Center for Transportation Research: Highlights

NPR recently reported on the disproportionate number of deaths that occur on rural roads in the United States. U.S. Highway 6 in Utah was found to be the deadliest rural road in the nation. Last year, 56 percent of the nation’s 37,261 traffic fatalities occurred in rural areas. Yet rural America has just 23 percent [...]

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Green Car Reports reports that several new plug-in cars are expected to come onto the US market soon. The article examines concerns about the increased electrical demands of these cars in concentrated areas where “early adopters” will be likely to live. The answer, in short, is: No. The current power grids in the U.S. are [...]

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The development of high-speed rail (passenger trains that can go up to 350 miles per hour) in the United States faces several impediments: the need for high-speed-specific safety standards, lack of funds at the state level, and a diminishing number of U.S. rail experts, due the the lack of stateside passenger rail investment. However, federal [...]

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Editor Note: As an update to the passage of the Master Bike Plan, Annick Beaudet, the Bicycle Program Manager with the City of Austin in Department of Public Works, has provided this update on the implementation of the plan. Colored bike lane on Dean Keaton East of IH 35. It is my pleasure to write [...]

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From the National Academies, technical presentation on hot mix asphalt. More details at http://TRB.org/SHRP2 This video shows a demonstration of an infrared bar being used for quality control and measurement of new hot mix asphalt layers during paving operations. This demonstration was part of Renewal Project R06C: Using Both Infrared and High-Speed Ground Penetrating Radar for [...]

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<img src=”http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/dotfhwa.gif”> The Federal Highway Administration posted its October Transportation and Climate Change Newsletter. It contains the latest news in this area of policy and study. U.S. DOE and U.S. EPA announce the 2010 Fuel Economy Guide for model year 2010 vehicles. World Resources Institute issues provisional GHG emissions reporting standard for public sector EESI publishes State Actions on [...]

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View Video: http://www.kvue.com/v/?i=70265707 Austin’s new car sharing program, Car2Go, starts today. It is the first of its kind in the nation. During a six-month pilot program, city employees will have access to 200 Smart cars, which will be pre-positioned at parking spots around town. Austin city officials say it will offer a convenient, environmentally-friendly alternative [...]

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Dr. C. Michael Walton, professor of civil engineering at The University of Texas at Austin, received the Texas Road Hand Award from the Texas Department of Transportation for his public spirit in championing transportation projects. The award recognizes citizens who have given their time, energy and vision to help improve transportation throughout the state. Walton [...]

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