On Nov. 29, 1995, participants from the public and private sectors converged in Denver to attend a 1-day conference on Infrastructure Banks. The conference was cosponsored by the Federal Highway Administration, the Federal Transit Administration, and the Federal Railroad Administration. It brought together more than 150 people, with broad representation from every mode of the U.S. Department of Transportation (U.S. DOT), State transportation departments, the National Conference of State Legislators, transportation consultants, and investment bankers.

The conference was timely as the previous day President Clinton signed the National Highway System (NHS) designation bill, which contains State infrastructure bank (SIE) language in Section 350.

The focus of the conference was to educate and exchange ideas on how the Nation's increasing transportation needs can be met through the implementation of infrastructure banks at the State or regional level.

Jane Garvey, Deputy Federal Highway Administrator, moderated the conference which was grouped into four panels. Jane Garvey, Joseph Giglio of Apogee Research, and John Platt of the Ohio Department of Transportion discussed why infrastructure banks are needed. The second panel was comprised of Steve Martin of U.S. DOT, Yvonne Addington of the Oregon Economic Development Department, and Anne Sowder of Government Finance Group. Each of these participants discussed the different types of infrastructure banks and how to use their tools. Louise Stoll of U.S. DOT, Mariam Roskin of Infrastructure Management Group, and Jean DeLuca of Palmer & Dodge explained how to set up an infrastructure bank. The final panel consisted of Norm Emerson of Alameda Corridor, David Lewis of Hickling Lewis Bred Inc., and Ron Marino of Smith Barney. This panel focused on engaging and building public support for new approaches in transportation financing. A background paper titled State Infrastructure Banks: A Primer is available by request.

The effects of paint break down and corrosion on steel bridges are placing an increasing cost burden on bridge maintenance budgets. It is estimated that approximately 40 percent of the Nation's steel bridges are painted with lead-containing paint. Many of these will require some degree of maintenance within the next several years. Increased environmental and worker health and safety regulations regarding maintenance of lead-painted structures have made these maintenance operations significantly more complicated and expensive. Since FHWA's involvement in bridge painting operations did the need to promote expanded with ISTEA, so did the need to promote and implement the best available technology.

To maximize the use of existing resources in this technical area, the Special Projects and Engineering Division initiated a cooperative outreach program with FHWA Headquarters, Region, and Division bridge engineering offices. The goal of this program is two fold: (1) create a network of FHWA field engineers and researchers to facilitate two-way information transfer and implementation of research results in the bridge coatings area; and (2) develop technical expertise in this area within FHWA. This will result in a cadre of engineers who can communicate the best technology in support of programs and projects to reduce life-cycle steel bridge corrosion control costs through the selection of regulatory compliant, cost effective coating materials, and maintenance options.

The Bridge Coatings Outreach Program kicked off during the fall with a workshop and the inspection of field exposed coatings by engineers from various FHWA offices. Participants on this team included Ron Andresen and Mark Clabaugh from Central and Eastern Federal Lands Highway Divisions, Joe Huerta from the Office of Engineering Operations and Maintenance, Mike Praul from the New York Division, Larry O'Donnell from the Indiana Division, Carl Highsmith from Region 3, and John Peart, Shuang-Ling Chong, and Bob Kogler from the Office of Engineering R&D

Since the initiation of this group in September, team members have participated in various field coating inspections, painting specification reviews, and other research and development efforts. The diverse group has created an efficient conduit for passing information between the field and research communities of FHWA. Similar outreach efforts are planned for other technical areas.

By using a new video teleconferencing setup, the Priority Technologies Program (PTP) team for FHWA, chaired by King Gee, Deputy Regional Administrator for Region 3, received a real-time update on the PTP by FHWA representatives located in their respective regions. Team members include: John Baxter, Utah Division; Robert Callan, Florida Division; George Ostensen, Michigan Division; Roger Port, Region 7; and John Sweek, Region 6.

The role of the PTP team at the onset of the program was to develop first-year guidelines and provide assistance in the development of the program's direction. The PTP team also provides consistency in the basic administration and framework for the program.

The PTP is the newest of four elements of the Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act (ISTEA) Section 6005 program focused on the application and evaluation of new technologies. The 6005 program was created to be the vehicle for a whole new way of delivering innovative technologies. Selected technologies will have a high potential for application and real benefits nationwide. The PTP is one way of implementing Section 6005 so that local level administration can create partnerships between public and private sectors for the leveraging of Federal funds and other cost-sharing initiatives used to implement innovative technologies.

During the video conference session, PTP team members focused on reviewing the first year's operation of the PTP and streamlining the program criteria for upcoming years. Team members discussed the process of selection for first year projects, how the projects measured up to ISTEA Section 6005 criteria, and the development of a more streamlined PTP.

An important aspect of the PTP is that FHWA's field offices are provided with significant responsibility and fiscal resources for executing the program, as well as a larger role in setting the direction and administration of the PTP. The field is enthusiastic about its role in developing projects and partnerships.

The PTP was established to get new technologies, with national interest, on the ground quickly and applied to solve real problems. Comments and suggestions are welcome.

Scholar-researcher Randolph Renyu Wu working with the Office of Safety and Traffic Operations R&D Advanced Research Team, recently developed a new robotic trunk design to be used in highway maintenance. The design provides a very good flexible arm which functions somewhat like the body of a snake or an elephant's trunk. This robotic trunk could be mounted on a truck elevator and serve as a platform for a detector or a paint sprayer with shields to protect the environment from being polluted by the lead paint and blast debris. It could remotely inspect bridge paint condition and the physical state of bridge members, recover stripping media and paint with increased efficiency, and reduce the manpower and time required to strip and paint an overpass.

The robotic system will be able to work over a bridge or under a bridge for automatic routine inspection and other chores. This system could also be used for underwater inspection of bridges using dive servo-motors as the illustration shows.

The robotic trunk is perfectly flexible; it can be bent in such a way that it can even perform manipulations behind an obstacle (obstruction) or in spaces otherwise difficult to reach. The robotic trunk is formed by several elements, each element having a rigid tube inside and supported on the globular hinge of the element below. The rigid tube acts as human bone, and the cables are like human muscles. A special fan-wormwheel mechanism is designed for the trunk unit to pull and loosen cables. This mechanism can reduce the number of motors by one half, ensures the execution of the robotic trunk, and simplifies the control system. The principal advantages of this robotic trunk are perfect flexibility and low cost.

During the fall of 1995, FHWA's Office of Acquisition Management signed a new 5-year cooperative agreement which extends one of the Office of Research and Development's longest partnerships. Since 1965, FHWA, 52 State highway agencies, and two other governmental agencies have jointly financed the basic operations of the AASHTO Materials Reference Laboratory (AMRL).

The AMRL was established to promote adherence to standards in the testing of construction materials, particularly by the State and FHWA laboratories. The AMRL staff inspects laboratories at roughly 24-month intervals -- and regularly distributes proficiency samples -- to assess each laboratory's capabilities for performing standard tests on soils, aggregates, asphalts, and mixtures of these materials. The AMRL also uses the resources of a parallel organization, the Cement and Concrete Reference Laboratory (CCRL), to evaluate laboratory performance on tests on cement and concrete.

Results of AMRL assessments provide FHWA with its only independent evaluation of States' (and its own laboratories') testing prowess. FHWA's division offices rely on the results of the AMRL program before approving the expenditure of Federal funds for highway construction. As a side benefit, AMRL evaluations improve the quality of testing for non-Federal construction within each State. With new Federal regulations permitting contractors' test results to be used much more widely in the States' quality assurance decisions, AMRL will need to further expand its programs.

The organization's staff, which operates out of laboratory space at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) in Gaithersburg, Maryland, conducted inspections of 295 laboratories during the most recent 24-month tour and distributed more than 6,000 proficiency samples each year. The AMRL also provides the technical support for the AASHTO Accreditation Program, which has accredited over 200 laboratories across the United States.

The AASHTO Materials Research Laboratory conducted inspections of 295 laboratories during the most recent 24-month tour and distributed more than 6,000 proficiency samples each year.