USDOT to award $60 million for high-tech transportation projects

As technology moves forward, it impacts all sectors of business and government -- including transportation.

In an effort to spur innovation, the U.S. Department of Transportation's (USDOT) Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) will award $60 million worth of grants for projects that use technology to enhance transportation by boosting safety and improving system performance and efficiency for those who use the nation's highways, as well as improve the return on investment from infrastructure projects through the Advanced Transportation and Congestion Management Technologies Deployment Program (ATCMTD).

The program was born from ideas and concerns included in last year's USDOT report Beyond Traffic, which indicated that with population growth would come increasing traffic. This could create a serious gridlock situation, especially in urban areas, in the next few years if issues are not properly addressed and infrastructure is not significantly improved.

“Innovative technologies offer exciting solutions that can help meet the challenges outlined in Beyond Traffic and can improve safety and efficiency of transportation across the nation,” Federal Highway Administrator Gregory Nadeau said. “This new program will help harness and support these technologies and push the boundaries of what is possible for the future of transportation in our country.”

Projects that would be eligible for ATCMTD grants would invovle traffic-data collection, information for travelers available in real time and intelligent-transportation technologies. The grants are available to state departments of transportation, as well as local governments, transit authorities, and planning commissions and organizations.

“This program will take technological innovation to a new level and help to make the entire transportation network more reliable for commuters, businesses, and freight shippers,” U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx said. “An efficient transportation system is the foundation of a strong economy.”

More information is available online at www.fhwa.dot.gov/fastact/funding.cfm.