Environment
Transportation planning and project development must reflect the desires of communities, and take into account the impacts on both the natural and human environments. Transportation projects are closely looked at to see how they might impact the community, the natural environment, and our health and welfare. Before any project can move forward to construction, the FHWA must address and comply with laws related to the environment. These laws cover social, economic, and environmental concerns ranging from community cohesion to threatened and endangered species. To get through this detailed process, FHWA and FTA use the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) process to evaluate impacts associated with each individual project.
Three offices within the Federal Highway Administration focus on environmental protection and enhancement. The offices of Natural Environment and Human Environment primarily focus on environmental programs associated with air quality, climate change, sustainability, noise, and on programs associated with the built environment, including transportation enhancements, and bicycle and pedestrian facilities. The Office of Project Development and Environmental Review focuses on NEPA project development process as a balanced and streamlined approach to transportation decisionmaking that takes into account the potential impacts on both human and natural resources and the public's need for safe and efficient transportation improvements. Information regarding the full range of FHWA environmental programs can be found on this website. If you don't see the topic you are looking for, check our Subject Index.
Upcoming Events
2024
- 2WALKandCYCLE's People Power: The Path to Low Carbon Transport Conference (There is a fee)
(March 18 - 19, 2024)
- American Association of State Highway and Transportation Professionals' AASHTO Re:source Technical Exchange (There is a fee)
(March 18 - 21, 2024)
- Professional TrailBuilders Association's 2024 Sustainable Trails Conference (There is a fee)
(March 19 - 21, 2024)
- The League of American Bicyclists' National Bike Summit (There is a fee)
(March 19 - 21, 2024)
- The Corps Network 2024 National Conference (There is a fee)
(March 19 - 21, 2024)
- The World Bank and World Resources Institute's Transforming Transportation 2024: Mobilizing Finance for Climate Action
(March 19 - 20, 2024)
- Transportation Research Board's Lessons of Agency Resilience During Periods of Disruption (There is a fee)
(March 20)
- Association of Pedestrian and Bicycle Professionals' Quickly and Comprehensively Implementing a Major Shift in Transportation Design to Improve Safety and Encourage Active Transportation (There is a fee)
(March 20)
- American Trails' Celebrate Trails Day: An Overview of the Celebration + Ways to Engage (Donations accepted)
(March 21)
- Rutgers University's Micromobility 2.0 Workshop: Smarter Strategies for Safe Travel
(March 22)
- ActivEnviro's Active Living Conference (There is a fee)
(March 25 - 28, 2024)
- Transportation Research Board's Respectful Response to People Experiencing Homelessness in Transit (Registration required)
(March 25)
- Association of Pedestrian and Bicycle Professionals' Call for Proposals Deadline
(March 25)
- Brookings' Creating a New Model for Advancing Community Data Justice
(March 26)
- Safety through Disruption University Transportation Center's Micromobility Regulations Best Practices Review: Scoot Now, Regulate Later
(March 26)
- The University of North Carolina Highway Safety Research Center and the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety's Safe Mobility Conference (There is a fee)
(March 26 - 27, 2024)
- 2024: Smart Growth America's 2024 Equity Summit: Meeting the Moment (There is a fee)
(March 27 - 28, 2024)
- FHWA's Equity in Roadway Safety Webinar Series: Tools and Strategies for Equitable Design
(March 27)
- American Trail's Six Steps to Build a TrailNationâ„¢ (Donations accepted)
(March 28)
- National Walking Day
(April 1)
- American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials' 2024 GIS-T Symposium (There is a fee)
(April 2 - 5, 2024)
- National Walking Day
(April 3)
- American Trails' Adaptive Trail Mobility Equipment and Programming 101 (Donations accepted)
(April 11)
- American Planning Association's National Planning Conference 2024 (There is a fee)
(April 13 - 16, 2024)
- Association of Pedestrian and Bicycle Professionals' Best Practices: Emergency Vehicle Access for Bicycle/Pedestrian Friendly Streets (There is a fee)
(April 17)
- Intelligent Transportation Society of America's Conference & Expo (There is a fee)
(April 22 - 25, 2024)
- International Earth Day
(April 22)
- 2024 AASHTO Spring Meeting (There is a fee)
(April 23 - 26, 2024)
- American Trails' Community Driven: How Engagement Guides the Vision and Planning of a Community Wide Trail Network (Donations accepted)
(April 25)
- Rails-to-Trails Conservancy's Celebrate Trails Day
(April 27)
- National Association of Environmental Professionals' 2024 Annual Conference and Training Symposium (There is a fee)
(May 5 - 8, 2024)
- National Ride a Bike Day
(May 5)
- Society of Outdoor Recreation Professionals' 2024 National Outdoor Recreation Conference (There is a fee)
(May 6 - 9, 2024)
- Association of Metropolitan Planning Organizations' 2024 Planning Tools and Training Symposium (There is a fee)
(May 6 - 9, 2024)
- National Association of City Transportation Officials' Designing Cities Conference (There is a fee)
(May 7 - 10, 2024)
- American Planning Association's National Planning Conference (There is a fee)
(May 8 - 10, 2024)
- National Bike and Roll to School Day
(May 8)
- Bike to Work Week
(May 13 - 19, 2024)
- EcoAdapt and American Society of Adaption Professionals' National Adaption Forum (There is a fee)
(May 14 - 16, 2024)
- Association of Pedestrian and Bicycle Professionals' Working/Planning to Advance Transportation and Health Equity (There is a fee)
(May 15)
- Bike to Work Day
(May 17)
- The New Buildings Institute's Getting to Zero Forum (There is a fee)
(May 21 - 23, 2024)
- FHWA Equity in Roadway Safety Webinar Series: Equitable Data Analysis
(May 22)
- American Trails' Building Adaptive Trail Programming: Lessons from the Field (Donations accepted)
(May 23)
- American Hiking Society's National Trail Day.
(June 1)
- Association of Pedestrian and Bicycle Professionals' Shifting Away From Car Culture Neighboring the Motor City (There is fee)
(June 12)
- Transportation Research Board's 2nd International Conference and Peer Exchange on Roadside Safety (There is a fee)
(June 23 - 26, 2024)
- Transportation Research Board's 4th International Conference on Access Management (There is a fee)
(June 24 - 26, 2024)