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Telling the R&T Story: The Value of Research

The Federal HighwayAdministration (FHWA)plays a vital leadership role in developing and

implementing a coordinated highway research

and technology (R&T) agenda that performsthe following:

• Addresses national needs.• Meets future demands.• Maximizes the strengths of all

research entities.

FHWA’sVital Leadership RoleIntroduction:MovingInnovat
Telling the R&T Story: The Value of Research

R&TAgendaThe key components of FHWA’s nationally coordinated

highway R&T agenda are as follows:

• Highway research and developmentin the areas of

safety, infrastructure, planning and environment,

operations, policy, and technology.

• Technology and innovation deployment, including

accelerating the use of new technologies.

• Training and education of the transportation

workforce through the National Highway Institute

and the LocalTechnicalAssistance Program.

OvercomingToday’sTransportation ChallengesTechnologicalAdvances
Telling the R&T Story: The Value of Research

TheValueofResearchFive Areas ofAdvancementFHWA’s R&T initiatives are meeting today’s national

needs with advancements in the following areas:

• Improving highway safety.• Improving infrastructure integrity.• Strengthening transportation planning and

environmental linkages.

• Reducing congestion, improving highway operations,

and enhancing freight productivity.

• Assessing policy and system financing alternatives.

Recent R&T Accomplishments
Telling the R&T Story: The Value of Research

TheValueofResearchSafetyAnalyst SoftwareSafetyAnalyst helps transportation agencies

make decisions about site‐specific highway

improvements. The software’s state‐of‐the‐art

analytical tools can be used to identify safety

problems and potential countermeasures forreducing the frequency and severity of crashes.

Improving Highway Safety
Telling the R&T Story: The Value of Research

Interactive Highway Safety Design ModelThis suite of software analysis tools can be used to evaluate the safety and operation effdesign decisions on highways.The software is now being used by transportation agencie

rates on highway corridors and to identify potential improvements.

TheValueofResearchImproving Highway Safety
Telling the R&T Story: The Value of Research

Crash Modification Factors ClearinghouseThe Clearinghouse can help transportation engineers

identify the most appropriate countermeasure for

their safety needs. The Clearinghouse is available

online at http://www.cmfclearinghouse.org/.

TheValueofResearchImproving Highway Safety
Telling the R&T Story: The Value of Research

RoundaboutsThe implementation of one‐way, circular intersections known as roundabouts is improvi

safety across the country.

TheValueofResearchImproving Highway Safety
Telling the R&T Story: The Value of Research

Ultra‐Light Inertial ProfilerThis instrumented Segway® is being used to

assess the condition of sidewalks and curb rampsand determine if they meet the standards of the

American with Disabilities Act.

TheValueofResearchImproving Highway Safety
Telling the R&T Story: The Value of Research

Hazards Mitigation R&T ProgramThe program’s research is helping to reduce hazard risks to highways and bridges.Improving Infrastructure IntegrityTheValueofResearch
Telling the R&T Story: The Value of Research

Long‐Term Pavement Performance (LTPP)

Program

Data collected by the LTPP program have played

a critical role in the development and evaluationof every major pavement design methodology

developed over the past 20 years, including the

Superpave® mix design system and the

DARWin‐ME pavement design software.

Improving Infrastructure IntegrityTheValueofResearch
Telling the R&T Story: The Value of Research

COMPASSThe COMPASS software allows users to optimize the performance of a concrete mixture 

environment, resulting in longer‐life pavements.

Improving Infrastructure IntegrityTheValueofResearch
Telling the R&T Story: The Value of Research

Construction Analysis for PavementRehabilitation Strategies (CA4PRS)CA4PRS assists transportation agencies in making

accelerated construction a reality by identifying

highway rehabilitation strategies that balanceconstruction schedules with inconvenience to drivers

and costs to theAgency.

Improving Infrastructure IntegrityTheValueofResearch
Telling the R&T Story: The Value of Research

Bridge Inspection Nondestructive Evaluation ShowcaseThis showcase offers training in the latest nondestructive evaluation tools and systems, w

improve the overall reliability of bridge evaluations.

Improving Infrastructure IntegrityTheValueofResearch
Telling the R&T Story: The Value of Research

RealCostRealCost, a software tool for performing life‐cycle

cost analysis for pavement selection, provides acost comparison between two or more competing

design alternatives.

Improving Infrastructure IntegrityTheValueofResearch
Telling the R&T Story: The Value of Research

Pavement Materials LaboratoriesThe numerous forensic tools developed through FHWA’s Materials Laboratories aid in as

causes of premature pavement failures.

Improving Infrastructure IntegrityTheValueofResearch
Telling the R&T Story: The Value of Research

Sustainable Highways Self‐EvaluationToolTransportation agencies and metropolitan planning

organizations can use this tool to evaluate projects

and practices and rate a projects’ sustainabilityusing a consistent set of criteria and scores.

The tool addresses the full life cycle of a highway

project, from planning through construction to

operations and maintenance. It offers users

maximum, hands‐on flexibility.

The pilot test version is available at

http://www.sustainablehighways.org/.

Strengthening Transportation Planning and EnvironmeTheValueofResearch
Telling the R&T Story: The Value of Research

Recycling SolutionsBest practices for increasing the use of reclaimed asphalt pavement are detailed in the FH

Reclaimed Asphalt Pavement in Asphalt Mixtures: State of the Practice (FHWA‐HRT‐11‐02

Strengthening Transportation Planning and EnvironmeTheValueofResearch
Telling the R&T Story: The Value of Research

A Foundation for Future MobilityFHWA’s Transportation Operations Laboratory is

exploring how innovative technologies can improve the

performance of the country’s transportation system.

The new laboratory contains the following:

• Test beds for developing data resources.• Transportation concepts and analysis.• Cooperative vehicle‐highway interfaces.

Reducing Congestion, Improving Highway Operations, 

Enhancing Freight Productivity

TheValueofResearch
Telling the R&T Story: The Value of Research

Targeted Safety MessagesResearch includes testing the Signal Phase and Timing Interface Definition and Prototyp

a common two‐way interface between vehicle systems, mobile devices, and traffic signa

Reducing Congestion, Improving Highway Operations, 

Enhancing Freight Productivity

TheValueofResearch
Telling the R&T Story: The Value of Research

Traffic SignalTriggersFHWA researchers are using step‐frequency

ground‐penetrating radar to develop a

nondestructive method for detecting and

assessing inductive loop sensors embedded inroadway surfaces.

Reducing Congestion, Improving Highway Operations, 

Enhancing Freight Productivity

TheValueofResearch
Telling the R&T Story: The Value of Research

Passenger TravelAnalysis FrameworkThe framework will provide States with resources for better analyzing and meeting traveAssessing Policy and System Financing AlternativesTheValueofResearch
Telling the R&T Story: The Value of Research

Cutting‐Edge Tools and TechnologyIn addition to improving safety today, FHWA

researches the infrastructure that will define

tomorrow, including the following:

• Data from the Long‐Term Bridge Performance

program will support a better understanding

of bridge deterioration.

• Ultra‐high performance concrete can

facilitate accelerated bridge construction

and allow for the use of longer spans.

• The ExploratoryAdvanced Research

program focuses on long‐term, high‐risk

research with a high payoff potential.

New Defining InfrastructureExploringNextGenerationSo
Telling the R&T Story: The Value of Research

Accelerating DeploymentThe following initiatives are putting new tools in the hands of the State and local agencie

• Every Day Counts identifies proven, ready‐to‐go innovation to shorten project deliv

roadway safety, and protect the environment .

• Highways for LIFE aims to raise awareness in the highway community so new techn

moved from the state‐of‐the‐art to the state‐of‐the‐practice more quickly.

• Strategic Highway Research Program 2 (managed by theTransportation Research 

on safety, renewal, reliability, and capacity.

New FHWA InitiativesMovingInnovation
Telling the R&T Story: The Value of Research

Want to Learn More?More information on FHWA’s R&T initiatives is

featured in Telling the R&T Story:TheValue of

Research (Report No. FHWA‐HRT‐11‐053) available

online at http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/publications/

research/general/11053/index.cfm.For additional details, visithttp://www.fhwa.dot.gov/research.ForMore InformationAbout FHWA’s R&T Initiatives