PUBLIC ROADS

Also in this issue: 

• Local Technical Assistance Program 

Marks 40-Year Milestone

• Mobility, Safety at Core

of CDA Program Updates, Research

• U.S. Taps Global Best Practices,

 Innovations to Improve Transportation

PennDOT Agility Program: 

Building Partnerships and 

Breaking Boundaries

www.fhwa.dot.gov Autumn 2022
COVERS and ABOVE—Pennsylvania Department 

of Transportation’s Agility Program helps manage 

its extensive network of roads and bridges.

© K.A / AdobeStock.com.

PennDOT Agility Program: 

Building Partnerships and Breaking Boundaries 

PAGE 8

Source: FHWA.

PAGE 16 

Recommended citation: Federal Highway Administration, Public Roads, Autumn 2022 

(Washington, DC: 2022) https://doi.org/10.21949/1521919

FEATURES

8 PennDOT Agility Program: Building 

Partnerships and Breaking Boundaries

Pennsylvania enters its 26th year of enhancing transportation 

services across jurisdictions with the Agility Program.

by Rich Kirkpatrick

12 International Lessons Lead to U.S. Successes

The Federal Highway Administration’s Office of International 

Programs works to access, promote, and disseminate global 

best practices and technical innovations to ensure a safe 

and efficient U.S. highway transportation system.

by Lori Porreca and Jihan Noizet

16 Delivering Resiliency

The Multiple Benefits of the Emergency Relief for 

Federally Owned Roads (ERFO) Program

by Steven F. Hinz, Justin Henwood, and Eric Wright

20 Cooperative Driving Automation (CDA) Research 

Program: Development, Testing, and Evaluation

FHWA’s CDA Program updates and research and development activities.

by Govind Vadakpat, Danielle Chou, Hyungjun Park, and Steven Vu

24 Nondestructive Evaluation of Concrete 

Bridge Deck with Overlays

FHWA’s NDE Laboratory identified effective and 

promising technologies for detecting and characterizing 

deterioration in concrete bridge decks with overlays.

by Hoda Azari and Sadegh Shams

31 The Local Technical Assistance Program: 40 Years of Service 

and Support for Local Transportation Across the Nation

This year, the Local Technical Assistance Program celebrates its 40th 

anniversary serving local road agencies throughout the Nation.

by Adam Howell

DEPARTMENTS

Guest Editorial .................................................2

What’s New......................................................4

Innovation Corner ..........................................6

Along the Road ..............................................34

Training Update .............................................38

Autumn 2022 | Vol. 86, No. 3
Source: FHWA.

Are you a longtime transportation 

professional conducting new 

research on a particular topic? Or 

an industry freshman looking to 

expand your knowledge base?

The Federal Highway Administration 

(FHWA) has the online research tool 

that can help. 

Since 2006, “What’s New” in FHWA publications 

has been the comprehensive online resource 

for fact sheets, TechBriefs, reports, and more to 

support your research needs. These publications 

cover a wide range of topics, including:

• Roadway safety and 

enhancements.

• Pedestrian and 

bicycle safety.

• Transportation equity.

• Connected and 

automated vehicles.

• Nondestructive 

evaluations.

• Bridge innovations, 

reconstruction, and 

rehabilitation.

• Pavement technology 

and materials.

• Intersection 

improvements 

and design.

• Intelligent transportation 

systems. 

To access the list of downloadable research 

documents, visit www.fhwa.dot.gov/publications 

/lists/whatsnew/index.cfm.

U.S. Department of Transportation

Pete Buttigieg, Secretary

Federal Highway Administration

Stephanie Pollack, Acting Administrator

Office of Research, Development, and Technology

Kelly Regal, Associate Administrator 

Jonathan B. Walker, Acting Director, 

Office of Corporate Research, Technology, 

and Innovation Management

TaMara McCrae, Editor-in-Chief

Lisa A. Shuler, Distribution Manager

Editorial Board: 

T. Hess, H. Kalla, M. Knopp, A. Lucero, 

I. Rico, G. Shepherd, M. Sosa, C. Walker 

Editorial and Design Contractor: 

Schatz Strategy Group 

M. Mitchell, R. Nemec, C. Williams, A. Jacobi, 

J. Love, T. Tolbert, A. Lax, D. Davis, C. McCoy

Public Roads (ISSN 0033-3735; USPS 516-690) 

is published quarterly by the Office of Research, 

Development, and Technology, Federal Highway 

Administration (FHWA), 6300 Georgetown Pike, McLean, 

VA 22101-2296. The business and editorial office of 

Public Roads is located at the McLean address above. 

Phone: 202–493–3375. Fax: 202–493–3475. Email: 

lisa.a.shuler@dot.gov. Periodicals postage paid at McLean, 

VA, and additional mailing offices (if applicable).

POSTMASTER: Send address changes to 

Public Roads, HRTM-20, FHWA, 

6300 Georgetown Pike, McLean, VA 22101-2296.

Public Roads is sold by the Superintendent of Documents, 

U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, DC 20402. 

Requests for subscriptions should be sent directly to New 

Orders, Superintendent of Documents, P.O. Box 979050, 

St. Louis, MO 63197-9000. Subscriptions are available 

for 1-year periods. Paid subscribers should send change 

of address notices to the U.S. Government Printing Office, 

Claims Office, Washington, DC 20402.

The electronic version of Public Roads can be accessed 

through the Turner-Fairbank Highway Research Center 

home page (https://highways.dot.gov/research).

The Secretary of Transportation has determined that 

the publication of this periodical is necessary in the 

transaction of the public business required by law of 

this department.

All articles are advisory or informational in nature and 

should not be construed as having regulatory effect.

Articles written by private individuals contain the personal 

views of the author and do not necessarily reflect those 

of FHWA.

All photographs are provided by FHWA unless 

otherwise credited.

Contents of this publication may be reprinted, provided 

credit is given to Public Roads and the authors.

For more information, representatives of the news 

media should contact FHWA’s Office of Public Affairs at 

202–366–0660.

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. This document does not constitute a 

standard, specification, or regulation. 

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; 

they are included for informational purposes only and 

are not intended to reflect a preference, approval, or 

endorsement of any one product or entity. 
2 | PUBLIC ROADS | AUTUMN 2022

Putting the “World” into a World-Class Highway System

The mission of the U.S. Department of Transportation is: “To deliver the world’s leading transportation system, serving 

the American people and economy through the safe, efficient, 

sustainable, and equitable movement of people and goods.” The 

Federal Highway Administration’s Office of International Programs 

(OIP) makes a significant contribution to achieving this mission 

through facilitating access to technical experts, technological 

advancements, and best practices abroad—beyond the Nation’s 

borders. As the gateway to foreign innovations and collaborative 

relationships that advance the U.S. transportation system, OIP is 

ensuring that it is truly a world-class highway system in every sense 

of the word.

Safety, economic strength and global competitiveness, equity, 

climate and sustainability, transformation, and organizational 

excellence are USDOT’s strategic goals; OIP ensures that 

FHWA’s international activities directly support one or more 

of these objectives. In doing so, the office uses four primary 

programs or approaches, depending upon the nature of the issue: 

(1) Multinational Relations Program (especially the World Road 

Association (WRA)), (2) Global Benchmarking Program (GBP), 

(3) Binational Relations Program (BRP), and (4) International 

Visitors Program (IVP). Each of these approaches has helped to 

identify and disseminate transportation related technologies and 

best practices in the United States.

WRA is the only intergovernmental international organization 

focusing on road transportation technology transfer, and 

FHWA is the lead agency representing the United States. With 

access to more than 120 international road administrations and 

associated experts, WRA provides a one-stop shop to access global 

innovations and best practices. 

GBP is a tool for obtaining and adapting specifically identified 

foreign advances that may accelerate an innovation or bring a 

practical improvement to U.S. infrastructure. Instead of recreating 

advances already developed elsewhere, this program concentrates 

efforts on acquiring and adopting innovations already proven 

abroad. The ultimate goal is to improve safety and mobility, avoid 

duplicative research, reduce costs, and accelerate improvements.

BRP includes FHWA’s prioritized bilateral partnerships, 

covering a range of priority topics. The partnerships and topics 

are coordinated closely with program offices and are intended 

to complement or support existing agency activities and 

priorities. These engagements are mutually beneficial and foster 

collaborative platforms that result in long-term, strong, practical, 

and sustained relationships. These cooperative exchanges leverage 

limited resources to address FHWA’s highest priorities. A sample 

of our binational collaborations include Australia, Brazil, Japan, 

Korea, the Netherlands, Switzerland, and Sweden. FHWA is 

also reaching out to re-engage with a number of countries in 

Sub-Saharan Africa on technology exchange and transfer. 

Finally, IVP, at the request of another country, facilitates 

the sharing of information regarding U.S. technologies and 

best practices. While the intent is for the requesting country to 

learn from this Nation, their visits result in exchanges that are 

mutually beneficial.

Each program offers a flexible approach to address needs and 

complement work on the U.S. transportation system, whether it 

is gathering information, adopting an innovation or practice, or 

engaging in a technology exchange where benefits are reciprocated. 

These collaborative approaches work together and cross-pollinate, 

with developments in one area sometimes leading to opportunities 

in another. They also work in complementary ways to address 

different aspects of FHWA’s international efforts, while focusing 

on U.S. priorities and the objectives of USDOT. Often, these 

approaches are used as instruments in communicating U.S. 

developments to the world and can lead to increased market access 

for U.S. firms and exports, aiding U.S. global competitiveness. 

A representative list of technologies and best practices that 

have been learned through OIP’s international exchanges 

and successfully implemented and integrated into the U.S. 

transportation system include road safety audits, anti-icing, lane 

control signals, and self-propelled modular transporters. This 

listing is a result of our efforts via the four primary approaches.

OIP makes it easy for FHWA to learn successful practices and 

emerging technologies from around the world, contributing to the 

mission of ensuring we have a world-class transportation system. A 

more in-depth look at OIP’s extensive global efforts is featured in 

“International Lessons Lead 

to U.S. Successes” on page 

12 in this issue of Public 

Roads and highlights some 

of the international lessons 

that have led to successes in 

the United States.

Leslie J. Wright

Director, Office of 

International Programs 

Federal Highway 

Administration Source: FHWA.

© Rawpixel.com / ASDF / AdobeStock.com.

GUEST EDITORIAL
© Michal / AdobeStock.com.

WRITE FOR 

Public Roads offers FHWA and State department of transportation staff an avenue for 

communicating both technical and general-interest topics with peers (such as engineers, 

scientists, and economists) and other stakeholders across the highway industry.

Other Federal agencies, local and Tribal DOTs, field researchers and 

practitioners, and academia may also submit content for Public Roads

but are encouraged to collaborate with FHWA and State DOTs.

Check out our Writing for Public Roads: How-to Guide to learn about the many ways 

you can contribute to Public Roads. From full-length feature articles to 200-word 

summaries, you can choose the option that best fits the information you want to share. 

To access the guide and learn more about article types, submission 

deadlines, and requirements, visit https://highways.dot.gov 

/research/publications/public-roads/FHWA-HRT-22-076.

Questions? Contact us at PublicRoads@dot.gov.
4 | PUBLIC ROADS | AUTUMN 2022

55 

Years Ago: 

Echoes of the Past

by RICHARD F. WEINGROFF

55 Years after DOT opened, some of our concerns seem very familiar.

Fifty-five years ago, the U.S. Department of Transportation opened for business on April 1, 1967. USDOT included the 

new Federal Highway Administration, which had by far the largest 

budget of $4.4 billion in a department with a total budget of only 

$6.6 billion. (FHWA traces its origins to October 3, 1893, when 

the Office of Road Inquiry opened in the Agriculture Department 

with a budget of $10,000.) Two of the biggest hot topics for FHWA 

were completing the interstate system and increasing highway safety.

Of the 41,000 miles of interstate freeways authorized at the time, 

a total of 58 percent, or 23,755 miles, was open to traffic, although 

only 18,131 miles met full design standards. The struggles over 

urban freeways were major concerns as protests mounted across the 

country. Those displaced from homes or businesses objected; 

minority communities often were divided by the new freeways, 

leading to criticism. In remarks during April 

1967, the first secretary of transportation, 

Alan S. Boyd (1967-1969), explained that it 

simply came down to arithmetic. “The pure 

economics of expressway building force 

these things through the areas of lowest 

right-of-way cost, so it is usually the 

low-income citizens who suffer.”

He and FHWA Administrator Lowell K. 

Bridwell (1967-1969) saw joint land use as 

one answer to the disruption. In 1970, for 

example, FHWA touted the benefits of a 

basketball court built under the I-95 viaduct 

in Wilmington, DE. The viaduct divided an 

African-American community, but the 

agency looked on the bright side in a press 

release that began, “The budding basketball 

star of tomorrow could be a kid who learned 

how to dribble, pass, and shoot because an 

interstate highway came through 

his neighborhood.”

The Federal-Aid Highway Act of 1973 

provided a way to resolve the urban 

controversies via the Interstate 

Withdrawal-Substitution Program. A mayor and governor, jointly, 

could ask FHWA to withdraw a segment from the interstate system 

and receive in return an equivalent amount of money that, as the 

law was later amended, could be used for highway or transit 

projects. Under this program, 342 miles of designated interstates 

were withdrawn from 32 withdrawal areas in 21 States.

As for highway safety, the problem was clear: 51,524 deaths had 

occurred in 1966, with a fatality rate of 5.55 per 100 million vehicle 

miles traveled. Much hope was placed on two safety bills President 

Lyndon B. Johnson signed on September 9, 1966, that FHWA 

would administer. The Motor Traffic and Motor Vehicle Safety Act 

gave USDOT authority for the first time to issue regulations 

requiring safety changes in motor vehicles. The Highway Safety Act 

established new highway safety requirements. (In 1970, DOT 

shifted oversight of the motor vehicle 

provisions to a new agency, the National 

Highway Traffic Safety Administration.)

Shortly after the signing of the bills, 

Boyd, then under secretary of commerce for 

transportation, said during a news 

conference that, “Because of the long-range 

nature of the problem, we don’t expect any 

miracles. This is a long pull that we’re in 

for.” His prediction proved accurate. 

Fatalities would reach an all-time high of 

55,600 in 1972 (fatality rate of 4.41), but 

totals would gradually decline despite 

increases in traffic volumes. In 2019, the last 

full year before the COVID-19 pandemic, 

36,096 people lost their lives in motor 

vehicle crashes; in 2020, fatalities increased 

to an estimated 38,824 lives (a 1.33 

fatality rate).

Today, 55 years later, USDOT and 

FHWA have many concerns, but urban 

freeways and highway safety remain a hot 

topic. As for the urban freeways that 

survived the battles underway 55 years ago, 

Source: USDOT.

The first Secretary of Transportation, Alan S. Boyd, 

explained that urban Interstate freeways sometimes 

divided low-income communities because of “pure 

economics.” Today, USDOT makes it a priority 

prevent the previous impacts on lower-income and 

underserved communities around the Nation.

Source: USDOT.

WHAT’S NEW
WWW.FHWA.DOT.GOV | 5

USDOT and FHWA are trying to find ways to reconnect the 

communities they severed. The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law that 

President Joseph Biden signed on November 15, 2021, authorized 

a pilot program that will reconnect as many as 20 communities by 

removing, retrofitting, or mitigating portions of interstates. 

Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg explained, “if Federal 

dollars were used to divide a neighborhood or a city, Federal dollars 

should be used to reconnect it.” He noted that no one solution 

would work in every case. “But the point is, transportation should 

always connect, never divide.” The goal was to rebuild connections 

while addressing each area’s unique transportation needs.

From Secretary Boyd to Secretary Buttigieg, one constant for 

every U.S. secretary of transportation has been safety, especially 

highway safety. That concern was brought home forcefully in 

mid-2022 when NHTSA estimated that 42,915 people died in 

motor vehicle traffic crashes in 2021. This estimated number 

would be a 10.5 percent increase from 2020—the highest number 

of fatalities since 2005—and the largest annual percentage increase 

in the history of the Fatality Analysis Reporting System.

Earlier, Secretary Buttigieg said, “We 

cannot tolerate the continuing crisis of 

roadway deaths in America. These deaths 

are preventable.” He launched the 

National Roadway Safety Strategy (NRSS) 

(available at https://www.transportation.gov 

/NRSS), calling it “a bold, comprehensive 

plan, with significant new funding from 

President Biden’s Bipartisan 

Infrastructure Law.”

At the core of the NRSS is the Safe 

System Approach. The Safe System 

Approach addresses and mitigates the risks 

by building and reinforcing multiple 

layers of protection to prevent crashes 

from happening in the first place and 

minimizes the harm caused when those 

crashes occur. The objectives of the Safe 

System Approach are: safe, responsible 

behavior by people; roads that are 

designed to mitigate human mistakes; 

expanded vehicle systems to prevent crashes and minimize those 

that occur; thoughtful, context-appropriate design in setting safer 

speeds; and expedient access to emergency medical care to enhance 

the ability to survive crashes.

Since April 1, 1967, the country has experienced many changes, 

and we have many more tools now for addressing the challenges 

USDOT faces. However, the original declaration of purpose in the 

Department of Transportation Act of 1966 remains valid, namely 

that, “the general welfare, the economic growth and stability of the 

Nation and its security require the development of national 

transportation policies and programs” that provide for a “fast, 

safe, efficient, and convenient transportation system.”

RICHARD F. WEINGROFF is information liaison specialist in FHWA’s Office of 

Infrastructure and is FHWA’s official historian.

For more information on the Safe System Approach, 

see the Winter 2022 special issue of Public Roads. 

https://highways.dot.gov/public-roads/winter-2022

Source: USDOT.

On September 9, 1966, President Lyndon B. Johnson signed the Motor 

Traffic and Motor Vehicle Safety Act and the Highway Safety Act. President 

Johnson explained that nearly three times as many Americans had 

died in traffic accidents as died “in all our wars” of the 20th century. 

Secretary of Transportation Boyd attends the “Pageant of 

Transportation” on the National Mall when the USDOT opened 

in 1967. Boyd told a news conference that USDOT would work to 

make transportation more efficient and more socially responsible.

A horse-drawn carriage was used to transport officials during the “Pageant of Transportation.”

Source: USDOT. Source: USDOT.
6 | PUBLIC ROADS | AUTUMN 2022

Build a Better Mousetrap Winners 

Transform Transportation 

in Their Communities

by TRINETTE BALLARD

The Federal Highway Administration’s Build a Better Mousetrap is a national recognition program for local governments and 

Tribal agencies who use innovative solutions to solve transportation 

problems in their communities. These solutions increase safety, 

save money and time, and improve on the operational efficiency of 

their transportation programs. 

“Highlighting Build a Better Mousetrap to agencies improves 

transportation programs all over the Nation because sharing brings 

about awareness, and [awareness] provides local agencies and Tribes 

with options for solutions,” says Joe Conway, director of Local Aid 

Support in the FHWA Office of Transportation Workforce 

Development and Technology Deployment.

For the first time, FHWA’s Build a Better Mousetrap 

competition received close to 70 nominations among its four 

national categories: Bold Steps; Innovative Project; Pioneer; and 

Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, and Time bound 

(SMART) Transformation. “[There were] a variety of innovative 

solutions from all over the country including Puerto Rico,” says 

Conway. “This speaks to how the culture of transportation is 

changing to think more outside the box in how we solve problems. 

We are excited about the role FHWA has played [in] supporting 

the Local and Tribal Technical Assistance Programs (LTAP/TTAP) 

that provide training on [fostering] innovative solutions to 

thousands of transportation professionals annually.” 

The Build a Better Mousetrap program is a collaborative effort 

between FHWA and the LTAP/TTAP centers. The centers select 

their State’s winners and then submit them to FHWA for 

consideration in the national competition. This year, a range of 

homegrown pioneering solutions that improved road maintenance, 

pandemic challenges, customer service, and emergency response 

were submitted—to name a few. FHWA selected one winner from 

each of the four national categories, with each awardee named a 

2022 Build a Better Mousetrap national winner:

Source: FHWA.

Bold Steps Award 

The Bold Steps Award recognizes any locally relevant, high-risk project or 

process showcasing a breakthrough solution with demonstrated high reward. 

This year’s winner is the Walsh County Highway Department in North Dakota 

for the Guardrail Maintainer, which is an attachment tool to quickly remove 

debris from around the guardrails so that they do not get into the roadway 

creating a safety hazard for drivers.

The Guardrail Maintainer, 

an innovation by North 

Dakota’s Walsh County 

Highway Department, 

was one of four winners 

of the 2022 Build a Better 

Mousetrap competition.

© Walsh County 

Highway Department.

INNOVATION CORNER 
WWW.FHWA.DOT.GOV | 7

SMART Transformation Award

The SMART Transformation Award recognizes a locally relevant, significant change in 

any transportation or activity that is SMART in nature and results in improved 

efficiencies. This year’s recipient is the Autonomous Municipality of Toa Baja in Puerto 

Rico for the Public Survey Tool for Emergency Events. The electronic survey tool is 

available to residents via social media to help improve emergency response. 

Innovative Project Award

The Innovative Project Award recognizes a solution that 

introduces new ideas that are original and involve creative 

thinking. The local agency winner is South Manheim Township 

in Schuylkill, PA, for the Sidewinder, which is a tool that is used 

to fill barriers or berms with compact materials such as gravel, 

soil, and rocks to control water flow along the roadways.

Pennsylvania’s South Manheim Township created the 

Sidewinder, winner of the Innovative Project Award. 

© South Manheim Township.

Puerto Rico’s 

Autonomous 

Municipality of 

Toa Baja invented 

the Public Survey 

Tool for Emergency 

Events, winner 

of the SMART 

Transformation 

Award.

© Autonomous 

Municipality 

of Toa Baja.

Pioneer Award 

The Pioneer Award recognizes a locally relevant product or tool 

that is among the first to solve a maintenance problem with a 

home-grown solution. The winner is the Washington County 

Department of Public Works in New York for the Culvert 

Cleaner, which is a tool to remove dirt build-up safely and 

quickly from the culverts created by beavers. The Culvert 

Cleaner was voted Best All-Around local innovation by 

attendees to the 2022 National Local and Tribal Technical 

Assistance Program Association’s Annual Meeting in July.

“All of the winners join a long list of 

local agencies who start each day 

thinking about how to improve the 

delivery of their transportation 

programs. Congratulations to each of 

them for putting safety and innovation 

first,” says Conway. 

TRINETTE BALLARD is a local support program 

manager in the FHWA Office of Transportation Workforce Development and Technology 

Deployment and worked in a variety of roles 

during her 15-year tenure with FHWA.

For more information on the Build a 

Better Mousetrap program, visit 

https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/clas/babm/. For 

more information on the LTAP/TTAP 

Centers in your State, visit https://www 

.fhwa.dot.gov/clas/ltap/ and https://www 

.fhwa.dot.gov/clas/ttap/ or email the 

FHWA Local Aid Support team at 

CLAS@dot.gov.

Winner of the Pioneer Award, 

New York’s Washington County 

Department of Public Works created 

the Culvert Cleaner, a homegrown 

solution to a maintenance problem.

© Washington County 

Department of Public Works.
8 | PUBLIC ROADS | AUTUMN 2022

by RICH KIRKPATRICK

Pennsylvania’s 67 counties share a challenging responsibility with the 

Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT): to manage key components of a far-flung and extensive road and 

bridge network.

Pennsylvania has the third largest 

State-managed bridge system in the Nation 

and the fifth largest State-maintained road 

network. Pennsylvania’s transportation 

system is comparable in size to all of the 

State systems in New York, New Jersey, and 

New England combined. Counties manage 

roughly 6,600 of the State’s 32,000 bridges, 

and local governments oversee roughly 

75,000 miles (120,701 kilometers) of the 

120,000 miles (194,731 kilometers) of 

roads that crisscross the State.

Thus, an overriding issue is how does 

PennDOT address intricate encounters 

with the jurisdictional boundaries created 

by Pennsylvania’s various State, county, 

and local governments with the responsibility—and mission—to offer a seamless 

transportation experience for the State’s 

citizens? The answer: Through a system that 

enables the exchange of services, equipment, 

and staff, without monetary payments—the 

PennDOT Agility Program (also known 

as Agility).

The story of Agility—which celebrated 

its 25th anniversary in 2021—begins in 

1995, when then-PennDOT Secretary Brad 

Mallory came across a book by Roger Nagle 

titled, Agile Competitors and Virtual Organizations. The book outlines a concept to spur 

businesses to think outside the box.

That December, Mallory bought each 

one of his deputy secretaries a copy of 

Nagle’s book and asked them to read it and 

provide ideas on how to bring the agility 

approach to PennDOT.

“Rob Wonderling, then-PennDOT 

deputy secretary for administration, and 

later president and chief executive officer 

of the Chamber of Commerce for Greater 

Philadelphia, came back with a program 

layout to reach out to local governments 

and trade services with them,” says 

Mallory. “Instead of stopping the plows at 

the borough line, [he suggested that we] 

continue with a straight pass, and they do a 

similar loop and hit some of our network.”

By enabling PennDOT and partners to equally exchange services—like 

snow plowing, mowing grass, or street 

sweeping—without the exchange of money, 

transportation could improve in Pennsylvania. The idea for these synergies propelled 

itself into the Agility Program. Prior to the 

program, local and State jurisdictions were 

responsible for maintaining their respective 

networks with no mechanism in place to 

lawfully exchange services.

Reflecting on his often-stated mantra, 

Mallory says, “People don’t care who owns 

the road, they want seamless service, and the 

Agility Program really played to that.”

Service-for-Service 

Partnering: Tested

Mallory and his team launched Agility 

in May 1996. The program commenced 

with a six-week pilot that involved partnerships between two of Pennsylvania’s 

counties, Crawford and Venango; three 

cities, Meadville, Franklin, and Oil City; 

three townships, Crawford, West Mead, 

and Vernon; and the American Federation 

of State, County, and Municipal Employees 

(AFSCME)—which represents PennDOT 

employees. During the pilot, PennDOT 

painted traffic lines on local streets while 

crews from local jurisdictions performed 

PennDOT 

Agility Program: 

Building Partnerships 

and Breaking Boundaries

Pennsylvania enters its 26th year of 

enhancing transportation services across 

jurisdictions with the Agility Program.

Agility helps PennDOT and it partners make the most 

of limited resources, develop strong and rewarding 

relationships, and conduct roadway improvements.

© r_tee / AdobeStock.com.
WWW.FHWA.DOT.GOV | 9

mowing, cleaning, and other maintenance 

services on State highways. The initial 

savings amounted to about $25,000.

Within two years, the program had 

expanded to all 11 PennDOT engineering 

districts; within five years, the program 

was being used in all 67 counties. Since its 

inception, the Agility Program has united 

PennDOT with nearly 2,000 partners 

through nearly 3,300 agreements. 

PennDOT and the partner organizations 

must enter a formal written agreement 

called an Agility Agreement. There are three 

general steps that must be followed on the 

road to securing an Agility Agreement:

1. The partner must evaluate what 

services it needs and what services it 

can provide to PennDOT.

2. The partner must complete the 

Agility Agreement, which includes a 

resolution indicating acceptance by the 

partner’s officials. The resolution must 

be adopted at a public meeting.

3. The partner, PennDOT, and AFSCME 

must negotiate a work plan that spells 

out who will do what for whom.

Chris Robinson, roadway programs 

coordinator for PennDOT’s Butler County 

operation in western Pennsylvania, noted 

the circumstances when partners are drawn 

to an Agility Agreement. “Usually, it’s when 

you have a resource that either is unavailable to the other group or you [have and] 

can do at a more efficient cost than the 

other group,” Robinson says. “If you have 

something that is easier for you to provide 

or the other group doesn’t have, that’s a 

good time to look at things.”

With all levels of government trying to 

deliver the very best services with limited 

resources, the Agility Program represents 

an important tool to assist in meeting that 

goal. The program’s benefits are numerous 

including completing work that otherwise 

may not have been completed, providing 

better service to the traveling public, and 

providing smoother, safer, and cleaner roads 

and bridges.

Service-to-Service 

Partnering: Proven

Creativity is a hallmark of the Agility 

Program as evidenced by an agreement 

between PennDOT and the State Correctional Institution at Mercer (SCI Mercer). 

As inmates performed litter pickup 

on various State routes and painted a 

PennDOT wash bay, PennDOT graded 

and paved an access road on SCI Mercer 

property. This exchange allowed PennDOT 

to redirect its maintenance staff to more 

pressing roadway concerns that otherwise 

would have been delayed.

“It’s one of the best programs that has 

been offered around the State, for municipalities in general,” says Jason Dailey, now 

former utilities director and former public 

works director for Cranberry Township in 

Butler County, located in western Pennsylvania. “We certainly had a really good 

experience with the program.”

For Dailey, Agility inspires creativity on 

both sides of the exchange. “The creativity 

you can bring to it, the flexibility the 

PennDOT engineering district offices have 

to make this program work for everyone... 

the opportunities are really endless,” he says. 

“If you can think it up, your district will 

work with you to make that happen.”

Since it’s origination, Agility has 

expanded its offerings to include a threeyear renewal period for Agility Agreements 

and Web-based training for PennDOT 

staff. Many of the additional offerings 

came under the direction of PennDOT’s 

Bureau of Innovations (BOI), which 

assumed management of the program in 

2016. Under BOI, during 2021 alone, 

Winter maintenance services are often exchanged with municipal 

governments as part of the PennDOT Agility Program.

© PennDOT.

A common Agility exchange over the past 25 years has involved litter pickup 

along PennDOT roadways by local government workers.

© PennDOT.
10 | PUBLIC ROADS | AUTUMN 2022

PennDOT executed 32 Agility Agreements—27 local governments and five 

non-profits or schools—in 12 of Pennsylvania’s 67 counties. Additionally, three 

Agility Agreement renewals were attained, 

including with the Pennsylvania Turnpike 

Commission (PTC). Initial agreements 

between PennDOT and an eligible partner 

are typically over a 5-year period. BOI also 

has a detailed and enhanced communication 

plan in place to attract more agreements.

Service-to-Service Partnering: 

Unique Partnerships

Agility helps PennDOT and its partners to 

make the most of limited resources, while 

developing strong and rewarding relationships. And it is these relationships that help 

sustain the program. Those eligible to enter 

into an Agility Agreement with PennDOT 

must be an eligible public entity under 

Pennsylvania’s Procurement Code. This 

includes county and local governments, 

metropolitan planning organizations, rural 

planning organizations, public school 

districts and colleges, volunteer fire companies, charitable hospitals, and many others.

Often, it’s also the dedication of individual PennDOT staff members that helps 

drive the program forward. One example 

is Joe Rossi, former equipment operator 

in PennDOT’s District 4, located in 

northeastern Pennsylvania. While working 

on the front lines for PennDOT, helping to 

maintain an extensive road network, he also 

worked as assistant chief and president of 

the Union Dale Volunteer Fire Department 

in Susquehanna County. In working these 

positions, Rossi saw an opportunity to help 

advance PennDOT’s innovative program.

Through the years, the fire department 

assisted PennDOT in informal ways by 

hosing off PennDOT equipment and 

permitting the agency to park transportation equipment in the fire station’s lot 

to keep it near a project site. It was this 

parking lot that needed significant repairs, 

and the volunteer fire department was not 

in a position to pay an estimated $20,000 

for a full repaving.

“I inquired if there was a way PennDOT 

could help us with patching the parking 

lot,” Rossi says. “The Agility Program was 

mentioned. We could get involved since 

we had helped them in the past, and they 

were glad to help us.” “It was a good idea,” 

Rossi continues. “Being a volunteer fire 

department, we don’t have the resources 

to go in and do pavement repairs. Not 

everyone knows how to do blacktop. It 

would cost us a small fortune.” In return for 

the patching that PennDOT performed, the 

fire department agreed to continue to allow 

PennDOT to store equipment and materials 

(e.g., chipping stones) needed on the fire 

department’s property for nearby projects.

“We are fortunate to have such a 

good partner like the Union Dale Fire 

Department,” says Erin Mazikewich, 

assistant highway maintenance manager 

for PennDOT in Susquehanna County. 

“When planning future projects, it helps to 

know that we may have a storage location 

closer to the actual job site. The reduced 

time in hauling from the fire department’s 

storage location to the job site can result 

in more timely completion of our project. 

We appreciate all the fire department does 

in and for the community, and we’re happy 

to be able to help them out through the 

Agility Program.”

In addition to the volunteer fire 

department, PennDOT has participated 

in exchanges with other non-traditional 

partners and, in some instances, in 

exchanges involving nontraditional services. 

In Warren and Forest counties, PennDOT 

has had a long-standing Agility Agreement with the Allegheny National Forest. 

PennDOT painted dividing lines on the 

roadway and swept and resurfaced some 

of their forest roads. In exchange, the U.S. 

Forest Service provided conference room 

space for PennDOT business meetings 

and events and graded nearby dirt roads in 

PennDOT’s jurisdiction.

Surface treatments, such as “oil and chip,” are common roadway maintenance 

operations exchanged as part of the Agility Program.

© PennDOT.
WWW.FHWA.DOT.GOV | 11

PennDOT’s District 12, in southwestern 

Pennsylvania, had an Agility Agreement 

with Fayette County Airport. The airport 

gave PennDOT space in an empty hanger 

to use for equipment and spare furniture 

storage and, in return, PennDOT painted 

yellow road lines, applied crack sealing, and 

sprayed herbicide for weed control on the 

airport’s taxiways and runways.

District 12 also had an Agility Agreement 

with the Washington County Fairgrounds 

in which PennDOT received storage space, 

and, in return, PennDOT used a flush truck 

to wash down the fairgrounds’ bleachers and 

perform a few fairgrounds roadway repairs.

PennDOT District 5, based in Allentown, had an agreement with the Lehigh 

Valley International Airport where 

PennDOT applied salt brine to airport 

roadways and, in exchange, the airport 

plowed snow off of turning lanes leading 

into its facility and PennDOT used the 

airport’s wash facility to clean its trucks. A 

key specification of Agility Agreements is 

that materials alone cannot be exchanged as 

part of an agreement except for salt brine, 

millings, and certain road signs.

Similarly, under an Agility Agreement 

with the PTC, PennDOT performed the 

pumping of water storage tanks and truck 

wash separator cleanings, and provided a salt 

stacker, building space, and a salt dome. In 

exchange, the PTC provided salt brine, an 

electric forklift, a salt dome, truck washes, 

building space, trash removal, and holding 

tank pumping.

“There have been numerous Agility 

Program success stories across Pennsylvania 

over the past 25 years, several with nontraditional partner organizations,” says Bob 

Snyder, acting Agility Program manager 

in PennDOT’s BOI. “PennDOT and its 

partner organizations, nontraditional or 

otherwise, have continued to recognize the 

potential for innovative ‘win-win’ opportunities to make the program work for 

everyone involved and ultimately benefit 

the citizens of the commonwealth.”

“We welcome new ideas and partners 

for our Agility Program,” says Yassmin 

Gramian, P.E., current PennDOT secretary. 

“The Agility Program has fostered effective 

and lasting cross-government relationships 

that have enhanced transportation services 

across Pennsylvania. We invite more eligible 

partners to consider entering into Agility 

Agreements with PennDOT.”

RICH KIRKPATRICK served for nearly two decades 

as PennDOT’s press secretary. Currently, he 

serves as an annuitant in PennDOT’s Bureau of 

Innovations. He holds a B.S. degree in journalism 

from Temple University.

For more information on PennDOT’s 

Agility Program, visit http://www.penndot 

.pa.gov. Select “Local Government” from 

the “Doing Business” drop-down menu and 

select the blue “Agility Program” tile. You 

can also contact PDAgility@pa.gov.

Agility enables PennDOT and its eligible partners to exchange services, 

equipment, and staff without monetary payments.

© PennDOT.

PennDOT can provide salt brine to municipal governments as part of the Agility Program exchanges.

A common Agility exchange over the past 25 years has © PennDOT.

involved PennDOT applying crack sealing on local roads.

© PennDOT.
12 | PUBLIC ROADS | AUTUMN 2022

The Federal Highway Administration’s Office of International Programs works 

to access, promote, and disseminate global best practices and technical 

innovations to ensure a safe and efficient U.S. highway transportation system.

by LORI PORRECA and JIHAN NOIZET

Around the world, countries face many of the same transportation concerns. 

Best practices and lessons learned in other 

nations can help address U.S. challenges. 

The Federal Highway Administration’s 

(FHWA) Office of International Programs 

(HPIP) works to access, promote, and 

disseminate global best practices and new 

technologies that improve the safety and 

efficiency of the U.S. transportation system. 

HPIP’s understanding of cultural and 

political differences between nations and its 

expertise in managing cross-border relationships has fostered a culture of collaboration 

among transportation agencies around 

the world.

HPIP’s work has led to many measurable 

benefits for our Nation. HPIP programs 

have helped to identify and disseminate an 

extensive list of transportation technologies 

and best practices in the United States. 

Many of the technologies studied abroad 

through HPIP programs have also helped 

shape transportation planning and design 

practices throughout the Nation, enhancing 

road safety, and the state of the U.S. transportation system. For example, modern 

roundabouts, as learned through HPIP, have 

improved the safety of intersections and 

reduced project costs in the United States. 

A single-lane roundabout has only eight 

conflict points, compared to 32 in a traditional four-way intersection. A 2002 study 

by the Maryland State Highway Administration found that at 15 locations where 

roundabouts replaced traditional intersections, the crash rate fell by 60 percent, and 

the injury crash rate fell by 82 percent.

HPIP’s Programs 

and Impact

The three main programs of the office 

are the Binational Relations Program, the 

Multinational Relations Program, and the 

International Visitors Program.

The Binational Relations Program 

focuses on government-to-government 

relations and activities designed to exchange 

best practices and technologies for high 

priority topics including, but not limited 

to, bridge design, pedestrian safety, climate 

change, and transportation infrastructure resilience. These programs facilitate 

exchanges that are practical, implementable, 

and beneficial to all participants. FHWA 

currently has active relationships with 

Australia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Japan, 

the Republic of Korea, Mexico, the Netherlands, South Africa, Sweden, and Switzerland. Though some relationships are 

long standing, new relationships emerge as 

FHWA priorities change and/or new innovations come along.

The Multinational Relations Program 

includes the Global Benchmarking Program 

(GBP) (formerly known as the International Scanning Program or “Scan”) and 

participation in the World Road Association 

(PIARC) and other multinational groups. 

The GBP is a tool to bring global innovations into the Nation’s transportation 

system. The program focuses on acquiring 

and adopting proven foreign technologies 

and best practices that directly support U.S. 

Department of Transportation and FHWA 

priorities. To accomplish this goal, the GBP 

forms teams made up of Federal, State, and 

local subject matter experts that conduct 

focused study missions to countries with 

valuable information in a particular subject 

area. These studies allow participants to 

observe innovations firsthand and engage 

in face-to-face, in-depth exchanges with 

foreign counterparts. 

International Lessons

 Lead to 

U.S. Successes
WWW.FHWA.DOT.GOV | 13

PIARC is an international road organization that has brought together representatives from countries around the world for 

over 100 years. Participation in PIARC and 

other multinational entities enables FHWA 

to access, influence, and learn from many 

countries in a cost-effective manner. PIARC 

provides information on the most recent 

technical and policy developments in road 

transportation abroad and is a significant 

channel for communicating U.S. developments to the rest of the world.

The International Visitors Program 

facilitates the sharing of information about 

U.S. roads and road-related technologies 

between FHWA experts and their international counterparts. The International Visitors Program has organized the following 

types of activities for visitors from all regions 

of the world:

• Meetings focused on a certain topic.

• Study tours with FHWA program 

offices, State departments of 

transportation (DOTs), and 

other transportation agencies and 

associations nationwide.

Through collaboration with international and domestic organizations, HPIP’s 

programs work together and cross-pollinate, 

with developments in one area sometimes leading to opportunities in others. 

For example, a GBP study may lead to a 

long-term binational relationship with one 

or more of the countries involved, or a 

binational relationship can lead to a more 

focused GBP study on a specific topic. 

One consistent benefit across all programs 

has been the development of international relationships.

“Participants in HPIP programs often 

say that building relationships with international counterparts is one of the most 

valuable outcomes of the program,” says 

Leslie Wright, director of HPIP. “These 

connections facilitate ongoing collaboration 

and information sharing.”

Three Decades of Best Practices

HPIP’s three decades of work has resulted in 

useful and effective best practices, technologies, and lessons learned beneficial for our 

Nation’s roadways. A 2021 report, Dissemination Tools and Strategies of the Federal 

Highway Administration’s Office of International Programs (FHWA-PL-021-025), 

highlights technologies and best practices 

learned through international exchanges 

that have been successfully implemented 

in or integrated into the U.S. transportation system.

The selected technologies fall into 

10 categories:

• Bridge technologies

• Congestion management

• Innovative contracting

• Modern roundabouts

• Pavement materials

• Risk management

• Safety

• Traffic incident management

• Truck size and weight

• Winter operations

The following sections provide specific 

examples of technologies, methodologies, 

and best practices learned from HPIP’s 

multinational and binational exchanges.

The Arthur Ravenel Bridge is a long-span cable-stayed bridge over the Cooper River in Charleston, SC. 

Cable-stayed bridges like this one became more common in the United States after an HPIP-organized 

1999 Scan and are now the most widely used bridge type for major long-span U.S. bridges.

Source: FHWA. 

SELECTED PRACTICES AND TECHNOLOGIES

For the recent synthesis report, FHWA identified 30 influential practices and technologies learned 

through HPIP’s programs. Falling into 10 broad categories, these practices and technologies were 

selected based on the current level of dissemination and integration in the United States.

• Bridge technologies

° Cable-stayed bridges

° ABC

– Movement systems for 

prefabricated bridge

– SPMTs

– PBES

• Congestion management—Active 

traffic management (ATM)

° Automated queue detection

° Lane control signals

° Variable speed control

• Innovative contracting

° Design-build contracting

° Warranties

° P3s

• Modern roundabouts

• Pavement materials

° Pavement recycling

° Warm-mix asphalt

° Stone-matrix asphalt

• Risk management

• Safety

° Vision zero

° Safety planning

° Road safety audits

• Traffic incident management

° ATM incident management

° Traffic incident response

• Truck size and weight

° WIM

° HS-WIM

° WIM database management

• Winter operations

° Removable legs on trucks

° Anti-icing

° Fixed automated 

spray technology

° RWIS

° Snow and Ice Pooled Fund 

Cooperative Program
14 | PUBLIC ROADS | AUTUMN 2022

Enabling Faster, Safer 

Bridge Construction

Efficient, high-quality bridge construction 

and design methods are critical for ensuring 

the safety and cost-effectiveness of our 

Nation’s bridges. In 2004, HPIP conducted 

an influential Scan, learning about prefabricated bridge elements and systems (PBES) 

in Japan and Europe. PBES is an accelerated bridge construction (ABC) method 

that enables construction teams to build 

bridge elements offsite and move them 

into place much more quickly, minimizing 

travel disruptions, construction risks, and 

project costs.

The 2004 Scan also studied technologies 

that enable PBES, such as movement 

systems and self-propelled modular 

transporters (SPMTs; multiaxle platform 

vehicles operated through computercontrolled systems that precisely position 

prefabricated bridge spans). The team for 

this Scan subsequently developed FHWA’s 

Manual on Use of Self-Propelled Modular 

Transporters to Remove and Replace Bridges

(FHWA HIF-07-022). The manual has 

served as a valuable tool for increasing the 

use of this technology in the United States. 

As of 2019, SPMTs have been widely used 

across the country. The Utah DOT saved 

$55 million on six projects using PBES 

and SPMTs.

In addition to the 2004 Scan, the United 

States has a long-standing relationship with 

Japan through the Binational Relations 

Program in which other bridge technologies 

and practices have been shared, including 

seismic design methods. These technologies and practices have been discussed 

with Japan through biennial workshops 

for more than 30 years. As a result of these 

workshops, U.S. transportation practitioners 

have learned a great deal from Japan’s vast 

experiences with seismic design and earthquake recovery, helping them to improve 

the safety of U.S. west coast bridges.

Popularizing PublicPrivate Partnerships

HPIP has helped disseminate innovative 

strategies for completing crucial infrastructure projects in the U.S. transportation system. During a 2008 Scan called 

“Public-Private Partnerships for Highway 

Infrastructure: Capitalizing on International 

Experience,” a team studied public-private 

partnerships (P3s) in Australia, Portugal, 

Spain, and the United Kingdom.” In 

P3s, private entities take on a variety of 

project roles, such as design, construction, 

finance, and/or operations. Benefits include 

risk sharing, accelerated project delivery, 

cost efficiency, and access to new sources 

of capital.

Since the 2008 Scan, P3s have become 

more popular in the United States. For 

example, partnerships with private entities 

enabled the construction of the North 

Tarrant Express in Fort Worth, TX. 

Two-thirds of the funds came from private 

sources and the project was completed nine 

months ahead of schedule. The private 

partner designed, built, and financed the 

project and continues to oversee maintenance and operations, including collection 

of tolls on the facility’s managed toll lanes. 

In another example, private debt and equity 

helped finance a project on the U.S. 36 

Express Lanes that connected Denver, CO, 

to Boulder, CO, accelerating the completion 

date of the project by at least 10 years and 

shifting financial risks to the private sector.

Managing Truck Size and Weight

In 2020, U.S. trucks moved over 10 billion 

tons of freight and, in 2019, traveled over 

300 billion miles. Given the magnitude of 

U.S. commercial trucking, truck size and 

weight regulations play an important role 

in preserving bridge and pavement quality 

and ensuring road safety. Larger trucks 

must conform to axle loading, spacing, 

gross vehicle weight limitations, and size 

requirements based on laws and roadway 

design and condition. States may use 

weigh-in-motion (WIM) technology as a 

screening tool at weight stations to enforce 

truck weight regulations, identify roadway 

violators, and plan enforcement activities.

HPIP programs have helped advance 

WIM practices in the United States. In 

2006, HPIP organized a Scan to study 

procedures and technologies, particularly 

WIM, for enforcing commercial motor 

vehicle size and weight laws in Belgium, 

France, Germany, the Netherlands, 

Slovenia, and Switzerland. The 2006 

Scan focused on bridge weigh-in-motion 

(BWIM), high-speed weigh-in-motion 

(HS-WIM), and WIM database management. Based on bridge technologies learned 

in Slovenia, the Scan team worked with the 

Alabama DOT to install a BWIM pilot, 

and the Connecticut DOT installed a 

similar system. After observing Switzerland’s 

high-speed-bridge weigh-in-motion (HS 

BWIM) technology, the 2006 Scan team 

invited Swiss experts to the United States 

for a round of seminars in 2008. This peer 

exchange informed the development of the 

Kingman Enforcement site at the Hoover 

Dam in Nevada. Finally, the 2006 Scan 

team developed a report on the Netherlands’ 

centralized WIM database that has served as 

a framework for various States developing 

their own WIM data collection systems.

Recognizing the effectiveness of WIM 

technology, FHWA engaged in many 

follow-up development and dissemination 

efforts including:

This bridge over I–70 and Pecos Street in Denver, CO, used prefabricated bridge techniques. Bridge elements were built 

near the site, lifted with hydraulic jacks, and moved into place using SPMTs. The bridge weighed 2,400 tons and took 

50 hours to move 800 feet. Technologies like SPMTs enable the precise positioning of prefabricated bridge elements 

that can weigh thousands of tons.

Source: FHWA. 

WIM technology uses in-road sensors or scales to 

help enforce commercial motor vehicle size and 

weight restrictions.

© Scott J. Ferrell / Congressional Quarterly / Getty Images.
WWW.FHWA.DOT.GOV | 15

• Hosting a web-based strategic 

planning forum.

• Developing papers and presentations 

as part of NCHRP 20-07 Task 254, 

“Vehicle Size and Weight Management 

(VSW) Technology Transfer/

Best Practices.”

• Integrating WIM technology into 

the National Institute of Standards 

and Technology’s Handbook 44: 

Specifications, Tolerances, and Other 

Technical Requirements for Weighing 

and Measuring Devices.

Improving Winter Operations

One of HPIP’s greatest success stories has 

been the impact of international exchanges 

that focused on winter operations. Through 

HPIP programs, the United States learned 

about a variety of technologies to prepare 

for and respond to winter weather. Within a 

few years, many technologies learned abroad 

became a common practice in the United 

States. “International collaboration has had 

a significant impact on winter operations in 

the U.S., which has improved the safety and 

efficiency of winter maintenance,” according 

to Tony Coventry, transportation specialist 

with the FHWA Road Weather Management Program.

The 1994 Scan in Japan and Europe, 

called “Winter Road Maintenance Practices,” was one of HPIP’s earliest successes, 

and led to the widespread adoption of anti 

icing practices and road weather information systems (RWIS) in the United States. 

This Scan provided so much valuable 

information on winter technologies that, 

in response, the American Association of 

State Highway and Transportation Officials 

formed the Snow and Ice Pooled Fund 

Cooperative Program in 1996. The Snow 

and Ice Pooled Fund Cooperative Program 

advances the testing and dissemination of 

snow and ice technology systems not already 

in use in the United States. This program 

subsequently developed an RWIS training 

package in the early 2000s.

The widespread adoption of anti-icing 

and RWIS have been quite beneficial to 

the United States. Anti-icing, the practice 

of treating roads with a salt brine prior to 

snow and ice events, supplemented deicing, 

the practice of treating roads with salt after 

weather incidents. Under certain conditions, 

anti-icing is a more sustainable method 

because it uses significantly less labor, 

equipment, and materials than deicing. As 

a result of the method’s rapid popularity, 

FHWA produced the Manual of Practice 

for an Effective Anti-Icing Program: A Guide 

for Highway Winter Maintenance Personnel

(FHWA-RD-95-202) in 1996. RWIS with 

in-road pavement sensors for detecting 

pavement conditions and informing snowplow operators about road conditions were 

found to reduce crashes by 83 percent and 

labor hours by 62 percent.

Areas for Future Focus

Although there have been many successes, 

there are still technologies and practices 

learned through international exchange 

that have not yet been fully integrated 

into the U.S. transportation system. New 

technologies and practices offer opportunities to support local, State, and national 

goals including:

• Turbo roundabouts

• Multimodal bike planning

• Pedestrian safety practices

• Building information modeling

• Complete streets

• Tsunami design guidelines

• Electrically isolated tendons

“HPIP’s successes go beyond the 

dissemination of specific technologies and 

practices,” says Thomas Everett, former 

executive director of FHWA. “HPIP has 

fostered a culture of collaboration among 

transportation agencies throughout 

the world.”

Through its decades of work in fostering 

international relationships, HPIP has:

• Facilitated the sharing and exchange of 

technology and information.

• Promoted the use of highway 

standards that are compatible around 

the world.

• Yielded information to improve the 

safety, durability, and efficiency of 

transportation systems.

• Provided technical assistance to other 

countries, so they can benefit from 

U.S. experiences and expertise to 

improve their roads.

HPIP continues to learn and share 

cutting-edge innovations and technologies and practices that meet our Nation’s 

top transportation system challenges 

and priorities.

LORI PORRECA, Ph.D., AICP is an International 

Program Manager in FHWA HPIP and oversees 

binational relationships for the agency. She 

holds a B.A. degree in English literature from the 

Catholic University of America, an M.L.A. degree 

in landscape architecture and environmental 

planning from Utah State University, and a Ph.D. in 

sociology from Utah State University.

JIHAN NOIZET, M.B.A is a Transportation Specialist 

in FHWA HPIP and oversees the coordination and 

implementation of cooperative program activities 

between FHWA and its foreign counterparts. She 

holds a B.B.A. degree from the University of North 

Texas and an M.B.A. degree from the University of 

Texas at Dallas.

For more information, see https:// 

international.fhwa.dot.gov/pubs/pl21025 

/pl21025.pdf, or contact Lori Porreca at 

lori.porreca@dot.gov or 202-906-9241 or 

Jihan Noizet at jihan.noizet@dot.gov or 

202–366–1153. HPIP’s Scans have had a significant impact on U.S. winter operations, introducing 

anti-icing practices and RWIS among other winter technologies.

© Arizona Department of Transportation.

A number of pedestrian and bicycle technologies 

and practices identified during international 

Scans could be an area for further focus.

© Laura Sandt / www.pedbikeimages.org.
16 | PUBLIC ROADS | AUTUMN 2022

The Multiple Benefits of the Emergency Relief for Federally Owned Roads (ERFO) Program

by STEVEN F. HINZ, JUSTIN HENWOOD, and ERIC WRIGHT

Mother Nature provides breathtaking vistas, but can also bring us some 

nasty surprises, especially at a time when 

the climate is changing and affecting storm 

frequency and intensity. Many of nature’s 

vistas are accessible through the transportation network on, or through, Federal Lands. 

With the changing weather, it is increasingly 

important to incorporate resiliency into 

transportation improvements. In practical 

terms, how can incorporating resiliency be 

done effectively, efficiently, and for reasonable costs with limited funding?

Natural disasters and catastrophic events 

are inevitable and generally unpredictable. 

Since 1956, Congress has dedicated supplemental funding to States for roads and 

bridges damaged or destroyed by natural 

disasters or catastrophic failure. On average, 

the Federal Highway Administration 

(FHWA) Emergency Relief (ER) Program, 

managed under the Office of Infrastructure, 

provides billions of dollars annually to transportation partners throughout the Nation.

The ER Program’s intention is to pay the 

unusually high costs accrued in the repair 

and reconstruction of eligible facilities. The 

ER Program does not cover all repair costs, 

but rather supplements repair programs of 

Federal, State, local, and Tribal transportation agencies. Furthermore, ER funds are 

limited and judicious decisions are inevitable when attempting to cover repair costs. 

To receive aid for repairs, State departments 

of transportation must submit an application to the FHWA division office located in 

their State within two calendar years of the 

disaster date.

Under FHWA, the Office of Federal 

Lands Highway (FLH) oversees repair 

projects that keep Federal Lands roads accessible. FHWA is already delivering on the 

Biden Administration’s focus area of climate 

change through resiliency and sustainability, 

and FLH activities have been instrumental 

to the agency’s success.

FLH and its predecessor agencies have 

long been directly engaged in the location, 

design, and construction of the public 

roads that give access to and through the 

National Parks, the National Forests, and 

other areas in the Federal domain since 

1905. FLH Headquarters, Eastern, Central, 

and Western Division offices perform this 

work. FLH currently provides services in all 

50 States, the District of Columbia, Puerto 

Rico, and the U.S. Territories. FLH delivers 

projects through partnerships with Federal 

Land Management Agency (FLMA), State, 

and local partners. To ensure successful 

delivery, FLH must apply innovative and 

diverse solutions to the unique projects it 

undertakes. Context sensitivity is also critical to meeting the unique missions, values, 

and needs of FLMA partners and the public.

In 1977, Congress established the Emergency Relief for Federally Owned Roads 

(ERFO) program to also assist Federal Land 

Management Agencies (FLMA) partners 

with the repair or reconstruction of Tribal 

transportation facilities, Federal Lands 

transportation facilities, and other federally 

owned roads that are open to public traffic 

and have suffered serious damage from a 

natural disaster or a catastrophic failure over 

a wide area.

So, how do repairs that provide resiliency 

get completed with the limited funding on 

DELIVERING 

RESILIENCY

The existing metal culvert that channeled Fond 

du Lac Creek in Minnesota across the roadway 

had previously failed several times. In 2012, 

significant flows resulted in the embankment being 

washed out and creating a sizeable drop off.

Source: FHWA.
WWW.FHWA.DOT.GOV | 17

hand? Is the more judicious decision about 

investment actually a higher-priced resilient 

replacement? These questions are frequently 

asked and FHWA has demonstrated that 

it is possible to incorporate resiliency in 

a cost-effective manner through practical 

design that requires being creative and innovative while considering betterments within 

the ERFO program. “The Emergency Relief 

Program can provide agencies with an excellent opportunity for exploring improvements to transportation system resilience,” 

says Hari Kalla, FHWA associate administrator for infrastructure. “Roads and bridges 

damaged during disasters have been shown 

to be vulnerable, so FHWA encourages 

agencies to identify cost-effective measures 

to avoid further damage from future events.”

Rebuilding to Current Standards

Repaired facilities may be rebuilt to current 

geometric and construction standards. 

Simply rebuilding to current standards 

may result in a resilience improvement. 

For example, following current hydraulic 

standards may result in a larger culvert, 

which will allow larger stream flows to pass 

under the roadway without washing out the 

pavement. Rebuilding to current standards 

is not considered a betterment and does not 

require economic justification.

Betterments are features or facilities that 

didn’t exist before the natural disaster or 

catastrophic failure that are implemented 

or constructed that help prevent future 

damage. Betterments added to prevent 

future damage and increase resiliency must 

be economically justified through a life cycle 

analysis based on the present and future 

expected cost to the ER Program. The 

analysis period is typically limited to 25 to 

50 years. FLH has implemented resiliency 

through practical design during implementation of the ERFO Program in several 

different ways.

Betterment Project Prevents 

Repeated Damage

During the summer of 2012, the Fond du 

Lac Tribe in northern Minnesota experienced a flood that damaged several of its 

roads. Reservation Road—a major arterial 

serving a significant Tribal community—

suffered extensive damage. The existing 

5-foot (1.52-meter) diameter metal culvert 

that channeled Fond du Lac creek across the 

roadway had previously failed several times. 

That year, the significant flows resulted 

in 100 feet (30.48 meters) of embankment being washed out and a 50-foot 

(15.24-meter) drop off.

The Tribe developed a feasibility study 

to compare the options, and the entire 

project team, composed of Tribal, Bureau of 

Indian Affairs, and FHWA staff, evaluated 

the options of replacing the existing culvert 

with an up-sized culvert for a construction 

cost of $1,030,000 versus a bridge structure betterment for a construction cost of 

$1,500,000. The team determined that the 

bridge structure was a justified betterment, 

especially considering probable future 

replacement costs. The bridge replacement 

option also had the secondary benefit of 

ensuring that fish passage would continue in 

the stream. The existing culvert had outlet 

scour issues and had eliminated fish passage. 

Studies demonstrated that re-establishing 

fish passage would be expensive and not 

covered by the ERFO Program.

John Wright, an ERFO Program coordinator, noted that this was the first time 

the Tribe had applied for ERFO and the 

first time he saw the impact of a resiliency 

approach, and stated the ERFO Program 

has not had to go back to the site in almost 

a decade.

New Location – Similar Costs

Between late December 2015 and early 

January 2016, there was a major flood event 

across the Midwest portion of the United 

States. The broad flooding event impacted 

the Mark Twain National Forest in Missouri 

with more than $500,000 in damage to 

The ERFO Program funded a betterment project for the Fond du Lac Tribe in Minnesota, which included a new bridge 

rather than a replacement culvert. The bridge replacement option also has the secondary benefit of ensuring that 

fish passage would continue in the stream.

Source: FHWA.

Mark Twain National Forest in Missouri suffered flooding in 2016. Damage from a rising creek included the access road to 

Red Bluff campground, a U.S. Forest Service facility. Rather than replacing the access road in-situ, the ERFO betterment 

project relocated the road to higher elevation to avoid future damage by rising creek waters.

Source: FHWA.
18 | PUBLIC ROADS | AUTUMN 2022

U.S. Forest Service facilities. One of the 

sites reported was the Red Bluff campground that was damaged primarily from 

the rise of the adjacent creek. This resulted 

in the loss of portions of access roads and 

several camping pads and embankment 

erosion. While replacement of the camping 

pads was not eligible within the ERFO 

Program, the replacement of the access 

roads was eligible. The U.S. Forest Service 

and FHWA collaborated on repair options, 

and through a formal betterment evaluation, 

determined that the cost to decommission 

existing access roads closest to the creek and 

relocate them to a higher elevation was near 

a betterment ratio of 1:1 when compared 

to repairing the access road in the current 

location. This means the access roads could 

be relocated for approximately the same cost 

as rebuilding them where they stood. To 

date, the campground has not suffered any 

subsequent losses due to flooding.

Resilient Design to 

Abate Debris Flow

Mount Shasta in northern California has 

an elevation of 14,179 feet (4,321.76 

meters) and includes several glaciers, such as 

Konwakiton. As these glaciers melt, water 

is trapped within them. This water builds 

up over time and then develops into basins 

of water within the glacier. When the force 

of the water in these basins exceeds the 

strength of the glacial ice, the ice breaks and 

the water is released along with rocks and 

sediment in the form of a debris flow. These 

debris flows can extend for miles from the 

release site.

On September 20, 2014, a debris 

flow from Mount Shasta’s Konwakiton 

Glacier resulted in the overtopping of two 

U.S. Forest Service roads and plugging of 

multiple drainage structures in the Mud 

Creek drainage system of the McCloud 

River basin.

One of the damaged structures was a 

10-foot (3.05-meter) corrugated metal arch 

culvert with concrete headwall. The project 

team used its expertise in mud flows and 

fluvial geomorphology and developed a 

design for the replacement structure that 

was a 32-foot (9.75 meter) span, with an 

11-foot (3.35-meter) rise precast concrete 

arch culvert that would accommodate 

the additional flows and sediment transport. After the contract was awarded, the 

contractor proposed a value engineering cost 

proposal that resulted in the construction of 

a 75-foot long concrete bridge at no extra 

cost to the Government that increased the 

hydraulic capacity even further. In June 

2021, the new bridge structure was tested 

with another debris flow event and the 

structure performed admirably with no 

damage to the roadway or structure.

“At FHWA and FLH, we work diligently 

to ensure the flexibility and resilience that 

our partners and traveling public deserve, 

while providing stewardship of the Emergency Relief program,” says Lorell Duteil, 

an FLH ERFO coordinator. “This crossing 

provided a great opportunity to put in to 

practice the expertise, partnerships, and 

program flexibilities that resulted in a 

replacement structure that has proven to 

withstand future events.

Betterment Analysis Results 

in Longer Bridge

From late November to early December 

2007, warm heavy rains fell on deep snow in 

the Olympic National Forest, WA, causing 

extensive flooding and the Lake Cushman 

bridge to be severely damaged by the North 

Fork of the Skokomish River. The peak 

flow of 20,100 cubic feet per second (cfs) 

(6,126.48 cubic meters per second) was 20 

times the mean flow and calculated to be 

a 75-year storm event. The west abutment 

embankment eroded 25 feet and swept away 

some of the riprap and gabion embankment 

protection that was installed. Scour at Pier 

4 resulted in 10 feet (3.05 meters) of pile 

exposure, which was the largest scour experienced at the bridge.

The Lake Cushman bridge was 

constructed in the 1940s. At the time, the 

annual average daily traffic was less than 

50 vehicles per day and was designed for a 

flow of a 25-year storm event The bridge 

is the primary access point to the Olympic 

National Park, Olympic National Forest, 

and private residences, and critical to remain 

open because there are no alternate routes.

The upper section of the Mud Creek culvert shown in 2014 after extensive emergency removal of debris 

from a melting glacier on Mount Shasta in northern California. The initial debris removal partially restored 

creek flows until the entire structure was replaced with a bridge to withstand future events.

Source: FHWA.

The new bridge at Mud Creek with a larger clear opening 

has proven to withstand debris flows from Mount Shasta’s 

Konwakiton Glacier. A transverse benefit to more hydraulic 

flow is an optional, unimpeded corridor for terrestrial 

and aquatic species to cross under the structure.

Source: FHWA
WWW.FHWA.DOT.GOV | 19

The U.S. Forest Service completed emergency repairs that included construction 

of a temporary bridge to span the eroded 

gap and reestablish access. A collaborative 

effort between FLH and the U.S. Forest 

Service was also initiated to determine the 

best permanent solution and perform a 

betterment analysis. The options evaluated were to: repair-in-kind for $325,000; 

rebuild the abutment and extend the bridge 

by 50 feet to accommodate a 50-year storm 

event for $875,000; extend the structure to 

accommodate a 100-year storm event for 

$1,625,000; and extend the structure for a 

200-year storm event for $2,500,000. Based 

on the betterment analysis, the best solution 

was to accommodate a 50-year storm event 

and armor the abutment for protection 

against future storms events.

To date, the bridge has not experienced 

a significant storm event since the repairs 

were completed. In November 2017, the 

bridge experienced the largest flow since 

the repair—a flow of 11,000 cubic feet per 

second (311.49 cubic meters per second), 

which is an 8-year storm event —and the 

structure performed very well. All indicators 

are that the new Lake Cushman bridge will 

perform well for large flows in the future 

providing reliable, safe access at this primary 

river crossing.

The eroded west approach of the Lake Cushman Bridge over the 

North Fork of the Skokomish River in Washington. The bridge is 

the primary access point to Olympic National Park.

Source: FHWA.

The new Lake Cushman Bridge stands ready for future river flows. To date, the bridge 

has not experienced a significant storm event since the repairs were completed.

Source: FHWA

Resiliency Makes Smart 

Business Sense

FHWA has considered and implemented 

resilience as a standard of practice in the 

ER Program for many years. FHWA and 

FLH have demonstrated that consideration 

and implementation of resiliency when 

rebuilding damaged transportation facilities can be accomplished in many ways. 

Repair projects have shown that it doesn’t 

always require significant increases in costs 

to increase resilience if teams can take a 

creative and innovative approach to fully 

evaluate options and their total budget. 

Creativity and ingenuity are the solutions to 

building a resilient transportation network 

with limited funding.

STEVEN F. HINZ, P.E., is the FHWA ERFO Road and 

Tribal Transportation Program manager. He earned 

a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering from 

Arizona State University and a master’s degree in 

civil engineering from the University of Colorado.

JUSTIN HENWOOD is a project manager at FHWA’s 

Central Federal Lands Highway Division. He earned 

a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering and a 

master’s degree in geotechnical engineering from 

Utah State University.

ERIC WRIGHT began his Federal career with the 

Bureau of Indian Affairs in Washington State. He 

has been the FHWA ERFO Coordinator for Eastern 

Federal Lands since 2012.

For more information, contact 

Sergio Mayorga (sergio.mayorga@dot.gov), 

J. Eric Wright (john.wright@dot.gov), 

Lorell Duteil (lorell.duteil@dot.gov) or 

Steven Hinz (steven.hinz@dot.gov).
20 | PUBLIC ROADS | AUTUMN 2022

by GOVIND VADAKPAT, DANIELLE CHOU, HYUNGJUN PARK, and STEVEN VU

The Federal Highway Administration’s (FHWA) new Cooperative Driving 

Automation (CDA) Program has put a 

spotlight on the entire transportation system 

and how infrastructure can be leveraged to 

support mobility and safety.

CDA is poised to transform our Nation’s 

roadways. This technology will improve the 

efficiency and safety of vehicles across the 

transportation system. CDA applications 

will allow interaction between automated 

vehicles and nonautomated vehicles, other 

road users, and transportation infrastructure. The CDA Program consists of focus 

areas that support research, testing and evaluation, engagement, and safety. CARMA is 

a continuously developed set of tools within 

the CDA Program that aid and enable the 

advancement of the focus areas.

“CDA is essential for leveraging all that 

new and emerging transportation technologies have to offer. Communication with the 

infrastructure in conjunction with automation has the greatest chance of significantly 

improving mobility and safety,” says Dr. Lily 

Elefteriadou, professor at the University 

of Florida.

In 2013, FHWA launched CARMA 

with a focus on studying and developing 

vehicle to everything (V2X) capabilities 

and algorithms. In 2015, FHWA was one 

of the first to demonstrate CDA and made 

CARMA software open source to encourage 

collaboration with other entities engaged in 

the research and development of CDA.

The CDA Program contains focus areas 

that contribute to creating an integrated 

and intelligent transportation system where 

automated vehicles work together.

The CDA Program’s research tracks 

leverage partnerships with other U.S. 

Department of Transportation agencies—

the Intelligent Joint Program Office, Federal 

Motor Carrier Safety Administration, 

Federal Transit Administration, and U.S. 

Maritime Administration—and explores 

CDA applications relating to traffic, 

reliability, and freight. The traffic research 

track investigates solutions to recurring 

traffic congestion and aims to demonstrate 

CDA applications in improving road safety 

and congestion. The reliability research 

track examines solutions to nonrecurring 

traffic congestion, such as road weather 

management, traffic incident management, 

and work zone management. Lastly, the 

freight research track explores CDA applications for commercial vehicles, such as buses 

and trucks.

The CDA Program also conducts testing 

and evaluation in either a simulation 

environment, at a physical testing site, or 

through a hybrid of those two approaches. 

CDA simulation testing leverages simulation 

technologies, such as software-in-the-loop—

which allows the testing of source code in 

a simulation environment to test out CDA 

features before they are ready to be deployed 

in a real-world testing environment. CDA 

physical testing includes full-scale and 

scaled-down vehicles and is conducted at 

test sites throughout the United States. 

CDA hybrid testing combines simulation 

and physical testing.

The CDA Program takes a two-pronged 

approach to engagement. This approach 

intends to accelerate CDA adoption and 

innovation through CDA Collaborative 

and Support Services. CDA Collaborative engages with stakeholders to facilitate 

collaboration, the use of CDA technologies, 

Cooperative Driving 

Automation (CDA)

Research Program: 

Development, Testing, 

and Evaluation

FHWA’s 

CDA Program 

updates and 

research and 

development 

activities. CDA Program research vehicles driving at the Turner-Fairbank 

Highway Research Center campus in McLean, VA.

Source: FHWA.
WWW.FHWA.DOT.GOV | 21

and form a CARMA software user community. CDA Support Services provide help 

desk assistance to CARMA users and 

develop training materials for them.

The CARMA Ecosystem consists of 

open-source products performing core and 

support functions to advance the CDA 

Program’s focus areas. The core products are 

CARMA Platform, CARMA Messenger, 

CARMA Cloud, and CARMA Streets. 

These products provide necessary software 

for conducting CDA research and testing.

The support components are CARMA 

Analytics, CARMA Simulation, and 

CARMA 1Tenth. The support components 

enable data analysis and decrease the cost 

of development through simulation and 

scaled-down testing methods.

CDA Program Updates

Over the past few months, the CDA 

Program has been engaged in activities 

involving the testing and development of 

CDA features and applications.

TSMO Use Case Testing

The CDA Program research team successfully completed testing for two transportation systems management and operations 

(TSMO) use cases at the Turner-Fairbank 

Highway Research Center in McLean, VA.

The first use case focuses on vehicle 

scheduling and CDA trajectory optimization at stop-controlled intersections. 

In the proof-of-concept testing, two 

CARMA-equipped vehicles approach 

a stop-controlled intersection (i.e., an 

intersection with stop signs) at different 

times. As the vehicles enter the radius of the 

intersection roadside unit (RSU), CARMA 

Streets receives their status and intent and 

calculates the vehicles’ optimal schedules. 

Schedules refer to the desirable time at 

which each vehicle should arrive at the 

intersection. Using this schedule information, each vehicle adjusts its trajectory and 

travels through the intersection accordingly.

The validation testing tested two 

scenarios, conflicting and nonconflicting 

routes. In the conflicting scenario, the two 

vehicles were routed on paths that would 

require them to communicate with the RSU 

and adjust their trajectories to avoid collision and to depart the intersection based on 

the first-in-first-out rule.

In the nonconflicting scenario, the two 

vehicles were routed on nonconflicting 

paths. In this scenario, the starting locations of the vehicles were determined so 

that they both arrive at the intersection at 

about the same time. Since their paths had 

no vehicle-to-vehicle conflicts, CARMA 

Streets let both vehicles depart from the 

intersection at the same time, which would 

improve mobility compared to a non-CDA 

environment. The second use case involves a 

signalized intersection with fixed-time traffic 

signal settings (i.e., intervals for each traffic 

signal indication are fixed). Two vehicles 

approach the intersection and receive signal 

phase and timing (SPaT) messages from 

an RSU. Each vehicle adjusts its trajectory 

according to the received SPaT messages 

and travels through the intersection.

The TSMO use case testing has demonstrated successful validation of CDA features 

in a closed test track. These use cases aim 

to ultimately reduce traffic congestion, 

improve energy efficiency, and increase 

infrastructure efficiency.

Port Drayage Testing

In December 2021, in addition to TSMO 

use case testing, the CDA Program team 

traveled to a closed test track at SunTrax in 

Auburndale, FL, for port drayage proof-ofconcept testing under the freight research 

track. Port drayage is the short haul of 

shipping containers between a port and a 

warehouse; during testing, a staging area 

served in lieu of an actual warehouse. The 

team equipped a commercial motor vehicle 

(CMV) with automation technologies, 

Transportation systems management and operations testing scenarios. 

1. Use case 1: conflicting routes. 2. Use case 2: nonconflicting routes.

2a. Use case 2: A vehicle is given a green signal indication and continues 

through the intersection at the appropriate speed (i.e., speed limit).

2b. Use case 2: A vehicle adjusts its approach to entering an intersection 

where it receives a red (stop) signal indication as a second 

vehicle receives a green (go) signal indication. The first vehicle 

will come to a stop if the red signal indication continues.

Source: FHWA.

1 2

2a 2b
22 | PUBLIC ROADS | AUTUMN 2022

including CARMA, to demonstrate CDA 

applications to port infrastructure.

The testing scenario proceeded as 

follows: a CMV was stationed outside the 

entrance of the staging area. The automated 

driving system of the CMV was engaged, 

and the CMV moved toward the staging 

area entrance.

The CARMA Platform communicated 

with an RSU interfaced with CARMA 

Streets, representing the infrastructure 

at the staging area, to get the container 

pickup location in the staging area. The 

CMV determined a route to the container 

pickup location and moved toward that 

location. When the CMV arrived at the 

pickup location, it communicated with the 

RSU which then communicated with the 

container handling equipment operator to 

load the container.

After the container loading was 

completed (manually), the CMV received 

a new route to the staging area exit from 

the RSU. From the staging area exit, the 

CMV received another route to the port 

entrance from the RSU within the staging 

area to move toward the port terminal. 

Once the CMV arrived at the port entrance, 

it communicated with an RSU interfaced 

with CARMA Streets within the mock port 

terminal and received directions to head to a 

location to unload the container

Afterwards, the CMV proceeded to a 

new pickup location within the mock port 

area to load another container. The CMV 

then moved toward an inspection checkpoint after receiving directions from the 

port infrastructure. If the CMV passed the 

inspection, it was directed toward the port 

exit. If the CMV did not pass, it was moved 

to the holding area where an inspector was 

waiting to perform an additional inspection. If the CMV passed the additional 

inspection, the inspector communicated 

to the port infrastructure that the CMV 

had passed. From there, the CMV was 

instructed to exit the port.

The port drayage proof-of-concept 

testing allowed researchers to demonstrate 

the capabilities of an automated CMV for 

port drayage operations and highlighted the 

benefits of CDA to port management. This 

proof-of-concept testing also points out the 

level of reliability wireless communications 

could provide to facilitate the movement 

of CMVs performing the complex port 

drayage process.

Software Updates

The products under the CARMA Ecosystem 

support the cutting-edge research and 

development performed by the CDA 

Program. The core component, CARMA 

Platform, and the support component, 

CARMA Everything-in-the-Loop (XiL), 

were recently released.

CARMA Platform

CARMA Platform enables CDA features 

to allow automated driving systems (ADS) 

to interact and cooperate with infrastructure and other vehicles. Version 4.0.3 was 

released in May 2021 and included feature 

enhancements and bug fixes. Version 4.0.3 

is the first version of CARMA Platform to 

Port Drayage Testing. 

1. The commercial motor vehicle is directed to the container 

pickup location at the mock staging area.

2. The commercial motor vehicle is directed 

to the inspection point.

Commercial motor vehicle stationed outside the staging area during a test.

Source: FHWA.
WWW.FHWA.DOT.GOV | 23

begin the transition to Robot Operating 

System 2. Feature enhancements were added 

to support proof-of-concept applications 

for TSMO use cases, including cooperative 

traffic signaling and CMVs in work zones.

CARMA XiL

The CARMA XiL project has developed a 

cosimulation tool to support the development, evaluation, and deployment of CDA 

technology. This tool supports the integration of CARMA Platform cooperative-ADS 

(C-ADS) features with open-source Cars 

Learning to Act (CARLA), Simulation of 

Urban Mobility (SUMO), and NS-3, using 

the MOSAIC simulator framework to 

simulate traffic and realistic C-ADS in one 

package. This cosimulation tool also uses 

NS-3, a network simulator, to simulate the 

V2X communications used by the C-ADS 

systems. The MOSAIC simulator framework manages the interaction between all 

of these. The CARMA XiL cosimulation 

tool is leveraged by different CDA use cases 

research such as traffic incident management and traffic signal priority.

Version 1.0 was released in the 

third quarter of 2022, and includes the 

following features:

• CARLA-SUMO integration with the 

MOSAIC framework.

• CARMA Platform integration with 

CARLA for a single connected and 

automated vehicle.

• Vehicle-to-vehicle communication 

research support. 

The following features of cosimulation 

tool are under development:

• CARMA Platform integration with 

CARLA for multiple vehicles.

• CARMA Streets and cosimulation tool 

interface development.

• Vehicle-to-vehicle and vehicleto-infrastructure communication 

research support.

Looking Ahead

Over the next few months, the CDA 

Program will continue various activities to 

test CDA research and applications. The 

cooperative perception TSMO use case has 

begun initial testing at TFHRC. Cooperative perception (CP) allows entities to 

share data perceived locally, with the aim 

of improving safety for pedestrians and 

road users. The CP use case will lay the 

foundation for future use cases performed 

under CDA research projects. Additionally, the Integrated Highway Prototype II 

project will perform testing as well, with the 

purpose of advancing CDA freeway features.

As the CDA Program continues to 

develop and test CDA tools and applications, it will accelerate industry adoption of 

the technology and improve transportation 

system mobility, safety, and efficiency.

“The FHWA Saxton Transportation 

Operations Laboratory is conducting critical 

research that is required to demonstrate the 

potential of cooperative driving automation 

to achieve safety, mobility, and environmental impacts,” says Dr. Larry Head, 

professor at the University of Arizona. 

“They are pushing the boundaries of the 

technology and developing new knowledge 

that will establish the roadmap for the 

future of automated transportation systems.”

GOVIND VADAKPAT is the CDA Program Manager 

in FHWA’s Office of Safety and Operations 

Research and Development, leading the opensource development and collaboration efforts 

of CARMA with partners and stakeholders. 

He holds a doctorate in civil engineering from 

Pennsylvania State University and a master’s 

degree in civil engineering from the University of 

Wisconsin–Madison.

DANIELLE CHOU is program manager for emerging 

technologies in FHWA’s Office of Safety and 

Operations Research and Development, including 

the VOICES project. She earned a B.S. and M.S. in 

mechanical engineering from the Massachusetts 

Institute of Technology.

HYUNGJUN PARK is a technical program manager 

of the CDA Freight program in FHWA’s Office of 

Safety and Operations Research and Development. 

He manages various CDA activities, focusing on 

commercial motor vehicles and freight. He earned 

a B.S. in city planning from Hanyang University 

in South Korea, and an M.S. and a Ph.D. in civil 

engineering from the University of Virginia.

STEVEN VU is a contracted communications 

specialist in FHWA’s Saxton Transportation 

Operations Laboratory, contributing to marketing 

and outreach activities. He earned his B.A. degree 

from the University of Virginia.

For more information on the CDA 

Program, visit https://highways.dot.gov 

/research/operations/CARMA.

3. If the commercial motor vehicle passed the inspection, 

it is directed toward the exit.

4. If the commercial motor vehicle did not pass the inspection, 

it is directed to the holding area.

Learn more about CARMA 

XiL and its components:

• CARMA Simulation GitHub: 

https://github.com/usdot-fhwa-stol 

/carma-simulation

• CARLA: https://carla.org/

• SUMO: https://www.eclipse.org 

/sumo/

• NS-3: https://www.nsnam.org/

• MOSAIC: https://www.eclipse.org 

/mosaic/
24 | PUBLIC ROADS | AUTUMN 2022

Nondestructive 

Evaluation of 

Concrete Bridge Deck 

with Overlays

FHWA’s NDE Laboratory identified effective and promising 

technologies for detecting and characterizing deterioration 

in concrete bridge decks with overlays.

Application of a bridge deck overlay system.

© Roman023_photography / Shutterstock.com.
WWW.FHWA.DOT.GOV | 25

by HODA AZARI and SADEGH SHAMS

Overlay systems have been used by State departments of transportation (DOTs) since the 1960s to extend the 

service life of deteriorated concrete bridge decks by protecting 

the underlying concrete substrate. An overlay is a thin layer 

of material—such as asphalt concrete, portland cement-based 

concrete, latex modified concrete, epoxy polymer concrete, 

or polyester polymer concrete—that is placed over existing 

concrete. A bridge deck overlay system can improve the ride 

quality for drivers, add protection for embedded reinforcement, 

and/or modify the transverse profile and vertical alignment of the 

existing roadway to improve deck drainage. More than 10,000 

bridges in the United States have been successfully rehabilitated 

using overlays. However, the overlays on bridge decks can 

deteriorate and debond from the underlaying concrete decks.

Debonding, a separation between overlays and the deck, is 

a common defect in concrete bridge decks. Even if the overlay 

looks intact, the underlying concrete deck may have hidden 

deterioration (e.g., rebar corrosion and delamination). 

Because the underlying concrete is not accessible 

for direct inspection, other methods must be 

used to identify these deteriorated areas 

throughout the overlay service life.

From fall 2018 until December 2020, the 

National Park Service rehabilitated the Arlington 

Memorial Bridge for the first time since it 

opened in 1932. The rehabilitation replaced the 

steel bascule span and concrete deck, and 

restored the deteriorated portions of the struts, 

piers, and concrete arch approach spans.

Source: FHWA.
26 | PUBLIC ROADS | AUTUMN 2022

Nondestructive Testing Advantages

Destructive and nondestructive testing are widely used by engineers 

to evaluate the structural integrity and characteristic differences in 

material properties, defects, and discontinuities of bridge structures. 

The sampling required for destructive testing damages a structure. 

In contrast, nondestructive evaluation (NDE) technologies enable 

assessment of structures without causing damage. Nondestructive 

testing also enables more comprehensive inspection since the 

tests can be repeated, and several technologies can be used 

together to better identify and characterize underlying defects.

“NDE technologies provide data not otherwise available to 

bridge owners to support well-founded decisions concerning 

investments in preservation, maintenance and rehabilitation,” 

says Hari Kalla, associate administrator, Federal Highway 

Administration (FHWA) Office of Infrastructure.

Through laboratory specimens under controlled conditions 

and in the field under actual conditions, FHWA’s NDE Laboratory at the Turner-Fairbank Highway Research Center identified promising technologies for assessing concrete bridge decks 

with different types of overlays. The following nine technologies 

were considered for investigation:

• Sounding

• Impact echo (IE)

• Ultrasonic surface waves (USW)

• Ultrasonic shear-wave tomography (Ultrasonic Testing 

(UT)-MIRA and UT-EyeCon)

• Infrared thermography (IRT)

• Ground-penetrating radar (GPR)

• Electrical resistivity (ER)

• Half-cell potential (HCP)

• Impulse response (IR)

Specimen Fabrication

The researchers designed the experiments based on the results from 

the finite element (FE) simulations of IE, USW, and ultrasonic 

shear-wave methods. These FE analyses ensure that the specimen’s 

dimension provides reliable stress-wave propagations and temperature distribution without significant disturbances from boundary 

effect reflections.

The frequency spectrum signals from FE simulations show the reflection 

waves from the specimen’s boundary can be negligible.

Source: FHWA..

The UT-EyeCon was mounted on a robotic arm for scanning specimens. Scans 

were performed at dense 2-inch by 2-inch (5.08-centimeter by 5.08-centimeter) 

grid points to develop high-resolution condition maps of specimens.

Source: FHWA.
WWW.FHWA.DOT.GOV | 27

The researchers designed and manufactured eight identical specimens with various 

artificial defects. The artificial defects 

included delamination at upper and lower 

rebar levels, honeycombing, voids, vertical 

cracks, and precorroded rebars within an 

elevated chloride content environment. 

After fabrication, the researchers first tested 

bare concrete specimens with nine NDE 

technologies to assess their performances in 

detecting defects before placing the overlays.

The NDE Laboratory experts evaluated 

the specimens before applying overlays.

Based on the NDE of eight bare concrete 

specimens, the researchers summarized the 

effectiveness of nine NDE technologies on 

uncovered decks.

Specimen Testing 

with Overlays

The NDE Laboratory researchers studied 

the effectiveness of nondestructive methods 

in evaluating reinforced concrete bridge 

decks rehabilitated by seven types of 

widely used overlays: asphalt with a liquid 

membrane (S5AL), asphalt with a fabric 

membrane (S4AS), asphalt without a 

membrane (S7A), silica fume-modified 

concrete (S6S), latex-modified concrete 

(S3L), epoxy polymer concrete (S1E), 

and polyester polymer concrete (S8P). 

Epoxy-, latex-, silica fume-, and polyester 

polymer-based overlays were constructed 

by experts from the Virginia Transportation 

Research Council. A piece of plastic sheet 

covered half of each specimen to create the 

debonding defect between concrete and the 

overlays. The other half was shot-blasted to 

The condition maps were developed using the dominant frequencies measured by the IE method. IE detected shallow 

and deep delaminations, honeycombing, and voids in all eight specimens.

Source: FHWA.

The UT-based C-Scans with EyeCon. The C-Scan is a two-dimensional section reconstructed from multiple A-Scans in 

the X-Y plane. The UT method detected shallow and deep delaminations and voids in all eight specimens, but only some 

honeycombing in some specimens.

Source: FHWA.

Applicability of NDE methods for concrete bridge specimens without overlays.

Method

Defects in concrete bridge specimen

Shallow 

delamination

Honeycombing Void Deep 

delamination

Vertical 

crack

Active rebar 

corrosion

Concrete 

corrosive 

environment

Sounding Yes No Yes* No No No No

USW Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No No

IE Yes Yes Yes Yes No No No

UT­MIRA Yes Yes Yes Yes No No No

UT­EyeCon Yes Yes Yes Yes No No No

IR Yes No No No No No No

GPR Yes Yes Yes Yes No No Yes

ER No No No No Yes No Yes

HCP No No No No No Yes No

IRT Yes Yes* Yes* No Yes* No No

Note: “Yes*” means the NDE method can detect the defect from certain concrete specimens.
28 | PUBLIC ROADS | AUTUMN 2022

prepare the surface for the proper bonding 

of the overlays. Each overlay was placed 

within 24 hours after shot blasting to minimize the carbonation of the blasted concrete 

and ensure proper bonding. Epoxy polymer 

overlay was placed on S1 in two layers. Polyester polymer overlay was placed on S8 with 

a thickness of 0.75 inches (1.90 centimeters) 

and a 28-day compressive strength of 

6,240 pounds per square inch (43.02 

megapascals) from concrete cylinder tests. 

Latex- and silica fume-modified concrete 

overlays with a thickness of 1.5 inches 

(3.81 centimeters) were placed on S3 and 

S6, respectively. The concrete surface was 

saturated with water before the overlays 

were placed. These two overlays contained 

typical mixtures used on concrete bridge 

decks in Virginia. The 28-day compressive 

strengths of the latex- and the silica fumebased overlays from concrete cylinder tests 

were 5,490 pounds per square inch (37.85 

megapascals) and 9,430 pounds per square 

inch (65.01 megapascals), respectively. The 

liquid membrane was used on sample S5, 

and the sheet membrane was incorporated 

in sample S4. Parchment paper that can 

withstand temperatures up to 420 degrees 

Fahrenheit (215.55 degrees Celsius) was 

used to create debonding under half of each 

asphalt overlay.

As the defects were placed symmetrically 

with respect to the longitudinal axis of 

specimens, half of each overlay was bonded 

to the underlying concrete specimens, 

and the other half was debonded. This 

approach allowed researchers to examine if 

debonding can be recognized by each NDE 

technology, and if debonding can affect 

defect detections.

The investigation results identified 

effective and promising NDE technologies 

to detect and characterize deterioration 

in concrete bridge decks with overlays. 

The IE method, for example, detected 

debonding, shallow and deep delaminations, 

honeycombing, and voids for the bonded 

halves of S1E, S3L, S6S, and S8P. For the 

debonded halves of the same specimens, IE 

stress waves were reflected at the interface, 

 

The condition maps of the S1E specimen using the dominant frequencies measured by the IE.

Source: FHWA.

NDE C-Scan of S3L specimen with EyeCon. The C-Scan is a two-dimensional section 

reconstructed from multiple A-Scans in the X-Y plane.

Source: FHWA.

Silica fume-modified concrete overlays with a thickness 

of 1.5 inches (3.81 centimeters) were placed on S6.

Source: FHWA.
WWW.FHWA.DOT.GOV | 29

resulting in the accurate detection of the 

debonded area.

The researchers conducted IE tests at 

different temperatures in an environmental 

chamber to identify the temperature 

threshold at which the asphalt overlay 

remained in a high enough stiffness state 

to transfer stress waves. This action is 

important for the detection of defects. 

Otherwise, the stress waves substantially 

lose their energy, resulting in poor quality 

of the received signals. Results showed that 

temperatures at or below 32 degrees Fahrenheit (0 degrees Celsius) would be required 

for IE tests to image defects successfully 

using the dominant frequencies approach.

The IE method was able to detect 

shallow delamination and debonding in 

S4AS and S5AL. However, it could not 

detect deep delaminations, honeycombing, 

and voids in the bonded halves of S4AS and 

S5AL, because the membranes significantly 

reduced the propagation of waves into the 

underlying concrete specimens.

The IE method detected debonding, 

shallow and deep delaminations, honeycombing, and voids in S7A, because 

sufficient waves could propagate into the 

underlying concrete specimen without a 

membrane underneath the asphalt overlay.

The project outcomes identified and 

ranked available and promising NDE technologies for assessing concrete bridge decks 

with overlays.

Field Testing

Because of the differences between the 

construction of laboratory specimens and 

conventional bridge decks, large-scale field 

testing is required to assess the performance 

of the NDE methods in the field. The 

researchers investigated the field performance of IE and USW on the Arlington 

Memorial Bridge, located in Washington, 

DC. The bridge deck was rehabilitated 

NDE methods for bridge deck with asphalt without a membrane overlay (S7A).

Method

Defects in concrete bridge specimen with bonded overlay

Overlay 

debonding

Shallow 

delamination

Honeycombing Void

Deep 

delamination

Vertical 

crack

Active rebar 

corrosion

Concrete 

corrosive 

environment

Sounding Yes No No No No No No No

USW Yes No No No No No No No

IE* Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No No No

UT­MIRA No No No No No No No No

IR Yes No No No No No No No

GPR No Yes* Yes* Yes* Yes* No No Yes*

ER No No No No No No No No

HCP No No No No No No No No

IRT Yes Yes* No No No No No No

Note: “Yes*” means the method can detect defects in concrete bridge specimens through the bonded and debonded overlay. “IE*” means the method 

can only work in cold weather.

NDE methods for bridge deck with latex modified concrete overlay (S3L).

Method

Defects in concrete bridge specimen with bonded overlay

Overlay 

debonding

Shallow 

delamination

Honeycombing Void

Deep 

delamination

Vertical 

crack

Active rebar 

corrosion

Concrete 

corrosive 

environment

Sounding Yes No No No No No No No

USW Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No No No

IE Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No No No

UT­MIRA Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No No No

UT­EyeCon Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No No No

IR Yes No No No No No No No

GPR No Yes* Yes* Yes* Yes* No No Yes*

ER Yes No No No No No No No

HCP No No No No No No Yes No

IRT Yes Yes No No No No No No

Note: “Yes*” means the method can detect defects in concrete bridge specimens through the bonded and debonded overlay.
30 | PUBLIC ROADS | AUTUMN 2022

with an asphalt overlay. The USW method 

detected debonding of the asphalt overlay 

in an area with lower moduli than the other 

regions. The USW method detected two 

large areas of defects.

The researchers also obtained condition 

maps based on the dominant frequencies 

measured by the IE method. An area with 

lower dominant frequencies compared with 

other regions indicated defects. The IE 

method detected two large areas compatible 

with defective areas revealed by the USW 

method. The intact areas have a thickness 

mode frequency of about 10 kilohertz. The 

debonding areas have dominant frequencies 

around 2 kilohertz.

NDE Protocols

The FHWA Advanced Sensing Technology 

(FAST) NDE Laboratory used these testbeds to evaluate NDE technologies that can 

assess decks with overlays to supplement 

the information in the InfoTechnology web 

portal and the Long-Term Bridge Performance Program (LTBP) research on bridge 

decks with overlays. This research allows 

the FAST NDE Laboratory and the LTBP 

experts to provide bridge owners with field 

data collection protocols and information to 

identify NDE technologies to assess bridge 

decks with different types of overlays. The 

protocols provide distinctive, step-by-step 

instructions for data collection and comprehensive references for standards cited in the 

protocols (e.g., see the accompanying chart 

of the testing protocol for IE).

“These protocols are essential to maintain consistency in data collection and 

storage,” says Dr. Jean Nehme, Long-Term 

Infrastructure Performance team leader. 

“These protocols will be of interest to practitioners, researchers, and decisionmakers 

involved with the research, design, construction, inspection, maintenance, and management of bridges with overlayed decks.”

HODA AZARI is the manager of the NDE Research 

Program and FHWA’s NDE Laboratory at the 

Turner-Fairbank Highway Research Center. She 

holds a Ph.D. in civil engineering from the University 

of Texas at El Paso.

SADEGH SHAMS is a contracted research engineer 

working in FHWA’s NDE Laboratory at the TurnerFairbank Highway Research Center. He holds a 

Ph.D. in civil engineering from the University of 

Wisconsin-Milwaukee.

For more information, see https://highways 

.dot.gov/research/turner-fairbank-highway 

-research-center/facility-overview or 

contact Hoda Azari, 202–493–3064, 

Hoda.Azari@dot.gov.

The condition map using the moduli measured with the USW method. The NDE assessment was performed on 250 feet 

(76.2 meters) of the bridge, starting from the north side on the left lane. The defected areas were found within 

141–165 feet (42.9–50.2 meters) of the longitudinal direction.

Source: FHWA.

A chart plot of the significant items 

from the IE method protocol.

Source: FHWA.

• Evidence of concrete 

delamination and other defects 

such as overlay debonding.

• Conduct IE testing on concrete 

decks with asphalt overlays with 

the overlay surface temperatures 

lower than 35 degrees 

Fahrenheit. Results depend on 

the temperature at the time of 

testing and should be corrected 

based on a reference temperature.

Equipment:

• PRE-PL-LO-004, Personal Health and Safety Plan.

• Impact echo (IE) equipment/device; either 

of the following are acceptable:

- Cart mounted and semiautomated to control 

data collection line length and spatial 

location on deck, spacing between individual 

test measurements, triggering impact/

source deployment, ease of use, etc.

- Hand deployed and triggered manually 

at each test point location.

- Data acquisition controller and software 

capable of sampling and recording 

at a minimum rate of 50 kHz.

• Data controller/storage device: 

laptop or data logger.

• Data conditioning and analysis software capable 

of filtering, clipping, segmenting, and discarding 

noise and waveforms unrelated to the IE data.

• Impact source capable of generating and a 

receiver capable of recording signals, with 

an acceptable signal to noise ratio that 

exists in a range of at least 2 to 25 kHz.

• Digital camera.

• Personnel: PRE-PL-LO-005, 

Personnel Qualifications.

• Use the local rectangular grid (FLD-OP-SC-001, 

Data Collection Grid and Coordinate System for 

Bridge Decks) to locate test points on the deck.

• Test preparation: Clear any debris 

from the deck surface.

• Measurements:

- Collect data along any test line, 

as long as the location of every IE 

reading is properly recorded.

- Place the impact device and sensor in direct 

contact with the sampled concrete surface.

- During field operations, take care that the 

collected data in the time and frequency 

domains are consistent with expected 

signals from the structure being surveyed.

• Final forms for collected data include time 

histories and frequency response of measured 

raw data at all x and y test locations from 

gridded deck. Processed data consists 

of condition grading based on resonant 

frequency response of IE data (grades 

1 to 4), also on x-y coordinate system.

• Reporting: Transfer all metadata, data, 

documents, and images to FHWA, and/or 

upload all metadata, data, documents, and 

images into the LTBP Bridge Portal InfoBridge.

Data

ColleCteD

onsite equipment anD

personnel requirements

Impact Echo tEstIng protocol for

BrIdgE dEcks wIth ovErlays

methoDology
WWW.FHWA.DOT.GOV | 31

This year, the Local Technical Assistance Program celebrates its 

40th anniversary serving local road agencies throughout the Nation.

by ADAM HOWELL

Every time you leave for work, order a delivery, or call for an ambulance, you 

depend on a complex system of roads and 

bridges that allow modern life to function. 

The maintenance and construction of 

our public roads are the responsibility of 

dedicated people who use skill, experience, 

and innovative thinking to get the job done. 

And while the capability and commitment 

of local highway departments and public 

works agencies across the Nation are top 

notch, even they need help sometimes.

For decades, local transportation agencies 

across the Nation have sought assistance 

from the Local Technical Assistance 

Program (LTAP). Through their local LTAP 

centers, these agencies have utilized a variety 

of low cost and accessible training, education, and support activities.

Much can be learned from the history of 

a government program. Examining LTAP’s 

history and its intellectual underpinnings 

helps ensure that the program’s opportunities for development and growth are not 

ignored. This year, LTAP celebrates its 40th 

year of serving local transportation agencies 

in Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, Native 

American territories, and every State.

Early Examples of State Leadership 

and Support for Local Roads Agencies

While the LTAP system is the embodiment 

of formalized Federal support for local 

transportation training and education, the 

idea’s roots go back much further. Initially, 

bicyclists brought together educational institutions, rural civic associations, agricultural 

interest groups, and other organizations to 

form what is now known as the Good Roads 

Movement—a roadway advocacy campaign 

between the 1870s and the 1920s. Existing 

before the days of social media, the internet, 

television, or even radio, the Good Roads 

Movement and its ideas were spread by an 

advocacy publication called Good Roads 

Magazine. As the movement progressed, 

good roads associations formed in States 

throughout the Nation.

While providing funding and establishing higher standards for America’s roads 

was an important initial goal, Good Roads 

Movement participants also knew that entities who did local road work needed support 

and training. Supporting local road agencies 

with training, assistance, and education was 

an effort that took many different forms at 

the State level.

In New York State, interest in supporting 

local roads coalesced at Cornell University 

The Local Technical Assistance Program: 

40 Years of Service and Support 

for Local Transportation 

Across the Nation

Attendees view a snowplow demonstration at the annual School 

for Highway Superintendents conference hosted by the New York 

State LTAP Center–Cornell Local Roads Program in Ithaca, NY. 

© The NYS LTAP Center–Cornell Local Roads Program.
32 | PUBLIC ROADS | AUTUMN 2022

where a group of experts and professionals 

came together for a “Good Roads Week” 

conference held on campus in 1905. Subsequently, Cornell University held several 

more conferences and events dedicated 

to local roads in New York, leading to 

the creation of the Cornell Local Roads 

Program. The Cornell Local Roads Program 

would later become the official LTAP center 

for New York in 1984.

In Indiana, the Highway Extension 

and Research Project for Indiana Counties 

(HERPIC), established at Purdue University 

in 1959, pioneered many modern LTAP 

programming activities. As a cooperative 

effort between Indiana’s county commissioners and Purdue University, HERPIC 

organized many activities, such as creating 

publications and hosting workshops. 

According to an early HERPIC flyer, 

the program would “lend guidance and 

assistance to county highway officials 

in their problems with management, 

planning, and operation of county 

highway departments throughout the 

State.” Purdue University would go on 

to pilot one of the first LTAP centers 

in 1982.

In Oklahoma, the work of Dr. Jim 

Shamblin, an industrial engineering 

professor at Oklahoma State University 

(OSU), helped influence the LTAP 

system. In 1972, he formed the Center 

for Local Government Technology 

(CLGT) and later secured a grant from 

the U.S. National Science Foundation 

(NSF) to help local governments use 

computer technology. Following the 

success of this earlier effort, another 

proposal was submitted to NSF to provide 

broader assistance with engineering technologies to local governments through OSU’s 

College of Engineering, Architecture, and 

Technology. From this initial funding, the 

CLGT evolved and became the model for 

today’s LTAP system.

Formation of LTAP

The LTAP system (originally called the 

Rural Technical Assistance Program) was 

established on December 23, 1981, when 

President Ronald Regan signed House Bill 

4209 into law. Initially, the program was 

allocated $5 million for numerous projects 

related to rural technical assistance, with 

the establishment of the State Technology 

Transfer Program for Local Transportation 

Agencies (T2) being the largest. At first, 10 

States hosted T2 centers as part of the initial 

pilot program:

• The Alabama center located 

at Auburn University.

• The California center located at the 

University of California, Berkley.

• The Georgia center located at the 

Georgia Institute of Technology.

• The Indiana center located 

at Purdue University.

• The Iowa center located at 

Iowa State University.

• The Kansas center located at 

the University of Kansas.

• The Montana center located at 

Montana State University.

• The Pennsylvania center located at 

the Pennsylvania State University.

• The Oklahoma center located at 

Oklahoma State University.

• The Vermont center located 

at St. Michael’s College.

In 1991, the Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act expanded LTAP to 

include urban areas with populations over 

50,000, effectively expanding the scope of 

LTAP’s work. The Tribal Technical Assistance Program was also added to LTAP to 

help American Indian Tribal governments 

manage their highway assets.

Over the years as new centers have 

emerged across the Nation, the LTAP system 

has expanded in size. By the early 2000s, 

an LTAP center existed in every State. 

This expansion reflects the quality work of 

the LTAP centers. Early on in its history, 

research demonstrated the success of the 

LTAP system. According to a 1984 National 

Highway Institute Evaluation Report, the 

State centers at that time were “fulfilling all 

of the objectives of the [LTAP]” and were 

“responsive to local agency needs.”

The experts in these centers have also 

shaped the LTAP system, such as former 

director of the Kentucky LTAP center 

Patsy Anderson. Anderson was instrumental in starting the first Safety Circuit 

Rider Program and the first Roads Scholar 

program in 1988 to provide recognition 

and credentialing for local roads personnel. 

Both the Kentucky LTAP Center Safety 

Circuit Rider program and the Roads 

Scholar program became national models 

emulated by many other U.S. States and 

territories today. In 2007, Anderson was 

awarded the National Achievement Award 

from the National Local Technical Assistance Program Association (NLTAPA) for 

her leadership, service to the industry, and 

impact upon the national LTAP system.

Stan Ring, the first director of the Iowa 

LTAP center, was known as “Mr. LTAP.” 

Prior to Iowa State University becoming 

the official center for the State, Ring 

led the university’s civil engineering 

extension program, which provided 

outreach for and support to the 

State’s transportation workforce. Ring 

also had a passion for developing an 

extensive library of resources to benefit 

the Iowa local transportation community—a legacy that endures today at 

the Iowa LTAP center. Even after his 

retirement in 1988, Ring continued to 

serve as the LTAP’s part-time librarian 

for another 12 years.

“The strength of our association 

is that we are a community.” David 

Orr, P.E., PhD, director of NYS LTAP 

Center–Cornell Local Roads Program.

“For the past 40 years, our LTAP 

team has worked tirelessly, as a part of 

the national LTAP program, to support 

the professional development of our 

transportation community. On a daily basis, 

we receive feedback from our stakeholders 

to let us know how important our programs 

are in their being better professionals, better 

leaders, and better people. The resources 

that are leveraged through the work of all 

of our centers are what allows us to make 

such a big impact with small budgets. It is 

rewarding to know that we are making a 

difference,” says Donna Shea, Connecticut 

LTAP executive program director.

While there are certainly many more 

people past and present who have dedicated 

their careers to LTAP, the theme remains the 

same: serving those who keep the Nation 

moving forward with quality training, 

education, and assistance.

The National System of 

LTAP Centers Today

So how do these programs support local 

roads? Primarily, LTAP centers provide 

training, education, and technical assistance 
WWW.FHWA.DOT.GOV | 33

to meet the needs of local transportation 

agencies. The work of LTAP centers includes 

workforce development, infrastructure 

maintenance, highway safety, worker safety, 

infrastructure design, asset management, 

and more.

Despite the unique nature of every 

LTAP center, there are some very important 

similarities between programs across the 

country. All LTAP centers make their 

resources, training, and outreach accessible and relevant to local communities, 

agencies, and transportation practitioners. 

These affordable services aim at dealing 

with common problems that affect a wide 

variety of local agencies. Also, LTAP centers 

strive to innovate and better connect with 

their populations. For example, many LTAP 

centers recently added webinars and other 

online training offerings to meet the needs 

of a modern local transportation workforce 

in the internet age.

LTAP centers also deliver services to 

communities by establishing important 

partnerships at the national, State, and local 

levels. At the national level, the Federal 

Highway Administration’s (FHWA) Center 

for Local Aid Support provides national 

leadership and support for all LTAP centers 

across the Nation. Other important national 

partners include:

• National Association of 

County Engineers

• American Public Works Association

• American Association of State 

Highway and Transportation Officials

Finally, as a family of programs spread 

out across the Nation, one of the LTAP 

system’s greatest strengths is the relationship between individual centers. NLTAPA 

exists to help LTAP centers in various U.S. 

States and territories share knowledge and 

resources for the benefit of all. Through 

this association, LTAP centers have a 

central organization to coordinate activities, exchange best practices, share training 

expertise, and cooperate on the development 

of new ways to improve local highways. 

LTAP centers in different U.S. States and 

territories often provide each other guest 

instructors that give valuable trainings.

Modern Challenges of LTAP Centers

Today, the need to provide quality training, 

education, and technical assistance to local 

transportation agencies is greater than ever. 

Local agencies, especially in rural areas, face 

ongoing workforce pressures as retirements 

increase, creating the need to recruit and 

train new workers while the local population decreases. On the regulatory side, 

State and Federal mandates can strain local 

departments without always providing the 

corresponding resources to facilitate compliance. Currently, LTAP centers across the 

Nation are providing resources and training 

to help meet these workforce development 

and agency administration needs. Whether 

it is vocational training, basic safety courses, 

or management and leadership education, 

LTAP centers develop resources to meet 

these needs.

The COVID-19 pandemic has educated 

the Nation about the importance of local 

transportation workers. Regardless of transmission rates or public lockdowns, these 

essential workers continued to perform 

their duties and assist neighboring municipalities when workers fell ill. Similarly, 

LTAP programming rose to the challenge 

by transitioning content to online formats, 

creating COVID-19-specific guidance, 

and working with partners to connect local 

agencies with even more resources to assist 

them throughout the pandemic. LTAP 

centers came together to create a database 

that organized the massive amount of digital 

training material, making it accessible to 

local agencies (many of which gained access 

to online training for the first time).

In the future, LTAP centers will need to 

help local agencies navigate the challenges 

and opportunities posed by aging infrastructure in the United States. Recently 

passed State and Federal legislation will 

infuse communities with much needed 

resources to upgrade, replace, and/or 

maintain its infrastructure. Educating local 

agencies about the availability of these 

resources and how to access them will be an 

important part of the LTAP’s future work. 

LTAP centers are also helping communities 

connect to information and education about 

how to prepare for a future where infrastructure must be more resilient to changes in 

global climate and weather patterns.

A Celebration of Local Transportation

The 40th anniversary of the LTAP system 

is really a celebration of local communities 

across the country. Local agencies manage 

over three-quarters of all centerline miles in 

the United States. Local roads, streets, and 

public works systems are the backbone of 

U.S. commerce, public safety, communication, and so much more. Supporting the 

people that maintain these critical systems is 

important for the future of the Nation.

The LTAP exists to serve those who work 

tirelessly to maintain a safe, reliable local 

road system across the country. More than 

just a national network of resources, LTAP 

centers are a family of like-minded people 

dedicated to improving local transportation 

and supporting those who manage it.

ADAM HOWELL is a marketing and communications 

manager at the New York State LTAP Center–

Cornell Local Roads Program and co-chair of the 

NLTAPA communications work group.

For more information, contact Trinette 

Ballard at Trinette.Ballard@dot.gov or 

850-553-2207. 

Learn more about the LTAP here:

NLTAPA https://nltapa.org/

FHWA Center for Local Aid Support

https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/clas/

New York State local roads workers attend a training 

workshop on work zone traffic control hosted by the New 

York State LTAP Center–Cornell Local Roads Program. 

© The NYS LTAP Center–Cornell Local Roads Program.
34 | PUBLIC ROADS | AUTUMN 2022

Along the Road is the place to look for information about current and upcoming activities, developments, trends, and items of general interest to the 

highway community. This information comes from U.S. Department of Transportation sources unless otherwise indicated. Your suggestions and input 

are welcome. Let’s meet along the road.

Public Information and Information Exchange

Tribal Technical Assistance Program Centers Get Reboot

I

n January 2022, the Federal Highway Administration announced 

the availability of nearly $18 million in grants toward the 

reopening of seven Tribal Technical Assistance Program (TTAP) 

Centers across the Nation.

TTAP was originally created to provide comprehensive 

transportation training and technical assistance to Tribal 

communities in maintaining the safety and structure of Tribal 

roads. With the reestablishment of these centers over the past five 

years, the mission of TTAP remains the same: help Native 

American and Alaska Native Tribal governments build capacity 

within their organizations, deliver important training resources, 

and help Tribal communities plan, construct, and maintain their 

transportation networks.

Prior to their closing, the seven TTAP centers were serving the 

12 Bureau of Indian Affairs regions and associated Tribes; the 

centers expired in 2017 once FHWA began a pilot to establish one 

central TTAP center. However, feedback from stakeholders, along 

with the results of the pilot program, favored the opening of several 

centers nationwide instead of one. Consequently, the seven TTAP 

centers are reopening to better accommodate the needs of the 

Tribal communities.

For more information, visit https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/clas/ttap/.

Open Call: Innovate with e-Ticketing

Electronic ticketing (e-Ticketing), a product of the Federal Highway Administration’s Every Day Counts-6 initiative, is a 

market-ready innovation that automates the real-time recording 

and transfer of material delivery information in digital format on 

highway construction and maintenance projects. 

For agencies interested in advancing e-Ticketing, FHWA is 

offering free outreach events, such as peer exchanges and a national 

workshop through 2023. 

FHWA is also offering free technical customer service support 

to help implement e-Ticketing and other e-Construction 

technologies in the areas of implementation planning, information 

technology, specifications, etc. 

For more information on events and customer service support, 

visit https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/construction/econstruction/overview.cfm or 

email eticketinghelp@dot.gov.

Tribal Technical Assistance Program Centers will support Tribal communities via both virtual and hands-on 

services to help strengthen their capacity for self-governance of transportation programs.

© amenohi / AdobeStock.com. 

Electronic ticketing 

improves the 

tracking, exchange, 

and archiving of 

materials tickets.

Source: FHWA. 

ALONG THE ROAD
WWW.FHWA.DOT.GOV | 35

$10 Million Pledge to Minority, Women-Owned Businesses from FHWA

I

n March 2022, the Federal Highway Administration unveiled 

$10 million in funding from the FY2021 Disadvantage Business 

Enterprise/Supportive Services (DBE/SS) Program to assist 

minority- and women-owned businesses with competing for 

Federal highway contracts.

The DBE program helps ensure that small businesses can 

compete for Federally funded transportation projects and assists 

DBEs in competing outside of the DBE Program.

The funding is provided to State departments of transportation, 

the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Territories 

that provide training and assistance to DBEs competing on 

Federally assisted contracts. To be eligible for the DBE program, 

persons must own 51% or more of a “small business,” establish 

that they are socially and economically disadvantaged within the 

meaning of the U.S. Department of Transportation regulations, 

and prove they control their business. FHWA distributes DBE/SS 

funds each year based on submitted statements of work and 

through an administrative formula that determines funding for 

each recipient.

For more information on the DBE program, visit https://www

.transportation.gov/civil-rights/disadvantaged-business-enterprise. 

Funding for the DBE/SS Program for FY2022 through FY2026 

was provided by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.

FHWA and NOAA Collaboration Propels Environmental Advances and Wins Big

Early in 2022, a partnership between the Federal Highway Administration and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration (NOAA) was honored with a U.S. Department 

of Transportation FHWA Environmental Excellence Award 

(https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/environment/environmental_excellence_awards

/eea_2022/).

Roadways and transportation corridors often intersect coastal 

ecosystems, making it crucial to understand how the coastline will 

change and how these changes will impact the integrity of 

transportation infrastructure. This collaboration 

married the best coastal science on nature-based solutions with the 

best science on pavement deterioration due to inundation, and 

established the goals of:

• Delivering approaches to predict future water level 

conditions and resultant pavement deteriorations.

• Producing physical, ecological, and infrastructure 

models for local assets and corridor-scale planning.

• Developing outputs for transportation 

planning and coastal decisionmaking.

The FHWA and NOAA collaboration represents one component 

of an emerging work plan, which will integrate climate change 

considerations into new and adapted transportation systems.

© NOAA

The DBE program has several goals, including helping small businesses 

compete for Federally funded transportation projects.

© Blue Planet Studio / AdobeStock.com. 

Flooding on a main street in Annapolis, MD.

© NOAA
36 | PUBLIC ROADS | AUTUMN 2022

FHWA and NOAA were recognized for two projects, Pavement 

Resilience to Sea Level Rise and Potential Mitigation Options 

Using Natural and Nature-Based Features (https://coastalscience

.noaa.gov/project/coastal-communities-pavement-resilience-to-sea-level

-rise-using-natural-and-nature-based-features/) and Surface 

Transportation, Sea Level Rise, and Coastal Storms: A Sustainable 

Path to Increased Resilience (https://coastalscience.noaa.gov/project

/surface-transportation-sea-level-rise-and-coastal-storms-a-sustainable

-path-to-increased-resilience/). For both projects, “each agency 

brought their unique expertise to develop this funding opportunity 

and shared the opportunity with their networks, resulting in 

interdisciplinary teams and a breadth of coverage that could not 

have been achieved without this collaboration,” shares Dr. Steve 

Thur, director of the NOAA National Centers for Coastal Ocean 

Science. “It will require these types of collaboration between 

infrastructure experts and environmental experts at the Federal, 

State, and local level to ensure successful coastal communities in 

the face of rising seas.”

For more information, contact Amir Golalipour at 

amir@golalipour@dot.gov.

Technical News

Smart Work Zone System Aims to Protect Workers

A partnership between the Virginia Department of Transportation, Virginia Tech Transportation Institute, 

and a geohazard mitigation firm led to the pilot deployment 

of a prototype vehicle-to-everything (V2X) Smart Work Zone 

technology system. A demonstration of this innovative work 

zone spanned across two days in May 2022 on U.S. Route 23 in 

Wise, VA.

This partnership produced a Smart Work Zone system that 

supports accurate localization of workers within a work zone and 

monitors their position relative to geo-fenced boundaries, moving 

construction vehicle hazards, and, in the future, passing connected 

vehicles. Warnings are provided to a worker through lights, 

buzzers, and vibrotactors built into their smart vest. Worker 

locations are transmitted to a mobile cellular-V2X base station and 

forwarded to passing connected vehicles to warn them of the 

presence of workers and any potential collisions.

The award-winning Smart Work Zone system has been tested 

on the Virginia Smart Road as well as in Northern Virginia, and 

other areas within the State are being considered.

Policy and Legislations

New Rules for Bridge Inspection Timeframes

I

n May 2022, the Federal Highway Administration published 

updates to the National Bridge Inspection Standards—the 

standards established for safety inspections of highway bridges. 

Routine inspections serve to maintain safe bridge operations and 

prevent structural and functional failures.

The updates are designed to improve bridge safety by clarifying 

responsibilities, standardizing the processes for bridge inspections 

and evaluations, and requiring distinct actions for higher risk 

issues. One of the most noticeable upgrades pertain to the amount 

of time between bridge inspections. The new rule extends bridge 

inspection requirements from two years to four years; some 

inspections are eligible every six years.

FHWA’s final rule went into effect on June 6, 2022, and applies 

to structures defined as highway bridges on all public roads, on 

and off Federal-aid highways, and now, highway bridges within 

Tribal communities. Also, noted in the updates are training and 

qualification requirements for bridge inspectors—including a 

national certification process—and the use of technological 

advancements used in transportation like unmanned 

aircraft systems.

For more information on the updates, visit https://www.fhwa.dot

.gov/bridge/nbis2022.cfm.

An innovative vehicle-to-everything Smart Work Zone technology system shows 

promise in decreasing injuries and fatalities commonly associated with work zones 

and roadway construction workers.

© Jean Paul Talledo Vilela.

Updates to the final rule extends bridge inspection requirements 

from two years to four years, and in some cases, to six years.

© valeriyap / AdobeStock.com.
WWW.FHWA.DOT.GOV | 37

Internet Watch

Local Road Safety Plans Website: A Guide to Mapping Safer Roads

The Federal Highway Administration estimates that nearly 40 percent of the fatalities on the Nation’s roadways within the 

past few years occurred on local roads. In hopes of decreasing this 

percentage, local transportation agencies are developing a plan—

the Local Road Safety Plan (LRSP).

LRSPs are proven to help reduce severe crashes on local road 

systems. Hence, FHWA established a LRSP do-it-yourself 

website (https://safety.fhwa.dot.gov/LRSPDIY/) to provide a bounty 

of information needed to create and implement a customized 

LRSP. For example, the website outlines the four steps needed 

to complete a plan:

• Step 1: Identify stakeholders.

• Step 2: Use safety data.

• Step 3: Choose proven solutions.

• Step 4: Implement solutions.

What’s more, each step is accompanied by a brief written 

description and a series of videos providing more 

comprehensive explanations. Sample plans from more than 

10 U.S. counties and cities—including Nevada County, CA; Palm 

Beach County, FL; and Portland, OR—are also posted as guides 

alongside several other types of training material like a 

pre-recorded, web-based tutorial and instructions on gathering, 

utilizing, and incorporating community-specific data into a plan.

The Federal Highway Administration’s Local Road Safety Plans do-it-yourself website 

provides a plethora of information on how to create a plan.

Source: FHWA.
Updates on Two-Dimensional Hydraulic Modeling Training

BY SCOTT HOGAN and SABRINA SYLVESTER

For several decades, hydraulic engineers have used onedimensional (1D) hydraulic models to perform hydraulic 

analyses for transportation projects involving waterway crossings 

and encroachments. Although 1D modeling required several 

assumptions to simplify the analysis that often led to inaccurate 

results, it was the best technology available for many years. 

In recent years, however, significant advances in computing 

power have ushered in the practical use and application of 

two-dimensional (2D) modeling. Most of the assumptions that 

were needed in 1D modeling have been eliminated and replaced 

by direct computations, allowing for significant advances in 

the hydraulic discipline. 2D modeling results provide a better 

understanding of the complex partnership between waterway 

environments and transportation assets, leading to safer designs 

and more cost-effective structures.

Drawing on this technological advancement, the U.S. Bureau of 

Reclamation (USBR) developed the Sedimentation and River 

Hydraulics (SRH) 2D model—a 2D flow hydraulic and 

mobile-bed sediment transport model for river systems. This 

SRH-2D model solves 2D dynamic wave equations and depthaveraged velocity using the finite volume numerical method. Since 

2013, USBR and Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) have 

partnered to expand the transportation hydraulics capabilities of 

the SRH-2D model and improve the graphic user interface features 

for more efficient and effective applications. Because of these 

SRH-2D model improvements, the FHWA’s National Highway 

Institute (NHI) has developed a series of courses to train hydraulic 

personnel on the best methods to use and apply this engaging 

model for highway encroachments.

Achieving Success with NHI

NHI offers an updated 2D hydraulic modeling course as well as 

data source training to study how to appropriately apply 2D 

hydraulic models of rivers in highway encroachment scenarios. 

Participants can register for the 2D Hydraulic Modeling of Rivers at 

Highway Encroachments training (FHWA-NHI-135095), which is 

now offered in person and online, to learn how to use and apply 

the SRH-2D model. This training teaches SRH-2D modeling 

principles and techniques through use of the latest version of the 

Surface Water Modeling Systems (a graphical pre and 

postprocessor for multiple 2D modeling engines).

NHI also offers online web-conference training (WCT) courses 

that provide more comprehensive SRH-2D model data information, including:

SRH-2D Model Data Files, Diagnosis & Verifying 

2D Model Results WCT (FHWA-NHI-135095A)

This WCT presents numerous data files created and used for 

SRH-2D input and output as well as for SRH Pre. Participants 

will learn:

• How files are used and formatted.

• How to verify model convergence and various 

diagnostic message outputs by SRH-2D.

• How to use monitor lines.

Model Terrain Development with Various Data 

Sources WCT (FHWA-NHI-135095B)

This WCT shows participants how to use and process light 

detection and ranging (LiDAR) efficiently and other elevation 

format types to define geometry for 2D hydraulic models. 

Applicants will also learn to identify potential data issues, use 

methods for modifying geometry, and import and export data 

from other data sources.

Prerequisite Information

Basic Hydraulic Principles Review (FHWA-NHI-135091), a 

web-based training, is available at no cost to participants who wish 

to refresh their knowledge of the fundamental hydraulic concepts 

of open channel flow.

How to Attend or Host a Course

NHI invites professionals interested in earning continuing 

education units or professional development hours to visit 

http://bit.ly/NHIHome and browse the complete digital course 

catalog. The catalog lists over 350 courses in 19 program areas.

To sign up for email alerts and to see when a particular course 

session is available, visit the description page for that course and 

then click on the “Sign Up for Session Alerts” link.

Organizations interested in hosting an NHI course can submit 

a host request form, or find more information, by visiting 

https://www.nhi.fhwa.dot.gov/training/host.aspx.

NHI is an approved accredited provider by the International 

Accreditors for Continuing Education and Training (IACET). As 

an IACET Accredited Provider, NHI offers continuing education 

units for its programs that qualify under the American National 

Standards Institute/IACET Standard.

SCOTT HOGAN is a senior hydraulic engineer and geotechnical and hydraulic 

engineering team leader at FHWA.

SABRINA SYLVESTER is a contracted senior marketing analyst for NHI.

38 | PUBLIC ROADS | AUTUMN 2022

2D modeling shows the complex interactions between waterways and structures.

Source: FHWA.

TRAINING UPDATE
Leveraging Resources to Achieve Common Research Goals

The Transportation Pooled Fund (TPF) Program enables 

public and private entities to combine resources to 

conduct high priority research on a wide variety of shared, 

highway related problems. Over more than 45 years, the 

TPF Program has supported more than 750 successful 

multi-agency projects.

Participate in Diverse Research 

and Topic Areas

Investing in TPF studies helps partners stretch their 

research dollars to support a diverse array of topic areas.

Make an Impact Through a TPF Study!

Learn more about initiating a pooled fund study 

and browse the list of open solicitations on 

the TPF website at www.pooledfund.org.

For more information, contact Tricia Sergeson, 

TPF Program Manager, at Patricia.Sergeson@dot.gov.

Source: FHWA.

© 2019 Colorado DOT.

© 2020 The Transtec Group, Inc.

FHWA’s Transportation Pooled Fund Program

© 2011-2022 National Cooperative Highway Research Program.
40 | PUBLIC ROADS | AUTUMN 2022

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