For motorists across the country, it feels like history is repeating itself. Recently, average gasoline prices hovered around $4.00 per gallon, just like they did in 2008. And some predictions have prices at the pump heading to $5.00 in 2012. As a result, commuters are once again contemplating changes in what, or how, they drive. […]
Volume 47, Number 2
Drive Smarter, Pay Less
Answers from the Expert: Understanding Fuel Prices from the Inside Out Dave Ellis is the Texas Transportation Institute’s resident expert on economic trends associated with fuel prices and driving behavior. Recently we asked him some questions about why gas prices rise and fall so dramatically from time to time. Here’s what he had to say. […]
PANDA Model Predicts Pavement Damage, Helps Build Better Pavements
Improving pavement performance has been a primary goal of the Texas Transportation Institute (TTI) since its founding in 1950. And we’re not done yet. The latest innovation is a mechanistic method of simulating pavement behavior and predicting pavement damage that can help produce longer-lasting, distress-resistant pavements. “There has been a continuing effort to replace empirical […]
Pavement 2.0
TTI Updates Pavement Design Software One of the best parts of a software upgrade is seeing the new features. Releasing next-generation software often requires a much-needed modernization of the hardware. Sometimes, though, it’s the other way around. Texas’ roadways — the state’s biggest collection of hardware —are being modernized, and that’s required the updating of […]
Assessing Customer Satisfaction
TTI Helps TxDOT Ask Texans the Right Questions Knowing how well you’re doing your job can be as easy as asking someone’s opinion. But when you’re a public agency, it can get a bit more complicated. In a joint effort, the Texas Transportation Institute (TTI) and the Bush School of Government and Public Service recently […]
Valuing Research
TTI Assesses Loop 410 Improvements in San Antonio Accountability. Performance measures. “Bang for the buck.” We hear these terms a lot these days about our transportation system. Knowing how to maximize the return on our transportation dollar is vital at a time when budgets are shrinking but commuter needs continue to grow. In 1960, San […]
Awards and More
Freight Shuttle, New Guardrail Highlighted at Awards Luncheon Eight TTI employees were recognized at the Patent and Innovation Awards Luncheon May 6, which was held at the Annenberg Presidential Conference Center at the George Bush Presidential Library. Steve Roop, Leslie Olson and Curtis Morgan were honored for their patent, described simply as a freight transportation […]
Available Reports and Products
Technical Reports Development of Performance-Based Evaluation Methods and Specifications for Roadside Maintenance, by Nasir Gharaibeh, 0-6387-1, February 11, 2011. Evaluating the Impact of Overweight Load Routing on Buried Utility Facilities, by Edgar Kraus, 0-6394-1, February 18, 2011. Realtime Monitoring of Bridge Scour Using Remote Monitoring Technology, by Jean-Louis Briaud, 0-6060-1, February 18, 2011. Development of […]
Bringing Balance to Transportation Finance
What It Takes Is Dollars and Sense Getting where you’re going costs money. Whether that’s bus fare, filling up your gas tank or keeping our transportation system operational, it all costs money. And it’s getting more expensive. How much we pay at the pump might be the most visible reminder that transportation isn’t free, but […]
Road Design Training in Kosovo
TTI Contributes to a Unique Public-Private Partnership Good roads are vital to progress, especially in newly established and developing countries. After more than a decade of war and political unrest, Kosovo emerged as the world’s newest independent state in early 2008. But the country’s roadway infrastructure was severely deteriorated and in need of reconstruction. To […]
TTI Helps Texas Legislators See into the Future
Investment Today, Return Tomorrow Funding transportation infrastructure is a lot like investing in education — expenditures today will yield substantial returns over time. With a gloomy economy and ever-increasing transportation needs in mind, Texas Transportation Commission Chair Deirdre Delisi reconvened the 2030 Committee to develop an updated analysis of the state’s transportation system. Released in […]
Providing a Viable Financing Option
TTI Helps Implement TRZs in Texas A nation’s progress depends in part on transporting goods and services over a safe, reliable road network. With the current state of the national economy, however, public funding for road construction and infrastructure maintenance is rapidly shrinking. This makes finding innovative financing methods even more critical. One such solution […]