FHWA R&T Now

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GENERAL/ADMINISTRATIVE

President Barack Obama and Secretary of Transportation Anthony Foxx Visit 

Turner-Fairbank Highway Research Center

On July 15, 2014, U.S. President Barack H. 

Obama and Secretary of Transportation 

Anthony J. Foxx visited the Federal Highway 

Administration’s Turner-Fairbank Highway 

Research Center (TFHRC) to speak about 

the importance of transportation, new 

technology, and infrastructure. While at the 

facility, the President visited the Human 

Factors Laboratory and Saxton

Transportation Operations Laboratory

and spoke to employees and the Nation.

Photos of the event are available at 

http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/research/resources/obama_visits_tfhrc.cfm. To read President 

Obama’s remarks, visit http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-pressoffice/2014/07/15/remarks-president-economy-mclean-va. 

USDOT Awards $10.32 Million in UTC Grants 

The U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) Office of the Assistant Secretary for 

Research and Technology announced a total of $10.32 million in grants to two University 

Transportation Centers (UTCs) to advance research and education programs that address 

critical transportation challenges facing our nation. The University of Virginia and the 

University of Washington will each receive $5.16 million for fiscal years 2013 and 2014 as 

part of the UTC program authorized by Congress under the Moving Ahead for Progress in 

the 21st Century Act. UTCs conduct research that directly support the priorities of the 

USDOT to promote the safe, efficient, and environmentally sound movement of goods and 

people. To see the complete list of UTC recipients, visit www.rita.dot.gov/utc/about/

grant_recipients/html/2013_grant_recipients.html. For more information, contact Nancy 

Wilochka, 202-366-5128, nancy.wilochka@dot.gov. 

A news update of research, technology, and development from the U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT), 

Federal Highway Administration (FHWA)

July 2014

FHWA R&T Now

Michael Trentacoste, director of Turner-Fairbank 

Highway Research Center and Associate Administrator 

of Research, Development, and Technology, shakes 

President Obama’s hand.
 FHWA R&T Now

TFHRC Ramps Up Learning Center 

Opportunities 

On June 26, 2014, TFHRC hosted nearly 100 

Virginia Department of Transportation 

(VDOT) associates, interns, and scholars. 

VDOT has three learning programs: the 

Internship Program, the Scholarship 

Program, and the Core Development 

Program.

The Internship Program introduces students 

to the importance of public service and 

transportation. The Scholarship Program 

provides civil engineering students with an 

opportunity to gain valuable work 

experience. The Core Development 

Program cultivates technical, leadership, 

and core competencies for long-term 

success and exposes associates to the 

diverse types of work the agency performs.

Program participants toured TFHRC’s 

laboratories and had the opportunity to 

learn from FHWA engineers and scientists. 

The tour was intended to expand their 

knowledge, help them better understand 

their duties at VDOT, and broaden their 

focus on transportation challenges 

nationwide.

For more information, contact TaMara 

McCrae, 202-493-3382, 

tamara.mccrae@dot.gov. 

ADVANCED RESEARCH

EAR Program Funds Research on 

Cooperative Highway and Vehicle Systems

The Exploratory Advanced Research (EAR) 

Program has funded six new research 

projects as part of a federal research and 

development investment in cooperative 

highway and vehicle systems. The research 

is supported or conducted by FHWA’s Office 

of Operations Research and Development 

(R&D), Office of Safety R&D, Office of 

Operations, Office of Safety, and the 

Intelligent Transportation System (ITS) Joint 

Program Office.

Over the next 5 to 10 years, the EAR 

Program anticipates a successful 

demonstration and adoption of current 

technology systems into highway 

transportation. These projects focus on the 

development of new technologies and 

approaches that would supplement 

currently projected systems.

The scope of these projects includes the 

development of operational scenarios 

based on Cooperative Adaptive Cruise 

Control (CACC) and real-time traffic 

management concepts; development of a 

generalizable tool to facilitate hardware-inthe-loop simulation of connected vehicle 

technologies; development of new methods 

for obtaining real-time data to support 

automated systems; and new operating 

concepts for truck platooning through CACC 

that can provide value within the context of 

specific roadway types or operating 

conditions.

Investigators are from the University of 

California, Berkeley; the University of 

Minnesota; Texas A&M University; 

Honeywell ACS; the California Department 

of Transportation; and Auburn University.

For more information regarding these 

projects, contact Robert Ferlis, 202-493-

3268, robert.ferlis@dot.gov. For more 

information about the EAR Program, 

contact David Kuehn, 202-493-3414, 

david.kuehn@dot.gov. 
 FHWA R&T Now

Fact Sheet: Understanding Material 

Durability—Workshop Examines Aging of 

Composite Materials

Corrosion decay is an expensive and 

ongoing challenge throughout the U.S. 

highway network. To mitigate this problem, 

advanced composite materials are used in a 

wide range of infrastructure applications. 

These materials are lightweight, highstrength and offer high-fatigue and 

corrosion resistant properties. Accurately 

understanding how these materials degrade 

and age over time is critical for safe and 

economical implementation. This fact sheet 

discusses a 2-day workshop on the aging of 

composite materials, held September 25 

and 26, 2013 at the National Transportation 

Safety Board Training Center in Ashburn, 

VA.

The document is available at 

www.fhwa.dot.gov/advancedresearch/pubs

/14068/index.cfm. For more information, 

contact David Kuehn, 202-493-3414, 

david.kuehn@dot.gov. 

INFRASTRUCTURE

FHWA Demos RABITTM Bridge Deck 

Assessment Tool for PennDOT

On June 12, 2014, FHWA demonstrated the 

capabilities of the Long-Term Bridge 

Performance (LTBP) Program’s RABITTM 

bridge deck assessment tool to officials and 

engineers from the Pennsylvania 

Department of Transportation (PennDOT).

In partnership with staff from Rutgers 

University and Penonni Associates, staff 

from TFHRC demonstrated RABITTM on 

PennDOT’s Ewing Mill Road/Hassam Road 

Bridge near Pittsburgh, PA. The RABITTM 

assessment tool traversed the structure 

twice, collecting data on one full lane of the 

two-lane concrete bridge deck in about 45 

minutes. Using conventional methods, the 

assessment would have taken eight times 

longer, according to PennDOT District 11 

Bridge Engineer Lou Ruzzi. TFHRC staff 

briefed PennDOT staff on the LTBP Program 

and demonstrated how the tool would be 

used in the LTBP study to collect data on

concrete bridge decks. 

The RABITTM tool can collect a wide range of 

data simultaneously—high-resolution 

photographic, electromagnetic, seismic, and 

electrical—on external and internal bridge 

deck conditions. The data collected is 

transmitted wirelessly to computers in a 

nearby control center for processing, 

analysis, and display in near real-time.

For more information about the RABITTM 

bridge deck assessment tool, visit 

www.fhwa.dot.gov/research/tfhrc/program

s/infrastructure/structures/ltbp/ltbpresearc

h/rabit/index.cfm. For information on the 

LTBP Program, contact Hamid Ghasemi, 

202-493-3024, hamid.ghasemi@dot.gov. 

Report: An FHWA Special Study: PostTensioning Tendon Grout Chloride 

Thresholds 

Elevated levels of chloride were found in a 

commercially pre-bagged grout powder 

made for grouting tendons in posttensioned (PT) bridges. These chloride 

values exceed the current limits set by all of 

the domestic and international regulatory 

committees. A chloride threshold is defined 

as a minimum chloride concentration 

needed to induce corrosion. In literature, 

there is limited information pertaining to 

the actual chloride threshold of seven-wire 

PT strands. FHWA sponsored a 6-month 

accelerated corrosion testing program to 
 FHWA R&T Now

determine chloride thresholds of PT strands 

exposed to varying quantities of chloridecontaminated grout in ducts to simulate 

field conditions. This report discusses the 

testing program and presents two chloride 

threshold values determined for PT strands 

that are fully encased in this grout.

This document is available at 

www.fhwa.dot.gov/publications/research/i

nfrastructure/structures/bridge/14039/inde

x.cfm. For more information, contact Paul 

Virmani, 202-493-3052, 

paul.virmani@dot.gov. 

Report: Corrosion Monitoring Research for 

City of New York Bridges 

Cable suspension bridges are essential 

components in the transportation networks 

of large metropolitan areas, such as the City 

of New York, and their serviceability is 

extremely important for economic and 

societal growth. The safety of such 

structures is closely linked to the safety 

performance of the cable supported system 

and, in particular, of their main cables. 

Currently all State and local agencies base 

their maintenance plan mainly on previous 

experience and on limited visual inspection 

of the exterior and sometimes the interior 

of the cable. This report presents the results 

of a study aimed at developing a corrosion 

monitoring system for main cables of 

suspension bridges. The document will be 

of interest to highway managers; engineers 

involved in design, construction, and 

operations; and researchers.

It is available at 

www.fhwa.dot.gov/publications/research/i

nfrastructure/structures/bridge/14023/inde

x.cfm. For more information, contact 

Paul Virmani, 202-493-3052, 

paul.virmani@dot.gov. 

SAFETY

Report: Guidelines for the Implementation 

of Reduced Lighting on Roadways 

The guidelines presented in this report 

address the need to maintain the safety 

effects of roadway lighting while alleviating 

the budgetary strains associated with the 

maintenance of the lighting infrastructure. 

The report establishes a new set of criteria 

for practitioners to apply to their roadway 

environment that will identify appropriate 

lighting levels for given roadway 

characteristics and usage. Specifically, these 

guidelines identify the appropriate 

applications of adaptive lighting on 

roadways while maintaining an optimal 

level of safety. 

This document is available at 

www.fhwa.dot.gov/publications/research/s

afety/14050/index.cfm. For more 

information, contact Craig Thor, 202-493-

3338, craig.thor@dot.gov. 

 

OPERATIONS

FHWA and AASHTO Discuss National 

Connected Vehicle Field Infrastructure 

Footprint Analysis

On June 24, 2014, FHWA and the American 

Association of State Highway and 

Transportation Officials (AASHTO) discussed 

the National Connected Vehicle Field 

Infrastructure Footprint Analysis at the 

Integrated Corridor Transportation 

Management System Workshop and Joint 

Midyear Meeting of Transportation 

Research Board Committees.
 FHWA R&T Now

A joint effort between FHWA and AASHTO, 

the analysis is focused on the development 

of a deployment footprint and plan that will 

describe the need for connected vehicle 

infrastructure; the form that the 

infrastructure should take; where and when 

the infrastructure should be deployed; and 

the cost, organizational, and institutional 

implications of deploying the infrastructure. 

The analysis is expected to result in a policy 

foundation for a connected vehicle 

environment. 

More information about the event is 

available at 

http://www.cvent.com/events/integratedcorridor-transportation-managementworkshop-and-joint-midyear-meetings-ofsponsoring-trb-/event-summaryf99c82596e6d4d7f8b5b9591d574f57c.aspx

and by contacting Jon Obenberger, 202-493-

3265, jon.obenberger@dot.gov. For more 

information about the Footprint Analysis, 

contact Ben McKeever, 202-493-3270, 

ben.mckeever@dot.gov.

RECENT PERIODICALS

Public Roads—May/June 2014

This issue includes: Neighbors Helping 

Neighbors; Predicting Your Pavement’s 

Future; Engineering Scenic Highways; Why 

Did the Pedestrian Cross the Road?; and 

Transportation Gets Social.

It is available online via 

www.fhwa.dot.gov/publications/publicroad

s/14mayjun/index.cfm. For more 

information, contact TaMara McCrae, 

tamara.mccrae@dot.gov. 

Innovator: Accelerating Innovation for the 

American Driving Experience—May/June 

2014

This issue includes: Ready to Innovate?; Join 

the Innovation Movement; States 

Innovate!; Alternative Technical Concepts; 

Delivery Method Slices a Year from 

Schedule; STIC Incentives Help States Fund 

Innovation Deployment; Innovation Hat 

Trick; Ohio Tries Time-Saving Thermal 

Integrity Profiling; and Calendar.

The issue is available online via 

http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/hfl/innovator/eversion/issue_42/. For more information, 

contact Kathleen Bergeron, 

kathleen.bergeron@dot.gov. 

Links:

Turner-Fairbank Highway Research Center: 

http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/research/

Resource Center: 

http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/resourcecenter

/

National Highway Institute: 

http://www.nhi.fhwa.dot.gov/home.aspx

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