On February 26, the Texas Transportation Commission adopted the 2030 Committee’s Texas Transportation Needs Report. The 221-page report concludes that meeting Texas’ transportation needs between 2009 and 2030 will require $315 billion, or about $14.3 billion per year. The 2030 Committee is comprised of 12 Texas business and civic leaders appointed in May 2008 by […]
Volume 45, Number 1
Recycling the road: Full-depth reclamation uses old roadways to make new
Not only is recycling good for the environment, it is good for our pocketbook. Recycling is the process of turning used products into raw materials for making new products. With thousands of miles of roadway in place — many needing rehabilitation — reusing the existing pavement materials can make a big cash difference. Full-depth reclamation […]
Edwards announces Mobility Initiative at TTI
Rep. Chet Edwards detailed the “Bryan/College Station Mobility Initiative” — a unique agreement designed to improve the quality of transportation in smaller communities — during a news conference at the Texas Transportation Institute (TTI) on January 30. Edwards secured $1 million in funding for the initiative, which will house a traffic management system at TTI’s […]
Available Reports and Products
Technical Reports “Managed Lanes Handbook Training: Year 2 Report of Activities,” by Beverly Kuhn, 5-4160-01-2, March 23, 2009. “Implementing GPS into PAVE-IR,” by Stephen Sebesta, 5-4577-03-1, March 17, 2009. “Improvements to Video Imaging Detection for Dilemma Zone Protection,” by Dan Middleton, 0-5774-1, March 17, 2009. “Potential Policies and Incentives to Encourage Movement of Containerized Freight […]
Awards and More
Horsley presented Director’s Research Champion Award John Horsley, executive director of the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO), was presented with the 2008 Texas Transportation Institute Director’s Research Champion Award at TTI‘s January 11 reception at the Transportation Research Board Annual Meeting in Washington, D.C. The award is sponsored by Trinity Industries […]
Measuring twice, cutting once: Integrating sustainability into transportation planning
Tailoring and transportation share at least one thing in common — the better the planning, the better the product. When tailors measure cloth twice before cutting, they’re maximizing efficiency and minimizing waste by first calculating carefully. In the transportation planning arena, that’s what sustainability is all about. “Sustainable transportation” means different things to different people. […]
A Different Perspective
Transportation, like many things in life, is easily taken for granted. As part of its bid to stimulate the national economy, the Obama Administration is focusing on improving our national transportation infrastructure. This discussion, while new to some, is actually part of a lengthier dialogue as old as the United States itself. Though there was, […]
Evaluating the 4Ts
What impacts do tolling, transit, technology and telecommuting/travel demand management have on reducing traffic congestion in major travel corridors? Researchers at the Texas Transportation Institute (TTI) are part of a team helping the U.S. Department of Transportation (U.S. DOT) answer that question. The U.S. DOT is funding congestion reduction strategies at multiple sites throughout the […]
Senate and Legislative Ladies Day a smashing success
On March 4, 67 wives of Texas Legislators visited the Texas Transportation Institute (TTI) and the Texas Engineering Extension Service (TEEX) for Senate and Legislative Ladies Day. In attendance were Julie Straus, wife of Speaker of the House Joe Straus; Sen. Steve Ogden’s wife, Beverly; and Michelle Dunnam, wife of Rep. Jim Dunnam of the […]
Hall of Honor makes room for two pioneers
With long-lasting and pivotal contributions to the improvement of transportation in the Lone Star State and beyond, two Texans were inducted into the Texas Transportation Hall of Honor during a ceremony held in Austin. On November 21, Marquis G. Goode, Jr., a 40-year employee of the Texas Highway Department (now the Texas Department of Transportation, […]
Warm mix is HOT!: Paving the way cleaner, faster and cheaper in Texas
What began in Europe is now the hottest thing in asphalt in Texas and the U.S. There are many ways to get there, but the goal is the same: to lower the temperature of asphalt by 35 to 100 degrees Fahrenheit prior to application. “When we started the warm mix research project, I thought we’d […]
Caring for concrete
It’s easy enough to fix a pothole, but how easy is it to actually prevent them from appearing at all? Given the number of cracks and potholes that plague Texas roadways, there is no question about the value that a successful preventive maintenance could have in delaying more serious problems. Various methods exist to identify […]
Varying seal-coat asphalt rates across the roadway
As the winter months wind down, Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) district offices throughout the state will complete planning for the hectic summer seal-coat season. Best applied when the weather is warm, seal coats are by far the most popular preventative maintenance treatment used in Texas. A recently completed research project, sponsored by TxDOT and […]
Streamlining the construction process: TTI researchers find ways to cut costs
State departments of transportation (DOTs) throughout the country are battling the same worsening problems: a lack of funds for road construction and soaring prices for materials like steel and concrete. When funds are available, these rising costs have DOTs scrambling for dollar-stretching ideas. “Construction costs have almost doubled between 1998 and 2006,” says Ivan Damnjanovic […]
Black top served hot: TTI research helps lengthen road life
Potholes in the road cause more problems than commuters just spilling their coffee. Potholes are also a safety hazard and an expensive burden to the taxpayers footing the bill for repairs. Thermal segregation, one major cause of potholes, occurs in isolated, low-density areas when the temperature differs greatly during placement of the new overlay. Hot-mix […]