‘‘(A) Provide input into the development of 
the National ITS Program Plan, and the Intel-
ligent Transportation System portion of each 
strategic plan under section 508 of title 23, 
United States Code. 
‘‘(B) Review the National ITS Program 
Plan and the Intelligent Transportation System 
portion of each strategic plan under section 508 
of title 23, United States Code, and transmit 
the Advisory Committee’s views on the plans to 
Congress. 
‘‘(C) Analyze intelligent transportation sys-
tems technologies, for which a plan or budget 
proposal has recommended funding for research 
and development activities or operational tests, 
to advise the Department on—
‘‘(i) whether the intelligent transpor-
tation system technologies are likely to be 
deployed by users, and, if not, to determine 
the barriers to deployment; 
‘‘(ii) the appropriate roles for govern-
ment and the private sector in investing in 
specific intelligent transportation system 
technologies; and
‘‘(iii) whether these activities are like-
ly to advance either the state-of-the-prac-
tice or state-of-the-art in intelligent trans-
portation systems. 
‘‘(4) APPLICABILITY
OF
FEDERAL
ADVISORY 
COMMITTEE ACT.—The Advisory Committee shall be 
subject to the Federal Advisory Committee Act (5 
U.S.C. App.). 
‘‘(i) PROCUREMENT METHODS.—
‘‘(1) TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.—The Secretary 
shall develop appropriate technical assistance and 
guidance to assist State and local agencies in evalu-
ating and selecting appropriate methods of procure-
ment for intelligent transportation system projects 
carried out using funds made available from the 
Highway Trust Fund, including innovative and non-
traditional methods such as the Information Tech-
nology Omnibus Procurement. 
‘‘(2) INTELLIGENT
TRANSPORTATION
SYSTEM 
SOFTWARE.—To the maximum extent practicable, 
contracting officials shall use as a critical evaluation 
criterion the Software Engineering Institute’s Capa-
bility Maturity Model, or another similar recognized 
software design and development methodology, to re-
duce the cost, schedule, and performance risks asso-
ciated with the development, management, and inte-
gration of intelligent transportation system software. 
‘‘(j) EVALUATIONS.—
‘‘(1) GUIDELINES AND REQUIREMENTS.—
‘‘(A) IN
GENERAL.—The Secretary shall 
issue guidelines and requirements for the eval-
uation of operational tests and model deploy-
ment projects carried out under this subtitle. 
‘‘(B) CONTENT.—Such evaluations shall 
include specific, quantitative measures to deter-
mine whether a technology is meeting its in-
tended goal. To the maximum extent prac-
ticable, these measures shall evaluate the out-
come of the technology (such as accidents 
avoided or decreased travel times or travel time 
variability). 
‘‘(C) OBJECTIVITY AND INDEPENDENCE.—
The guidelines and requirements issued under 
subparagraph (A) shall include provisions to en-
sure the objectivity and independence of the 
evaluator so as to avoid any real or apparent 
conflict of interest or potential influence on the 
outcome by parties to any such test or deploy-
ment project or by any other formal evaluation 
carried out under this subtitle.
‘‘(D) FUNDING.—The guidelines and re-
quirements issued under subparagraph (A) shall 
establish evaluation funding levels, based on the 
size and scope of each test or project, that en-
sure adequate evaluation of the results of the 
test or project. 
‘‘(E) 
DISSEMINATION.—The 
Secretary 
shall make readily available through the Inter-
net all information collected through evalua-
tions carried out under this subtitle. 
‘‘(2) SPECIAL
RULE.—Any survey, question-
naire, or interview that the Secretary considers nec-
essary to carry out the evaluation of any test, de-
ployment project, or program assessment activity 
under this subtitle shall not be subject to chapter 35 
of title 44, United States Code. 
‘‘(k) USE OF RIGHTS-OF-WAY.—Intelligent transpor-
tation system projects specified in section 5117(b)(3) and 
5117(b)(6) and involving privately owned intelligent trans-
portation system components that are carried out using 
funds made available from the Highway Trust Fund shall 
not be subject to any law or regulation of a State or polit-
ical subdivision of a State prohibiting or regulating com-
mercial activities in the rights-of-way of a highway for 
which Federal-aid highway funds have been utilized for
planning, design, construction, or maintenance, if the Sec-
retary of Transportation determines that such use is in 
the public interest. Nothing in this subsection shall affect 
the authority of a State or political subdivision of a State 
to regulate highway safety. 
‘‘SEC. 5204. NATIONAL ITS PROGRAM PLAN. 
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—
‘‘(1) UPDATES.—The Secretary shall publish an 
update of the ‘National Intelligent Transportation 
Systems Program Plan Five-Year Horizon’, pub-
lished in August, 2000. The Secretary shall consult 
with the Advisory Committee established under sec-
tion 5203(h) in carrying out this section. 
‘‘(2) SCOPE.—The National ITS Program Plan 
update shall—
‘‘(A) specify the goals, objectives, and mile-
stones for the research and deployment of intel-
ligent transportation systems in the context of 
major metropolitan areas, smaller metropolitan 
and rural areas, and commercial vehicle oper-
ations; 
‘‘(B) evaluate how the intelligent transpor-
tation systems program has progressed in 
achieving the goals, objectives, and milestones 
referred to in subparagraph (A);
‘‘(C) compare actual outcomes of the intel-
ligent transportation systems program over the 
last 5 years to projections from the 2000 Plan 
referred to in paragraph (1); 
‘‘(D) for each goal, objective, milestone, or 
projection found under subparagraph (B) or 
(C) not to have been achieved, document the 
barriers to achievement; 
‘‘(E) specify how specific programs and 
projects will achieve the goals, objectives, and 
milestones referred to in subparagraph (A), in 
the next 5 years; 
‘‘(F) specify necessary and realistically 
achievable timeframes and funding levels to 
conduct the programs and projects referred to 
in subparagraph (E) in order to achieve the 
goals, objectives, and milestones referred to in 
subparagraph (A); 
‘‘(G) develop a plan for addressing barriers 
documented under subparagraph (D); 
‘‘(H) identify activities that provide for the 
dynamic development of standards and proto-
cols to promote and ensure interoperability in 
the implementation of intelligent transportation
system technologies, including actions taken to 
establish critical standards; and 
‘‘(I) establish a cooperative process with 
State and local governments for determining 
desired surface transportation system perform-
ance levels and developing plans for incorpora-
tion of specific intelligent transportation system 
capabilities into surface transportation systems. 
‘‘(b) REPORTING.—The National ITS Program Plan 
shall be transmitted to the Congress not later than August 
31, 2007. 
‘‘(c) ADVISORY COMMITTEE REVIEW.—The Advisory 
Committee established under section 5203(h) shall review 
the National ITS Program Plan that is transmitted to 
Congress under this section, and shall transmit the Advi-
sory Committee’s views on the Plan to Congress. 
‘‘SEC. 5205. INFORMATION STRATEGY. 
‘‘(a) DEVELOPMENT AND IMPLEMENTATION.—The 
Secretary shall develop and implement a strategy to use 
information collected from intelligent transportation sys-
tem technologies (including technologies used in roadway, 
transit, and in-vehicle applications) for traffic manage-
ment and for planning, performance monitoring, program 
assessment, and policy applications. The Secretary shall 
ensure that the Bureau of Transportation Statistics plays
a significant role in the development of the strategy under 
this section. 
‘‘(b) CONSIDERATIONS.—The strategy developed 
under this section shall—
‘‘(1) consider current data sources and propose 
future data sources, as well as proposing strategies 
for both real-time use and archived use of data; 
‘‘(2) determine what data should be centralized 
nationally in support of national planning and goals, 
what information should be aggregated regionally, 
and what information should be kept locally, and for 
nationally centralized data, identify how to ensure 
that data is collected and reported consistently; 
‘‘(3) assess the need for data standards; 
‘‘(4) outline how transportation decision proc-
esses can make best use of real-time data; 
‘‘(5) outline a vision for the future linkages be-
tween intelligent transportation system technologies 
and data; 
‘‘(6) identify public and private data sources 
other than intelligent transportation system data 
sources (such as roadway characteristics inventories 
and incident information) that, combined with intel-
ligent transportation system data, would enhance the 
utility of intelligent transportation system data to
decisionmakers, and how these data sources can be 
merged; 
‘‘(7) identify how to make data most accessible 
and useful to users; and 
‘‘(8) identify what information would be useful 
to stakeholders at the local, State, regional, and na-
tional levels. 
‘‘(c) STAKEHOLDER INVOLVEMENT.—In developing 
the strategy under this section, the Secretary shall involve 
developers and users of intelligent transportation system 
technologies, including State and local highway depart-
ments, metropolitan planning organizations, transit agen-
cies, travelers, the private sector, not-for-profit organiza-
tions, and representatives from the planning, safety, oper-
ations, and research communities. 
‘‘(d) INCORPORATION INTO NATIONAL ARCHITEC-
TURE.—The strategy developed under this section shall, 
to the extent practicable, be incorporated into the national 
architecture. 
‘‘(e) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—Not later than 1 year 
after the date of the enactment of this subsection, the Sec-
retary shall transmit to the Congress a report outlining 
the strategy developed under this section. 
‘‘SEC. 5206. NATIONAL ARCHITECTURE AND STANDARDS. 
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—
‘‘(1) DEVELOPMENT, IMPLEMENTATION, AND 
MAINTENANCE.—Consistent with section 12(d) of 
the National Technology Transfer and Advancement 
Act of 1995 (15 U.S.C. 272 note; 110 Stat. 783), 
the Secretary shall develop, implement, and maintain 
a national architecture and supporting standards 
and protocols to promote the widespread use and 
evaluation of intelligent transportation system tech-
nology as a component of the surface transportation 
systems of the United States. 
‘‘(2) GOAL.—The goal of the national architec-
ture and standards shall be to ensure interoper-
ability among, and efficiency of, intelligent transpor-
tation system technologies implemented throughout 
the United States. 
‘‘(3) USE OF STANDARDS DEVELOPMENT ORGA-
NIZATIONS.—In carrying out this section, the Sec-
retary may use the services of such standards devel-
opment organizations as the Secretary determines to 
be appropriate. 
‘‘(4) STANDARD
VALIDATION.—The Secretary 
shall ensure that new standards promulgated for in-
telligent transportation system technologies are test-
ed and validated, and shall ensure that the results
of such testing and validation are made publicly 
available. 
‘‘(b) PROVISIONAL STANDARDS.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—If the Secretary finds that 
the development or balloting of an intelligent trans-
portation system standard jeopardizes the timely 
achievement of the objectives identified in subsection 
(a)(1) and (2), the Secretary may establish a provi-
sional standard after consultation with affected par-
ties, and using, to the extent practicable, the work 
product of appropriate standards development orga-
nizations. 
‘‘(2) PERIOD
OF
EFFECTIVENESS.—A provi-
sional standard established under paragraph (1) 
shall be published in the Federal Register and re-
main in effect until the appropriate standards devel-
opment organization adopts and publishes a stand-
ard. 
‘‘(c) CONFORMITY
WITH
NATIONAL
ARCHITEC-
TURE.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para-
graphs (2) and (3), the Secretary shall ensure that 
intelligent transportation system projects carried out 
using funds made available from the Highway Trust 
Fund, including funds made available to deploy in-
telligent transportation system technologies, conform 
to the national architecture, applicable standards or 
provisional standards, and protocols developed under 
subsection (a). 
‘‘(2) SECRETARY’S
DISCRETION.—The Sec-
retary may authorize exceptions to paragraph (1) 
for—
‘‘(A) projects designed to achieve specific 
research objectives outlined in the National ITS 
Program Plan under section 5204 or the Sur-
face Transportation Research and Development 
Strategic Plan developed under section 508 of 
title 23, United States Code; or 
‘‘(B) the upgrade or expansion of an intel-
ligent transportation system in existence on the 
date of enactment of the Transportation Equity 
Act for the 21st Century, if the Secretary de-
termines that the upgrade or expansion—
‘‘(i) would not adversely affect the 
goals or purposes of this subtitle; 
‘‘(ii) is carried out before the end of 
the useful life of such system; and 
‘‘(iii) is cost-effective as compared to 
alternatives that would meet the con-
formity requirement of paragraph (1).
‘‘(3) EXCEPTIONS.—Paragraph (1) shall not 
apply to funds used for operation or maintenance of 
an intelligent transportation system in existence on 
the date of enactment of the Transportation Equity 
Act for the 21st Century. 
‘‘SEC. 5207. RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT. 
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall carry out a 
comprehensive program of research, development, and 
operational tests of intelligent vehicles and intelligent in-
frastructure systems, as well as research into barriers to 
their deployment, and other similar activities that are nec-
essary to carry out this subtitle. 
‘‘(b) PRIORITY AREAS.—Under the program, the Sec-
retary shall give higher priority to funding projects that—
‘‘(1) reduce congestion in metropolitan regions; 
‘‘(2) improve mobility and efficiency by address-
ing traffic management, incident management, tran-
sit management, toll collection, traveler information, 
or highway operations systems; 
‘‘(3) improve safety by focusing on crash-avoid-
ance and integration of in-vehicle crash protection 
technologies with other onboard safety systems, in-
cluding the interaction of air bags and safety belts; 
‘‘(4) improve security by focusing on responding 
to security-related emergencies, and preventing such
emergencies, through tracking the movement of 
goods; 
‘‘(5) incorporate human factors research, in-
cluding the science of the driving process; 
‘‘(6) improve deployment of proven technologies 
by addressing nontechnical barriers to the deploy-
ment of intelligent transportation system tech-
nologies, including institutional barriers such as 
fragmented authority at the local level, privacy con-
siderations, and rigid procurement rules, and the 
best ways to develop partnerships to successfully de-
ploy intelligent transportation system technologies; 
‘‘(7) facilitate the integration of intelligent in-
frastructure, vehicle, and control technologies, in-
cluding magnetic guidance control systems or other 
materials or magnetics research; 
‘‘(8) incorporate research on the impact of envi-
ronmental, weather, and natural conditions on intel-
ligent transportation systems, including the effects 
of cold climates; or 
‘‘(9) facilitate high-performance transportation 
systems, through methods such as congestion pric-
ing, real-time facility management, rapid emergency 
response, and just-in-time transit.
‘‘(c) OPERATIONAL TESTS.—Operational tests shall 
be used to evaluate promising technologies that have not 
yet been demonstrated. Operational tests conducted under 
this section shall be designed for the collection of data to 
permit objective evaluation of the results of the tests, deri-
vation of cost-benefit information that is useful to others 
contemplating deployment of similar systems, and develop-
ment and implementation of standards. 
‘‘(d) FEDERAL SHARE.—The Federal share of the 
cost of operational tests and demonstrations under sub-
section (a) shall not exceed 80 percent. 
‘‘SEC. 5208. USE OF FUNDS. 
‘‘(a) CONGESTION REDUCTION.—At least 1⁄3 of funds 
spent under section 5207 for intelligent transportation 
systems research and development shall be used to re-
search, develop, and operationally test technologies whose 
primary purpose is to reduce congestion. 
‘‘(b) OUTREACH AND PUBLIC RELATIONS LIMITA-
TION.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—For each fiscal year, not 
more than $5,000,000 of the funds made available 
to carry out this subtitle shall be used for intelligent 
transportation system outreach, public relations, dis-
plays, scholarships, tours, and brochures.
‘‘(2) APPLICABILITY.—Paragraph (1) shall not 
apply to intelligent transportation system training or 
the publication or distribution of research findings, 
technical guidance, or similar documents. 
‘‘(c) 
INFRASTRUCTURE
DEVELOPMENT.—Funds 
made available to carry out this subtitle for operational 
tests—
‘‘(1) shall be used primarily for the development 
of intelligent transportation system infrastructure; 
and 
‘‘(2) to the maximum extent practicable, shall 
not be used for the construction of physical highway 
and transit infrastructure unless the construction is 
incidental and critically necessary to the implemen-
tation of an intelligent transportation system 
project. 
‘‘(d) USE OF INNOVATIVE FINANCING.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may use up 
to 25 percent of the funds made available to carry 
out this subtitle to make available loans, lines of 
credit, and loan guarantees for projects that are eli-
gible for assistance under this subtitle and that have 
significant intelligent transportation system ele-
ments.
‘‘(2) CONSISTENCY WITH OTHER LAW.—Credit 
assistance described in paragraph (1) shall be made 
available in a manner consistent with the Transpor-
tation Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act of 
1998. 
‘‘SEC. 5209. PROGRAM EVALUATION. 
‘‘The Secretary shall enter into an arrangement with 
the National Academy of Sciences, or another independent 
institution, to evaluate the Department of Transpor-
tation’s intelligent transportation system program. The 
evaluation shall assess, at a minimum—
‘‘(1) how well the intelligent transportation sys-
tem program has achieved its goals as set forth in 
the 2000 5-year plan referred to in section 
5204(a)(1), including—
‘‘(A) 
expediting 
integrated 
intelligent 
transportation system deployment in metropoli-
tan and rural areas for both passenger and 
freight transportation; 
‘‘(B) ensuring that Federal, State, and 
local transportation officials consider intelligent 
transportation systems in the transportation 
planning process and have adequate knowledge 
to do so;
‘‘(C) improving regional cooperation and 
operations planning for effective intelligent 
transportation system deployment; 
‘‘(D) promoting the innovative use of pri-
vate resources; and 
‘‘(E) developing a workforce capable of de-
ploying, operating, and maintaining intelligent 
transportation systems; and 
‘‘(2) in areas where the intelligent transpor-
tation system program has not met its goals, assess 
the barriers to meeting those goals, and make rec-
ommendations for how those barriers may be over-
come. 
‘‘SEC. 5210. DEFINITIONS. 
‘‘In this subtitle, the following definitions apply: 
‘‘(1) INTELLIGENT
TRANSPORTATION
INFRA-
STRUCTURE.—The term ‘intelligent transportation 
infrastructure’ means fully integrated public sector 
intelligent transportation system components, as de-
fined by the Secretary. 
‘‘(2) 
INTELLIGENT
TRANSPORTATION
SYS-
TEM.—The term ‘intelligent transportation system’ 
means electronics, communications, or information 
processing used singly or in combination to improve
the efficiency or safety of a surface transportation 
system. 
‘‘(3) NATIONAL
ARCHITECTURE.—The term 
‘national architecture’ means the common frame-
work for interoperability adopted by the Secretary 
that defines—
‘‘(A) the functions associated with intel-
ligent transportation system user services; 
‘‘(B) the physical entities or subsystems 
within which the functions reside; 
‘‘(C) the data interfaces and information 
flows between physical subsystems; and 
‘‘(D) the communications requirements as-
sociated with the information flows. 
‘‘(4) NATIONAL ITS PROGRAM PLAN.—The term 
‘National ITS Program Plan’ means the plan update 
required under section 5204(a). 
‘‘(5) STANDARD.—The term ‘standard’ means a 
document that—
‘‘(A) contains technical specifications or 
other precise criteria for intelligent transpor-
tation systems that are to be used consistently 
as rules, guidelines, or definitions of character-
istics so as to ensure that materials, products,
processes, and services are fit for their pur-
poses; and 
‘‘(B) may support the national architecture 
and promote—
‘‘(i) the widespread use and adoption 
of intelligent transportation system tech-
nology as a component of the surface 
transportation systems of the United 
States; and 
‘‘(ii) interoperability among intelligent 
transportation system technologies imple-
mented throughout the States. 
‘‘(6) STATE.—The term ‘State’ has the mean-
ing given the term under section 101 of title 23, 
United States Code.’’. 
(b) TABLE OF CONTENTS AMENDMENT.—The items 
relating to subtitle C of title V in the table of contents 
of the Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century are 
amended to read as follows:
‘‘Subtitle C—Intelligent Transportation Systems 
‘‘Sec. 5201. Short title. 
‘‘Sec. 5202. Goals and purposes. 
‘‘Sec. 5203. General authorities and requirements. 
‘‘Sec. 5204. National ITS Program Plan. 
‘‘Sec. 5205. Information strategy. 
‘‘Sec. 5206. National architecture and standards. 
‘‘Sec. 5207. Research and development. 
‘‘Sec. 5208. Use of funds. 
‘‘Sec. 5209. Program evaluation. 
‘‘Sec. 5210. Definitions.’’.
(c) REPEAL.—The Intermodal Surface Transpor-
tation Efficiency Act of 1991 is amended by striking part 
B of title VI (23 U.S.C. 307 note; 105 Stat. 2189). 
SEC. 109. NATIONAL MULTIMODAL TRENDS POLICY RE-
SEARCH PROGRAM. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall establish and 
carry out a National Multimodal Trends Policy Research 
Program that systematically addresses critical short-term, 
medium-term, and long-term social science issues affecting 
and affected by the transportation system. 
(b) CONTENTS.—The program to be carried out 
under this section shall include—
(1) research on—
(A) the critical factors and major trends 
affecting the success and performance of the 
Nation’s transportation system, as well as how 
such information can be incorporated into na-
tional, State, and local decisionmaking; 
(B) the short-term, medium-term, and es-
pecially long-term economic, demographic, and 
social trends that are affecting and are affected 
by the transportation system, including topics 
such as—
(i) 
economic 
trends, 
including 
globalization and it effects on the transpor-
tation of people and goods, rapidly chang-
ing information technology, the growing 
importance of metropolitan economies, di-
versification of employment sites, innova-
tions in goods movement, and larger capac-
ity and faster goods movement; 
(ii) demographic trends, including 
population growth, increasing minority 
populations, increasing urbanization, and 
the aging of the population; and 
(iii) social trends and issues, including 
increasing income disparity and its impli-
cation for mobility and access to jobs, serv-
ices and health care, the unique needs of 
rural populations, and the link between 
human factors and driver behavior; 
(C) improvements in evaluation methodolo-
gies and performance measures, and the evalua-
tion of project and transportation system per-
formance relative to the goals set forth in sec-
tion 102; 
(D) how institutional factors within and 
among the public and private sectors affect the 
development and successful deployment of new 
technologies;
(E) links between public health and the 
transportation system; and 
(F) other critical issues identified by the 
Advisory Board established under subsection 
(e); and 
(2) research on and the development of policy 
analysis tools and methods. 
(c) ESTABLISHMENT.—Not later than 120 days after 
the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall enter 
into an arrangement with the National Academy of 
Sciences to establish an advisory board under subsection 
(e) and, except as provided in subsection (e), to support, 
administer, and manage the program. 
(d) STRATEGIC PLAN.—Not later than 2 years after 
entering into the arrangement under subsection (c) and 
upon each update thereafter, the National Academy of 
Sciences shall transmit the strategic plan developed by the 
advisory board under subsection (e) to the Secretary, to 
the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure and 
the Committee on Science of the House of Representa-
tives, and to the Committee on Environment and Public 
Works of the Senate. 
(e) ADVISORY BOARD.—
(1) ESTABLISHMENT.—The National Academy 
of Sciences shall establish an independent advisory 
board. 
(2) MEMBERSHIP.—
(A) IN GENERAL.—A majority of members 
of the advisory board shall be experts in—
(i) transportation social science re-
search; or 
(ii) other social science fields with im-
portant or potentially important relation-
ships to transportation, selected after con-
sultation with the Consortium of Social 
Science Associations. 
Members selected under this subparagraph 
shall, to the extent practicable, be evenly di-
vided between experts described in clause (i) 
and experts described in clause (ii). 
(B) ADDITIONAL
MEMBERS.—Additional 
members of the advisory board shall be evenly 
balanced among representatives of Federal, 
State, and local transportation agencies, other 
agencies with appropriate expertise, metropoli-
tan planning organizations, transit operating 
agencies, and environmental and other non-
profit organizations.
(3) RESPONSIBILITIES.—The advisory board 
shall be responsible for—
(A) the development of a strategic plan 
which shall specify at a minimum the goals, re-
search priorities, and fiscal needs of the pro-
gram, and which shall be updated periodically; 
(B) overseeing the awarding of grants and 
contracts to carry out the research strategy; 
(C) the development of the annual request 
for proposals and the solicitation of proposals 
through open competition with peer review; and 
(D) the development of project selection 
criteria, through an open and public consulta-
tion process with stakeholders. 
(4) EVALUATION
OF
RESEARCH.—Research 
contracts and grants under this section shall require 
peer review of the research results. 
(5) ELIGIBLE RESEARCH.—At least 75 percent 
of funds made available for research under this sec-
tion shall support research directed to the priorities 
in the strategic plan, and up to 25 percent of such 
funds may support appropriate sponsor directed re-
search. 
(f) DISSEMINATION OF RESEARCH FINDINGS.—The 
National Academy of Sciences and the Department of
Transportation shall disseminate research findings under 
this section to researchers, practitioners, and decision-
makers, through conferences and seminars, field dem-
onstrations, workshops, training programs, presentations, 
testimony to government officials, the Internet, and publi-
cations for the general public. 
TITLE II—MISCELLANEOUS 
SEC. 201. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 
There are authorized to be appropriated to the Sec-
retary of Transportation to carry out sections 5312, 5313, 
5314, 5315, and 5322 of title 49, United States Code, 
and section 202 of this Act, relating to research and devel-
opment, $75,000,000 for each of the fiscal years 2005 
through 2010. 
SEC. 202. TRANSIT RESEARCH. 
(a) AMENDMENT.—Chapter 5 of title 23, United 
States Code, as amended by this Act, is further amended 
by adding at the end the following new section: 
‘‘§ 510. Innovative Practices and Technologies Dem-
onstration and Deployment Program 
‘‘(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary shall estab-
lish an Innovative Practices and Technologies Demonstra-
tion and Deployment Program. 
‘‘(b) PROGRAM GOALS.—The goals of the program 
are to—
‘‘(1) demonstrate promising new transit prac-
tices and technologies, including new business mod-
els for managing and operating transit systems, that 
may increase ridership, increase accessibility, reduce 
cost, improve customer satisfaction, and improve 
safety; 
‘‘(2) evaluate, refine, and document the per-
formance, benefits, and costs of innovative practices 
and technologies; and 
‘‘(3) effectively disseminate information to ac-
celerate deployment of innovative practices and tech-
nologies. 
‘‘(c) GRANTS, COOPERATIVE
AGREEMENTS, AND 
CONTRACTS.—The Secretary may make grants to, or 
enter into cooperative agreements or contracts with, tran-
sit agencies, States, other Federal agencies, universities 
and colleges, private sector entities, and nonprofit organi-
zations to pay the Federal share of the cost of demonstra-
tion and deployment projects concerning innovative prac-
tices and technologies. 
‘‘(d) APPLICATIONS.—To receive a grant, cooperative 
agreement, or contract under this section, an entity de-
scribed in subsection (c) shall submit an application to the 
Secretary. The application shall be in such form and con-
tain such information as the Secretary may require. The
Secretary shall select and approve the applications based 
on the following criteria: 
‘‘(1) Whether the project meets the goals of the 
program. 
‘‘(2) Merit review. 
‘‘(3) The likelihood that the project will result 
in more widespread deployment of the practice or 
technology being proposed. 
‘‘(4) Preference shall be given to an application 
that represents a public-private partnership. 
‘‘(e) TECHNOLOGY AND INFORMATION TRANSFER.—
The Secretary shall ensure that information about innova-
tive practices and technologies supported under this sec-
tion is made available to transit agencies, State and local 
transportation departments, and other interested parties. 
Information disseminated under this subsection shall in-
clude both the costs and benefits of deploying an innova-
tive practice or technology, and shall document—
‘‘(1) best practices for adopting successful prac-
tices or technologies; and 
‘‘(2) the transferability of these practices and 
technologies. 
‘‘(f) FEDERAL SHARE.—The Federal share of the 
cost of a project under this section shall be determined 
by the Secretary.’’.
(b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The analysis of 
chapter 5 of title 23, United States Code, as amended by 
this Act, is further amended by adding at the end the fol-
lowing new item:
‘‘510. Innovative Practices and Technologies Demonstration and Deployment 
Program.’’.
SEC. 203. TRANSPORTATION, ENERGY, AND ENVIRONMENT. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—As part of the National Climate 
Change Technology Initiative and the Climate Change Re-
search Initiative, the Secretary shall establish and carry 
out a multimodal energy and climate change program to 
study the relationship of transportation, energy, and cli-
mate change. 
(b) CONTENTS.—The program to be carried out 
under this section shall include, but not be limited to, re-
search designed to—
(1) identify, develop and evaluate strategies to 
improve energy efficiency and reduce greenhouse gas 
emissions from transportation sources; and 
(2) identify and evaluate the potential effects of 
climate changes on the nation’s transportation sys-
tems, and strategies to address these effects. 
(c) PROJECT SELECTION.—Activities to be under-
taken in this program will be determined by an internal 
steering committee established by the Secretary of Trans-
portation. This intermodal committee shall include rep-
resentatives from the Office of the Secretary and oper-
ating administrations within the Department of Transpor-
tation as designated by the Secretary. 
(d) GRANTS, COOPERATIVE AGREEMENTS AND CON-
TRACTS.—The Secretary may carry out this program inde-
pendently or by making grants to, or entering into con-
tracts and cooperative agreements with, a Federal agency, 
State agency, local agency, authority, association, non-
profit or for-profit corporation, or institution of higher 
education. 
SEC. 204. NATIONAL COOPERATIVE FREIGHT TRANSPOR-
TATION RESEARCH PROGRAM. 
(a) AUTHORIZATION.—To carry out a national coop-
erative freight transportation research program, there is 
authorized the following sums: 
(1) $8,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2005 
and 2006. 
(2) $10,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2007 
and 2008. 
(3) $12,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2009 
and 2010. 
(b) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 5 of title 23, United 
States Code, is amended by adding at the end the fol-
lowing:
‘‘§ 509. National Cooperative Freight Transportation 
Research Program 
‘‘(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary shall estab-
lish and support a national cooperative freight transpor-
tation 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 Acad-
emy of Sciences shall select an advisory committee con-
sisting of a representative cross-section of freight stake-
holders, including the Department of Transportation, 
other Federal agencies, State transportation departments, 
local governments, the American Association of State 
Highway and Transportation Officials and other nonprofit 
entities (including environmental groups), academia, and 
the private sector. 
‘‘(d) 
GOVERNANCE.—The 
national 
cooperative 
freight transportation research program established under 
this section shall include the following administrative and 
management elements: 
‘‘(1) NATIONAL RESEARCH AGENDA.—The advi-
sory committee, in consultation with stakeholders, 
shall recommend a national research agenda for the
national cooperative freight transportation research 
program. The national research agenda shall include 
a multi-year strategic plan. 
‘‘(2) 
STAKEHOLDER
INVOLVEMENT.—Stake-
holders 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 shall award research contracts and grants 
through open competition and merit review con-
ducted on a regular basis. 
‘‘(4) EVALUATION OF RESEARCH.—
‘‘(A) PEER REVIEW.—Research contracts 
and grants shall allow peer review of the re-
search results. 
‘‘(B) PROGRAMMATIC EVALUATIONS.—The 
National Academy of Sciences may conduct 
periodic programmatic evaluations on a regular 
basis.
‘‘(5) DISSEMINATION
OF
RESEARCH
FIND-
INGS.—The National Academy of Sciences shall dis-
seminate research findings to researchers, practi-
tioners, and decision-makers, through conferences 
and seminars, field demonstrations, workshops, 
training programs, presentations, testimony to gov-
ernment officials, world wide web, publications for 
the general public, and other appropriate means. 
‘‘(e) CONTENTS.—The national research agenda for 
the national cooperative freight transportation research 
program required under subsection (d)(1) shall include re-
search 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 traffic to congestion on specific 
highway segments. 
‘‘(3) The feasibility of freight villages as a 
means of consolidating origins and destinations for 
freight movement. 
‘‘(4) Methods for incorporating estimates of 
international trade into landside transportation plan-
ning.
‘‘(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 re-
lating to rest areas. 
‘‘(9) Additional priorities to identify and ad-
dress the emerging and future research needs re-
lated to freight transportation. 
‘‘(f) FUNDING.—
‘‘(1) FEDERAL SHARE.—The Federal share of 
the cost of an activity carried out using such funds 
shall be up to 100 percent, and such funds shall re-
main available until expended. 
‘‘(2) USE OF NON-FEDERAL FUNDS.—In addi-
tion to using funds authorized for this section, the 
National Academy of Sciences may seek and accept 
additional funding sources from public and private 
entities capable of accepting funding from the 
United States Department of Transportation (Fed-
eral Highway Administration, Federal Transit Ad-
ministration, Federal Railroad Administration, Re-
search and Special Programs Administration, and 
the National Highway Traffic Safety Administra-
tion), states, local governments, nonprofit founda-
tions, and the private sector.’’. 
(c) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The analysis for 
chapter 5 of title 23, United States Code, is amended by 
redesignating section 509 as follows:
‘‘509. National cooperative freight transportation research program.’’.
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