For more than a decade, transportation professionals and policymakers in Texas have used the Transportation Revenue Estimator and Needs Determination System (TRENDS) to project funding levels and simplify the arduous task of highway planning in a fast-growing state. The easy-to-use, interactive model has been applied extensively to forecast transportation revenue changes related to changing state […]
economics
Federal Road Funding Nearly Expired — Let’s Focus Before the Next Deadline
By Greg Winfree Congress really has its hands full these days, with urgent priorities summoning attention from all directions. Pandemic relief. The census on a tighter schedule. Widespread social unrest. Election season. As if that wasn’t enough, with seemingly no room left on their full plate, national leaders were coming up on a dead end […]
Do You Know the Actual Cost to Transport Grain to its Final Destination?
The National Grain and Feed Association (NGFA), together with the USDA Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) and Texas A&M Transportation Institute (TTI) hosted a webinar on Thursday, July 9, highlighting an in-depth look at the research and outcome of a study done by TTI on how congestion and wait times during the transportation of U.S. agriculture […]
Paving the Way: TTI Pavement Research Provides Economic, Environmental Benefits
The Texas A&M Transportation Institute (TTI) has a varied and productive history of applied research for the National Cooperative Highway Research Program. These projects provide excellent value by solving the myriad of problems facing transportation professionals. Two recent projects in the pavement area, Short-Term Laboratory Conditioning of Asphalt Mixtures and The Effects of Recycling Agents […]
New Study Underscores Economy/Traffic Jam Link
If more Americans are working, a new report confirms, more of us are also tied up in traffic. The picture is painted clearly in the 2019 Urban Mobility Report, published by the Texas A&M Transportation Institute (TTI). Along with illustrating the problem, researchers also stress the same straightforward solutions they’ve long advocated: more of everything […]
Texas Airports Mean Business
Local government officials often refer to their general aviation airport as “the most valuable mile of pavement in the county.” The Texas Aviation Economic Impact Study, released in 2018, proved just how true that perception is. The study was prepared for the Texas Department of Transportation’s (TxDOT’s) Aviation Division by CDM Smith, with assistance from […]
Texas Transit Needs Assessment Identifies Underserved Areas of the Lone Star State
Many Texans rely on public transit to go to work or school, keep medical appointments, shop and run errands, and travel to recreational activities. In fact, in 2016, more than 30 million trips were made on Texas’ 67 transit systems (sometimes called districts) that receive state funding. Going to work was the most common trip […]
Helping Rural Communities Create a Multimodal Transportation Investment Plan
The peace and quiet rural Texas is known for can sometimes contribute to the notion that a quiet life in the country means that no problems exist. Yet many Texans who enjoy country living still have mobility needs, and that tranquil image can make it difficult for rural transportation providers to secure funding to meet […]
Two Decades of Super 2 Research and Implementation for TxDOT Continues to Produce Benefits
With more than 57,000 miles of two-lane rural highways in Texas — where it’s estimated that 68 percent of rural travel occurs — Texas drivers are known to pull onto the shoulder to let a vehicle pass, sometimes creating an unsafe situation. Developing and increasing use of low-cost roadway safety and capacity improvements are key […]
Decisions, Decisions: Lane Choices Aren’t as Simple as We Thought
Plastic or paper. Decaf or regular. Cash or credit. Consumers make choices every day. Whether it’s about how we shop, how we dine, or how we purchase goods and services, most of our decisions are pretty straightforward. We know what we want, and we know why. When it comes to how we commute, however, things […]
Rural Texas Highways Give Us a Reliable Path to the Pump
By William R. Stockton Your car’s next tank of gas is on its way to you. You can be assured of that, even though the journey it takes to get there is a sometimes arduous one. That journey could begin at one of hundreds of active oil wells in Texas, located predominantly in remote rural […]
Rural Transportation Needs Highlighted at Policy Symposium
Local and statewide policy makers from around Texas gathered on November 13 to discuss a wide range of challenges facing rural sectors of the state, and transportation issues were high on the agenda. “The Future of Rural Texas” symposium on the Texas A&M University campus was hosted by The Texas Tribune and co-sponsored by the […]
A Lesson in Economics, Featuring Seaports and Your Stuff
By Jim Kruse The next time you’re trying to understand the global economy — the next time that hearing about tariffs and trade deficits makes you want to tune out — just remember that much of the study of economics boils down to just two things: seaports and your stuff. That’s because you use a […]
Quicker Funding, Shorter Project: TRZs Can Speed up Construction Projects from the Get-Go
According to the Texas Department of Transportation’s (TxDOT’s) Accelerated Construction Guidelines, a typical major highway project might take anywhere from 8 to 15 years. TxDOT says decreasing the time it takes to complete the preconstruction phase alone can save $100,000 to $500,000. The construction phase of transportation improvements is often thought of as the determining […]
Reaching the Worldwide Marketplace — TTI’s Center for International Intelligent Transportation Research Solves Cross-Border Transportation Problems
For the international economy to thrive, economic development can’t stop at national borders. Facilitating growth requires moving goods efficiently from one country to another, which in turn requires a vital, robust transportation system. In 2006, the Texas Legislature established the Texas A&M Transportation Institute’s (TTI’s) Center for International Intelligent Transportation Research (CIITR). Through applied research, […]
The Best Surprise Is No Surprise
Utility engineering helps agencies and contractors avoid unseen expenses and delays Transportation project design and construction, even under the most ideal circumstances, is a challenge for all concerned: the agency who’s paying for the project, the engineer who’s designing it, the contractor who’s building it, and the travelers who are waiting for it to be […]
Texas A&M’s Infrastructure Renewal Symposium Brings Together Industry Experts, Leaders to Discuss Critical Issues
Optimism about future transportation funding and new efforts to modify regulatory restrictions were prominent themes of Texas A&M University’s National Symposium on the Barriers and Opportunities for Infrastructure Renewal, held at the Annenberg Presidential Conference Center Sept. 18. Members of the Trump Administration and other high-level state and federal officials, as well as private-sector stakeholders, […]
Economic Indicators Graphs Provide Quick Access to Key Trends
When researching transportation in Texas, analyzing economic trends that impact transportation is a critical component. Therefore, having quick, accurate access to many of these trends is of great benefit to transportation researchers. The Texas A&M Transportation Institute’s (TTI) Infrastructure Investment and Analysis Program has developed a set of economic indicators that directly and indirectly affect […]
TTI-Texas A&M Engineering Collaborations Enhance Educational Opportunities
A transportation revolution is about to take place, the likes of which we’ve not seen since the invention of the internal combustion engine. Connected and automated vehicles (CV/AVs) hold the promise of vastly improving safety, mobility and the economy. We’re on the cusp of this transformation, and The Texas A&M University System’s engineering community is […]
Follow the Leader: Two-Truck Automated Platoon Test Is a Winner
Can an automated, commercial two-truck platoon be deployed on specific corridors in Texas in the next five to ten years? Thanks to a successful test by the Texas A&M Transportation Institute (TTI), the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) and the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT), the agencies are one big step closer to answering that question. […]