Publication Number: FHWA-RD-99-108
Date: October 1999

Second Annual Contest Encourages Students To Delve into LTTP Data

Did the first DataPave contest pass you by? Here's another chance to get in on the action, as the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) and the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) launch the second annual contest for college students. Using the new DataPave 2.0 software (see DataPave 2.0 Puts More Information at Your Fingertips), which contains information on traffic, materials, performance, environment, and other variables at the more than 2,400 long-term pavement performance (LTPP) test sections across the United States and Canada, students choose a research objective. They then conduct the research, analyze the data, and submit the findings in the form of a paper for evaluation. The deadline for submissions is June 1, 2000.

"I'm already seeing interest in and receiving requests for information on this year's contest," says Kurt Dunn of FHWA.

Possible topics include traffic load characteristics, identification of performance-related distresses, and mechanistic design considerations. Students can either enter the contest on their own or in conjunction with an industry or State department of transportation partner. There is also a separate contest category for professors to submit course curricula developed using the LTPP data.

The four winners of the first contest were notified in September. Each received a cash prize of $1,500, while the overall grand prize winner received an additional cash prize of $3,000 and an invitation to attend the ASCE Conference and Exposition in Charlotte, North Carolina, this month. Several of the winners will also be invited to present their papers at the Data Analysis Working Group Meeting at the Transportation Research Board annual meeting in January.

For more information about the contest, contact Joan Hendricks at ASCE, 703-295-6199 (fax: 703-295-6132; email: jhendricks@asce.org). To obtain a free copy of the DataPave software, contact LTPP Customer Support Services at 423-481-2967 (email: ltppinfo@fhwa.dot.gov).

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