FHWA R&T Now

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Do you know of innovations that can transform the highway transportation 

community? Is the innovation game changing and would it have a national impact? 

Is the innovation proven yet underutilized? If so, submit your suggestion for the 

next round of Every Day Counts (EDC) Program, 2021–2022. 

FHWA is seeking ideas from State, local, Tribal, and industry partners as well as the 

public on proven, market-ready processes or technologies that have the potential 

to transform the way the highway transportation community does business by 

enhancing roadway safety, shortening project delivery time, reducing traffic 

congestion, or integrating automation.

Submitting a suggestion is simple. Download the submission form from FHWA’s

website, answer a few questions, and submit it to EDCsuggestions@dot.gov by 

January 21, 2020. 

Your ideas will help FHWA make every day count to ensure the Nation’s

infrastructure is built better, faster, and smarter. The EDC Program has made 

significant positive impacts toward accelerating the deployment of innovations and 

building a culture of innovation within the transportation community. Since the 

inception of EDC, each State has used 19 or more of the 52 innovations promoted 

through Every Day Counts, and some States have adopted more than 40. Many of 

these innovations have become mainstream practices across the country. Learn 

more about current and past EDC innovations at Every Day Counts. 

For more information, contact Julie Zirlin. 

November/December 2019

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

Federal Highway Administration (FHWA)

FHWA R&T Now

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

Federal Highway Administration (FHWA). 

Source: FHWA
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EXPLORATORY ADVANCED RESEARCH

Research Associates Help Advance Critical 

Research

The FHWA Exploratory Advanced Research (EAR) 

Program uses the National Academy of Sciences’ 

(formerly the National Research Council’s) 

Research Associateship Program (RAP) to 

complement the expertise of permanent research 

staff on a short-term basis. Associates work with 

FHWA advisers to conduct important research 

across a wide range of topics and disciplines.

Since 1992, FHWA has sponsored 50 research 

associates. Two of those associates—Mehdi 

Zamanipour and Rafic El-Helou—started 

conducting research at Turner-Fairbank Highway 

Research Center (TFHRC) in 2016. Their work has 

contributed to advancing research in two 

important areas: connected and automated 

vehicles (CAV) and ultra high-performance 

concrete (UHPC). 

Zamanipour received his Ph.D. from the University 

of Arizona in industrial engineering, where his 

research focused on connected vehicle (CV)

technology, traffic optimization, and data 

modeling. He was selected for RAP and began 

working with his adviser, Govind Vadakpat, in 

FHWA’s Office of Operations Research and 

Development (R&D) on a project titled “CostBenefit Analysis of Connected and Automated 

Vehicle Operations.” 

Source: FHWA

Research associate Mehdi Zamanipour works with 

one of the CARMA vehicles at TRFHC. 

He currently is working as part of the CARMA team 

to leverage automated driving technologies to 

increase safety and reliability. Zamanipour is 

developing optimization models for deploying 

cooperative automated driving technologies along 

signalized corridors to support the CARMA 

platform. 

The real-world experiences that he has obtained at 

FHWA have given him valuable exposure to the 

development of CAV. In January 2020, Zamanipour 

will become a software engineer at an autonomous 

vehicle (AV) technology company.

El-Helou received his doctorate in structural 

engineering from Virginia Tech. During his time as 

an associate, he worked under the guidance of 

Benjamin Graybeal in the FHWA Office of 

Infrastructure R&D on UHPC-related projects. The 

goals of these projects were to develop a UHPC 

bridge-design specification draft for the American 

Association of State Highway and Transportation 

Officials (AASHTO) and advance innovative 

structural applications that fully utilize UHPC’s 

durability and performance characteristics.

The research could encourage simplicity, speed, 

and creativity in designing and implementing UHPC 

in the highway system. El-Helou’s investigation also 

provided suggestions on the optimal use of UHPC 

in innovative highway applications, including 

extending the span range of concrete bridges 

beyond the current limit of approximately 200 ft. 

In addition, El-Helou conducted material-level tests 

as part of an effort to standardize mechanical 

testing of UHPC. His work as an associate allowed 

him to examine different parts of structural design, 

including material behavior, testing methods, 

mechanical models, and flexural and shear 

behaviors of UHPC components.

Source: FHWA

Former research associate Rafic El-Helou installs 

sensors to measure the deformation of an ultra 

high-performance concrete beam in FHWA’s 

structures laboratory.

El-Helou concluded his tenure as an associate in 

October 2019, but he remains at TFHRC as a 
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contractor in the structures lab. “My passion to 

continue working on UHPC structural guidance 

prompted me to stay at TFHRC and continue the 

work I started as an associate,” he said.

For more information about the RAP at TFHRC, visit 

the NRC Associates page on the EAR Program 

website or contact Jim Shurbutt at 202–493–3420 

or Jim.Shurbutt@dot.gov. 

OPERATIONS

CARMASM Showcased at Fall 2019 FedTech 

The Federal Highway Administration’s (FHWA) 

CARMA program participated in the FedTech 

Startup Studio for the Fall 2019 cohort [group]. 

FedTech is a startup initiative that seeks to build 

teams of entrepreneurs around breakthrough 

technologies developed by Government 

laboratories and other research facilities. 

FedTech’s goal is to support the technology 

transfer of Government research products to 

market. FedTech assembles a team of 

entrepreneurs around each technology accepted 

into the program in an 8-week cohort in which

each team develops business models around the 

technology with the help of mentors and 

instructors to build profitable companies.

The CARMA program built the CARMA open-source 

software, which facilitates vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V)

and vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I) communication

to support cooperative automation. Cooperative 

automation will increase the capacity of the

Nation’s roads by, for example, allowing vehicles to 

travel closer together more safely. Cooperative 

automation will increase safety because the vehicle 

will be informed of potential hazards ahead of 

time, which will help reduce unsafe conditions. 

CARMA has two main products: the CARMA 

PlatformSM, which physically sits in a vehicle to 

enable the vehicle to perform cooperative 

automation strategies, and the CARMA CloudSM, 

which provides rules and information to vehicles to 

help them move through traffic as safely and 

efficiently as possible. 

The fall 2019 cohort began with a kickoff weekend 

starting September 28, 2019. The cohort started

with entrepreneurs planning business models 

around the various Government technologies (one 

of which was CARMA) and finished with final 

“practice pitches” on November 21st. The cohort 

was hosted in both Northern Virginia and 

Washington, DC, but entrepreneurs from around 

the country participated virtually via webinars.

Source: FHWA

The CARMA team stands on the left (from left to 

right, Taylor Lochrane, Pavle Bujanović) and one 

of the CARMA mentors, Duncan Woodbury, is 

pictured. Members of FedTech stand on the right 

of the photo (from left to right, Steve Gilleland, 

Elizabeth Adadi, and Joe Lacy). The teams stand in 

front of a CARMA vehicle in the Saxton 

Transportation Operations Laboratory at TFHRC. 

Taylor Lochrane, the CARMA technical program 

manager, and Pavle Bujanović, a CARMA project 

manager, both from FHWA’s TFHRC, served as 

inventors for developing the CARMA technology

business model. 

Use Case for Increased Scooter Safety

During the 8-week cohort, the entrepreneurs 

performed considerable market research to 

develop a profitable concept around the CARMA 

technology to satisfy a Government and/or public 

pain point. The team decided on a use case that 

focused on the electric scooter-sharing system. 

Scooter safety is a major challenge for State 

departments of transportation (DOTs) and 

municipalities; some cities have denied electric 

scooter companies the right to work within their 

limits. This is partly because electric-scooter users

do not always obey the rules of the road when 

using scooters (e.g., running red lights or stop 

signs), which can cause injuries to users, 

pedestrians, and vehicle drivers. 

CARMA can be used to increase scooter safety and 

ensure that scooter users obey traffic laws. CARMA 

can help mitigate safety risks by sending rules, or 

electronic signals, to the electric scooter when a 
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user might break a traffic law. For example, the 

signal might tell the scooter to reduce its speed as 

it approaches a red light.

Although the Startup Studio finished on November 

21st, the entrepreneurs have decided to keep 

working on this use case. The entrepreneurs are 

currently reaching out to cities around the Nation

to learn the features needed in CARMA to address 

all concerns related to electric-scooter safety. 

Entrepreneurs are also researching funding 

opportunities to make the necessary adjustments 

needed to host the CARMA Platform on electric 

scooters in addition to passenger cars and trucks, 

which is how CARMA is currently used. Activities 

like the Startup Studio are one of many ways 

FHWA is improving the transfer of its technologies 

from the laboratory to the market and supporting 

the Cross-Agency Priority Goals within the [U.S.]

“President’s Management Agenda.” 

For more information, contact Pavle Bujanović, 

202–493–3271, pavle.bujanovic@dot.gov. 

SMALL BUSINESS INNOVATION RESEARCH 

(SBIR) UPDATES

FHWA Participates in New Proposal Selection 

Process

The USDOT SBIR program is a highly competitive, 

awards-based program that encourages domestic 

small businesses to engage in research and 

development that addresses high-priority research 

areas within the USDOT. The mission of the SBIR 

program is to support scientific excellence and 

technological innovation through the investment 

of Federal research funds in critical American 

priorities to build a strong national economy. 

FHWA is participating in a new proposal solicitation 

and selection process to incentivize small 

businesses to provide highly innovative proposals 

and to aid in the review and selection of project 

teams that will provide the most promising 

solutions. The Volpe National Transportation 

Systems Center leads and manages the USDOT 

SBIR program. The new process is modeled after a 

successful program used by the United States Air 

Force. The unique elements of this new approach 

include:

• Presolicitation Interchange: Small businesses 

will have the opportunity to review the 

technical topics and submit clarifying questions 

to the technical expert/topic authors at the 

USDOT agencies during this period. USDOT 

representatives will also be available at the 

SBIR booth in the exhibit area at the 

Transportation Research Board’s 2020 Annual 

Meeting, January 13–14. 

• Streamlined Solicitation Process: The 

solicitation period will be shortened to 30 days 

and the proposal requirements will be 

streamlined, reducing the page requirements 

for the technical proposal.

• Evaluation Down-Selection: USDOT evaluation 

teams will down-select [to narrow the field of 

choices] the finalists being considered for 

awards and offer those selected to participate 

in Pitch Day.

• Pitch Day: Following on the success of the U.S. 

Air Force’s SBIR Pitch Day, USDOT will introduce 

its own version of an in-person Pitch Day event 

for SBIR finalists to take place at USDOT 

Headquarters in Washington, DC. This event 

will allow USDOT evaluators to interact with the 

finalists to both hear their 15-minute “pitch” 

and to engage in a Q&A. Immediate evaluation 

allows for quick decisionmaking on results and 

streamlined Phase I SBIR awards. 

FHWA plans to include three topics in the fiscal 

year 2020 USDOT Phase I solicitation for proposals. 

More information on the topics and specific dates 

will be announced early January 2020. For more 

information, visit the SBIR website or contact 

Craig Thor.

INFRASTRUCTURE

FHWA’s Long-Term Pavement Performance (LTPP) 

Program Accepting Entries for the Data Analysis 

Student Contest 

Applications are being accepted for LTPP Program 

Data Analysis Student Contest. 

The theme for the 2019–2020 LTPP Data Analysis 

Student Contest is “Use the LTPP Data to Evaluate 

a Question or Concern for a Region or State,” 

and the challenge topic is “Assess the Effect of 

Overweight Vehicles on Pavement Performance 

Using LTPP Traffic Data.” 

Submissions are due by July 1, 2020, and winners 

will be recognized at the 100th Transportation 

Research Board Annual Meeting in Washington, 

DC, January 2021.
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Guidelines for the content can be found on the 

LTPP Data Analysis Student Contest page.

The contest is a joint effort of the LTPP Program 

and the Task Committee on the LTPP Contest, a 

subcommittee of the Highway Pavement 

Committee of the Transportation and 

Development Institute of the American Society of 

Civil Engineers. 

The LTPP Program has sponsored this annual data 

analysis contest since 1998 to encourage university 

students, professors, and highway agency 

engineers to get involved in using the LTPP 

database. The database has been developed over 

the past three decades to contribute to a better 

understanding of pavement performance. The 

contest offers a unique opportunity for contestants 

to work individually or in a team to perform 

research that will benefit the highway 

transportation community. Benefits from previous 

contests have provided insight into pavement 

management, design, and preservation practices.

For more information, contact Deborah Walker at 

202–493–3068 or deborah.walker@dot.gov. 

SAFETY

New Interactive Highway Safety Design Model

(IHSDM) Release Assists the Missouri Department 

of Transportation (MoDOT) with Interchange 

Design

The IHSDM 2019 Release (version 15.0.0) is 

available to download at www.ihsdm.org. IHSDM 

supports FHWA’s Data-Driven Safety Analysis 

initiative through a suite of tools designed to 

evaluate the safety and operational effects of 

project-level geometric design decisions on 

highways. 

The Crash Prediction Module (CPM), for example, 

is a powerful tool that implements the AASHTO 

Highway Safety Manual (HSM) “Part C – Predictive 

Method” for evaluation of rural two-lane highways, 

rural multilane highways, urban/suburban 

arterials, and freeways/interchanges. Typical 

applications of the CPM include evaluating the 

safety impacts of highway improvements, 

comparing the relative safety performance of 

design alternatives, and assessing the safety cost 

effectiveness of design decisions. 

Released on October 31, 2019, IHSDM 2019

includes major enhancements on: 

• Roundabout Crash-Prediction Method – 

Includes new crash-prediction methods for 

roundabouts, which were developed under 

NCHRP [National Cooperative Highway 

Research Program] project 17-70 and 

documented in NCHRP Research Report 888, 

Development of Roundabout Crash Prediction 

Models and Methods. 

• User-Defined Crash Modification Factors 

(CMFs) – Gives users the capability to define 

and apply user-defined CMFs as part of the 

crash prediction process.

In a recent and ongoing application by MoDOT, the 

IHSDM CPM was used to analyze existing 

conditions (the “No Build” alternative) of the 

complex I–35/I–70 and US 169 interchange in 

Kansas City, MO. Included in the analysis were 

freeway segments and ramps, as well as portions 

of the local urban street network. Analysis of 

multiple “Build” alternatives using IHSDM is 

underway to assess the impact of proposed design 

improvements. Results will be used by MoDOT as 

input for selecting a preferred alternative design.

Source: FHWA

A representation of the I–35/I–70 and US 169 

interchange in the IHSDM Highway Viewer. 

The IHSDM 2019 Release includes six evaluation 

modules: Crash Prediction, Policy Review, Design 

Consistency, Traffic Analysis, Driver/Vehicle, and 

Intersection Review. 

In addition, the IHSDM Economic Analyses Tool 

allows users to perform economic analyses within 
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IHSDM, using CPM evaluation results (crash 

frequencies and severities). 

For more information, contact Clayton Chen, 

202–493–3054.

SHRP2 Sponsors Research for New Tools and 

Guidelines for State Highway DOTs 

The “SHRP 2 Naturalistic Driving Study Pooled 

Fund: Advancing Implementable Solutions,” 

managed under the FHWA Transportation Pooled 

Fund program, is sponsoring new research using 

data from the Naturalistic Driving Study (NDS) for 

the second Strategic Highway Research Program 

(SHRP2). The research will address priority topics in 

highway safety, operations, and planning. 

FHWA leads the pooled fund study with active 

participation from State DOTs to determine the 

research to be explored. State DOTs include 

Alabama, Connecticut, Illinois, Iowa, Nevada, and 

Washington. Within FHWA, the Office of 

Operations; the Office of Planning, Environment, 

and Realty; and the Office of Safety R&D are 

participating. 

The Technical Advisory Committee (TAC) for the 

pooled fund issued a request for proposals during 

the first quarter of 2019, spanning highway safety,

operations, and planning research. Twenty-five 

projects were proposed totaling approximately $8 

million. The TAC had a $2.1 million budget and 

chose six projects. Project deliverables will provide 

the highway practitioner with actionable results 

through guidelines, recommendations, and/or 

practitioner-friendly tools. 

The six chosen projects include: 

• “Validation of Performance-Based Design.” 

• “Investigating How Multimodal Environments 

Affect Multitasking Driving Behaviors.” 

• “Developing Speed Crash Modification Factors 

(CMF) Using SHRP2 Data.” 

• “Incorporating the Impacts of Driver Distraction 

into Highway Design and Traffic Engineering.” 

• “Verification and Calibration of Microscopic 

Traffic Simulation Using Driver Behavior and 

Car-Following Metrics for Freeway Segments.” 

• “Freeway Guide Sign Performance at Complex 

Interchanges: Reducing Information Overload.” 

Webinars will be provided to the research 

community at the start of these projects during the 

first quarter of 2020, after project completion in 

2022, and for other technology transfer activities. 

For more information on these projects or the 

“SHRP2 Naturalistic Driving Study Pooled Fund: 

Advancing Implementable Solutions,” contact 

Charles Fay at FHWA’s TFHRC. 

PLANNING, ENVIRONMENT, AND REALTY

Engaging the Public with Digital Technology

The Virtual Public Involvement (VPI) initiative, 

launched in 2018 by the FHWA Every Day Counts-5 

Program, seeks to engage the public more 

effectively by supplementing face-to-face

information sharing and gathering with the 

introduction of new technologies. Using VPI tools, 

which can include mobile applications, videos, 

virtual town halls, and mapping programs, 

enhances and broadens the reach of two-way 

communication efforts by making participation 

more convenient, affordable, and enjoyable. 

Engaging more people earlier in the transportation 

decision-making process can help State DOTs,

Metropolitan Planning Organizations, and local 

public agencies reduce project delays, enhance 

transparency, and lower staff time and costs-perperson engaged. The tools and strategies 

promoted by VPI are applicable to both the 

development of transportation planning products 

and project development, particularly during 

environmental review.

The initiative groups VPI tools and strategies into 

eight categories. The FHWA VPI team and the 

Volpe Center have developed a VPI website that 

houses key information and resources, including 

fact sheets, best practice case study videos, and 

recordings of VPI-related webinars. The VPI team 

offers technical assistance opportunities, which 

includes peer-exchange workshops, conference 

presentations, and direct peer-to-peer assistance. 

For more information on the initiative, please visit 

the website, or contact Scott Allen, Office of 

Planning - Stewardship and Oversight Team.

RECENT RESEARCH PUBLICATIONS

Infrastructure

Strength and Fatigue Resistance of Clustered Shear 

Stud Connectors in Composite Steel Girders

Analysis Procedures for Evaluating Superheavy 

Load Movement on Flexible Pavements, Volume 

VI: Appendix E, Ultimate and Service Limit 

Analyses
 FHWA R&T Now

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Analysis Procedures for Evaluating Superheavy 

Load Movement on Flexible Pavements, Volume 

VIII: Appendix G, Risk Analysis of Buried Utilities 

Under Superheavy Load Vehicle Movements

Safety

Safety Evaluation of Pedestrian Countdown Signals

Safety Evaluation of Continuous Green T 

Intersections

General

Public Roads, Autumn 2019

RECENT PERIODICALS

Innovator November/December 2019

In this issue: Accelerated Bridge Construction 

Changes, How Transportation Agencies Do 

Business; New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and 

Washington Win STIC Excellence Awards; States 

Innovate!; Agents for Change; Innovations Help 

States Deliver Outstanding Transportation Projects; 

Visualize Rural Roadway Departure 

Countermeasures with Trading Cards. 

The issue is available online. 

Public Roads Autumn 2019

This issue includes: Alternative Cementitious 

Materials: An Evolution or Revolution; Meet the 

SHRP2 Utilities Bundle; Are You an Innovation 

Champion?; Learning from International 

Perspectives; Speeding Up Bridge Deck Evaluations. 

For more information, contact Maria Romstedt, 

Maria.Romstedt@dot.gov. 

LINKS

Turner-Fairbank Highway Research Center:

https://highways.dot.gov/research/

Resource Center:

www.fhwa.dot.gov/resourcecenter/

National Highway Institute: 

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

ABOUT FHWA R&T NOW

FHWA R&T Now is a newsletter containing 

information and updates about research, 

technology, and development from the U.S. 

Department of Transportation, Federal Highway 

Administration. The newsletter is an electronic 

newsletter and is updated approximately every 

other month. Send your comments, questions, and 

feedback to FHWA_Now@dot.gov. 

Online access: 

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Please forward this newsletter to others you think 

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Suggestions may be submitted to

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Mail:

Federal Highway Administration

FHWA Office of Research, Development, and 

Technology

Attention: R&T Now Managing Editor

6300 Georgetown Pike

McLean, VA 22101

QUICK ACRONYM LOOKUP

AASHTO – American Association of State Highway 

and Transportation Officials

AV – Automated Vehicle

CPM – Crash Prediction Module

CV – Connected Vehicle 

CAV – Connected and Automated Vehicle

CMF – Crash Modification Factors

DOT – Department of Transportation

EAR – Exploratory Advanced Research 

EDC – Every Day Counts

FHWA – Federal Highway Administration

HSM – Highway Safety Manual

IHSDM – Interactive Highway Safety Design Model

LTPP – Long-Term Pavement Performance 

NCHRP – National Cooperative Highway Research 

Program

NDS – Naturalistic Driving Study

MoDot – Missouri Department of Transportation

R&D – Research and Development

R&T – Research and Technology

RD&T – Research, Development, and Technology

RAP – Research Associateship Program

SBIR – Small Business Innovation Research

SHRP2 – Second Strategic Highway Research 

Program

TAC – Technical Advisory Committee 

TFHRC – Turner-Fairbank Highway Research Center

UHPC – Ultra High-Performance Concrete
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USDOT – United States Department of 

Transportation 

V2I – Vehicle-to-Infrastructure

V2V – Vehicle-to-Vehicle

Distribution—FHWA R&T Now is being distributed according to a standard distribution. Direct 

distribution is being made to the FHWA Divisions and Resource Center. 

Key Words—Infrastructure, Operations, Safety, Research, SBIR, LTPP, pavements, contests, IHSDM, 

SHRP2, crash modification factors, connected vehicles, automated vehicles

Notice—This document is disseminated under the sponsorship of the U.S. Department of Transportation 

in the interest of information exchange. The U.S. Government assumes no liability for the use of the 

information contained in this document. The U.S. Government does not endorse products or 

manufacturers. Trademarks or manufacturers’ names appear in this document only because they are 

considered essential to the objective of the document.