Transportation Industry Asks President to Support State DOT COVID-19 Relief
editor@aashto.org June 12, 2020 0 COMMENTSA broad coalition of 44 transportation industry stakeholders sent President Trump a letter on June 5 urging him to support an immediate $49.95 billion infusion of federal funding for state departments of transportation to cope with the economic fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic. [Official White House photo above by Andrea Hanks.] “With millions of Americans […]
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HTF Tax Receipt Falloff Illustrates Need for State DOT Backstop
editor@aashto.org June 12, 2020 0 COMMENTSNew federal Highway Trust Fund tax receipt information released June 8, when combined with vehicle miles traveled or VMT data from April, paints a devastating transportation revenue outlook that may similarly impact state-level transportation revenues. [Above photo by the Oregon DOT.] According to the U.S. Department of the Treasury, net deposits of tax receipts credited […]
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Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials held its annual Transportation and Civil Engineering or TRAC National Bridge Challenge for middle and high school students in a virtual setting. Originally scheduled to be held during AASHTO’s spring meeting in Kansas City, organizers re-invented the competition as the “AASHTO […]
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A new study by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety indicates autonomous vehicles might prevent only around a third of all crashes if automated systems drive too much like people. [Above photo by Joseph Thornton.] “It’s likely that fully self-driving cars will eventually identify hazards better than people, but we found that this alone would […]
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FRA Readying State of Good Repair, Suicide Prevention Grants
editor@aashto.org June 12, 2020 0 COMMENTSThe Federal Railroad Administration recently issued two notices of funding opportunity; the first for the third round of $291.4 million in grants via its Federal-State Partnership for State of Good Repair program and the other offering $293,000 for Railroad Trespassing Suicide Prevention Program projects. [Above photo via the FRA.] The FRA’s $291.4 million good repair […]
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Researchers at Purdue University are working to create “intelligent concrete” that would help cut down on road repairs and traffic delays; an effort based on information gleaned from a pilot project conducted jointly with the Indiana Department of Transportation. [Above photo by the Indiana DOT.] Lana Lu, an associate professor at the university’s Lyles School […]
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The Federal Transit Administration awarded a total of $22.97 million to 23 organizations around the country on June 11 from its Pilot Program for Transit-Oriented Development Planning program, which assists communities that are developing new or expanded mass transit systems. [Above photo by the FTA.] The agency also issued $3.5 million in grants for 17 projects in 16 states on […]
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The U.S. Department of Transportation issued nearly $3.3 million in cooperative funding agreements via its Safety Data Initiative to state, local, and tribal governments on June 10 to develop and deploy innovative data tools and information to improve roadway safety. [Above photo by the Virginia DOT.] The awards follow a notice of funding opportunity issued in November […]
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The Wyoming Department of Transportation is closing 10 rest areas located throughout the state effective June 15 to reduce costs due to budgetary shortfalls brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic. [Above photo via Wikimedia Commons.] The rest area closures will result in a savings to the Wyoming DOT of approximately $197,453 from June 15 through […]
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West Virginia Governor Jim Justice (R) and the West Virginia Department of Transportation reaffirmed their support for a $25 million “streetscape” project for the City of Wheeling that’s been under development for two years. [Left to right in above photo: WVDOT Secretary Byrd White, Gov. Justice, WVDOT Deputy Secretary Jimmy Wriston.] The project – now […]
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