Center for Transportation Research News

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 about my [...]

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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 Uniformity [...]

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The City of Austin is testing four bicycle safety improvements with research involvement of the Center for Transportation Research. KVUE News in Austin covers “sharrows” in a news segment today; the video is posted online.
http://www.kvue.com/news/Austin-part-of-bike-and-car-sharing-experiment-68806662.html
Anyone driving, walking or cycling down Guadalupe between MLK and 4th street Monday may have seen them being installed and [...]

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In a joint venture with the City of Austin, The Center for Transportation Research will be conducting research to improve the safety of cyclists utilizing some experimental roadway features, including shared lane markings, painted bicycle lanes, signs and bicycle boxes.
To cater to Austin’s large population of bicyclists, UT teamed up with the [...]

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Joseph A. Yura, emeritus professor, was inducted as an honorary member into the Adademy of Distinguished Alumni. Although he did not attend UT-Austin, his outstanding service to the department as a faculty member is recognized.
Each of the new inductees received at least one degree from the department and are outstanding in their field, leaders in [...]

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Center for Transportation Research researchers are working with the City of Austin to test some new initiatives to make biking safer in Austin.
[As part of the study, the city has] set up colored bicycle lanes, to examine just how well they protect cyclists.
“Bike boxes allow cyclists to come up to a cue at [...]

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Image of Trans-Texas Corridor, TxDOT

In January, TxDOT scaled down the Trans-Texas Corridor project and dropped its name.  Now transportation officials announce that the project is officially terminated.
The Trans-Texas Corridor was originally pitched as an innovative way to pay for congestion improvements and reduce truck and train gridlock in metro areas. But opponents seized on several [...]

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In an interview with Dr. Joseph Coughlin and Dr. Bryan Reimer, the Wall Street Journal examines a trend of transportation research that focuses on safety in part because drivers are aging.

The duo is currently analyzing data collected by the Transportation Center’s newest innovation—a Volvo XC90 that cruises around Cambridge, Mass., with $1.5 million of [...]

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Researchers from University of Castilla-La Mancha have developed an artificial intelligence software that could detect aberrant pedestrian and automotive behavior at crosswalks.
“We have developed an intelligence surveillance software and related theoretical model in order to define ‘normality’ in any setting one wishes to monitor, such as a traffic scenario”, David Vallejo, from the ORETO Applied [...]

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Image (from Oregon.gov): aerial  view of Solar Highway project

Oregon DOT’s Solar Highway is capable of producing 128,000 kWh of electricity a year.  The energy generated helps run the state’s transportation system by providing electricity for “signals, illumination, buildings, ramp metering and more.”
Solar energy produced by the array feeds into the grid during the day. At night, the [...]

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