United States Senate
Committee on Environment and Public Works

Round Table Discussion:

"Reauthorization of the Federal Surface Transportation Research Program"

March 15, 2002, 9:30 a.m. 406 Dirksen Senate Office Building

Testimony
Mr. Philip J. Tarnoff, MITE

PROVIDING A SAFE, RELIABLE AND SECURE TRANSPORTATION SYSTEM

My name is Philip J. Tarnoff. I am a member of the Institute of Transportation Engineers (ITE) and the Director of the University of Maryland, Center for Advanced Transportation Technology. I appreciate the opportunity to represent ITE and to provide the organization's recommendations on research priorities for the reauthorized surface transportation bill.

ITE is an international member educational and scientific association. The organization's 13,000 U.S. members include traffic and transportation engineers, transportation planners and other professionals who are responsible for meeting society's needs for safe, efficient surface transportation through planning, designing, implementing, operating and maintaining our transportation system nationwide.

ITE supports a national transportation policy that includes long-range goals set by the President and Congress and clear, attainable objectives set by the Secretary of Transportation. Accordingly, ITE supports a policy that meets society=s need for the safe, reliable and secure transport of persons, services and goods. ITE supports a federal transportation program that supplements the construction project mindset with one of total transportation systems management and operations. ITE envisions an effective system that maximizes transportation system performance through a coordinated and integrated decision-making approach to (1) construction, (2) preservation, (3) management, and (4) operation of transportation facilities.

Federal, state and local governments, transportation professionals and citizens face critical transportation realities - increased person and vehicles miles traveled, increased demand on public services, the need to support economic growth, reduced mobility of an aging population, increased demand for special needs in accordance with ADA guidelines, heightened security threats to the system and infrastructure, and continued growth of metropolitan workforces. The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) estimates that the lack of attention to managing and operating our transportation system has resulted in declining reliability of the transportation network, increased congestion and associated negative impacts on safety, the economy and the quality of life of the traveling public.

A recent poll in a FHWA Report, Managing Our Congested Streets and Highways, indicated that more than 75% of respondents reported that congestion was an important or very important consideration in choosing a place to live. The public is demanding more reliable and dependable transportation services and systems. This demand must be met by refocusing funding priorities to invest in research that will aid transportation professionals in meeting public needs.

Building for the Future Through Research

A coordinated national transportation research and development program will continue to be the basis for future transportation progress at the national level. Continuing research in transportation cannot be accomplished solely at the state and local level, or in the private sector. The federal government must play a strong leadership role in the coordination and pooling of resources for research and development that cuts across systems and modes. In order to insure the maximum benefit to the traveling public, the results of this research must be made available as quickly as possible for application nationwide.

Transportation research is critical in advancing technology and improving safety. It is an essential tool for transportation professionals in developing practical solutions to problems encountered in the design and daily operation of our national transportation system. ITE supports the ongoing work of the Federal Highway Administration's Research and Technology Program (FHWA R&T), University Transportation Centers (UTCs) and the Department of Transportation's in-house research, while also encouraging a collaborative environment for the support of research in the areas of safety, reliability and security. Accordingly, ITE has six major recommendations on research that should be incorporated into the revised surface transportation bill.

• Fund the Future Strategic Highway Research Program (F-SHRP) through a 3 of 1 percent takedown of federal highway fundsCapproximately $450 to $500 million over the life of the bill.

  Congress authorized the Strategic Highway Research Program (SHRP) in the Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act (ISTEA). The 5-year, $150 million program was designed to improve the performance and safety of highway materials and highway maintenance practices for highway workers and users. In the Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century (TEA-21), Congress requested the Transportation Research Board (TRB) to set priorities and design a new strategic highway program.

  ITE strongly believes that Congress should endorse the funding levels and program goals of F-SHRP as recommended by the TRB research group. They are:

  • To accelerate the renewal of America's highways by developing a consistent, systematic approach to performing highway rehabilitation. Research performed in this area would provide for the better use of resources (equipment and person power) when performing maintenance projects to reduce the time wasted, congestion and traffic delays in commercial and residential areas. Delays in work zone areas, which have been expressed as among the major concerns of daily roadway travelers, could also be reduced.

  • To make a significant improvement in highway safety by preventing or reducing the severity of highway crashes through a combination of improved data collection, traditional crash analysis, and crash information management. Research in the application of these tools will assist in developing effective countermeasures to crash-related deaths and injuries. According to the TRB report, "every 1 percent improvement in highway safety resulting from application of the results of this research would mean more than 400 lives saved, 30,000 injuries averted, and $1.8 billion in economic costs avoided annually."

  • Providing a highway system with reliable travel times through the prevention and reduction of nonrecurring incidents. Research in this area should focus on studying traffic data, its impact on transportation users and user-expectations to improve traffic operations tools for reducing delays, improving quality of life, and increasing consumer savings.

  • Providing highway capacity in support of the nation's economic, environmental and social goals by developing approaches and tools for the systematic integration of environmental, economic and community requirements into the analysis, planning, and design of new highway capacity. Under F-SHRP, a context-sensitive approach to highway design would be formulated to include the best engineering, economic, environmental, social and aesthetic practices in the highway development process. This type of research would allow for increased capacity where needed, while meeting or exceeding the economic, social and environmental needs of the highway user.

• Increase funding for the Transit Cooperative Research Program (TCRP) from $8.25 million per year - which has not increased since 1993 - to $15 million in FY2004 and ensure future increases are proportional to increases in federal transit allocations.

  Transportation research is critical in advancing technology and innovation so necessary for America to maintain its edge in the global economy. In a more direct sense, certain practical, applied transportation research is also necessary to help transportation providers, consultants and suppliers develop practical solutions to everyday problems they encounter in the design and operation of efficient and effective transportation services.

  Since the establishment of the TCRP program through ISTEA and continued in TEA-21, the overall federal investment in surface transportation programs has grown considerably. Funding for the TCRP program, by contrast, has not. TCRP started with $9 million in 1992, and currently receives $8.25 million, despite its impressive record of achievement. Further, even less money is actually available to TCRP for industry-generated research as a result of substantial earmarking by Congress.

• Require more focused research on intersection safety countermeasures.

  In 2000, more than 2.8 million intersection-related crashes occurred in the U.S.Capproximately 44 percent of all crashes reported that year. Further over 8,500 fatalities (23 percent) and nearly 1 million injuries (more than 48 percent of all injury cases) occurred at or within the vicinity of an intersection¹ . ITE's International Board of Direction has identified transportation safety as a priority topic for the organization. Intersection safety is an integral piece of ITE's Safety Action Plan. ITE's primary aim is to provide transportation professionals with the tools necessary to reduce fatalities, injuries and property damage due to intersection-related crashes.

  In November 2001 ITE, in partnership with FHWA hosted a conference on intersection safety that drew transportation professionals from across the country. The attendees identified the need for additional data regarding the human, operations and design factors that lead to reduced intersection safety. Accordingly, ITE recommends that the reauthorized bill include additional resources for research focusing on:

  • Human factors related to drivers' decision-making processes within the intersection environment;
  • Identifying best practices on the provision of intersection and safety information to drivers;
  • Providing a costs-benefits analysis on intersection safety countermeasures;
  • Examining advanced technologies including intersection collision avoidance systems;
  • Clarifying the benefits and dispelling the myths associated with automated enforcement; and
  • Developing ways to facilitate the expedient exchange of gathered information and field application results achieved nationwide.

• Require the Secretary of Transportation to initiate a study through the National Academy of Sciences to identify best practices of incorporating operations and safety into the planning process

  In October 2001, ITE, as a member of the National Steering Committee on Transportation Operations, hosted the National Summit on Transportation Operations with FHWA. The meeting was an effort to bring together professionals representing various transportation modes to identify the needs and opportunities for enhancing transportation operations. According to the meeting participants, effective management and operations comprises a cooperative and collaborative environment that bridges modes, jurisdictions, and multiple professions in order to maximize the efficiency and safe operation of transportation systems. The management and operations spectrum ranges from planning and managing transportation resources and systems over the longer term to the everyday maintenance and real-time operations of individual facilities.

  One aspect of incorporating operations entails using traffic engineering projects as potentially cost-saving alternatives to major roadway construction projects. Traffic engineering can often increase roadway capacity and efficiency and address safety. Traffic engineering solutions are generally faster to implement and do not require the same degree of environmental impact analysis as new construction. The following issues related to management and operations were identified by the Summit participants and could greatly benefit from research in best practices:

  1. Transportation system integration and management;
  2. Jurisdictional cooperation and communication among multiple transportation organizations, law enforcement, emergency response, and media for real-time transportation emergency management;
  3. Regional operations and resource sharing for project and programming decisions;
  4. Implementation of performance measures related to customer service, agency accountability, real-time monitoring, results, outcomes over output, and instrumentation (enabling infrastructure) and data; and
  5. Research and deployment of data collection and use, including technology for data collection, sampling, and simulation modeling to augment system performance data.

• Continue to fund the Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) Research and Deployment program focusing on traffic management center operations, traffic incident management, traffic signal system management, public transit management and advanced traveler information systems.

  In this time of uncertainty, continued investment in ITS research and development is critical. ITS plans in metropolitan areas should be updated to incorporate emergency management strategies and to facilitate national security. For example, many metropolitan areas have emergency management organizations, but they may not be integrated with a traffic operations center. Some metropolitan areas, which are vulnerable to hurricanes and other natural disasters, have evacuation plans and supporting systems, but many do not.

  ITS has a role to play in emergency preparedness. ITS components can be instrumental in supporting the establishment of key action plans directly related to evacuation planning and implementation, and emergency vehicle prioritization. Traffic management centers, with their communications and traffic surveillance capabilities, can be quickly transformed into command centers for disaster management. Traveler information systems can be used to guide people to safety.

• Support findings of the Transportation Research Board's Special Report 261, The Federal Role in Highway Research and Technology, prepared by the Research and Technology Coordinating Committee of the National Research Council.

  The report recommends that the FHWA's R&T program should:

  • Invest at least one-quarter of research expenditures in fundamental, long-term research aimed at achieving breakthroughs in the understanding of transportation-related phenomena;
  • Allocate approximately one-half of R&T resources focusing on research on significant highway research gaps not addressed in other highway R&T programs and emerging issues with national implications;
  • Balance nationwide representation of stakeholders and technical experts in problem identification with technical review through open competition, merit review and systematic evaluation of outcomes to make decisions that reflect a strategic vision for the national transportation system - Congress should provide FHWA with the funding and authorization to meet this need;
  • Promote innovation by surveying international research and practice, with the aim of identifying promising technologies, processes, and methods for use in the United States;
  • Subject university transportation research funded under the UTC program to the same guidelines of FHWA's R&T program
  • Seek increased funding in its R&T budgetCa budget twice the current level would only amount to 1 percent of the annual total public highway expenditures.

Conclusion

In conclusion, ITE recommends six key areas of research that the Environment and Public Works Committee should incorporate in the reauthorized surface transportation bill.

• Support the program goals and increased funding for the Future Strategic Highway Program.
• Support increased funding for the Transit Cooperative Research Program.
• Require focused research on intersection safety and the exchange of lessons learned nationwide.
• Require the Secretary of Transportation to initiate a study through the National Academy of Sciences to identify best practices of incorporating operations and safety into the planning process.
• Continue to fund ITS research and deployment.
• Support the Transportation Research Board recommendations for the Federal Highway Administration's Research and Technology Program.

ITE strongly believes that these recommendations are instrumental to ensuring the future safety, reliability and security of the transportation system. ITE appreciates the opportunity to share our views and looks forward to working with you in the future.