729
(C) $239,500,000 for fiscal year 2006; 
(D) $239,500,000 for fiscal year 2007; 
(E) $239,500,000 for fiscal year 2008; and 
(F) $239,500,000 for fiscal year 2009. 
(2) TRAINING AND EDUCATION.—To carry out 
section 504 of title 23, United States Code, and sec-
tion 5211 of this Act, $24,500,000 for fiscal year 2004 
and $33,500,000 for each of fiscal years 2005 through 
2009. 
(3) BUREAU OF TRANSPORTATION STATISTICS.—
For the Bureau of Transportation Statistics to carry 
out section 111 of title 49, United States Code, 
$31,000,000 for fiscal year 2004 and $33,000,000 for 
each of fiscal years 2005 through 2009. 
(4) UNIVERSITY TRANSPORTATION RESEARCH.—
To carry out sections 5505 and 5506 of title 49, 
United States Code, $54,500,000 for fiscal year 2004 
and $71,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2005 through 
2009. 
(5) INTELLIGENT
TRANSPORTATION
SYSTEMS 
(ITS)
RESEARCH.—To carry out subtitle F of this 
title, $115,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2004 
through 2009. 
(6) ITS DEPLOYMENT.—To carry out sections 
5208 and 5209 of the Transportation Equity Act for
730
the 21st Century (112 Stat. 458; 112 Stat. 460), 
$100,000,000 for fiscal years 2004 and 2005. 
(b) APPLICABILITY
OF TITLE 23, UNITED STATES 
CODE.—Funds authorized to be appropriated by subsection 
(a) shall be available for obligation in the same manner 
as if such funds were apportioned under chapter 1 of title 
23, United States Code; except that the Federal share of the 
cost of a project or activity carried out using such funds 
shall be 50 percent, unless otherwise expressly provided by 
this Act (including the amendments made by this Act) or 
otherwise determined by the Secretary, and such funds shall 
remain available until expended and shall not be transfer-
able. 
SEC. 5102. OBLIGATION CEILING. 
Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the total 
of all obligations from amounts made available from the 
Highway Trust Fund (other than the Mass Transit Ac-
count) by sections 5101(a) and 5401 of this Act shall not 
exceed $483,000,000 for fiscal year 2004, $484,000,000 for 
fiscal year 2005, $485,000,000 for fiscal year 2006, 
$485,000,000 for fiscal year 2007, $486,000,000 for fiscal 
year 2008, and $487,000,000 for fiscal year 2009. 
SEC. 5103. FINDINGS. 
Congress finds the following:
731
(1) Research and development are critical to de-
veloping and maintaining a transportation system 
that meets the goals of safety, mobility, economic vi-
tality, efficiency, equity, and environmental protec-
tion. 
(2) Federally sponsored surface transportation 
research and development has produced many suc-
cesses. The development of rumble strips has increased 
safety; research on materials has increased the life-
span of pavements, saving money and reducing the 
disruption caused by construction; and Geographic 
Information Systems have improved the management 
and efficiency of transit fleets. 
(3) Despite these important successes, the Federal 
surface transportation research and development in-
vestment represents less than one percent of overall 
government spending on surface transportation. 
(4) While Congress increased funding for overall 
transportation programs by about 40 percent in the 
Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century, 
funding for transportation research and development 
remained relatively flat. 
(5) The Federal investment in research and de-
velopment should be balanced between short-term ap-
plied and long-term fundamental research and devel-
732
opment. The investment should also cover a wide 
range of research areas, including research on mate-
rials and construction, research on operations, re-
search on transportation trends and human factors, 
and research addressing the institutional barriers to 
deployment of new technologies. 
(6) Therefore, Congress finds that it is in the 
United States interest to increase the Federal invest-
ment in transportation research and development, 
and to conduct research in critical research gaps, in 
order to ensure that the transportation system meets 
the goals of safety, mobility, economic vitality, effi-
ciency, equity, and environmental protection. 
Subtitle B—Research, Technology, 
and Education 
SEC. 5201. RESEARCH, TECHNOLOGY, AND EDUCATION. 
(a) RESEARCH, TECHNOLOGY, AND EDUCATION.—
Title 23, United States Code, is amended—
(1) in the table of chapters by striking the item 
relating to chapter 5 and inserting the following:
‘‘5. RESEARCH, TECHNOLOGY, AND EDUCATION .............................
501’’.
(2) by striking the heading for chapter 5 and in-
serting the following:
733
‘‘CHAPTER 5—RESEARCH, TECHNOLOGY, 
AND EDUCATION’’. 
(b) STATEMENT
OF PRINCIPLES GOVERNING RE-
SEARCH AND TECHNOLOGY INVESTMENTS.—Section 502 of 
such title is amended—
(1) by redesignating subsections (a) through (g) 
as subsections (b) through (h), respectively; and 
(2) by inserting before subsection (b) (as so re-
designated) the following: 
‘‘(a) BASIC PRINCIPLES GOVERNING RESEARCH AND 
TECHNOLOGY INVESTMENTS.—
‘‘(1) COVERAGE.—Surface transportation re-
search and technology development shall include all 
activities leading to technology development and 
transfer, as well as the introduction of new and inno-
vative ideas, practices, and approaches, through such 
mechanisms as field applications, education and 
training, and technical support. 
‘‘(2) FEDERAL RESPONSIBILITY.—Funding and 
conducting surface transportation research and tech-
nology transfer activities shall be considered a basic 
responsibility of the Federal Government when the 
work—
‘‘(A) is of national significance;
734
‘‘(B) supports research in which there is a 
clear public benefit and private sector investment 
is less than optimal; 
‘‘(C) supports a Federal stewardship role in 
assuring that State and local governments use 
national resources efficiently; or 
‘‘(D) presents the best means to support 
Federal policy goals compared to other policy al-
ternatives. 
‘‘(3) ROLE.—Consistent with these Federal re-
sponsibilities, the Secretary shall—
‘‘(A) conduct research; 
‘‘(B) support and facilitate research and 
technology transfer activities by State highway 
agencies; 
‘‘(C) share results of completed research; 
and 
‘‘(D) support and facilitate technology and 
innovation deployment. 
‘‘(4) PROGRAM CONTENT.—A surface transpor-
tation research program shall include—
‘‘(A) fundamental, long-term highway re-
search;
735
‘‘(B) research aimed at significant highway 
research gaps and emerging issues with national 
implications; and 
‘‘(C) research related to policy and plan-
ning. 
‘‘(5) STAKEHOLDER
INPUT.—Federal surface 
transportation research and development activities 
shall address the needs of stakeholders. Stakeholders 
include States, metropolitan planning organizations, 
local governments, the private sector, researchers, re-
search sponsors, and other affected parties, including 
public interest groups. 
‘‘(6) COMPETITION AND PEER REVIEW.—Except 
as otherwise provided in this Act, the Secretary shall 
award all grants, contracts, and cooperative agree-
ments for research and development under this Act 
based on open competition and peer review of pro-
posals. 
‘‘(7) PERFORMANCE REVIEW AND EVALUATION.—
To the maximum extent practicable, all surface trans-
portation research and development projects shall in-
clude a component of performance measurement and 
evaluation. Performance measures shall be established 
during the proposal stage of a research and develop-
ment project and shall, to the maximum extent pos-
736
sible, be outcome-based. All evaluations shall be made 
readily available to the public.’’. 
(c) PROCUREMENT FOR RESEARCH, DEVELOPMENT, 
AND
TECHNOLOGY
TRANSFER
ACTIVITIES.—Section 
502(b)(3) of such title (as redesignated by subsection (b) of 
this section) is amended to read as follows: 
‘‘(3) COOPERATION, GRANTS, AND CONTRACTS.—
The Secretary may carry out research, development, 
and technology transfer activities related to transpor-
tation—
‘‘(A) independently; 
‘‘(B) in cooperation with other Federal de-
partments, agencies, and instrumentalities and 
Federal laboratories; or 
‘‘(C) by making grants to, or entering into 
contracts, cooperative agreements, and other 
transactions with one or more of the following: 
the National Academy of Sciences, the American 
Association of State Highway and Transpor-
tation Officials, any Federal laboratory, Federal 
agency, State agency, authority, association, in-
stitution, for-profit or nonprofit corporation, or-
ganization, foreign country, any other person.’’. 
(d) TRANSPORTATION POOLED FUND PROGRAM.—Sec-
tion 502(b) of such title (as redesignated by subsection (b)
737
of this section), is amended by adding at the end the fol-
lowing: 
‘‘(6) POOLED FUNDING.—
‘‘(A) COOPERATION.—To promote effective 
utilization of available resources, the Secretary 
may cooperate with a State and an appropriate 
agency in funding research, development, and 
technology transfer activities of mutual interest 
on a pooled funds basis. 
‘‘(B) SECRETARY AS AGENT.—The Secretary 
may enter into contracts, cooperative agreements, 
grants, and other transactions as agent for all 
participating parties in carrying out such re-
search, development, or technology transfer.’’. 
(e) OPERATIONS ELEMENTS IN RESEARCH ACTIVI-
TIES.—Section 502 of such title is further amended—
(1) in subsection (b)(1)(B) (as redesignated by 
subsection (b) of this section) by inserting ‘‘transpor-
tation system management and operations,’’ after 
‘‘operation,’’. 
(2) in subsection (d)(5)(C) (as redesignated by 
subsection (b) of this section) by inserting ‘‘system 
management and’’ after ‘‘transportation’’; and
738
(3) by inserting at the end of subsection (d) (as 
redesignated by subsection (b) of this section) the fol-
lowing: 
‘‘(12) Investigation and development of various 
operational methodologies to reduce the occurrence 
and impact of recurrent congestion and nonrecurrent 
congestion and increase transportation system reli-
ability. 
‘‘(13) Investigation of processes, procedures, and 
technologies to secure container and hazardous mate-
rial transport, including the evaluation of regulations 
and the impact of good security practices on com-
merce and productivity. 
‘‘(14) Research, development, and technology 
transfer related to asset management.’’. 
(f) FACILITATING TRANSPORTATION RESEARCH AND 
TECHNOLOGY
DEPLOYMENT
PARTNERSHIPS.—Section 
502(c)(2) of such title (as redesignated by subsection (b) of 
this section) is amended to read as follows: 
‘‘(2) COOPERATION, GRANTS, CONTRACTS, AND 
AGREEMENTS.—Notwithstanding any other provision 
of law, the Secretary may directly initiate contracts, 
cooperative research and development agreements (as 
defined in section 12 of the Stevenson-Wydler Tech-
nology Innovation Act of 1980 (15 U.S.C. 3710a)),
739
and other transactions to fund, and accept funds 
from, the Transportation Research Board of the Na-
tional Research Council of the National Academy of 
Sciences, State departments of transportation, cities, 
counties, and their agents to conduct joint transpor-
tation research and technology efforts.’’. 
(g) EXPLORATORY ADVANCED RESEARCH PROGRAM.—
Section 502(e) of such title (as redesignated by subsection 
(b) of this section) is amended to read as follows: 
‘‘(e) EXPLORATORY ADVANCED RESEARCH.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall establish 
an exploratory advanced research program, consistent 
with the surface transportation research and tech-
nology development strategic plan developed under 
section 508 that involves and draws upon basic re-
search results to provide a better understanding of 
problems and develop innovative solutions. In car-
rying out the program, the Secretary shall strive to 
develop partnerships with public and private sector 
entities. 
‘‘(2) RESEARCH
AREAS.—In carrying out the 
program, the Secretary may make grants and enter 
into cooperative agreements and contracts in such 
areas of surface transportation research and tech-
740
nology as the Secretary determines appropriate, in-
cluding the following: 
‘‘(A) Characterization of materials used in 
highway infrastructure, including analytical 
techniques, microstructure modeling, and the de-
terioration processes. 
‘‘(B) Assessment of the effects of transpor-
tation decisions on human health. 
‘‘(C) Development of surrogate measures of 
safety. 
‘‘(D) Environmental research. 
‘‘(E) Data acquisition techniques for system 
condition and performance monitoring. 
‘‘(F) System performance data and infor-
mation processing needed to assess the day-to-
day operational performance of the system in 
support of hour-to-hour operational decision-
making.’’. 
(h) LONG-TERM
PAVEMENT
PERFORMANCE
PRO-
GRAM.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—Section 502(f) of such title (as 
redesignated by subsection (b) of this section) is 
amended to read as follows: 
‘‘(f) LONG-TERM
PAVEMENT
PERFORMANCE
PRO-
GRAM.—
741
‘‘(1) AUTHORITY.—The Secretary shall complete 
the 20-year long-term pavement performance program 
tests initiated under the strategic highway research 
program established under section 307(d) (as in effect 
on June 8, 1998). 
‘‘(2) GRANTS, COOPERATIVE AGREEMENTS, AND 
CONTRACTS.—Under the program, the Secretary shall 
make grants and enter into cooperative agreements 
and contracts to—
‘‘(A) monitor, material-test, and evaluate 
highway test sections in existence as of the date 
of the grant, agreement, or contract; 
‘‘(B) analyze the data obtained under sub-
paragraph (A); and 
‘‘(C) prepare products to fulfill program ob-
jectives and meet future pavement technology 
needs.’’. 
(2) FUNDING.—Of the amounts made available 
by section 5101(a)(1) of this Act, $10,000,000 for fis-
cal year 2004 and $21,000,000 for each of fiscal years 
2005 through 2009 shall be available to carry out sec-
tion 502(f) of title 23, United States Code. 
(i) TURNER-FAIRBANK HIGHWAY RESEARCH CEN-
TER.—Section 502 of title 23, United States Code, is further 
amended by adding at the end the following:
742
‘‘(i) TURNER-FAIRBANK HIGHWAY RESEARCH CEN-
TER.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall operate 
in the Federal Highway Administration a Turner-
Fairbank Highway Research Center. 
‘‘(2) USES
OF
THE
CENTER.—The Turner-
Fairbank Highway Research Center shall support—
‘‘(A) the conduct of highway research and 
development related to new highway technology; 
‘‘(B) the development of understandings, 
tools, and techniques that provide solutions to 
complex technical problems through the develop-
ment of economical and environmentally sen-
sitive designs, efficient and quality-controlled 
construction practices, and durable materials; 
and 
‘‘(C) the development of innovative highway 
products and practices.’’. 
(j) UNIVERSITY FUNDING.—Except as otherwise pro-
vided in this title and any amendments made by this title, 
the Secretary may not provide financial assistance to a 
university under section 5101 unless the university is se-
lected to receive such funds through a competitive process 
that incorporates merit-based peer review and the selection 
is based on a proposal submitted to the Secretary by the
743
university in response to a request for proposals issued by 
the Secretary. 
SEC. 5202. LONG-TERM BRIDGE PERFORMANCE PROGRAM; 
INNOVATIVE BRIDGE RESEARCH AND DE-
PLOYMENT PROGRAM. 
(a) LONG-TERM BRIDGE PERFORMANCE PROGRAM.—
(1) IN
GENERAL.—Section 502 of title 23, 
United States Code, is further amended by adding at 
the end the following: 
‘‘(j) LONG-TERM BRIDGE PERFORMANCE PROGRAM.—
‘‘(1) AUTHORITY.—The Secretary shall establish 
a 20-year long-term bridge performance program. 
‘‘(2) GRANTS, COOPERATIVE AGREEMENTS, AND 
CONTRACTS.—Under the program, the Secretary shall 
make grants and enter into cooperative agreements 
and contracts to—
‘‘(A) monitor, material-test, and evaluate 
test bridges; 
‘‘(B) analyze the data obtained under sub-
paragraph (A); and 
‘‘(C) prepare products to fulfill program ob-
jectives and meet future bridge technology 
needs.’’. 
(2) FUNDING.—Of the amounts made available 
by section 5101(a)(1) of this Act, $5,000,000 for fiscal
744
year 2004 and $15,000,000 for each of fiscal years 
2005 through 2009 shall be available to carry out sec-
tion 502(j) of title 23, United States Code. 
(b) INNOVATIVE BRIDGE RESEARCH AND DEPLOYMENT 
PROGRAM.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—Section 503(b)(1) of such title 
is amended to read as follows: 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall establish 
and carry out a program to promote, demonstrate, 
evaluate, and document the application of innovative 
designs, materials, and construction methods in the 
construction, repair, and rehabilitation of bridges and 
other highway structures.’’. 
(2) GOALS.—Section 503(b)(2) of such title is 
amended to read as follows: 
‘‘(2) GOALS.—The goals of the program shall in-
clude—
‘‘(A) the development of new, cost-effective, 
innovative highway bridge applications; 
‘‘(B) the development of construction tech-
niques to increase safety and reduce construction 
time and traffic congestion; 
‘‘(C) the development of engineering design 
criteria for innovative products, materials, and
745
structural systems for use in highway bridges 
and structures; 
‘‘(D) the reduction of maintenance costs and 
life-cycle costs of bridges, including the costs of 
new construction, replacement, or rehabilitation 
of deficient bridges; 
‘‘(E) the development of highway bridges 
and structures that will withstand natural disas-
ters; 
‘‘(F) the documentation and wide dissemi-
nation of objective evaluations of the performance 
and benefits of these innovative designs, mate-
rials, and construction methods; 
‘‘(G) the effective transfer of resulting infor-
mation and technology; and 
‘‘(H) the development of improved methods 
to detect bridge scour and economical bridge 
foundation designs that will withstand bridge 
scour.’’. 
(3) FUNDING.—
(A) IN
GENERAL.—Of the amounts made 
available by section 5101(a)(1) of this Act, 
$20,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2004 through 
2009 shall be available to carry out section 
503(b) of title 23, United States Code; and
746
(B) 
HIGH
PERFORMANCE
CONCRETE 
BRIDGE TECHNOLOGY RESEARCH AND DEPLOY-
MENT.—The Secretary shall obligate $2,000,000 
of the amount described in subparagraph (A) for 
each of fiscal years 2004 through 2009 to conduct 
research and deploy technology related to high-
performance concrete bridges. 
SEC. 5203. SURFACE TRANSPORTATION ENVIRONMENT AND 
PLANNING COOPERATIVE RESEARCH PRO-
GRAM. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Section 507 of title 23, United 
States Code, is amended to read as follows: 
‘‘§ 507. 
Surface 
Transportation 
environment 
and 
planning cooperative research program 
‘‘(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary shall establish 
and carry out a collaborative, public-private surface trans-
portation environment and planning cooperative research 
program. 
‘‘(b) AGREEMENT.—The Secretary shall enter into an 
agreement with the National Academy of Sciences to carry 
out administrative and management activities relating to 
the governance of the surface transportation environment 
and planning cooperative research program. 
‘‘(c) ADVISORY COMMITTEE.—
747
‘‘(1) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary shall es-
tablish a committee that will be responsible for pro-
gram oversight and project selection. 
‘‘(2) MEMBERSHIP.—The members of the com-
mittee shall be appointed by the Secretary and shall 
be composed of—
‘‘(A) representatives of State, regional, and 
local transportation agencies, including transit 
agencies; 
‘‘(B) representatives of State environmental 
agencies and other environmental organizations; 
‘‘(C) representatives of the transportation 
private sector; 
‘‘(D) transportation and environmental sci-
entists and engineers; and 
‘‘(E) representatives of the Federal High-
way Administration, Federal Transit Adminis-
tration, 
Environmental 
Protection 
Agency, 
United States Fish and Wildlife Service, Corps 
of Engineers, American Association of State 
Highway and Transportation Officials, and 
American Public Transportation Association, 
who shall serve in an ex officio capacity.
748
‘‘(3) BALANCE.—The majority of the committee’s 
voting members shall be representatives of government 
transportation agencies. 
‘‘(4) MEETINGS.—The National Academy of 
Sciences shall convene meetings of the committee. 
‘‘(d) GOVERNANCE.—The program established under 
this section shall include the following administrative and 
management elements: 
‘‘(1) NATIONAL RESEARCH AGENDA.—The advi-
sory committee, in consultation with interested par-
ties, shall carry out and periodically update research 
and development called for in the Transportation Re-
search Board Special Report 268, entitled ‘Surface 
Transportation Environmental Research: A Long-
Term Strategy’ and published in 2002, as described 
in subsection (e). The national research agenda shall 
include a multiyear strategic plan. 
‘‘(2) INVOLVEMENT.—Interested parties may—
‘‘(A) submit research proposals; 
‘‘(B) participate in merit reviews of re-
search proposals and peer reviews of research 
products; and 
‘‘(C) receive research results. 
‘‘(3) OPEN COMPETITION AND PEER REVIEW OF 
RESEARCH
PROPOSALS.—The National Academy of
749
Sciences may award under the program research con-
tracts and grants through open competition and merit 
review conducted on a regular basis. 
‘‘(4) EVALUATION OF RESEARCH.—
‘‘(A) PEER
REVIEW.—Research contracts 
and grants may allow peer review of the research 
results. 
‘‘(B) PROGRAMMATIC
EVALUATIONS.—The 
National Academy of Sciences may conduct peri-
odic programmatic evaluations on a regular 
basis. 
‘‘(5) DISSEMINATION OF RESEARCH FINDINGS.—
The National Academy of Sciences shall disseminate 
research findings to researchers, practitioners, and de-
cisionmakers, through conferences and seminars, field 
demonstrations, workshops, training programs, pres-
entations, testimony to government officials, World 
Wide Web, and publications for the general public. 
‘‘(e) CONTENTS.—The national research agenda for the 
program required under subsection (d)(1) shall include re-
search in the following areas for the purposes described: 
‘‘(1) HUMAN HEALTH.—Human health to estab-
lish the links between transportation activities and 
human health; substantiate the linkages between expo-
sure to concentration levels, emissions, and health im-
750
pacts; examine the potential health impacts from the 
implementation and operation of transportation in-
frastructure and services; develop strategies for avoid-
ance and reduction of these impacts; and develop 
strategies to understand the economic value of health 
improvements and for incorporating health consider-
ations into valuation methods. 
‘‘(2) ECOLOGY AND NATURAL SYSTEMS.—Ecology 
and natural systems to measure transportation’s 
short- and long-term impact on natural systems; de-
velop ecologically based performance measures; de-
velop insight into both the spatial and temporal 
issues associated with transportation and natural sys-
tems; study the relationship between highway density 
and ecosystem integrity, including the impacts of 
highway density on habitat integrity and overall eco-
system health; develop a rapid assessment method-
ology for use by transportation and regulatory agen-
cies in determining the relationship between highway 
density and ecosystem integrity; and develop eco-
logically based performance techniques to evaluate the 
success of highway project mitigation and enhance-
ment measures. 
‘‘(3) ENVIRONMENTAL AND SOCIOECONOMIC RE-
LATIONSHIPS.—Environmental and socioeconomic re-
751
lationships to understand differences in mobility, ac-
cess, travel behavior, and travel preferences across so-
cioeconomic groups; develop improved planning ap-
proaches that better reflect and respond to community 
needs; improve evaluation methods for examining the 
incidence of benefits and costs; examine the differen-
tial impacts of current methods of finance and explore 
alternatives; understand the socioeconomic implica-
tions of emerging land development patterns and new 
transportation technologies; develop cost-effective ap-
plications of technology that improve the equity of the 
transport system; and develop improved methods for 
community involvement, collaborative planning, and 
conflict resolution. 
‘‘(4) 
EMERGING
TECHNOLOGIES.—Emerging 
technologies to assist in the transition to environ-
mentally benign fuels and vehicles for passengers and 
freight; develop responses to and demand for new 
technologies that could offer improved environmental 
performance; identify possible applications of intel-
ligent transportation systems technologies for environ-
mental benefit; develop policy instruments that would 
encourage the development of beneficial new tech-
nologies in a cost-effective manner; and respond to the 
impact of new technologies.
752
‘‘(5) LAND USE.—Land use to assess land con-
sumption trends and contributing factors of transpor-
tation investment, housing policies, school quality, 
and consumer preferences; incorporate impacts of 
transportation investments on location decision and 
land use; identify the costs and benefits of current de-
velopment patterns and their transportation implica-
tions; determine the effect of the built environment on 
people’s willingness to walk, drive, or take public 
transportation; determine the roles of public policy 
and institutional arrangements in current and pro-
spective land use and transportation choices; and de-
velop improved data, methods, and processes for con-
sidering land use, transportation, and the environ-
ment in an integrated, systematic fashion. 
‘‘(6) 
PLANNING
AND
PERFORMANCE
MEAS-
URES.—Planning and performance measures to im-
prove understanding of travel needs and preferences; 
improve planning methods for system analysis, fore-
casting, and decisionmaking; expand information on 
consumer choice processes and travel and activity 
patterns for both local and long-distance trips and 
both passenger and freight transportation analysis of 
social, environmental, and economic benefits and cost 
of various transport options; develop tools for meas-
753
uring and forecasting complex transportation deci-
sions for all modes and users; and develop perform-
ance measures and policy analysis approaches that 
can be used to determine effectiveness. 
‘‘(7) OTHER RESEARCH AREAS.—Other research 
areas to identify and address the emerging and future 
surface transportation research needs related to plan-
ning and environment. 
‘‘(f) FEDERAL SHARE.—The Federal share of the cost 
of an activity carried out under this section shall be up 
to 100 percent, and such funds shall remain available until 
expended. 
‘‘(g) USE OF NON-FEDERAL FUNDS.—In addition to 
using funds authorized to be appropriated to carry out this 
section, the National Academy of Sciences may seek and 
accept additional funding sources to carry out this section 
from public and private entities capable of attracting and 
accepting funding from the Department of Transportation, 
Environmental Protection Agency, Department of Energy, 
United States Fish and Wildlife Service, and other Federal 
environmental agencies, States, local governments, non-
profit foundations, and the private sector.’’. 
(b) CONFORMING
AMENDMENT.—The analysis for 
chapter 5 of such title is amended by striking the item relat-
ing to section 507 and inserting the following:
754
‘‘507. Surface transportation environment and planning cooperative research pro-
gram.’’.
(c) FUNDING.—Of the amounts made available by sec-
tion 5101(a)(1) of this Act, $5,000,000 for fiscal year 2004 
and $15,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2005 through 2009 
shall be available to carry out section 507 of title 23, United 
States Code. 
SEC. 5204. TECHNOLOGY DEPLOYMENT. 
(a) TECHNOLOGY DEPLOYMENT PROGRAM.—Section 
503(a) of title 23, United States Code, is amended—
(1) in the subsection heading by striking ‘‘INI-
TIATIVES AND PARTNERSHIPS’’; 
(2) by striking paragraph (1) and inserting the 
following: 
‘‘(1) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary shall de-
velop and administer a national technology deploy-
ment program.’’; 
(3) by striking paragraph (7) and inserting the 
following: 
‘‘(7) GRANTS, COOPERATIVE AGREEMENTS, AND 
CONTRACTS.—
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Under the program, the 
Secretary shall make grants to, and enter into 
cooperative agreements and contracts with, 
States, other Federal agencies, universities and 
colleges, private sector entities, and nonprofit or-
755
ganizations to pay the Federal share of the cost 
of research, development, and technology transfer 
activities concerning innovative materials. 
‘‘(B) APPLICATIONS.—To receive a grant 
under this subsection, an entity described in sub-
paragraph (A) shall submit an application to 
the Secretary. The application shall be in such 
form and contain such information as the Sec-
retary may require. The Secretary shall select 
and approve an application based on whether 
the project that is the subject of the grant meets 
the purpose of the program described in para-
graph (2).’’; and 
(4) by striking paragraph (8) and inserting the 
following: 
‘‘(8) TECHNOLOGY
AND
INFORMATION
TRANS-
FER.—The Secretary shall ensure that the informa-
tion and technology resulting from research conducted 
under paragraph (7) is made available to State and 
local transportation departments and other interested 
parties as specified by the Secretary.’’. 
(b) INNOVATIVE PAVEMENT RESEARCH AND DEPLOY-
MENT PROGRAM.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—Section 503 of such title is 
further amended by adding at the end the following:
756
‘‘(c) INNOVATIVE PAVEMENT RESEARCH AND DEPLOY-
MENT PROGRAM.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall establish 
and implement a program to promote, demonstrate, 
support, and document the application of innovative 
pavement technologies, practices, performance, and 
benefits. 
‘‘(2) GOALS.—The goals of the innovative pave-
ment research and deployment program shall in-
clude—
‘‘(A) the deployment of new, cost-effective, 
innovative designs, materials, recycled materials 
(including taconite tailings and foundry sand), 
and practices to extend pavement life and per-
formance and to improve customer satisfaction; 
‘‘(B) the reduction of initial costs and life-
cycle costs of pavements, including the costs of 
new construction, replacement, maintenance, and 
rehabilitation; 
‘‘(C) the deployment of accelerated construc-
tion techniques to increase safety and reduce con-
struction time and traffic disruption and conges-
tion; 
‘‘(D) the deployment of engineering design 
criteria and specifications for innovative prac-
757
tices, products, and materials for use in highway 
pavements; 
‘‘(E) the deployment of new nondestructive 
and real-time pavement evaluation technologies 
and techniques; 
‘‘(F) the evaluation, refinement, and docu-
mentation of the performance and benefits of in-
novative technologies deployed to improve life, 
performance, cost effectiveness, safety, and cus-
tomer satisfaction; 
‘‘(G) effective technology transfer and infor-
mation dissemination to accelerate implementa-
tion of innovative technologies and to improve 
life, performance, cost effectiveness, safety, and 
customer satisfaction; and 
‘‘(H) the development of designs and mate-
rials to reduce storm water runoff. 
‘‘(3) RESEARCH TO IMPROVE NHS PAVEMENT.—
The Secretary shall obligate not less than $2,000,000 
for fiscal year 2004 and $6,000,000 for each of fiscal 
years 2005 through 2009 from funds made available 
to carry out this subsection to conduct research to im-
prove asphalt pavement, concrete pavement, and ag-
gregates used in highways on the National Highway 
System.’’.
758
(2) FUNDING.—Of the amounts made available 
by section 5101(a)(1) of this Act, $5,000,000 for fiscal 
year 2004 and $15,000,000 for each of fiscal years 
2005 through 2009 shall be available to carry out sec-
tion 503(c) of title 23, United States Code. 
(c) SAFETY INNOVATION DEPLOYMENT PROGRAM.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—Section 503 of such title is 
further amended by adding the following: 
‘‘(d) SAFETY INNOVATION DEPLOYMENT PROGRAM.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall establish 
and implement a program to demonstrate the appli-
cation of innovative technologies in highway safety. 
‘‘(2) GOALS.—The goals of the program shall in-
clude—
‘‘(A) the deployment and evaluation of safe-
ty technologies and innovations at State and 
local levels; and 
‘‘(B) the deployment of best practices in 
training, management, design, and planning. 
‘‘(3) GRANTS, COOPERATIVE AGREEMENTS, AND 
CONTRACTS.—
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Under the program, the 
Secretary shall make grants to, and enter into 
cooperative agreements and contracts with, 
States, other Federal agencies, universities and
759
colleges, private sector entities, and nonprofit or-
ganizations for research, development, and tech-
nology transfer for innovative safety technologies. 
‘‘(B) APPLICATIONS.—To receive a grant 
under this subsection, an entity described in sub-
paragraph (A) shall submit an application to 
the Secretary. The application shall be in such 
form and contain such information as the Sec-
retary may require. The Secretary shall select 
and approve the applications based on whether 
the project that is the subject of the application 
meets the goals of the program described in para-
graph (2). 
‘‘(4) TECHNOLOGY
AND
INFORMATION
TRANS-
FER.—The Secretary shall take such action as is nec-
essary to ensure that the information and technology 
resulting from research conducted under paragraph 
(3) is made available to State and local transpor-
tation departments and other interested parties as 
specified by the Secretary.’’. 
(2) FUNDING.—Of the amounts made available 
by section 5101(a)(1) of this Act, $5,000,000 for fiscal 
year 2004 and $15,000,000 for each of fiscal years 
2005 through 2009 shall be available to carry out sec-
tion 503(d) of title 23, United States Code.
760
(d) 
AUTHORITY
TO
PURCHASE
PROMOTIONAL 
ITEMS.—Section 503 of such title is further amended by 
adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(e) PROMOTIONAL AUTHORITY.—Funds authorized to 
be appropriated for necessary expenses for administration 
and operation of the Federal Highway Administration shall 
be available to purchase promotional items of nominal 
value for use in the recruitment of individuals and to pro-
mote the programs of the Federal Highway Administra-
tion.’’. 
(e) WOOD COMPOSITE MATERIALS DEMONSTRATION 
PROJECT.—
(1) FUNDING.—Of the funds made available to 
carry out section 5101(a)(1), $1,000,000 shall be 
made available by the Secretary for each of fiscal 
years 2005 and 2006 for conducting a demonstration 
of the durability and potential effectiveness of wood 
composite materials in multimodal transportation fa-
cilities. 
(2) FEDERAL SHARE.—The Federal share of the 
cost of the demonstration under paragraph (1) shall 
be 100 percent. 
SEC. 5205. TRAINING AND EDUCATION. 
(a) NATIONAL HIGHWAY INSTITUTE.—
761
(1) IN GENERAL.—Section 504(a)(3) of title 23, 
United States Code, is amended to read as follows: 
‘‘(3) COURSES.—The Institute may develop and 
administer courses in modern developments, tech-
niques, methods, regulations, management, and proce-
dures in areas, including surface transportation, en-
vironmental mitigation, compliance, stewardship, and 
streamlining, acquisition of rights-of-way, relocation 
assistance, engineering, safety, transportation system 
management and operations, construction, mainte-
nance, contract administration, inspection, and high-
way finance.’’. 
(2) FUNDING.—Of the amounts made available 
by section 5101(a)(2) of this Act, $8,000,000 for fiscal 
year 2004 and $8,500,000 for each of fiscal years 
2005 through 2009 shall be available to carry out sec-
tion 504(a) of title 23, United States Code. 
(b) LOCAL TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE PROGRAM.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—Section 504(b) of such title is 
amended by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(3) FEDERAL SHARE.—
‘‘(A) GRANTS.—A grant under this sub-
section may be used to pay up to 50 percent of 
local technical assistance program costs. Funds 
available for technology transfer and training
762
purposes under this title and title 49 may be 
used to cover the remaining 50 percent of the 
program costs. 
‘‘(B) TRIBAL TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE CEN-
TERS.—The Federal share of the cost of activities 
carried out by the tribal technical assistance cen-
ters under paragraph (2)(D)(ii) shall be 100 per-
cent.’’. 
(2) FUNDING.—Of the amounts made available 
by section 5101(a)(2) of this Act, $12,000,000 for fis-
cal year 2004 and $14,000,000 for each of fiscal years 
2005 through 2009 shall be available to carry out sec-
tion 504(b) of title 23, United States Code. 
(c) EISENHOWER
TRANSPORTATION
FELLOWSHIP 
PROGRAM.—Of the amounts made available by section 
5101(a)(2) of this Act, $2,000,000 for fiscal year 2004 and 
$2,500,000 for each of fiscal years 2005 through 2009 shall 
be available to carry out section 504(c)(2) of title 23, United 
States Code. 
(d) GARRETT A. MORGAN TECHNOLOGY AND TRANS-
PORTATION EDUCATION PROGRAM.—
(1) IN
GENERAL.—Section 504 of title 23, 
United States Code, is further amended by adding at 
the end the following new subsection:
763
‘‘(d) GARRETT A. MORGAN TECHNOLOGY AND TRANS-
PORTATION EDUCATION PROGRAM.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall establish 
the Garrett A. Morgan Technology and Transpor-
tation Education Program to improve the prepara-
tion of students, particularly women and minorities, 
in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics 
through curriculum development and other activities 
related to transportation. 
‘‘(2) AUTHORIZED
ACTIVITIES.—The Secretary 
shall award grants under this subsection on the basis 
of competitive, peer review. Grants awarded under 
this subsection may be used for enhancing science, 
technology, engineering, and mathematics at the ele-
mentary and secondary school level through such 
means as—
‘‘(A) internships that offer students experi-
ence in the transportation field; 
‘‘(B) programs that allow students to spend 
time observing scientists and engineers in the 
transportation field; and 
‘‘(C) developing relevant curriculum that 
uses examples and problems related to transpor-
tation. 
‘‘(3) APPLICATION AND REVIEW PROCEDURES.—
764
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—An entity described in 
subparagraph (C) seeking funding under this 
subsection shall submit an application to the 
Secretary at such time, in such manner, and 
containing such information as the Secretary 
may require. Such application, at a minimum, 
shall include a description of how the funds will 
be used and a description of how the funds will 
be used to serve the purposes described in para-
graph (2). 
‘‘(B) PRIORITY.—In making awards under 
this subsection, the Secretary shall give priority 
to applicants that will encourage the participa-
tion of women and minorities. 
‘‘(C) ELIGIBILITY.—Local education agen-
cies and State education agencies, which may 
partner with institutions of higher education, 
businesses, or other entities, shall be eligible to 
apply for grants under this subsection. 
‘‘(4) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of this sub-
section—
‘‘(A) the term ‘institution of higher edu-
cation’ has the meaning given that term in sec-
tion 101 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 
(20 U.S.C. 1001);
765
‘‘(B) the term ‘local educational agency’ has 
the meaning given that term in section 9101 of 
the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 
1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801); and 
‘‘(C) the term ‘State educational agency’ 
has the meaning given that term in section 9101 
of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act 
of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801).’’. 
(2) FUNDING.—Of the amounts made available 
by section 5101(a)(2) of this Act, $500,000 for 2004 
and $1,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2005 through 
2009 shall be available to carry out section 504(d) of 
title 23, United States Code. 
(e) SURFACE TRANSPORTATION WORKFORCE DEVEL-
OPMENT, TRAINING, AND EDUCATION.—Section 504 of such 
title is further amended by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(e) SURFACE TRANSPORTATION WORKFORCE DEVEL-
OPMENT, TRAINING, AND EDUCATION.—
‘‘(1) FUNDING.—Subject to project approval by 
the Secretary, a State may obligate funds apportioned 
to the State under sections 104(b)(1), 104(b)(2), 
104(b)(3), 104(b)(4), and 144(e) for surface transpor-
tation workforce development, training and education, 
including—
766
‘‘(A) tuition and direct educational ex-
penses, excluding salaries, in connection with the 
education and training of employees of State 
and local transportation agencies; 
‘‘(B) employee professional development; 
‘‘(C) student internships; 
‘‘(D) university or community college sup-
port; and 
‘‘(E) education activities, including out-
reach, to develop interest and promote participa-
tion in surface transportation careers. 
‘‘(2) FEDERAL SHARE.—The Federal share of the 
cost of activities carried out in accordance with this 
subsection shall be 100 percent. 
‘‘(3) SURFACE
TRANSPORTATION
WORKFORCE 
DEVELOPMENT, 
TRAINING, 
AND
EDUCATION
DE-
FINED.—In this subsection, the term ‘surface trans-
portation workforce development, training, and edu-
cation’ means activities associated with surface trans-
portation career awareness, student transportation 
career preparation, and training and professional de-
velopment for surface transportation workers, includ-
ing activities for women and minorities.’’.
767
(f) 
TRANSPORTATION
EDUCATION
DEVELOPMENT 
PILOT PROGRAM.—Section 504 of such title is further 
amended by inserting after subsection (e) the following: 
‘‘(f) TRANSPORTATION
EDUCATION
DEVELOPMENT 
PILOT PROGRAM.—
‘‘(1) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary shall es-
tablish a program to make grants to institutions of 
higher education that in partnership with industry or 
State Departments of Transportation will develop, 
test, and revise new curricula and education pro-
grams to train individuals at all levels of the trans-
portation workforce. 
‘‘(2) SELECTION OF GRANT RECIPIENTS.—In se-
lecting applications for awards under this subsection, 
the Secretary shall consider—
‘‘(A) the degree to which the new curricula 
or education program meets the specific needs of 
a segment of the transportation industry, States, 
or regions; 
‘‘(B) providing for practical experience and 
on-the-job training; 
‘‘(C) proposals oriented toward practi-
tioners in the field rather than the support and 
growth of the research community;
768
‘‘(D) the degree to which the new curricula 
or program will provide training in areas other 
than engineering, such as business administra-
tion, economics, information technology, environ-
mental science, and law; 
‘‘(E) programs or curricula in nontradi-
tional departments which train professionals for 
work in the transportation field, such as mate-
rials, information technology, environmental 
science, urban planning, and industrial tech-
nology; and 
‘‘(F) industry or a State’s Department of 
Transportation commitment to the program. 
‘‘(3) FUNDING.—Of the amounts made available 
by section 5101(a)(2) of this Act, $1,500,000 for each 
of fiscal years 2005 through 2009 shall be available 
to carry out this subsection. 
‘‘(4) LIMITATIONS.—The amount of a grant 
under this subsection shall not exceed $250,000 per 
year. After a recipient has received 3 years of Federal 
funding under this subsection, Federal funding may 
equal no more than 75 percent of a grantee’s program 
costs.’’. 
(g) DEFINITIONS AND DECLARATION OF POLICY.—Sec-
tion 101(a)(3) of such title is amended—
769
(1) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of subpara-
graph (G); 
(2) by striking the period at the end of subpara-
graph (H) and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 
(3) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(I) surface transportation workforce devel-
opment, training, and education.’’. 
(h) TRANSPORTATION TECHNOLOGY INNOVATIONS.—
(1) FUNDAMENTAL
PROPERTIES
OF
ASPHALTS 
AND MODIFIED ASPHALTS.—The Secretary shall con-
tinue to carry out section 5117(b)(5) of the Transpor-
tation Equity Act for the 21st Century (112 Stat. 
450). 
(2) TRANSPORTATION, ECONOMIC, AND LAND USE 
SYSTEM.—The Secretary shall continue to carry out 
section 5117(b)(7) of the Transportation Equity Act 
for the 21st Century (112 Stat. 450). 
(3) FUNDING.—Of the amounts made available 
for each of fiscal years 2004 through 2009 by section 
5101(a)(1) of this Act, $3,000,000 shall be available 
to carry out paragraph (1) and $1,000,000 shall be 
available to carry out paragraph (2). 
(4) USE OF RIGHTS-OF-WAY.—Section 5117(b)(3) 
of the Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century
770
(112 Stat. 449; 112 Stat. 864; 115 Stat. 2330) is 
amended—
(A) by redesignating subparagraphs (E) 
through (G) as subparagraphs (F) through (H), 
respectively; and 
(B) by inserting after subparagraph (D) the 
following: 
‘‘(E) USE OF RIGHTS-OF-WAY.—
‘‘(i) 
IN
GENERAL.—An 
intelligent 
transportation system project described in 
paragraph (3), and an intelligent transpor-
tation system project described in para-
graph (6), that involves privately owned in-
telligent transportation system components 
and is carried out using funds made avail-
able from the Highway Trust Fund (other 
than the Mass Transit Account) shall not be 
subject to any law or regulation of a State 
or political subdivision of a State prohib-
iting or regulating commercial activities in 
the rights-of-way of a highway for which 
funds from the Highway Trust Fund (other 
than the Mass Transit Account) have been 
used for planning, design, construction, or
771
maintenance if the Secretary determines 
that such use is in the public interest. 
‘‘(ii) LIMITATION ON STATUTORY CON-
STRUCTION.—Nothing in this subparagraph 
shall be construed to affect the authority of 
a State, or political subdivision of a State, 
to regulate highway safety.’’. 
SEC. 5206. FREIGHT PLANNING CAPACITY BUILDING. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Section 504 of title 23, United 
States Code, is further amended by adding at the end the 
following: 
‘‘(g) FREIGHT CAPACITY BUILDING PROGRAM.—
‘‘(1) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary shall es-
tablish a freight planning capacity building initiative 
to support enhancements in freight transportation 
planning in order to—
‘‘(A) better target investments in freight 
transportation systems to maintain efficiency 
and productivity; and 
‘‘(B) strengthen the decisionmaking capac-
ity of State transportation departments and 
local transportation agencies with respect to 
freight transportation planning and systems. 
‘‘(2) AGREEMENTS.—The Secretary shall enter 
into agreements to support and carry out administra-
772
tive and management activities relating to the gov-
ernance of the freight planning capacity initiative. 
‘‘(3) STAKEHOLDER INVOLVEMENT.—In carrying 
out this section, the Secretary shall consult with the 
Association of Metropolitan Planning Organizations, 
the American Association of State Highway and 
Transportation Officials, and other freight planning 
stakeholders, including the other Federal agencies, 
State transportation departments, local governments, 
nonprofit entities, academia, and the private sector. 
‘‘(4) ELIGIBLE
ACTIVITIES.—The freight plan-
ning capacity building initiative shall include re-
search, training, and education in the following 
areas: 
‘‘(A) The identification and dissemination 
of best practices in freight transportation. 
‘‘(B) Providing opportunities for freight 
transportation staff to engage in peer exchange. 
‘‘(C) Refinement of data and analysis tools 
used in conjunction with assessing freight trans-
portation needs. 
‘‘(D) Technical assistance to State transpor-
tation departments and local transportation 
agencies reorganizing to address freight trans-
portation issues.
773
‘‘(E) Facilitating relationship building be-
tween governmental and private entities involved 
in freight transportation. 
‘‘(F) Identifying ways to target the capacity 
of State transportation departments and local 
transportation agencies to address freight consid-
erations in operations, security, asset manage-
ment, and environmental excellence in connec-
tion with long-range multimodal transportation 
planning and project implementation. 
‘‘(5) FUNDING.—
‘‘(A) FEDERAL SHARE.—The Federal share 
of the cost of an activity carried out under this 
section shall be up to 100 percent, and such 
funds shall remain available until expended. 
‘‘(B) USE OF NON-FEDERAL FUNDS.—Funds 
made available for the program established under 
this subsection may be used for research, pro-
gram development, information collection and 
dissemination, and technical assistance. The Sec-
retary may use such funds independently or 
make grants to, or enter into contracts, coopera-
tive agreements, and other transactions with, a 
Federal agency, State agency, local agency, Fed-
erally recognized Indian tribal government or
774
tribal consortium, authority, association, non-
profit or for-profit corporation, or institution of 
higher education, to carry out the purposes of 
this subsection.’’. 
(b) FUNDING.—Of the amounts made available by sec-
tion 5101(a)(2) of this Act, $1,500,000 for fiscal year 2004 
and $5,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2005 through 2009 
shall be available to carry out section 504(f) of title 23, 
United States Code. 
SEC. 5207. ADVANCED TRAVEL FORECASTING PROCEDURES 
PROGRAM. 
(a) 
CONTINUATION
AND
ACCELERATION
OF 
TRANSIMS DEPLOYMENT.—The Secretary shall accelerate 
the deployment of the advanced transportation model 
known as the ‘‘Transportation Analysis Simulation Sys-
tem’’ (in this section referred to as ‘‘TRANSIMS’’), devel-
oped by the Los Alamos National Laboratory. The program 
shall assist State departments of transportation and metro-
politan planning organizations in the implementation of 
TRANSIMS, develop methods for TRANSIMS applications 
to transportation planning and air quality analysis, and 
provide training and technical assistance for the implemen-
tation of TRANSIMS. The program may support the devel-
opment of methods to plan for the transportation response
775
to chemical and biological terrorism and other security con-
cerns. 
(b) ELIGIBLE ACTIVITIES.—The Secretary shall use 
funds made available by section 5101(a)(1) to—
(1) provide funding to State departments of 
transportation and metropolitan planning organiza-
tions serving transportation management areas des-
ignated under chapter 52 of title 49, United States 
Code, representing a diversity of populations, geo-
graphic regions, and analytic needs to implement 
TRANSIMS; 
(2) develop methods to demonstrate a wide spec-
trum of TRANSIMS applications to support metro-
politan and statewide transportation planning, in-
cluding integrating highway and transit operational 
considerations into the transportation Planning proc-
ess; and 
(3) provide training and technical assistance 
with respect to the implementation and application of 
TRANSIMS to States, local governments, and metro-
politan planning organizations with responsibility for 
travel modeling. 
(c) ALLOCATION OF FUNDS.—Not more than 75 per-
cent of the funds made available to carry out this section 
may be allocated to activities described in subsection (b)(1).
776
(d) FUNDING.—Of the amounts made available by sec-
tion 5101(a)(1) of this Act, $1,000,000 for fiscal year 2004 
and $3,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2005 through 2009 
shall be available to carry out this section. 
SEC. 5208. NATIONAL COOPERATIVE FREIGHT TRANSPOR-
TATION RESEARCH PROGRAM. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 5 of title 23, United States 
Code, is further amended by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘§ 509. National cooperative freight Transportation 
research program 
‘‘(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary shall establish 
and support a national cooperative freight transportation 
research program. 
‘‘(b) AGREEMENT.—The Secretary shall enter into an 
agreement with the National Academy of Sciences to sup-
port and carry out administrative and management activi-
ties relating to the governance of the national cooperative 
freight transportation research program. 
‘‘(c) ADVISORY COMMITTEE.—The National Academy 
of Sciences shall select an advisory committee consisting of 
a representative cross-section of freight stakeholders, includ-
ing the Department of Transportation, other Federal agen-
cies, State transportation departments, local governments, 
nonprofit entities, academia, and the private sector.
777
‘‘(d) GOVERNANCE.—The national cooperative freight 
transportation research program established under this sec-
tion shall include the following administrative and manage-
ment elements: 
‘‘(1) NATIONAL RESEARCH AGENDA.—The advi-
sory committee, in consultation with interested par-
ties, shall recommend a national research agenda for 
the program. The agenda shall include a multiyear 
strategic plan. 
‘‘(2) INVOLVEMENT.—Interested parties may—
‘‘(A) submit research proposals to the advi-
sory committee; 
‘‘(B) participate in merit reviews of re-
search proposals and peer reviews of research 
products; and 
‘‘(C) receive research results. 
‘‘(3) OPEN COMPETITION AND PEER REVIEW OF 
RESEARCH
PROPOSALS.—The National Academy of 
Sciences may award research contracts and grants 
under the program through open competition and 
merit review conducted on a regular basis. 
‘‘(4) EVALUATION OF RESEARCH.—
‘‘(A) PEER
REVIEW.—Research contracts 
and grants under the program may allow peer 
review of the research results.
778
‘‘(B) PROGRAMMATIC
EVALUATIONS.—The 
National Academy of Sciences may conduct peri-
odic programmatic evaluations on a regular 
basis of research contracts and grants. 
‘‘(5) DISSEMINATION OF RESEARCH FINDINGS.—
The National Academy of Sciences shall disseminate 
research findings to researchers, practitioners, and de-
cisionmakers, through conferences and seminars, field 
demonstrations, workshops, training programs, pres-
entations, testimony to government officials, World 
Wide Web, publications for the general public, and 
other appropriate means. 
‘‘(e) CONTENTS.—The national research agenda re-
quired under subsection (d)(1) shall include research in the 
following areas: 
‘‘(1) Techniques for estimating and quantifying 
public benefits derived from freight transportation 
projects. 
‘‘(2) Alternative approaches to calculating the 
contribution of truck and rail traffic to congestion on 
specific highway segments. 
‘‘(3) The feasibility of consolidating origins and 
destinations for freight movement.
779
‘‘(4) Methods for incorporating estimates of 
international trade into landside transportation 
planning. 
‘‘(5) The use of technology applications to in-
crease capacity of highway lanes dedicated to truck-
only traffic. 
‘‘(6) Development of physical and policy alter-
natives for separating car and truck traffic. 
‘‘(7) Ways to synchronize infrastructure im-
provements with freight transportation demand. 
‘‘(8) The effect of changing patterns of freight 
movement on transportation planning decisions relat-
ing to rest areas. 
‘‘(9) Other research areas to identify and address 
the emerging and future research needs related to 
freight transportation by all modes. 
‘‘(f) FUNDING.—
‘‘(1) FEDERAL SHARE.—The Federal share of the 
cost of an activity carried out under this section shall 
be up to 100 percent, and such funds shall remain 
available until expended. 
‘‘(2) USE OF NON-FEDERAL FUNDS.—In addition 
to using funds authorized for this section, the Na-
tional Academy of Sciences may seek and accept ad-
ditional funding sources from public and private en-
780
tities capable of accepting funding from the Depart-
ment of Transportation, States, local governments, 
nonprofit foundations, and the private sector.’’. 
(b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The analysis for such 
chapter is further amended by adding at the end the fol-
lowing:
‘‘509. National cooperative freight transportation research program.’’.
(c) FUNDING.—Of the amounts made available by sec-
tion 5101(a)(1) of this Act, $1,500,000 for fiscal year 2004 
and $4,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2005 through 2009 
shall be available to carry out section 509 of title 23, United 
States Code. 
SEC. 5209. FUTURE STRATEGIC HIGHWAY RESEARCH PRO-
GRAM. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 5 of title 23, United States 
Code, is further amended by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘§ 510. Future strategic highway research program 
‘‘(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary, in consulta-
tion with the American Association of State Highway and 
Transportation Officials, shall establish and carry out, act-
ing through the National Research Council of the National 
Academy of Sciences, the future strategic highway research 
program. 
‘‘(b) COOPERATIVE
AGREEMENTS.—The Secretary 
may make grants to, and enter into cooperative agreements 
with, the American Association of State Highway and
781
Transportation Officials and the National Academy of 
Sciences to carry out such activities under this subsection 
as the Secretary determines are appropriate. 
‘‘(c) PERIOD OF AVAILABILITY.—Funds made avail-
able to carry out this section shall remain available for the 
fiscal year in which such funds are made available and the 
3 succeeding fiscal years. 
‘‘(d) PROGRAM PRIORITIES.—
‘‘(1) PROGRAM ELEMENTS.—The program estab-
lished under this section shall be based on the Na-
tional Research Council Special Report 260, entitled 
‘Strategic Highway Research: Saving Lives, Reducing 
Congestion, Improving Quality of Life’ and the re-
sults of the detailed planning work subsequently car-
ried out in 2002 and 2003 to identify the research 
areas through National Cooperative Research Pro-
gram Project 20–58. The research program shall in-
clude an analysis of the following: 
‘‘(A) Renewal of aging highway infrastruc-
ture with minimal impact to users of the facili-
ties. 
‘‘(B) Driving behavior and likely crash 
causal factors to support improved counter-
measures.
782
‘‘(C) Reducing highway congestion due to 
nonrecurring congestion. 
‘‘(D) Planning and designing new road ca-
pacity to meet mobility, economic, environ-
mental, and community needs. 
‘‘(2) DISSEMINATION OF RESULTS.—The research 
results of the program, expressed in terms of tech-
nologies, methodologies, and other appropriate cat-
egorizations, shall be disseminated to practicing engi-
neers for their use, as soon as practicable. 
‘‘(e) PROGRAM ADMINISTRATION.—In carrying out the 
program under this section, the National Research Council 
shall ensure, to the maximum extent practicable, that—
‘‘(1) projects and researchers are selected to con-
duct research for the program on the basis of merit 
and open solicitation of proposals and review by pan-
els of appropriate experts; 
‘‘(2) State department of transportation officials 
and other stakeholders, as appropriate, are involved 
in the governance of the program at the overall pro-
gram level and technical level through the use of ex-
pert panels and committees; 
‘‘(3) the Council acquires a qualified, permanent 
core staff with the ability and expertise to manage the 
program and multiyear budget; and
783
‘‘(4) there is no duplication of research effort be-
tween the program and any other research effort of 
the Department. 
‘‘(f) REPORT ON IMPLEMENTATION OF RESULTS.—
‘‘(1) REPORT.—The Transportation Research 
Board of the National Research Council shall com-
plete a report on the strategies and administrative 
structure to be used for implementation of the results 
of the future strategic highway research program. 
‘‘(2) COMPONENTS.—The report under para-
graph (1) shall include with respect to the program—
‘‘(A) an identification of the most prom-
ising results of research under the program (in-
cluding the persons most likely to use the re-
sults); 
‘‘(B) a discussion of potential incentives for, 
impediments to, and methods of, implementing 
those results; 
‘‘(C) an estimate of costs of implementation 
of those results; and 
‘‘(D) recommendations on methods by which 
implementation of those results should be con-
ducted, coordinated, and supported in future 
years, including a discussion of the administra-