alcohol Impaired Crashes 

NHTSA needs to identify new technologies that 

could be placed in vehicles to detect alcoholimpaired drivers and prevent vehicle operation. 

This is a national concern because two-fifths of 

motor vehicle fatalities are attributable to 

alcohol-related crashes and the proportion has 

remained virtually unchanged for the past 

decade. The Volpe Center interviewed experts 

and examined emerging as well as available 

technologies for their suitability for unobtrusive 

in-vehicle use. The Volpe Center identified viable 

concepts of operation for in-vehicle systems to 

detect alcohol impairment and prevent vehicle 

operation. As part of this work, Volpe Center 

staff described how to implement technologybased countermeasures and addressed concerns 

such as privacy, public acceptance, and legal 

issues. (Sponsored by DOT/NHTSA)

MOTOR CARRIER 

Identifying and Targeting High-Risk Drivers 

Research on Commercial Motor Vehicle (CMV) 

crashes has highlighted driver behavior as an 

increasingly important factor. Since there was no 

centralized source of data on the regulatory 

compliance and safety performance histories of 

CMV drivers available to FMCSA and state 

enforcement personnel, the Volpe Center, in 

support of FMCSA, developed the Driver 

Information Resource (DIR), a web-based 

lookup capability providing crash and inspection 

histories on 3.8 million CMV drivers. These 

histories are developed by an innovative process 

of matching names and commercial drivers’ 

license (CDL) numbers to 13 million crash and 

inspection “event” records in FMCSA databases. 

Innovative Transportation Systems Solutions 8
During DIR beta testing, the response from 

FMCSA and state enforcement field testers was 

overwhelmingly positive. Given the success of 

the tests and this feedback, the FMCSA fasttracked the release of DIR. The Volpe Center 

accelerated the implementation schedule and 

released DIR ahead of schedule in July 2006. 

DIR is now available to all FMCSA and state 

enforcement personnel by means of secure 

access on the Volpe Center-developed website, 

Analysis and Information Online (A&I Online). 

The Volpe Center is also using DIR to support 

other FMCSA projects, including: 

• Conducting analyses on the relationships of 

regulatory compliance and crash risk 

• Addressing SAFETEA-LU requirements for 

providing driver information to motor carriers 

to enable better hiring decisions 

• Laying the foundation to support new safety 

measurement systems to identify unsafe 

individual CMV drivers and motor carriers 

As a result of the DIR initiative, the FMCSA 

now has the tools and data to increase focus on 

CMV driver behavior in its safety programs that 

support the agency’s mission of reducing crashes, 

injuries, and fatalities involving large trucks and 

buses. (Sponsored by DOT/FMCSA) 

Motor Carrier Safety Program Effectiveness 

Measurement 

With the advent of performance-based budgeting 

in the 1990s, FMCSA needed to measure the 

impact of its programs as part of the annual 

budget submission process. The Volpe Center 

took on this challenge by developing two 

analytical models; the Intervention and 

Compliance Review Effectiveness Models that 

measure the effectiveness of commercial motor 

vehicle (CMV) roadside inspections, CMV traffic 

enforcement stops, and Compliance Reviews 

(on-site safety audits). The two models provide 

estimates on the number of crashes avoided and 

the associated injuries and fatalities prevented as 

a result of these safety programs. In addition to 

supporting FMCSA’s annual performance report 

and budget submissions, they are used for 

FMCSA and state customized analyses. For 

example, states use the customized results for 

allocating resources, applying for Federal grants, 

and justifying budget requests from their 

legislatures. The impacts of the safety programs 

on particular subsets of the motor carrier 

population (e.g., hazardous material and 

passenger carriers) can also be estimated. As a 

result of this innovative pioneering work, 

FMCSA now has the quantitative means of 

assessing the value of its safety programs. 

(Sponsored by DOT/FMCSA)

COMPASS Program Information Technology 

Support 

In the past year, the Volpe Center provided 

exceptional leadership in its efforts to support 

the FMCSA’s COMPASS program. COMPASS 

is a comprehensive overhaul of the way FMCSA 

and its partners collect, manage, and convey 

safety information designed to modernize and 

streamline this agency’s safety business processes. 

COMPASS will result in more effectively and 

efficiently reaching the agency’s goal of reducing 

highway fatalities due to truck and bus accidents. 

The architecture for the safety information 

systems that are the core elements of COMPASS 

resides at the Volpe Center. The Volpe Center 

has created the COMPASS Integration 

Environment (CIE) that consists of the 

COMPASS Quality Assurance and Pilot 

production systems. The infrastructure to 

support the complex communications 

requirements for this architecture has also been 

created by the Volpe Center team. In addition, 

the Center has generated the COMPASS 

Integrated Configuration Management Plan. All 

of the architecture, such as the repository and 

technical infrastructure to support the repository, 

has been developed. As part of this 

modernization effort, the Volpe Center worked 

closely with FMCSA to modify the existing 

FMCSA information systems to allow access 

using the new COMPASS portal. The first part 

of this effort was to modify FMCSA’s Motor 

Carrier Management Information System 

(MCMIS) to allow users to log on to the 

application using the new FMCSA portal website. 

This was completed and released as part of the 

Innovative Transportation Systems Solutions 9
COMPASS Pilot in July. The Volpe Center is 

currently working on implementing the same 

capabilities for the Enforcement Management 

Information System (EMIS) and the Licensing 

and Insurance (L&I) System. (Sponsored by 

DOT/FMCSA)

National Household Goods Motor Carrier 

Consumer Complaints 

Among the regulatory responsibilities of the 

FMCSA is the oversight of household goods 

carriers’ safety and consumer protection. In the 

Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient 

Transportation Equity Act—A Legacy for Users 

(SAFETEA-LU), Congress set forth specific 

requirements for FMCSA to establish a National 

Consumer Complaint Database (NCCDB) on 

household goods motor carriers that would 

include: 

• The ability to file and log consumer complaints 

relating to household goods moving 

companies for use by DOT and the states 

• A procedure for the public to have access to 

aggregate complaint information related to 

specific household goods moving companies 

• A procedure for household goods moving 

companies to challenge duplicate or fraudulent 

complaints 

FMCSA gave the Volpe Center responsibility for 

managing the project, designing and developing 

the system and accompanying websites, and 

training call center and FMCSA personnel. The 

system has been developed and is being beta 

tested. After being implemented in late 2006, it 

will be available to the public, household goods 

moving companies, and FMCSA personnel. 

In addition to meeting the SAFETEA-LU 

requirements, the system will allow consumers, 

commercial motor vehicle drivers, and others to 

report possible safety violations and will provide 

data for FMCSA to use in selecting carriers for 

safety audits. (Sponsored by DOT/FMCSA)

PIPELINE 

Safety Monitoring and Reporting Tool 

The Safety Monitoring and Reporting Tool 

(SMART) is an information technology project 

which provides the PHMSA Office of Pipeline 

Safety with an integrated information source for 

identifying pipeline safety trends (through 

analysis of incident/accident information), 

targeting solutions (through analysis of 

inspection and resource data using a resource 

allocation module), and measuring performance 

(to determine if the resource allocation, 

budgeting, and regulations are working). The 

Volpe Center is developing SMART as a webbased tool, integrating all aspects of existing 

pipeline information systems, as well as new 

business processes with a “pipe-centric” focus. 

SMART improves oversight of the pipeline 

industry by providing an easy-to-use single point 

of access to pipeline information, reducing the 

reporting burden on pipeline operators by fully 

implementing electronic data collection where 

possible using the Internet, and sharing that 

information with state pipeline safety agencies 

and other Federal agencies. SMART also enables 

better management decisions by integrating 

geospatial data from the National Pipeline 

Mapping System (NPMS) with pipeline incident, 

compliance, inspection, and other pipeline safety 

information. (Sponsored by DOT/PHMSA)

Innovative Transportation Systems Solutions 10
REDUCED CONGESTION 

Reduce congestion and other impediments to using the 

Nation’s transportation system 

National Strategy to Reduce Congestion 

The Volpe Center has provided key support for 

all of DOT’s efforts to develop and promote the 

National Strategy to Reduce Congestion on 

America’s Transportation Network. Known as 

the Congestion Initiative, this is an interagency 

effort to reduce the economic and social impacts 

of congestion in the U.S. transportation system. 

Phase I of the Congestion Initiative included 

preparing a detailed diagnosis of the underlying 

causes of congestion; developing a 

comprehensive catalog of pricing, infrastructure 

investment, and operational measures to reduce 

and manage congestion in the U.S. transportation 

system; and identifying metropolitan areas where 

deploying these measures could be most 

effective. Phase II of the Initiative focuses on 

developing Urban Partnership Agreements 

between the DOT and one or more metropolitan 

areas, which will encompass congestion pricing 

demonstrations, new Bus Rapid Transit service 

initiatives, expanded use of telecommuting and 

flexible working hours, and efforts to relieve 

major traffic bottlenecks. Subsequent phases will 

promote measures to reduce congestion in the 

U.S. air traffic control and airport systems, 

intercity freight corridors, and at major coastal 

ports. 

The Volpe Center supported Phase I by 

providing the diagnosis of the underlying causes 

of congestion, developing a comprehensive 

framework for cataloging measures to reduce 

congestion and evaluating their potential 

effectiveness, and developing and applying 

criteria to select metropolitan areas where these 

measures could be most effective. The Volpe 

Center continues to support Phase II by 

designing and evaluating potential congestion 

pricing demonstrations for metropolitan areas 

where local officials have expressed their 

willingness to consider participating in Urban 

Partnership Agreements and by developing 

outreach materials to support DOT officials’ 

discussions with local officials. (Sponsored by 

DOT/OST & FTA)

Air Traffic Flow Management—ETMS Release 

The Airspace Flow Program (AFP), deployed in 

version 8.2 of the Enhanced Traffic Management 

System (ETMS) on June 6, 2006, greatly reduced 

the number of flight delays and brought an 

estimated $900 million in cost savings to the 

airlines and the flying public, according to FAA. 

The AFP allows air traffic controllers to delay 

only those flights that are expected to encounter 

extremely bad weather. As a result, the new 

program minimizes the crippling effects of the 

sudden thunderstorms that frequently affect the 

Nation’s airspace system during the summer 

when travel volume is at its highest. “This 

program allows us to work around severe 

weather in highly congested airspace with greater 

precision and efficiency than in the past,” 

according to FAA Administrator Marion Blakey. 

“As a result, we will cut delays, keep passengers 

safe, and make summer travel easier.” The Volpe 

Center team was responsible for developing and 

deploying this new capability on time and within 

budget. According to our FAA customer, “The 

Volpe team overcame every obstacle and worked 

hand-in-hand with other development teams to 

bring the entire package together. Thanks for a 

job well done!” (Sponsored by DOT/FAA) 

Innovative Transportation Systems Solutions 11
Air Traffic Flow Management—Traffic Situation 

Display 

Traffic Flow Management supports the strategic 

planning and collaborative management of air 

traffic demand. In 2004, the FAA initiated the 

Traffic Flow Management–Modernization (TFMM) program. In order to manage TFM-M 

resources properly, FAA needed to quantify the 

use of functionality within ETMS. The Traffic 

Situation Display (TSD) Usage Metrics analysis 

task provides insight into how users are getting 

information from TSD and what processes they 

are selecting. This information is needed for 

TFM-M and for the current ETMS to develop 

more efficient code by eliminating those 

processes that are rarely used. 

The first accomplishment consisted of releasing a 

specially engineered version of ETMS software 

to collect usage data in late February 2006. The 

second accomplishment was the development of 

initial queries to allow Volpe Center analysts to 

present the information in the TSD Metrics 

Quick Analysis Report delivered to FAA in April 

2006. 

FAA has been pleased with this new line of 

products from the Volpe Center and has 

requested an expansion of the analysis tasks. 

Database views are being developed to provide 

long-term database access. Future analyses will 

provide a more comprehensive understanding of 

the TSD user interface process. This information 

will be useful in guiding the priority of future 

enhancements. (Sponsored by DOT/FAA) 

Cobb County Driver Satisfaction Study 

The Volpe Center, on behalf of FHWA’s 

Intelligent Transportation Systems Joint Program 

Office, conducted a before-and-after customer 

satisfaction survey of drivers on an urban arterial 

treated with an adaptive signal system. The 

primary hypothesis of this study was that it is 

possible to develop customer satisfaction 

measures that are a reliable determinant of 

roadway quality. A signal system upgrade in 

Cobb County, Georgia, offered the opportunity 

to test this hypothesis. In addition to providing a 

test of the methodology, the study also measured 

whether there were changes in driver satisfaction 

with roadway quality as a result of the 

deployment of the adaptive signal system control. 

The study found no observable improvement in 

roadway performance due to the adaptive signal 

system. A likely reason for these findings is that 

the corridor was already performing at an 

optimal level with respect to traffic signal 

coordination under the initial signal timings. 

Overall, these results indicate that for roadway 

types similar to the one evaluated in this study, 

the SCATS adaptive signal system control may 

not increase drivers’ day-to-day satisfaction with 

their roadway experience if the corridor is already 

optimally timed. From a methodological 

standpoint, the findings suggest that it is indeed 

possible to reliably measure driver satisfaction 

with roadway quality. Based on the team’s 

assessment of the robustness of the method, a 

set of guidelines was developed to assist in 

designing and implementing similar driver 

evaluations. (Sponsored by DOT/FHWA/ITSJPO)

Universal Transit Farecard Standards Program 

The American Public Transportation Association 

(APTA) Universal Transit Farecard Standards 

(UTFS) program seeks to develop a series of 

documents that provide industry guidance for the 

creation of an open architecture payment 

environment. Such a system would promote 

greater access and convenience to the public 

transportation network and enable integration of 

independent payment systems. The Volpe 

Center, in support of FTA, has been performing 

program facilitation, communications, strategy, 

and outreach between the key leaders to 

accomplish the program goals. 

Key goals of the program are to: 

• Promote economies of scale for agencies and 

enable more competitive procurements 

• Provide a platform to support agency 

independence and vendor neutrality 

• Strive for a platform that maximizes 

compatibility with current automated payment 

systems, thereby reducing integration costs for 

agencies with legacy systems 

Innovative Transportation Systems Solutions 12
• Strive for an open architecture environment 

for hardware and software utilizing 

commercially available products 

• Foster development of a multimodal, multiapplication environment which includes 

nontransportation applications 

• Provide information for informed decisions 

and development of partnership strategies 

Leaders for this standards effort from public 

transit agencies include Bay Area Rapid Transit 

(BART), Chicago Transit Authority (CTA), Port 

Authority of New York and New Jersey, Port 

Authority Trans Hudson Railway (PATH), 

Central Ohio Transit Authority (COTA), 

Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority 

(WMATA), and Portland TriMet. The work is 

accomplished through a consensus process 

incorporating dozens of volunteers from 

throughout the public and private sectors of the 

transit industry. (Sponsored by DOT/FTA) 

Innovative Transportation Systems Solutions 13
Innovative Transportation Systems Solutions 14
GLOBAL CONNECTIVITY 

Facilitate an international transportation system that 

promotes economic growth and development 

National Positioning Navigation Timing 

Architecture 

Space-based navigational systems (GPS in 

particular) use satellites to provide Positioning 

Navigation Timing (PNT) information. U.S. 

Space-Based PNT policy states that the U.S. 

must continue to improve and maintain GPS, 

augmentation systems, and back-up capabilities 

to meet growing national, homeland, and 

economic security requirements as well as those 

from the civil, commercial, and scientific 

communities. 

However, the extent of dependence on systems 

such as GPS or possible alternative systems for 

PNT is not explicitly understood. Absence of an 

approved PNT architecture results in 

uncoordinated research efforts, lack of clear 

developmental paths, potentially wasteful 

procurements, and inefficient deployment of 

PNT resources. For example, possible 

alternatives or improvements to GPS to avoid a 

single-point failure are not currently being 

considered from an overall architectural 

perspective. 

U.S. DOT RITA leads the development of a 

National PNT Architecture effort for DOT on 

behalf of the civil community. The Volpe Center 

works closely with the National Security Space 

Office (NSSO), which has been assigned the 

overall lead of the National PNT Architecture 

Development Team. As the lead for the civil 

community, the Volpe Center ensures that civil 

PNT needs are identified through data gathering 

and concept development efforts. 

The Volpe Center also works with the NSSO to 

document the current state of the PNT 

architecture as a baseline and then to evaluate 

alternative future mixes of global (space and nonspace-based) and regional PNT solutions. These 

solutions will include PNT augmentations and 

autonomous PNT capabilities to address national 

priorities identified by the civil community and 

DoD. FY 2007 efforts will involve performing 

architecture alternative analyses, results 

assessment, and transition planning. (Sponsored by 

DOT/RITA)

FAA Terminal Facilities Support 

Volpe Center supports the FAA in the areas of 

program management, schedule management, 

and systems engineering for the replacement of 

ATCTs and Terminal Radar Approach Control 

(TRACON) facilities. FAA's Terminal Facilities 

Sector is responsible for the establishment, 

replacement, and modernization of terminal air 

traffic control facilities to ensure that costeffective infrastructure platforms exist for the 

control of air traffic in the National Airspace 

System. In FY 2006, the Volpe Center supported 

the Terminal Facilities Sector in the 

establishment of a new ATCT/TRACON at the 

Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport, the 

initial planning for the Fort Sill Army Radar 

Control Center/Oklahoma City TRACON 

transition project, and the development of lifecycle cost estimates for new ATCT and 

TRACON replacement projects. (Sponsored by 

FAA)

Engineering, Integration, and Installation—

USAF PACAF 

Late in FY 2006, the Volpe Center, in support of 

USAF Pacific Airforce Command (PACAF), 

began relocating all equipment and operations 

from old control tower and Radar Approach 

Control (RAPCON) facilities to new structures 

Innovative Transportation Systems Solutions 15
throughout the western Pacific region. The 

Volpe Center will provide engineering, 

integration, and installation (EI&I) support for 

the migration of all systems associated with these 

operations. These systems range from radios to 

voice switches to navigational controls to the 

radar displays for both surveillance and tracking 

radar. Each facility will require a detailed 

requirements analysis to identify all systems that 

need to be relocated and all systems or 

components that will need to be upgraded or 

acquired, and each of these projects will be 

different based on local equipment and 

operations. Detailed engineering drawings of the 

design and a master plan will be created to move 

and test each system. One of the significant 

challenges of this effort is to minimize or 

eliminate disruptions to ongoing air operations 

while maintaining flight safety. The initial work is 

being performed at the USAF Kunsan Air Base 

RAPCON facilities in the Republic of Korea. 

(Sponsored by USAF/PACAF)

Engineering, Integration, and Installation—

USAF, DoD, NAS 

In FY 2006, the Volpe Center supported the 

USAF Electronic Systems Center (ESC) on the 

DoD NAS Program. This program, whose goal 

is to make DoD ATC facilities interoperable with 

FAA ATC facilities, is a long-term project to 

replace the DoD's terminal radars, voice 

switching systems, and terminal automation 

systems, as well as to consolidate several existing 

informational displays in a single unit. 

The Volpe Center has contributed to this 

upgrade through engineering and installation 

support at over two-thirds of the 177 USAF and 

Air National Guard (ANG) Bases worldwide. 

For the past seven years, the Center has played a 

major role in requirements definition, system 

engineering, site engineering, and analysis of 

communications, surveillance, and automation 

systems for the NAS program office. 

This year the Volpe Center team has conducted 

over 40 site surveys for the Airfield Automation 

System (AFAS), installed the key site system, and 

led an extremely successful key site test of that 

system. The Volpe Center team efforts on this 

project resulted in an ESC quarterly award for 

the AFAS team. The team also completed the 

deployment of the ETVS systems, installing the 

last of more than 100 such systems this spring. 

The Center has led the development of the 

DASR Advanced Signal Data Processor, which 

will debut for both the DoD and FAA in 

September of this year at FAA’s technical center. 

Further, the team is leading the development of 

requirements to deploy STARS and DASR to 

overseas sites, including the incorporation of 

Mode S into both the radar and automation 

systems. Finally, Volpe Center representatives 

chair the joint DoD-FAA DASR-STARS 

interoperability working group; this group has 

developed and refined the process for optimizing 

these systems as a single entity rather than as 

individual components, resulting in the best 

possible air picture for air traffic controllers. 

(Sponsored by DoD/USAF) 

Innovative Transportation Systems Solutions 16
ENVIRONMENTAL 

STEWARDSHIP 

Promote transportation solutions that enhance 

communities and protect the natural and built environment 

Corporate Average Fuel Economy Research and 

Analysis 

The Volpe Center supports NHTSA on 

Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) 

rulemakings and related activities that require 

supporting analyses. The CAFE regulations exist 

to regulate and improve the average fuel 

economy of cars and light trucks (trucks, vans, 

and sport utility vehicles) sold in the U.S. The 

Volpe Center developed a modeling system, the 

CAFE Compliance and Effects Modeling 

System, that calculates fuel savings and 

compliance costs. The Center is currently 

expanding the system to support more refined 

fuel consumption analysis. 

NHTSA worked closely with the Volpe Center in 

setting new light-truck CAFE standards and used 

its analysis in the accompanying Regulatory 

Impact Analysis. These standards were published 

in April 2006. 

CAFE rulemakings are high-stake political 

undertakings that affect corporate profits and 

national energy use and dependence. It is 

essential for the underlying analysis to be viewed 

as credible and objective. The high-quality 

analytical work that the Volpe Center performed 

under intense time pressure was crucial to the 

achievement of NHTSA’s regulatory objectives. 

(Sponsored by DOT/NHTSA)

DOT’s Center for Climate Change and 

Environmental Forecasting —Strategic Plan 

As global warming becomes a more critical issue 

for our society, it is essential for the 

transportation community to develop strategies 

to reduce transportation-related greenhouse gases 

and to mitigate the effects of climate change on 

the transportation network. The U.S. DOT 

established the Center for Climate Change and 

Environmental Forecasting (CCCEF) in 1999 as 

a focal point of technical expertise within DOT 

to address these challenges. The Volpe Center 

recently led the effort to develop a new Strategic 

Plan for the CCCEF. Volpe Center staff 

interviewed over 30 key stakeholders from 

government, industry, academia, and advocacy 

groups. The Center also facilitated two 

workshops with senior executives representing all 

the transportation modes. 

The plan, which will guide research, partnerships, 

and outreach for the CCCEF through 2010, 

promotes comprehensive multimodal approaches 

to transportation-related climate change issues 

and helps position DOT as a leader in addressing 

these issues. (Sponsored by DOT/ Center for Climate 

Change and Environmental Forecasting)

Eco-Logical: An Ecosystem Approach to 

Developing Infrastructure Projects 

Over the last several decades, an understanding 

of how infrastructure can negatively impact 

wildlife habitat and ecosystems has grown. 

Awareness of how to better avoid, minimize, and 

mitigate these impacts has also matured. The 

Volpe Center led an interagency group of 

resource agencies—the Federal Highway 

Administration, Bureau of Land Management, 

Environmental Protection Agency, Fish and 

Wildlife Service, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, 

Innovative Transportation Systems Solutions 17
U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service, 

National Park Service, NOAA Fisheries, and 

several state DOTs—to develop an 

unprecedented guide for making infrastructure 

development more sensitive to wildlife and 

ecosystem conservation. The Volpe Center team 

was the key author of Eco-Logical: An Ecosystem 

Approach to Developing Infrastructure Projects, which 

presents a framework for multiple agencies to 

integrate their planning and establish 

partnerships to achieve cost-effective 

infrastructure development without 

compromising ecosystem conservation. Moving 

beyond the traditional project-by-project 

approach to infrastructure development toward 

the ecosystem approach defined in Eco-Logical

can achieve a wide range of benefits, including 

efficient project development; safer, improved 

infrastructure; more cooperative conservation; 

and improved watershed and ecosystem health. 

(Sponsored by DOT/FHWA) 

Alternative Transportation Programs and 

Systems for National Parks and Public Lands 

During FY 2006, the Volpe Center completed 

several assignments to help improve the overall 

management and operation of park roads and 

Alternative Transportation Systems by the NPS 

to afford visitors the access and mobility needed 

to enjoy national park attractions in ways that 

preserve natural and cultural resources for the 

enjoyment of future generations. 

In January 2006, the Volpe Center compiled the 

first-ever inventory of Intelligent Transportation 

Systems (ITS) in planning or use at national 

parks across the country. This inventory serves as 

a baseline for future program strategies and as 

the basis for a number of ITS strategies with 

respect to NPS park roads and alternative 

transportation programs. As of 2005, over 15 

percent of national park units have reported 

having deployed ITS applications or having plans 

to do so. The most prevalent applications relate 

to traveler information systems; several major 

national parks, such as the Grand Canyon and 

Acadia, are featured within statewide “511” 

traveler information systems that provide 

regional travel and transportation information 

telephonically when that number is dialed. 

During FY 2006, the Volpe Center continued 

efforts to assist national park units in assessing 

current and prospective financial conditions of 

transportation services offered for visitor use. In 

July 2006, a summary analysis identified over 

$155 million annually in capital and operating 

costs at 15 national parks that depend, in various 

degrees, on revenue from 15 funding sources, 

many of which have uncertain futures due to 

budget reduction pressures. This preliminary 

effort has prompted a more comprehensive 

review of NPS alternative transportation systems 

and the associated financial underpinnings. 

The Volpe Center also assisted NPS in efforts to 

strengthen its asset management systems and 

practices. In January 2006, the Center delivered a 

report that summarized current directions and 

future considerations for integrating NPS 

pavement, bridge, safety, and congestion 

management systems to avoid unnecessary 

duplication, minimize the data collection and 

reporting burden on park units, and facilitate 

planning and investment tradeoff analysis. 

In addition, the Volpe Center is supporting the 

NPS Transportation System Working Group 

(TSWG) in an effort to define and implement an 

asset management system element within the 

overall NPS Facility Management Software 

System, which is being introduced to monitor the 

condition and maintenance repair needs of all 

national park facilities. In September 2006, the 

Center prepared a white paper for the TSWG 

describing current practices in transit asset 

management and potential applicability to the 

NPS as part of an ongoing effort to define NPS 

transportation asset management system goals, 

objectives, and capabilities. (Sponsored by NPS, 

FLM, DOT/FHWA, and FTA)

Ballast Water Discharge Standard Rulemaking 

Program 

The Volpe Center provided technical support to 

the U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) in the preparation 

of a National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) 

compliance process for the Ballast Water 

Innovative Transportation Systems Solutions 18
Discharge (BWD) Standard Rulemaking 

Program. The objective of the program is to 

prevent or reduce the introduction of aquatic 

Nonindigenous Species (NIS) via shipping 

activities in U.S. waters. Ballast water is a major 

pathway for the introduction of NIS. When 

introduced, NIS can negatively impact aquatic 

ecosystems, fisheries, infrastructure, human 

health, and economic systems. 

The Volpe Center, with the collaboration of 

internationally recognized scientists in the fields 

of aquatic invasive species ecology and 

mathematical ecology, assessed the potential 

consequences of the rulemaking. The high degree 

of complexity and limited knowledge of aquatic 

ecosystems, along with the large variability in the 

transport of organisms by means of ballast water, 

make it extremely difficult to predict NIS 

introduction and impacts. Based on a detailed 

study of the current state of scientific knowledge 

regarding the aquatic NIS invasion process and 

the prediction of invasion and impacts, the Volpe 

Center developed and implemented a 

scientifically valid methodology to analyze the 

impacts of the rulemaking. The Volpe Center 

prepared a technical report summarizing the 

analytical methodology and results and is 

currently preparing a Programmatic 

Environmental Impact Statement to accompany 

the rulemaking. (Sponsored by DHS/USCG)

Tire/Pavement Noise and Quieter Pavement 

Applications 

Between 1970 and 1998, $1.8 billion was spent 

on the construction of highway barriers to reduce 

noise along U.S. roadways. Budget-conscious 

state DOTs and FHWA are researching 

innovative alternatives to barrier construction for 

highway noise abatement. “Quiet pavements” 

have emerged as one of the more promising 

approaches. 

With tire/pavement interaction noise being the 

dominant source of vehicle noise at highway 

speeds, the use of “quiet pavements” as an 

alternative to noise barrier construction is an 

important area of research. Volpe Center staff 

has been extensively involved with national and 

international tire/pavement noise research and 

are recognized for their expertise in research 

planning, noise measurements, and their general 

knowledge base. 

In FY 2006, Volpe Center staff supported the 

“quiet pavements” program by (1) helping to 

design and conduct a workshop targeted at 

establishing a national roadmap for quiet 

pavements research, (2) helping to guide research 

plans and field measurements for several U.S. 

states, (3) participating in several expert panels to 

help guide projects for the National Cooperative 

Highway Research Program, (4) participating in 

the development of standard practices for 

tire/pavement noise measurements, and (5) 

conducting noise measurement research to help 

quantify the benefit of “quiet pavements.” 

(Sponsored by DOT/FHWA) 

New International Airplane Noise Standard 

Between 1982 and 1999, $4.3 billion was spent 

on noise-mitigation activities at U.S. airports. The 

allocation of these expenditures is based on the 

FAA’s Integrated Noise Model (INM), which 

was designed and developed by the Volpe 

Center. In 1998, the Society of Automotive 

Engineers initiated a research effort to update the 

overground propagation algorithms in their 

international standard for computing aircraft 

noise in the vicinity of airports, which is the basis 

for INM. The Volpe Center was selected to lead 

a group of researchers, which included FAA, 

NASA, UK’s Civil Aviation Authority, Boeing, 

Airbus, Wyle Laboratories, and Marsh & Nustad 

Enterprises LLC. 

This eight-year research effort culminated in 

March 2006 with the adoption of SAE AIR 5662, 

a new international standard for computing 

overground propagation of sound from aircraft. 

The updated algorithms of AIR 5662 have been 

implemented in INM as well as several similar 

noise models around the world. The use of the 

updated version of INM will lead to more 

informed decisions by planners and policymakers 

on local, national, and international issues 

pertaining to noise in the vicinity of airports.

(Sponsored by DOT/FAA) 

Innovative Transportation Systems Solutions 19
Aviation Environmental Design Tool (AEDT) 

In its 2004 Report to Congress, Aviation and the 

Environment, the Bush Administration 

recommended that “The Nation should develop 

more effective metrics and tools to assess and 

communicate aviation’s environmental effects. 

The tools should enable integrated 

environmental and economic cost/benefit 

analysis. ...”. As a result of this recommendation, 

the FAA has launched a multi-year effort, which 

will result in the development of an entirely new 

suite of tools, including the Aviation 

Environmental Design Tool (AEDT). 

The Volpe Center leads the management, design, 

and development of AEDT, which will integrate 

existing AEE aviation noise, emissions, and 

dispersion computer modeling tools. Center staff 

work closely in this development effort with the 

ATAC Corp., CSSI Inc., Wyle Laboratories, the 

Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and the 

Georgia Institute of Technology. It is anticipated 

that this effort will lead to the development of an 

unprecedented suite of tools, which will be used 

by the International Civil Aviation Organization 

(ICAO) for the establishment of international 

environmental policy. 

In FY 2006, an early version of AEDT was used 

as a capability demonstrator to replicate a 

previous study conducted by ICAO, which 

looked at various international policy options for 

the reduction of oxides of nitrogen emitted from 

civil aircraft. AEDT was also used in FY 2006 to 

conduct a preliminary assessment of the 

environmental benefits (including fuel burn) of 

continuous descent approach. (Sponsored by 

DOT/FAA) 

Innovative Transportation Systems Solutions 20
SECURITY, PREPAREDNESS 

AND RESPONSE 

Balance transportation security requirements with the 

safety, mobility, and economic needs of the Nation and be 

prepared to respond to emergencies that affect the viability 

of the transportation sector 

Emergency Response—Hurricanes Katrina and 

Rita 

Following the devastation of Hurricane Katrina, 

Volpe Center staff deployed immediately to 

Louisiana, where they played a key role in 

providing transportation services in response to 

Katrina’s devastation and in planning and 

executing evacuation in the face of Hurricane 

Rita’s 28-foot storm surge. 

After the hurricanes, the Federal Emergency 

Management Agency (FEMA) activated a new 

emergency support function: Long-Term 

Community Recovery. Volpe Center staff served 

as DOT’s overall coordinator for this function, 

leading a combined field and support team that 

included staff from all the modal administrations 

and coordinating with FEMA and state and local 

agencies participating in the disaster recovery. 

Volpe Center teams demonstrated initiative in 

solving problems as they arose. Recognizing the 

need to provide transportation for the thousands 

of displaced residents, Volpe Center staff, in 

support of FEMA, designed and implemented 

LASwift, a bus service to transport workers from 

Baton Rouge to jobs in New Orleans. To help 

FEMA provide access to essential services for 

evacuees, Volpe Center transportation planners 

worked quickly to establish a concept of 

operations, which led to development of a statewide bus system for evacuees, LAMoves.

The demonstrated ability of the Volpe Center 

staff to provide intermodal transportation 

support to the hurricane response effort through 

disaster planning, response, and recovery 

highlights its potential to assist Federal, state, and 

local governments as they seek to be better 

prepared to respond to future emergency 

situations. The Center’s contributions 

incorporate best practices from incident 

management disciplines in the public and private 

sectors. (Sponsored by DHS/FEMA)

U.S. Coast Guard Legacy Fleet Maintenance 

Effectiveness Program 

The U.S. Coast Guard operates five classes of 

cutters and four classes of aircraft in its 

Deepwater operations. Effective assets in their 

day, these platforms are technologically obsolete 

and require excessive maintenance. The 

Deepwater Project was established to modernize 

and replace this aging fleet as well as its 

supporting command-and-control and logistics 

systems. Because the current acquisition plan 

indicates that some legacy cutters are to remain 

in commission for up to 20 years, the Coast 

Guard's Engineering and Logistics Center asked 

the Volpe Center to help develop plans to keep 

these cutters operating at maximum efficiency 

through their remaining life. The Volpe Center 

helped the Coast Guard develop a list of 

maintenance actions needed to achieve that goal 

over a two-year period, 2003-2005. 

Innovative Transportation Systems Solutions 21
This year the Volpe Center evaluated several 

scenarios for accomplishing the work and 

recommended the most cost-effective alternative. 

It also established a performance baseline for 

each of the 76 cutters involved in the project. 

Volpe Center staff will monitor cutter 

performance over the next ten years to determine 

the cost-effectiveness of the MEP. (Sponsored by 

DHS/USCG)

U.S. Navy Sixth Fleet Automatic Identification 

System 

The Volpe Center has been involved in the 

development of Maritime Domain Awareness 

(MDA) networks since its groundbreaking work 

at the Panama Canal with the Communications 

Tracking and Navigation (CTAN) system. 

Currently, the Volpe Center is engaged in the 

development of an MDA network known as the 

Maritime Safety and Security Information System 

(MSSIS) for the U.S. Navy Sixth Fleet. The goal 

of the network is to develop a comprehensive 

vessel traffic situational awareness picture of 

Automatic Identification System (AIS)-equipped 

vessel traffic in the European Command 

(EUCOM) Area of Responsibility (AOR). A 

secondary goal of the network is to foster 

cooperation among U.S. Allies by allowing them 

to be active partners in the MSSIS network. The 

MDA situational awareness picture is comprised 

of real-time AIS-derived vessel traffic 

information gathered from both shoreside and 

afloat receive stations. Data from the network is 

displayed on the Volpe Center-developed MDA 

software known as Transview. Recently, the 

MSSIS network provided U.S. commanders with 

real-time vessel traffic situation awareness during 

the evacuation of Americans from Lebanon. In 

2007, the Volpe Center will expand the MSSIS to 

include the U.S. Navy Second Fleet vessel and its 

AOR. (Sponsored by DoD/Navy)

New DOT Headquarters Security System 

Implementation 

The Volpe Center is designing, procuring, and 

installing a security system for the new DOT 

Headquarters in Washington, DC. The system is 

an IP-based Access Control, Digital Video 

Recording, and Closed Circuit Television 

(CCTV) Systems and Command, Control and 

Monitoring Center. The objective is to 

implement an integrated security system that is 

compatible with Homeland Security Presidential 

Directive-12 (HSPD-12), which directs all 

Federal agencies to provide the capability for a 

common identification card that will allow 

Federal employees and contractors to gain access 

to both federally controlled facilities and 

computers. The system will consist of 

approximately 200 access control card readers; 

150 exterior and interior fixed and pan/tilt/zoom 

CCTV cameras; 19 turnstiles; two command, 

control, and display command centers; 

credentialing for over 5,500 employees; multiple 

intrusion detection points; and parking garage 

access control, surveillance, and emergency call 

boxes. The 1.35-million-square-foot building is 

the first new cabinet-level building to be 

designed and constructed in the Nation's capital 

in more than 30 years. It is also the first major 

Federal building to be built with HSPD-12 

compliance as its guiding security principle. 

Volpe Center personnel have played a key role in 

defining requirements and guidance regarding 

physical security infrastructure installation and 

equipment specifications, HSPD-12 design and 

implementation, and program management. In 

FY 2006, 95 percent system design was 

completed. (Sponsored by DOT/OST)

Nuclear Ship Savannah Decommissioning Project 

The U.S. Maritime Administration (MARAD) 

owns and maintains the nuclear ship Savannah, 

the world’s first nuclear-powered merchant ship. 

The ship was operated from 1962 to 1970, after 

which its nuclear power plant was defueled and 

partially decommissioned in accordance with the 

best practices of the day. In 2002, MARAD 

determined that it could no longer securely 

maintain the remnants of the ship's nuclear 

reactor and initiated a program to properly 

decommission the reactor vessel and all 

associated ancillary equipment and material. Due 

to the technical complexity and uniqueness of the 

decommissioning effort, MARAD’s Office of 

Ship Operations, Savannah Technical Staff 

Office, has assembled a team of engineering and 

Innovative Transportation Systems Solutions 22
project management experts to assist it and has 

chosen the Volpe Center to be a vital member of 

this team. 

The Volpe Center is providing a variety of 

environmental, engineering, and other technical 

services to support the Savannah

decommissioning. During FY 2006, the Volpe 

Center has participated on the Savannah 

Decommissioning Audit and Review Committee, 

completed the draft environmental assessment 

for decommissioning, provided review and 

comment on the Savannah Nuclear 

Characterization Report and MARAD’s 

decommissioning rough order-of-magnitude cost 

estimate, and developed port operation criteria. It 

has also evaluated various ports for the 

decommissioning, participated in the proposal 

evaluation of MARAD’s solicitation for 

contractor support in decommissioning 

management and oversight, and developed 

engineering designs for the installation of fire 

protection and security monitoring systems. 

(Sponsored by DOT/MARAD)

Support to U.S. DOT’s Pandemic Preparedness 

Planning 

During Deputy DOT Secretary Maria Cino’s visit 

to the Volpe Center in October 2005, she 

indicated that it was a top priority to ensure that 

the U.S. DOT, the Federal Government, and 

state and local organizations were prepared to 

deal with an outbreak of avian flu. The Deputy 

Secretary, at the request of then-Secretary 

Norman Mineta, convened a Departmental Task 

Force on the Avian Flu to support development 

of a National Strategy for Pandemic Influenza. 

The Deputy Secretary encouraged the Center to 

lend support to the U.S. DOT Task Force and to 

reach out to state and local governments on 

preparedness issues. She also encouraged ideas 

on how best to support the Department as it 

prepares for a potential outbreak. The Volpe 

Center worked to inform decision makers within 

U.S. DOT of its vast experience relevant to 

emergency preparedness (international best practices; 

connecting communities; developing Federal, 

state, and local playbooks for dealing with a 

pandemic; lessons learned from national 

disasters; state and local planning; training 

curriculum/outreach; detection (passenger tracking, 

CDC transportation disease migration project); 

response (knowledge base related to evacuation 

and quarantine issues; economic impacts of 

pandemic on transportation and the economy; 

and recovery (planning for and implementing). In 

an effort to share technical information within 

the organization and with the broader 

transportation community, the Volpe Center’s 

Client-sponsored Training User’s Group 

(CTUG) conducted a special lecture series on 

“The Avian Flu: Preparing for a Pandemic and 

Transportation Impacts.” (Sponsored by DOT/OST)

Innovative Transportation Systems Solutions 23
Innovative Transportation Systems Solutions 24
ORGANIZATIONAL 

EXCELLENCE 

Advance the Department's ability to manage for results and 

achieve the goals of the President's Management Agenda 

On Behalf of Our Clients 

Professional Capacity Building 

A key component of DOT’s Strategic Plan is the 

establishment of a strong DOT leadership role in 

transportation workforce development. The 

Volpe Center is helping DOT to provide this 

leadership through its Professional Capacity 

Building (PCB) programs, which provide 

information, technical assistance, tools, and 

training to transportation professionals. 

In addition to flagship programs for Intelligent 

Transportation Systems (ITS) and transportation 

planning, the Volpe Center has helped FHWA to 

establish successful PCB programs in roadway 

safety and environmental stewardship. The 

Center is now helping FHWA to address 

professional gaps in two other high-priority 

areas, public-private partnerships (PPPs) and 

security and emergency response. 

The Volpe Center partnered with the American 

Association of State Highway and Transportation 

Officials to conduct the most comprehensive 

survey to date on current practices and needs 

among states regarding PPPs. Based in part on 

information from the survey, the team is now 

developing a toolkit of PPP resources. In security 

and emergency management, the Volpe Center 

has helped FHWA to launch a pooled fund to 

develop training for state DOTs. The Center is 

also developing a database of training and a series 

of webinars for national audiences. 

In addition, the Volpe Center was instrumental in 

establishing a council that brings together 

managers of capacity building programs across 

the DOT. The council encourages managers to 

share experiences, exchange information and best 

practices, identify opportunities for enhanced 

knowledge management, and better integrate 

training, technical assistance, and information 

dissemination among programs. (Sponsored by 

DOT/FHWA)

FAA Telecommunications Infrastructure 

Modernization 

The Volpe Center has been actively participating 

in the process of transitioning the 

telecommunications infrastructure, which 

supports the Enhanced Traffic Management 

System (ETMS) from the legacy Leased 

Interfacility NAS Communications System 

(LINCS) and onto the new, modernized network 

of the FAA Telecommunication Infrastructure 

(FTI) contract. The ETMS system is located at 

over 80 FAA operational facilities, with the 

primary processing site located and operated at 

the Volpe Center. The ETMS program has been 

making use of LINCS services over the last 10 

years for interfacility telecommunications needs. 

The transition work consisted of deriving 

transition plan details, testing the transition plan, 

and finally transitioning the telecommunications 

services. A major milestone occurred on April 

11, 2006, when FAA was able to order 

decommissioning of a major LINCS node 

located at the Volpe Center. The 

decommissioning of the LINCS node will save 

Innovative Transportation Systems Solutions 25
the FAA an estimated $500,000 per year. 

(Sponsored by DOT/FAA)

Transportation Security Administration Training 

Evaluation 

Within the Transportation Security 

Administration (TSA), the mission of the 

Operational and Technical Training Division 

(OTT) is to develop and deliver technical training 

that helps to enable the TSA workforce, and 

others involved in transportation security, to 

perform their duties in protecting the Nation's 

transportation systems. The Volpe Center was 

tasked by OTT in October 2005 to conduct a 

program evaluation of its technical training 

development and delivery program. The 

evaluation was in response to the requirements 

of the Government Performance and Results Act 

(GPRA) of 1993, which was enacted to improve 

the confidence of the American people in the 

capabilities of all Federal agencies by 

systematically holding them accountable for 

achieving program results. In Phase 1 of the 

evaluation (completed in April 2006), the Volpe 

Center created an overall definition of OTT’s 

program using a program logic model construct 

that defined the inputs, activities, outputs, 

outcomes, and impacts. The program definition 

provided OTT with a baseline definition that will 

enable it to better manage its training program 

and meet the GPRA starting point of having 

annual program goals and measuring program 

performance toward achieving them. (Sponsored by 

DHS/TSA) 

Telecommunications Information Management 

System 

The Volpe Center continues to support the 

FAA’s Telecommunications Information 

Management System (TIMS) with responsibility 

for the design, development, operation, 

maintenance, and user training of TIMS. TIMS 

provides a single, centralized national data 

repository of FAA telecommunications ordering, 

funding, and inventory information along with a 

consistent set of automated tools to support the 

telecommunications business processes of the 

FAA. In FY 2006, the Volpe Center upgraded 

the TIMS database and tool suite of software 

applications to the current versions of Oracle 

and PowerBuilder; developed software to process 

and load FAA-approved address information 

provided by the FAA Telecommunications 

Infrastructure (FTI) and used by the TIMS 

Ordering application; supported the required 

TIMS Level 1 Security Certification and 

Authorization Package (SCAP) process; and 

developed software to process and load 

information from the FAA’s National Cutover 

Service Acceptance Database pertaining to 

telecommunications services being transitioned 

to the FAA’s FTI contract. (Sponsored by 

DOT/FAA)

Lease Information Management System 

The Lease Information Management System 

(LIMS) assists the FAA in management of leased 

land and space contracts. The FAA manages over 

10,000 non-GSA leases for facility land sites, 

buildings, easements, and rights-of-way. Onethird of these leases require rental payment of 

over $75 million annually. The Volpe Center 

developed the LIMS to manage the funding of 

land and space acquisitions. Reports and data 

displays provide immediate access to the terms 

and conditions of each lease, easement, or owned 

land property record. The LIMS has been an 

important tool for the FAA in its data cleanup 

activities, resulting in major improvements in the 

accuracy of information available to support 

decisions by FAA headquarters and field 

program analysts and program managers. 

The LIMS provides future fiscal year budget 

requirements based on lease terms and 

conditions, generates workload management 

reports for lease renewals, develops summary 

information on facilities covered by leases, and 

stores digital images of each lease document for 

retrieval whenever appropriate. FAA 

Logistics/Real Estate management, as well as 

remote field offices, have immediate on-line 

access to document images, a workload 

management and reporting tool, and a database 

of accurate information on lease contracts and 

facilities via a web-enabled browser-based 

application. The LIMS provides screen displays 

of summary information, a suite of standard 

Innovative Transportation Systems Solutions 26
reports, a user-defined ad hoc query generation 

process, and budget estimate reports for the fiveyear budget call process. Those reports define 

future funding level requirements for submission 

to Congress, ensuring that the FAA can meet its 

fiscal responsibilities for leasing and land 

purchases. 

During FY 2006, the Volpe Center added a line 

of business code for each contract or facility 

document in the LIMS database. The addition of 

these codes made it possible for each line of 

business to generate reports with lease data and 

budget projections for the contracts and facilities 

for which they are responsible. Special studies 

included rental and land acquisition costs for 

specific facility types in support of the national 

facility. (Sponsored by DOT/FAA)

State Pipeline Processing System 

The State Pipeline Processing System (SPPS) 

streamlined the integration of grants.gov 

(mandated for grant processing throughout the 

Federal Government) for the state pipeline safety 

grant program. The Volpe Center developed 

training programs and documentation necessary 

to aid the states in meeting this requirement 

while continuing to assist the Pipeline and 

Hazardous Material Safety Administration’s 

(PHMSA) Office of Pipeline Safety in processing 

pipeline safety grants in an efficient manner. The 

SPPS project operates a web-based system, 

which integrates the information necessary to 

support the State Pipeline Safety Offices as well 

as PHMSA in its management of those interfaces 

with the state organizations. The change was 

effected without a single state dropping out of 

the program due to cost impacts outweighing 

benefits. SPPS continues to operate with the 

Volpe Center providing user help and 

operational maintenance and also developing 

enhancements and improvements to the original 

SPPS functionality. (Sponsored by DOT/PHMSA)

Safety and Fitness Electronic Records eAuthentication 

In FY 2006, FMCSA was selected to pilot the eAuthentication process and enable DOT to meet 

its e-Government requirements. The eAuthentication process is an electronic gateway 

for delivering Federal services to businesses, 

consumers, and other government entities 

utilizing electronic credentials for validation of 

individual identity. This is one of the 24 eGovernment initiatives outlined in the 

President’s Management Agenda and, since 

OMB and GSA oversaw the project, it provided 

visibility for DOT throughout the Federal 

government. FMCSA requested technical 

support from the Volpe Center to implement eAuthentication using the Safety and Fitness 

Electronic Records (SAFER) project, thus 

leveraging the Center’s expertise in information 

technology security and software authentication 

architecture. As a result, FMCSA became the first 

agency in the Department that successfully 

implemented e-Authentication and one of the 

first government agencies to go live on the 

General Services Administration’s e-Government 

portal. An aggressive deployment successfully 

demonstrated a cutting-edge authentication 

process for DOT, providing invaluable 

knowledge that will aid it in deploying eAuthentication throughout the agency. (Sponsored 

by DOT/FMCSA)

Support to the U.S. DOT Small Business and 

Innovative Research Program 

The Volpe Center has administered the 

Department of Transportation’s Small Business 

and Innovative Research (SBIR) program for the 

past 23 years. The Center encourages the 

participation of the small business community in 

developing creative capabilities that address highpriority research requirements of DOT. This 

stimulates technological innovations which help 

to create new products, services, and jobs for the 

Nation through an annual solicitation where the 

topics address a wide area of agency-specific 

concerns. The 2006 annual solicitation received 

89 proposals addressing nine research topics 

from 27 states. 

In addition to the formal program, the Center 

provides additional support to the small business 

community by referrals to other DOT 

procurement opportunities, the TRB Innovations 

Deserving Exploratory Analysis (IDEA) 

Innovative Transportation Systems Solutions 27
program, the ten other agency SBIR programs, 

and SBA resources. Through these efforts, the 

Volpe Center has helped to make SBIR a truly 

national program that reaches all 50 states. 

(Sponsored by DOT/OST)

Volpe Center Management Initiatives 

Customer Satisfaction Survey 

As a fee-for-service organization with voluntary 

customers, the Volpe Center has sought 

customer feedback regarding its delivery of 

products and services. In October 2005, the 

Volpe Center embarked on its third round of 

customer satisfaction surveying. An independent 

contractor was hired to interview all active 

customers, primarily face-to-face, at both the 

project and senior levels. Volpe Center 

management provided input through focus 

forums to ensure productive survey instruments. 

Center staff analyzed the raw data to (1) alert 

senior managers of instances requiring immediate 

customer intervention, (2) share customerspecific findings and areas for improvement by 

means of agency or office-level summary reports, 

(3) respond to specific management inquiries by 

mining feedback results, (4) track customer 

follow-up actions, and (5) identify themes for 

corporate-level improvements. The Center is well 

on its way to completing this initiative, which 

ensures timely, unbiased, actionable data for its 

project teams and important customer trend data, 

one of its key performance metrics. 

Internal Control of Business Processes 

Responding to an Office of Management and 

Budget (OMB) government-wide call for Federal 

agencies to strengthen internal controls over 

financial reporting, in FY 2006 the Volpe Center 

performed a number of assessments/evaluations 

of internal controls over our key business 

processes. Major activities included a Centerwide self-assessment of our controls in place; 

evaluations of controls of five key business 

processes and their subprocesses; and sample 

transaction testing within each key business 

process. The key business processes 

documented, evaluated, and tested included 

accounts payable, payroll and human resources, 

travel management, cash management, and 

acquisition management. Independent random 

sample transaction testing for these business 

processes did not identify any exceptions, 

deficiencies, or problem areas. 

Project Management Improvements 

Volpe Center customers and our thenWashington, DC headquarters [Research and 

Special Programs Administration (RSPA)] had in 

the past expressed concern about our lack of 

standardized project management practices, 

insufficient tools to support the project manager, 

and inconsistent communication to our sponsors 

on project status. The Center has worked closely 

with the project staff to institute standard project 

management processes, tools, and practices. 

Senior management holds twice-monthly 

program reviews of high-interest projects to be 

able to provide cross-organizational support. 

These forums also promote strategies to 

disseminate project management practices across 

the Center and to institute improvements-related 

business processes, for example, in work 

acceptance, finance, and acquisition. 

During the last year, Volpe Center project 

managers completed Project Management Plans 

to outline the deliverables, schedule, and detailed 

budgets of their projects. All projects are 

consistently reporting monthly progress reports 

to their customers. In addition, effective quality 

assurance processes are being implemented so 

that customer deliverables are of the highest 

quality. Learning forums have been expanded to 

help everyone become more proficient with the 

best project management practices. There are 

monthly lunch and learn sessions as well as a 

monthly newsletter. 

The Center has chosen Microsoft Enterprise 

Project Management as the primary integrative 

tool for project plans, schedule, and financial 

status. The system will become operational at the 

end of this fiscal year; over 100 Center project 

managers have been trained and are using the 

system. MSEPM will have integrative 

functionality with the Financial Data Mart to 

Innovative Transportation Systems Solutions 28
streamline processes further for the project 

manager. An MSEPM user group has been 

formed to get ideas for future system 

enhancements and to share tools and tips on 

using Microsoft Project. 

Transfer of Accounting Services 

As part of a mandated effort aimed at getting the 

DOT Finance organization to green status, the 

Volpe Center transferred several accounting 

functions to the FAA Enterprise Service Center 

(ESC) in Oklahoma City. During FY 2006, the 

Accounting Branch of the Financial Management 

Division led the successful transition of the 

Center's Accounts Payable, Travel Processing, 

Accounts Receivable, and Financial Statement 

Preparation functions to the FAA-ESC. Multiple 

meetings were held both in Oklahoma City and 

in Cambridge to develop a transition plan, train 

ESC staff, transfer documentation, and monitor 

ESC performance. The transition was 

accomplished without a disruption in service to 

the Volpe Center and external customers despite 

a significant change in finance staff during the 

transition period. 

Audit of FY 2005 Financial Statements 

The Volpe Center had an audit of the balance 

sheet as of September 30, 2005, performed by 

Williams, Adley, and Company. The firm also 

reviewed the balance sheet as of September 2004 

and its related statements of net costs, changes in 

net position, budgetary resources, and financing 

for the years ending September 30, 2005 and 

2004. The 2005 balance sheet audit resulted in a 

“clean” opinion with no material weaknesses 

found; that is, “The balance sheet as of 

September 30, 2005, is presented fairly, in all 

material respects, in conformity with accounting 

principles generally accepted in the United States 

of America.” 

Transportation Information Project Support 

Contract 

The Transportation Information Project Support 

(TRIPS) Contract was awarded to the Computer 

Sciences Corporation (CSC). The TRIPS 

Contract, valued at $178 million, was awarded on 

February 7, 2006, and became effective May 1, 

2006, following a 90-day transition period. The 

contract is an indefinite delivery/indefinite 

quantity (IDIQ) contract with a maximum period 

of performance of five years. It is a performancebased contract with cost-plus-award fee and 

firm-fixed price provisions. The TRIPS Contract 

serves as a key component of the Volpe Center’s 

staffing strategy by providing high-caliber 

information systems and information technology 

professionals capable of meeting the Center’s 

programmatic requirements. 

Work Acceptance Website 

A “Work Acceptance” subsite on the Volpe 

Intranet site was developed and posted this year. 

The home page contains a description of the 

Work Acceptance process, including the criteria 

that must be met in order for work to be 

accepted by the Volpe Center. The site describes 

how funding is received from sponsors by means 

of a Project Plan Agreement (PPA) under a 

General Working Agreement or through a 

Reimbursable Agreement (RA), explains what 

documentation is needed to obtain Work 

Acceptance approval, and provides points of 

contact to consult when there are questions 

about preparation of a PPA or an RA. Separate 

links take the PPA/RA initiator immediately to 

the section of the website that explains the 

preparation process and provides links to 

templates, samples, and forms. The Work 

Acceptance website is continually monitored so 

that all posted information and documentation is 

kept up to date. 

New Incentive Awards Program 

The Volpe Center made considerable progress in 

meeting government requirements in a more 

cost-effective manner. A union/management 

team developed a new incentive awards program 

that complements the recently implemented 

Volpe Center Performance Appraisal System. 

The incentive awards program implements a true 

pay for performance system consistent with the 

goals of the President’s Management Agenda for 

Human Capital. The program minimizes the 

amount of paperwork and effort required to 

Innovative Transportation Systems Solutions 29
initiate and approve Performance Awards and 

Quality Salary Increases. 

Recruitment of High-Caliber Technical Staff 

In support of the President’s Management 

Agenda and the Volpe Center Strategic Goals 

and Business Plan, several Human Resources 

(HR) initiatives were undertaken to attain a 

flexible and diverse workforce with the technical 

skills and competencies to support the Center’s 

core business capabilities and provide a pipeline 

of future leaders. 

• Two SES Office Directors, one Deputy Office 

Director, and seven Division Chief positions 

were filled on a permanent basis. 

• Recruitment efforts are underway to fill two 

Deputy Office Director positions and seven 

Division Chief positions. 

• Standard evaluation factors were developed for 

Technical Division Chief positions to 

streamline the recruitment processes and 

ensure that required competencies were 

measured effectively. 

• The approval criteria that Center managers 

apply to external recruitment and/or internal 

promotion of nonsupervisory GS-14/15 

positions were revised. This ensures that the 

Center’s core business capabilities are properly 

measured. 

• HR staff worked closely with the FHWA 

Automated Staffing Unit to use “Category 

Rating” as a pilot program within DOT for 

recruiting Division Chief and nonsupervisory 

technical positions. The program is designed to 

increase the number of candidates provided to 

selecting officials who fit the Center’s business 

model. Category Rating was used in the 

recruitment process to fill four Division Chief 

vacancies, seven technical vacancies, and 

pending selections of a Deputy Director and a 

Division Chief. 

Management/Technical Staff Development and 

Succession Planning 

Human Resources/Human Capital initiatives 

have been integral to achieving the Center’s 

Business Plan and Strategic Goals, which in turn 

support the Department’s Organizational 

Excellence Goal and the PMA goal for the 

Strategic Management of Human Capital. 

In support of the Center’s Strategic Goal to 

Continuously Develop the Center’s Human 

Capital, the expected outcomes are high-caliber 

and high-performing employees and improved 

employee engagement. The HR support to these 

goals resulted in: 

• Providing approximately one-third of the 

Center’s training budget for Project 

Management Certification training and training 

on the enterprise project management system 

• Developing and implementing a revitalized 

management and executive development 

program, which included rolling out a new 

Pre-Leadership Development Program for 

employees at the GS-12 and GS-13 levels 

whereby approximately 40 employees 

competed for 12 slots 

• Articulating the structure and progression of 

the Center’s management succession plan, 

which includes components of filling 

positions, developing management and 

leadership skills, and accountability through 

performance management. 

The design and implementation of each of these 

activities involved integrating best practice 

research, union and management interests, and 

goals and inputs from employee surveys. 

Small Business Administration’s Small Business 

Program Surveillance Review 

Representatives from the Small Business 

Administration (SBA) conducted a Small 

Business Program Surveillance Review at the 

Volpe Center in July 2006 under the authority of 

the Small Business Act in order to assess the 

quality of our small business program, evaluate 

our small business program’s impact on small 

business, enable the SBA to recommend changes 

to improve small business participation in our 

acquisition process, and share effective 

techniques that the Volpe Center uses to 

promote small business participation with other 

contracting activities as applicable. The SBA 

review team reviewed a representative sample of 

Innovative Transportation Systems Solutions 30
27 Volpe Center contractual files, which were 

previously identified by the SBA out of the 

possible 98 files available for review. At the 

Surveillance Review Exit Briefing with senior 

management, the SBA review team leader stated 

that the Volpe Center’s Small Business Program 

was excellent and the Volpe Center should be 

very proud of this accomplishment. The SBA 

review team leader also stated that he had 

conducted many reviews in his 15 years with the 

SBA and that the Volpe Center had the best 

contracting activity he and his team had ever 

reviewed. 

Transportation Safety Institute e-Gov Assistance 

Representatives from the Volpe Center assumed 

responsibility for transitioning the 

Transportation Safety Institute (TSI) to the 

Department’s PRISM system. TSI had been 

using FAA’s contract document generation 

system ACQUIRE, but it was advised that the 

system would be retired and thus no longer 

available beginning in April 2006. TSI contacted 

the Volpe Center and asked for our assistance in 

setting up the PRISM system for its use. An 

interagency agreement was entered into between 

TSI and the Volpe Center under which the 

Center would provide the following services: 

conduct a site survey to identify PRISM training 

needs and system requirements; establish a TSI 

subsite to PRISM; arrange and execute training 

for TSI acquisition staff and requisitioners; 

provide PRISM system administration. As a 

result of these efforts, there was a smooth, 

efficient, transfer from TSI’s legacy software to 

the Department’s PRISM system. The Director 

of TSI presented the principal participant of the 

Volpe Centerteam with a certificate of 

appreciation in which describes them as “very 

enthusiastic” and “highly competent.” This was 

accomplished with little lead time. 

Enhanced Systems Security Posture 

During FY 2006, the Volpe Center implemented 

major system and process improvements to 

enhance its overall Information Technology (IT) 

security posture. Improvements included 

installation of new Symantec Intrusion 

Prevention Systems (IPS) and implementation of 

comprehensive IT system vulnerability scanning 

identification and remediation procedures. High 

vulnerabilities of the Volpe Center IT system are 

now effectively resolved in accordance with 

DOT guidelines more than 99 percent of the 

time. 

Real Property Management 

In support of Presidential Executive Order 

13327, Federal Property Management, Volpe 

Center staff is working as part of two DOT 

groups developing DOT real property reporting 

guidelines and real estate management policy. 

The Volpe Center will be responsible for keeping 

the real property database called the Real Estate 

Management System (REMS) current for RITA 

until a replacement is chosen for RITA’s real 

property manager. As a result of a third-party 

review of Volpe Center Facilities Division 

financial information in FY 2006, the General 

Services Administration determined that the 

Volpe Center is following proper real estate 

management practice. It was determined that the 

Volpe Center is currently charging 25 percent 

less for its space than the DOT pays for its 

Nassif building headquarters space in 

Washington, DC. 

Human Capital Survey

On January 31, the Volpe Center Executive 

Council and NAGE Union announced the 

establishment of a Volpe Center Human Capital 

Advisory Group (HCAG) as a joint labor and 

management endeavor. The HCAG, whose 

members represent a wide perspective of 

interests and backgrounds from across the 

Center, is empowered to recommend workforce 

management strategies and actions based on 

research and employee feedback on the Center's 

work environment, which will contribute to 

maximizing organizational performance. 

The HCAG’s major accomplishment thus far has 

been the development and administration of a 

Center Human Capital Survey in June to assess 

the level of engagement of employees and to 

assist in identifying performance management 

strategies that drive employee performance 

Innovative Transportation Systems Solutions 31
effectively. The survey focused on specific 

human capital levers that drive employee 

performance and retention: Leadership and 

Communication, Work Environment and 

Operations, Performance Culture, Job 

Satisfaction, and Career Development and 

Training. Center employees’ support of the 

HCAG is indicated by the impressive 50 percent 

survey participation rate. In turn, the HCAG’s 

commitment to keep staff updated on its 

progress is demonstrated by its ongoing and 

candid communications, which include a 

webpage; updates on the survey results, interim 

actions, and next steps; and an all-employee 

briefing in September. The HCAG will be 

holding focus groups to further explore issues 

and solicit solutions, which will be formalized in 

the Center’s FY 2007/08 Business Plan. 

Reducing Energy Cost Increases 

FY 2006 began with a 50 percent increase in the 

price of electricity, an 11 percent increase in 

building occupants and computers, and pressure 

to sign on to a costly ten-year contract with the 

Center’s unregulated steam supplier. In response, 

the Center accelerated energy cost-saving 

initiatives through (a) energy conservation, (b) 

electricity price market timing, and (c) steam 

supply alternatives. This required collaboration 

between the administration, Facilities, and 

Acquisition divisions, as well as the cooperation 

and support of the RITA Federal, contractor, 

and DOT tenant employees occupying the Volpe 

Center facility. 

For conservation, the Center (1) lowered the 

temperature two degrees during the heating 

season; (2) replaced inefficient motors and 

pumps that move water to our cost-effective 

cooling towers and chillers; (3) replaced or 

weather-stripped all outside doors in the largest 

building; (4) encouraged employees to shut off 

lights and periodically reported back to all 

occupants on monitored results; (5) provided 

computer users with information on energysaving “sleep” modes and accelerated energyefficient replacement of processors, monitors, 

and printers; (6) eliminated one of the three 

vehicles in the motor pool; (7) promoted the 

Charles River Transportation Management 

Association voluntary ride-sharing and the 

“emergency ride home” services; (8) promoted 

the Center’s “transit benefit” and “teleworking” 

programs; and (9) improved the Center’s parking 

for bicycles and motorcycles. 

Faced with post-Katrina panic buying of gas used 

to produce electricity, the Center lowered its 

electricity contract cost increase by getting GSA 

approval to be the sole agency to delay signing of 

the Boston-area Federal electricity contract. As a 

result, the Center’s electricity price was five 

percent lower than even that of the biggest local 

Federal agency. 

To improve the negotiation position with the 

current monopoly supplier of steam, the Center 

obtained GSA-delegated authority to negotiate a 

long-term steam contract while simultaneously 

preparing detailed plans for producing its own 

steam at a net savings of 35 percent. 

The energy conservation and market timing 

initiatives saved the Center about $130K (11 

percent of total energy costs) in FY 2006 and 

helped reduce the energy that employees used for 

commuting. The development of a practical 

“steam production alternative” should result in 

additional net cost avoidance of about $150K 

annually beginning in FY 2008. 

Innovative Transportation Systems Solutions 32
Volpe Center Customers 

Thanks to Our Fiscal Year 2006 Customers 

U.S. Department of Transportation 

Federal Aviation Administration 

Federal Highway Administration 

Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration 

Federal Railroad Administration 

Federal Transit Administration 

Maritime Administration 

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration 

Office of the Secretary of Transportation 

Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety 

Administration 

Research and Innovative Technology 

Administration 

 Transportation Safety Institute 

Saint Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation 

Surface Transportation Board 

Other Federal 

Central Intelligence Agency 

Defense Threat Reduction Agency 

Department of Agriculture 

 U.S. Forest Service 

Department of Commerce 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

Department of Defense 

 U.S. Air Force 

 U.S. Army 

 U.S. Navy 

Department of Health and Human Services 

 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 

Department of Homeland Security 

 Transportation Security Administration 

Federal Emergency Management Agency 

U.S. Coast Guard 

Department of the Interior 

 Bureau of Indian Affairs 

 National Park Service 

Environmental Protection Agency 

National Aeronautics and Space Administration 

U.S. Postal Service

State and Local 

California Department of Transportation 

City of Baltimore, Department of Transportation 

City of Boston, Massachusetts 

City of Flagstaff, Arizona 

City of St. George, Utah Municipal Airport 

District of Columbia, Department of 

Transportation 

Fairfax County, Virginia 

Georgia Department of Transportation 

Maine Department of Transportation 

Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority 

Massachusetts Port Authority 

Foreign Entities 

Airservices Australia 

DFS Germany 

NAV CANADA 

United Kingdom Ministry of Defence 

Other Customers 

American Public Transportation Association 

INOVA Fairfax Hospital (Honda) 

Lower Manhattan Development Corporation 

Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers 

Sensis Corporation 

Wake Forest University (Toyota) 

Innovative Transportation Systems Solutions 33
Innovative Transportation Systems Solutions 34
DOT Secretary’s Award Ceremony, November 10, 2005 

Volpe Center Recipients 

Individual Awards 

Secretary's Award for Meritorious Achievement 

Silver Medal: Annalynn Lacombe 

Secretary's Award for Excellence 

Gregg W. Hollenbeck 

Secretary's Award for Outstanding Achievement 

in Equal Employment Opportunity/Affirmative 

Action 

John D. Smith 

Secretary's Award for Volunteer Service 

John B. Hopkins 

Team Awards 

Competitive Sourcing 

Ina E. Armstrong 

Donna M. Brickley 

Michael N. Coltman 

Susan M. Connors 

David M. Daley 

Mary E. Doherty 

Harry F. Dondero 

Robert M. Dorer 

MaryBeth Hines 

Lydia J. James 

Merle A. Kalenoski 

Susan M. Killoren 

Elaine T. Lyte 

Danielle E. Mogolesko 

Marilyn M. Mullane 

John P. O’Donnell 

Joyce M. Ranney 

Carmen L. Rickenback 

Brunilda G. Santos 

Elizabeth C. Speranza 

Jeanne E. Fuller—retired 

John S. Hitz—retired 

Peter J. Jones—retired 

Sheila J. MacLean—deceased 

Hurricanes Katrina and Rita Emergency 

Response 

Terrance M. Sheehan 

John C. Brewer 

McCharles A. Craven 

Ryan Cummings 

Jonathan A. Jerome 

Michelle A. Priante 

William R. Sullivan 

Matthew D. Rabkin 

Alison R. Shedd 

Natasha Arnapolskaya 

Frances B. Fisher 

Gerard J. Flood 

Robert J. Hallett 

Matthew B. Isaacs 

David W. Jackson 

Melissa M. Laube 

Elizabeth C. Machek 

Tashi G. Ngamdung 

Steven M. Peck 

Theresa M. Perrone 

Lauren A. Piccolo 

Eric J. Plosky 

Carson Poe 

Benjamin K. Rasmussen 

Gary T. Ritter 

David J. Spiller 

Amtrak Acela Brake Disc 

Brian P. Marquis 

Innovative Transportation Systems Solutions 35