The Value of Research 

Telling the R&T Story 

 

FHWA-HRT-09-050 

July 2009 
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The Value of Research: Telling the R&T Story

Table of Contents 

Enhancing System Performance............................................................3 

BUILDING THE BRIDGE OF THE FUTURE

Reducing Traffic Congestion...............................................................5 

REDUCING CONGESTION WITH CORSIM 

 RED LIGHT, GREEN LIGHT: TRAFFIC SIGNAL TIMING SOLUTIONS

Improving Safety...............................................................................7 

CABLE MEDIAN BARRIERS SAVE LIVES

 REDUCING ROADWAY CRASHES WITH ROUNDABOUTS

 DIVERGING DIAMOND INTERCHANGES EXPECTED TO IMPROVE

 INTERSECTION SAFETY

Working in Partnership to Address Climate Change 

and Quality of Life............................................................................9 

RESOURCES FOR GOING GREEN

 TAKING THE ECO-LOGICAL APPROACH

Maintaining Infrastructure Integrity....................................................12 

A NEW APPROACH TO EVALUATING BRIDGE SCOUR

 ADVANCING LONG-TERM PAVEMENT PERFORMANCE

 SAVING TIME AND MONEY WITH TELUS 

 MEETING FREIGHT LOGISTICS AND GLOBAL CHALLENGES

 ACCELERATING BORDER CROSSINGS

Looking to the Future.........................................................................16 

Cover photo: Construction of the 

Woodrow Wilson Bridge, outside of 

Washington, DC. 
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The Value of Research: Telling the R&T Story

The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) plays a leadership role in shaping 

and executing a National Research and Technology (R&T) program. The agency 

also acts as a convener; collaborations with State, industry, and academic partners 

provide the foundation for conducting research and developing innovations that 

are essential, indispensable, and connected to the needs of transportation system 

users. 

FHWA’s continuing commitment to highway research and the implementation of 

ground-breaking technology is changing the way roads, bridges, and other 

facilities are designed, built, and maintained across the country, ultimately 

improving the transportation system’s safety, reliability, effectiveness, 

sustainability. This document highlights examples of valuable FHWA research, 

translated into applications of ground-breaking technology that improve the 

transportation system’s performance – in safety, reliability, effectiveness, and 

sustainability. 

FHWA’s mission-driven research is conducted in the following focus areas: 

Enhancing System Performance 

For transportation agencies faced with aging infrastructure and a backlog of roads 

and bridges in need of repair or major rehabilitation, even while costs have risen 

faster than budgets, enhancing system performance is key to continuing to provide 

the transportation system that the Nation depends on every day. FHWA’s 21st 

century research is developing the technologies that will result in smarter, safer, 

and longer lasting pavements and structures, while reducing congestion and 

saving money. Many of these technologies have already moved from the 

laboratory to the highway, providing dramatic real-world benefits and changing 

the way transportation agencies do business. 

BUILDING THE BRIDGE OF THE FUTURE

Building bridges better, faster, and 

for less money—In Ohio, the bridge 

of the future has arrived. Rather than 

demanding expensive new 

equipment or materials, these 

Busy highway interchange. 
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revolutionary new bridges can be built using readily available materials and 

common construction equipment, without the need for highly skilled workers. 

What’s new is that the bridges use geosynthetic reinforced soil (GRS) technology 

for abutments. Instead of a conventional bridge abutment, GRS technology 

employs the low-tech approach of alternating layers of compacted local soil and 

sheets of geotextile fabric reinforcement to provide support for the bridge. The 

technology produces bridges that are extremely durable, while saving money at 

the same time. Compared to standard bridge construction, transportation agencies 

can cut their costs by 25 to 50 percent. 

Researchers at the U.S. Forest Service and the Colorado Department of 

Transportation (CDOT) pioneered the early development of the technology. 

FHWA then worked with CDOT to further refine it. FHWA has built and tested 

several full-scale GRS structures at its Turner-Fairbank Highway Research Center 

in McLean, Virginia. 

 

In 2005, FHWA 

provided guidance and 

abutment design plans 

to Defiance County, 

Ohio, to build the 

Bowman Road Bridge 

using GRS technology. 

This was the county’s 

first time using the 

technology to build 

bridge abutments and 

the innovation quickly 

paid off. Defiance 

County realized a 

Geosynthetic reinforced soil (GRS) bridge system, Defiance County, Ohio. 

cost savings of nearly 25 percent and built the bridge in 6 weeks, shaving 2 weeks 

off the construction time for a conventional bridge. Since that initial project, 13 

more bridges have been built in Defiance County using GRS, with similar 

successful results. Other Ohio counties and several States also are interested in 

using the technology. In summer 2008, Warren County, Ohio, built both a 

temporary bridge and a permanent bridge on GRS abutments. Morgan County, 

Ohio, meanwhile, has used GRS to replace a failed bridge abutment. 

As more State and local agencies learn about the tremendous potential that GRS 

offers to save time and money on bridge construction, FHWA’s next step is to 
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develop design and construction guidelines on using GRS technology for 

highways, with a primary focus on bridge abutment applications. 

Reducing Traffic Congestion 

On many American roadways, mobility has ground to a halt, eating up time, 

money, and economic productivity. According to the Texas Transportation 

Institute’s 2007 Urban Mobility Report, “congestion caused urban Americans to 

travel 4.2 billion hours more and to purchase an extra 2.9 billion gallons of fuel for 

a congestion cost of $78 billion” in 2005. FHWA is identifying needs and 

developing and deploying innovations that have the potential to dramatically 

reduce traffic congestion. These innovations include new traffic control and 

highway design technologies. 

REDUCING CONGESTION WITH CORSIM 

From highways to local roadways, 

congestion is a daily reality for many of 

the Nation’s drivers. Reducing that 

congestion presents transportation 

departments with a complex challenge. 

Should they add more lanes? Change 

the traffic signal timing? Or restrict the 

use of certain lanes to high-occupancy 

vehicles? FHWA’s Corridor Simulator 

(CORSIM) software, which grew out of 

simulation software first developed by 

the agency in the late 1970s, has been 

used by thousands of engineers and 

researchers worldwide to simulate 

traffic and traffic control systems, 

offering solutions to help reduce 

congestion and improve highway 

operations. 

 Traffic congestion in Washington, DC. 

The software simulates traffic and traffic control systems using commonly 

accepted vehicle and driver behavior models. The real-world benefits can be seen 

in towns such as Des Moines, Iowa, where a freeway diamond interchange built to 

accommodate only modest traffic flows was no longer working. Congestion was 

rising and drivers’ patience was waning. Plans were being made to raze the 

existing interchange and construct a massive partial cloverleaf interchange capable 
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of handling heavier traffic loads. However, engineers first tested their existing 

interchange using CORSIM. The test indicated that the problem was due more to 

poorly timed adjacent traffic signals than a lack of roadway capacity. FHWA staff, 

working with the Iowa Department of Transportation, recommended 

modifications to the existing signal patterns, which both improved traffic and 

saved Iowa $14 million in right-of-way purchase costs alone. 

RED LIGHT, GREEN LIGHT: TRAFFIC SIGNAL TIMING SOLUTIONS

It is estimated that more than 300 million vehicle hours of traffic delay in 

metropolitan areas and on local roads are caused by outdated or poor traffic signal 

timing. ACS Lite, a reduced-scale version of FHWA’s Adaptive Control Software 

(ACS), offers a low cost solution that operates in real time, adjusting signal timing 

to accommodate changing traffic patterns and ease traffic congestion. It is 

designed for closed loop traffic signal systems, which account for 90 percent of the 

traffic signal systems in the United States. The software can be used with new 

signals or to retrofit existing traffic signals. 

ACS Lite has been integrated 

with selected controllers 

manufactured by Eagle, 

Econolite, McCain, and 

Peek/Quixote. Four separate 

field tests were conducted with 

ACS Lite to validate the 

operation of each manufacturers’ 

controller. Among the locations 

that tested ACS Lite is Manatee 

County, Florida. Results showed 

a 12 percent reduction in travel 

time and a 23 percent reduction 

 Traffic control signal box. 

in travel time delays. The average improvements observed on typical weekdays 

from all of the field tests included a 22 percent reduction in travel time, a 25 

percent drop in the number of stops, and over 4,000 gallons of fuel savings per 

intersection annually. Testing in Florida and the other locations has also resulted 

in estimated annual roadway user cost savings ranging from $88,000 to $757,000. 

ACS Lite was developed by FHWA in partnership with Siemens, Purdue 

University, the University of Arizona, and ITT Industries. The ACS Lite system is 

now available through Eagle, Econolite, McCain, and Peek/Quixote. 
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Improving Safety 

More than 40,000 fatalities and 3 million injuries occur on the Nation’s roadways 

each year. With increased traffic and a growing U.S. population, reducing these 

statistics presents a difficult challenge for transportation agencies. FHWA 

researchers analyze roadway accidents from all angles. By looking at the driver, 

the vehicle, and the highway infrastructure, researchers can identify deficiencies 

that lead to accidents and develop measures to counter those deficiencies and 

create a safer roadway environment for all users. This multipronged approach 

includes examining accidents where vehicles leave the roadway, speed 

management, intersection safety, and pedestrian safety. 

CABLE MEDIAN BARRIERS SAVE LIVES 

Median cross-over crashes, where a vehicle crosses the median into opposing 

traffic lanes, can be deadly. The North Carolina Department of Transportation 

(NCDOT), for example, has found that fatalities are three times more likely in 

cross-median crashes than in other freeway crashes. 

NCDOT has been a pioneer in the use of cable median barriers in areas where 

there is sufficient median width and a high potential for cross-median crashes. 

Since 1998, the agency has installed hundreds of miles of cable median barriers 

across the State, instead of using the traditional concrete and metal beam barriers. 

NCDOT estimates that between 1999 and 2005 more than 95 cross-median crashes 

were prevented, saving more than 145 lives. 

 

 FHWA led efforts to apply crash simulation technology for the analysis of crash events, 

 evaluation of roadside hardware, development of new hardware, and to demonstrate the 

 implications of varying maintenance strategies. 

As satisfying as that improvement was, North Carolina wanted to do even better. 

NCDOT worked with FHWA to analyze cable barrier performance and look for 

improvements. The research team applied advanced digital simulation techniques 

to analyze the dynamics of vehicles as they cross a median and determined that a 

barrier’s performance depends on where it is in the median. A barrier that is quite 

effective at one position within the median width may be less effective in another 

location. Conversely, a barrier with apparent shortcomings may perform well if it 
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is shifted towards one side or the other. These findings were confirmed in a series 

of full-scale crash tests at FHWA’s Federal Outdoor Impact Laboratory. This 

research has now been expanded to cover different barriers and a range of median 

configurations. The results are being used to develop new cable barrier standards 

in several States. They are also being translated into guidelines for incorporation 

into the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials’ 

Roadside Design Guide. 

REDUCING ROADWAY CRASHES WITH ROUNDABOUTS

In 2007 nearly 2.4 million intersection-related crashes occurred, accounting for 40 

percent of all crashes in the United States and 22 percent of all traffic fatalities. 

Estimated economic losses from intersection crashes amounted to $92 billion. 

Improving intersection safety is one of FHWA’s top priorities. FHWA has been at 

 the forefront of research into the design and application of roundabouts, which 

are one-way, circular 

intersections where traffic 

flows around a center island. 

The results from roundabouts 

in use are dramatic. A report 

published by the National 

Cooperative Highway 

Research Program in 2007 

found that the 

installation of roundabouts 

led to a 35 percent reduction

Roundabouts require conformance to common practices to ensure 

safe optimal operation.

in total crashes and a 76 percent reduction in crashes causing injuries or fatalities. 

Numerous other studies have reported similarly impressive safety benefits from 

roundabout use. 

In light of these safety benefits, FHWA has designated roundabouts as a priority 

technology. To support the implementation of roundabouts, FHWA offers a 

comprehensive guide, Roundabouts: An Informational Guide. The Safety and Design 

Technical Service Team at the FHWA Resource Center also offers a 1-day 

workshop on roundabout safety and design, a video entitled “A Case for 

Roundabouts,” and an informative brochure to help agencies implement 

roundabouts in their jurisdictions. 
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DIVERGING DIAMOND INTERCHANGES EXPECTED TO IMPROVE INTERSECTION 

SAFETY

In recent years, FHWA researchers have evaluated alternative intersection designs 

that offer to improve intersection safety while meeting the challenges of increasing 

capacity, decreasing congestion, and minimizing the cost of new infrastructure. 

Among these alternative designs is the diverging diamond interchange (DDI). 

Using the DDI, arterial traffic approaching the interchange crosses over to the left 

side of the arterial roadway. Vehicles can then turn left onto limited-access ramps 

entering a highway without having to stop and without conflicting with through 

traffic. Eliminating crossing conflicts between vehicles turning left onto the 

highway and opposing arterial traffic offers potential safety benefits. 

The design also offers 

operational and cost 

benefits. The Missouri 

Department of 

Transportation 

estimates that a 

proposed DDI in 

Kansas City would cost 

half as much as 

retrofitting a 

conventional diamond 

Overview graphic of the diverging diamond interchange (DDI). 

interchange. Traffic modeling also suggests that upon completion the proposed 

DDI would be operating at only 60 percent of its traffic capacity, while the 

conventional diamond interchange option would be operating at 95 percent of 

capacity. FHWA researchers are monitoring plans to construct DDIs in Kansas 

City and other locations so that their actual safety and operational performance 

can be documented. 

WORKING IN PARTNERSHIP TO ADDRESS CLIMATE CHANGE AND QUALITY OF LIFE

With transportation sources accounting for nearly 30 percent of carbon dioxide 

emissions in the United States, reducing emissions and minimizing the impact of 

highway infrastructure on the environment is a significant focus of FHWA’s 

research and technology activities. FHWA is a primary sponsor of the U.S. 

Department of Transportation’s Center for Climate Change and Environmental 
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Forecasting. Through strategic research, policy analysis, partnerships, and outreach, 

the Center develops comprehensive and multimodal approaches to reduce 

transportation-related emissions. 

FHWA is working to improve construction techniques and reduce the impact of 

highway infrastructure on the environment, including efforts to accelerate 

construction and reduce congestion and related emissions, reduce the runoff from 

highways, prevent the introduction of harmful elements or byproducts into the 

environment, increase the reuse and recycling of infrastructure, and reduce the 

energy required for highway construction. Additional research is examining the 

potential to reduce energy use, emissions, and costs through using innovative 

intelligent transportation system technologies, improved regional transit services, 

and new bicycle and pedestrian options. 

RESOURCES FOR GOING GREEN

FHWA’s Center for Environmental Excellence offers the resources that State and local 

agencies need to deliver environmentally sound transportation projects, programs, 

and services. Established by the Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient 

Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users in 2005, the center is run by the 

American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials under 

FHWA’s sponsorship. It provides a one-stop shop for transportation professionals 

seeking technical assistance, training, information exchange, partnership-building 

opportunities, and quick and easy access to environmental tools. Through the 

center, FHWA can leverage its research into environmental sustainability, 

promoting best practices, tools, and other innovative techniques and providing 

expert knowledge. 

 

The center has produced 10 Practitioner Guides that provide practical advice on 

current environmental management issues in an easy to read format. The widely 

distributed guides cover such topics as Tracking Compliance with Environmental 

Commitments and Defining the Purpose and Need and Determining the Range of 

Alternatives for Transportation Projects. “I use all of the center handbooks by 

sharing them with my staff, our districts, consultants, and even our local partners,” 

says Tim Hill, Administrator of the Ohio Department of Transportation’s Office of 

Environmental Services. “I have found the handbooks to be an excellent tool to 

communicate specific planning and environmental issues. At times, our audiences 

grow tired of hearing the rules and requirements from the same perspective. The 

center handbooks offer a fresh and new perspective to the requirements and have 

greatly reinforced the process and procedures that my office has been training on 

for years.” 
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Additional center activities include hosting a popular Webcast on Integrating 

Transportation Planning and National Environmental Policy Act Decision-Making. 

Also offered as a Podcast, the Webcast highlighted how addressing environmental 

issues early on, during the transportation systems and corridor planning process, 

can produce projects that more effectively protect and enhance the environment 

while providing needed transportation options. Nearly 900 individuals registered 

for the Webcast, with some locations hosting multiple viewers. 

 

FHWA also supports the 

activities of the Transportation 

and Climate Change 

Clearinghouse 

(climate.dot.gov). Established 

with joint funding from the 

American Association of State 

Highway and Transportation 

Officials and the U.S. 

Department of Transportation, 

the Clearinghouse was 

Screen shot of the Transportation and Climate Change 

Clearinghouse Web site.

launched in January 2009. It offers a central source of information on 

transportation and climate change issues for Federal, State, and local agencies and 

other stakeholders, providing a forum to share resources, learn about new 

research, and better understand new practices and approaches for reducing 

transportation-related emissions. 

Tropic East Pacific, NOAA.
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TAKING THE ECO-LOGICAL APPROACH

Identifying and meeting the common goals of multiple stakeholders is key to 

developing and implementing successful transportation projects. Efforts to 

minimize and mitigate stakeholder concerns, however, may not always provide 

the greatest environmental benefit or promote ecosystem sustainability. A new 

approach is advocated in Eco-Logical: An Ecosystem Approach to Developing 

Infrastructure Projects. Developed by a U.S. Department of Transportation 

interagency steering team with input from four State departments of 

transportation, the 2006 guide describes how infrastructure development and 

ecosystem conservation can be integrated to more effectively meet economic, 

environmental, and social needs and objectives. The guide’s resources include 

sections on addressing common challenges with locally appropriate strategies, 

identifying mitigation options, developing ecosystem-based mitigation 

agreements, and adopting performance measures. Using the guide, infrastructure 

improvements can be advanced in harmony with such conservation goals as 

restoring fragmented habitats and reducing wildlife mortality. 

FHWA has awarded 15 cooperative agreements to 

organizations in 10 States to field test the EcoLogical approach. Projects include a streetscape 

improvement initiative in Chicago, Illinois, and 

the development of a regional conservation 

network in Western North Carolina, including 

protected conservation land, farmlands, and 

forests. 

Maintaining Infrastructure Integrity 

Transportation research has produced many advances that have improved all 

aspects of the highway system, resulting in longer lasting pavements and bridges, 

smarter construction practices, more effective asset management systems, and 

enhanced highway infrastructure security. FHWA’s infrastructure research 

initiatives, for example, have developed improved highway materials, including 

high-performance materials to increase durability, as well as tools to help agencies 
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in specifying pavement and bridge materials that better meet performance 

requirements. Though often unseen by drivers, these advances are saving lives, 

time, and money today. 

Increasing demands and limited resources, as well as higher expectations by the 

public, mean that the continued development and deployment of technology 

innovations is key to meeting the transportation challenges ahead. FHWA research 

is supporting the development of a next generation highway infrastructure that 

will strive to meet such goals as bridges that last 100 years and pavements that can 

be driven on for 50 years. Current research is also developing inspection and 

evaluation tools and technologies, as well as innovative materials and methods to 

better protect highway bridges and tunnels from security threats, while 

maintaining the vital functions of the roadway system. Research into asset 

management techniques and practices, meanwhile, has the goal of more effectively 

managing highway infrastructure networks while maximizing the return on 

investment. 

A NEW APPROACH TO EVALUATING BRIDGE SCOUR

Construction was nearly ready to begin on the new 12-lane Woodrow Wilson 

Bridge outside of Washington, DC, in 2000, but engineers were concerned about 

the depth of the scour that might form around the bridge piers. Scour, which is an 

erosion of stream bed material around bridge foundations, is the leading cause of 

bridge failures in the United States. The project team, including representatives 

from the Maryland State Highway Administration, FHWA, and several 

consultants, turned to FHWA’s Hydraulics Laboratory for assistance in predicting 

the scour at the new bridge and also at selected piers on the existing bridge, which 

would remain in service for several years while work proceeded on the new 

structure. 

Researchers at the lab used a combination of advanced numerical and physical 

scale modeling to simulate the flow and sediment transport conditions at the 

bridge and the resulting scour at the piers. During the design process, numerous 

alternative pier designs were also studied. The Hydraulics Laboratory evaluated 

these alternative designs and provided immediate feedback on the scour depths to 

the bridge engineers. The scour evaluations were part of a process that led to 

substructure design changes that have made the new bridge safer and more cost 

effective. 
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 Construction of the Woodrow Wilson Bridge, An instrumented concrete pile and cap 

outside of Washington, DC. collects strain and acceleration data. 

Another major benefit of the research is that engineers gained a greater 

understanding of how vessel impact-prevention structures, which are placed 

around the bridge’s foundations to prevent ships and barges from colliding with 

bridge piers, affect the scouring process. Lab tests revealed that the concrete 

structures, known as dolphins, proposed for protecting the main river piers of the 

Woodrow Wilson Bridge from ship collisions would dramatically increase scour at 

the piers. This finding led to changing the design to use a fender ring protection 

system that extends all the way around the piers. The new design has saved 

millions of dollars and is expected to reduce the maximum scour by nearly half 

and provide better protection from vessels. 

ADVANCING LONG-TERM PAVEMENT PERFORMANCE

Since 1987, FHWA’s Long-Term Pavement Performance (LTPP) program has 

studied why some pavements perform better than others, with the goal of building 

and maintaining an improved, more cost-effective highway system. More than 

2,400 asphalt and portland cement concrete (PCC) pavement test sections have 

been monitored across the United States and Canada. Data from 13 LTPP test 

sections that had been constructed as new asphalt concrete over a new lean 

concrete base are now being used by the Strategic Highway Research Program 2 

(SHRP 2). As authorized under SAFETEA-LU, SHRP 2’s goal is to develop 

recommended procedures, practices, and applications to advance the Nation’s 

highway system in the key focus areas of safety, renewal, reliability, and capacity. 

SHRP 2 Project R21, “Composite Pavement Systems,” is investigating the design 

and construction of new composite pavement systems, focusing on the use of an 

asphalt layer over a PCC layer and a PCC surface over a PCC layer. Data from the 

LTPP test sections are being used to develop, refine, and calibrate rutting and 

fatigue cracking models for composite pavements, providing valuable input to the 

design of composite pavements that would be both long-lasting and easily 

maintained. 
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SAVING TIME AND MONEY WITH TELUS 

As metropolitan planning organizations (MPOs) and State departments of 

transportation make decisions about which projects to fund through their 

Transportation Improvement Programs (TIP) and Statewide Transportation 

Improvement Programs (STIP), prioritizing projects and streamlining the planning 

process is vital to accomplishing their transportation goals. Decisions on which 

projects to include are based on many factors, including future travel demand, 

project life-cycle costs, land use changes, economic growth, safety, and 

environmental impacts. Once projects are funded, tracking them as they move 

through the various stages toward the start of construction is also crucial. These 

stages include facility planning, engineering and design, right-of-way acquisition, 

advertising, bid review, construction scheduling, and related phases of work. 

FHWA’s Transportation, Economic, and Land Use System (TELUS) software 

provides key support in helping agencies manage their TIPs and track projects, 

resulting in significant time and cost savings. TELUS allows users to track the 

project schedule, costs, and funding, as well as offering analysis tools to rate and 

prioritize projects. The fully customizable program is available in both a stand 

alone desktop version and a Web-based version. Two-hundred and twenty-four 

MPOs and 34 State departments of transportation are registered users of TELUS, 

as well as 36 other local and regional government agencies. More than 60 MPOs 

use TELUS for TIP development. 

The Web-based version of TELUS has been deployed by the Alabama Department 

of Transportation, as well as MPOs in Houston, Texas, New York, New York, and 

Dayton, Ohio. In Alabama, the transportation department is using a Statewide 

Web-based version of TELUS to link all of the State’s TIPs into one database. The 

Web-based version also helps facilitate the public involvement process by enabling 

community members to obtain project information. The New York Metropolitan 

Transportation Council’s (NYMTC) implementation of TELUS, meanwhile, has 

streamlined and improved information exchange and communication among 

different units of NYMTC and its member agencies. “It increased personnel 

efficiency and productivity, tremendously reduced the paperwork, reduced the 

erroneous data in the system, and expedited the approval process,” says Larisa 

Morozovskaya, Senior Transportation Analyst with NYMTC. 

MPOs can realize significant cost savings by using TELUS. For example, an MPO 

with a TIP consisting of 450 projects can save an estimated $200,000 to $300,000 per 

year by using TELUS for TIP development, review, and approval. States can also 

benefit. A State department of transportation can save an estimated $30,000 to 

$55,000 a year by using TELUS to provide project-related information to its various 

offices, outside consultants, and others. The ability to view project information 
16

online, record comments, and ask questions can also save community members as 

much as $40,000 annually, as TELUS eliminates the need to travel to a local 

planning office or to public hearings. 

MEETING FREIGHT LOGISTICS AND GLOBAL CHALLENGES

Freight movement by all modes of transportation has grown rapidly, spurred by a 

combination of globalization, changing logistical practices, population growth, and 

increased economic demand. The American Association of State Highway and 

Transportation Officials estimated in 2007 that U.S. container traffic increased from 

8 million units in 1980 to 42 million units in 2005, and is expected to hit 110 million 

units by 2020. Along with the increases in freight volume, the average length of 

haul for trucks increased 80 percent between 1970 and 2000. FHWA supports 

research opportunities identified through the Freight Cooperative Research 

Program and is also assisting with regional operational needs, such as developing 

compatible traffic control technologies and procedures and identifying methods to 

expedite freight movement. 

ACCELERATING BORDER CROSSINGS

With more than $200 billion worth of goods moving back and forth across the U.S., 

Mexican, and Canadian borders each year, along with the 200 million people that 

legally cross the borders, border wait times can have a tremendous impact on the 

U.S. economy. Using satellite technology, FHWA manages an effort to measure 

travel times in corridors with a significant amount of freight traffic and border 

crossing times at major U.S. land border crossings. FHWA is also developing new 

technologies to automatically measure travel time and border crossing times. Two 

test programs are being conducted at border crossings in Otay Mesa, California, 

and El Paso, Texas. By collecting this delay and travel time information, FHWA 

can help Federal and State agencies target transportation investments where the 

greatest needs exist, reducing congestion at border crossings and accelerating the 

movement of freight traffic. 

Looking to the Future 

From super highways and multispan bridges to rural byways, FHWA’s 

commitment to highway research has changed the way roads and bridges are 

designed, constructed, and maintained across the country. Looking to the future, 

new research initiatives are building on this legacy, taking the country in the 

direction of advanced technologies that will help redefine the 21st century 

transportation system. 

The 20-year Long-Term Bridge Performance Program, for example, is investigating 

how the United States can manage its bridges better and ensure their safety and 
17

durability. The program will inspect, evaluate, and periodically monitor a 

representative sample of bridges nationwide. 

The Exploratory Advanced Research Program, meanwhile, is focusing on longterm, high-risk research with a high payoff potential. Projects sponsored by the 

program include an initiative to improve the early detection of corrosion in 

bridges, ultimately increasing bridge safety and saving billions of dollars annually 

in maintenance, restoration, and replacement costs. 

FHWA is also researching the impact of extreme hazards, such as earthquakes, 

coastal floods, and hurricanes, on bridges and other highway structures, as well as 

the impact of global climate change. 

As has been accomplished in the past with such technologies as the ACS Lite 

software, these diverse research initiatives will continue the legacy of working 

with State and local agencies, industry representatives, universities, and other 

partners to achieve the breakthrough advances in transportation the country needs 

today. For millions of American drivers, FHWA’s transportation research remains 

the ticket to a safer, less congested future that will continue to keep them moving.