Caltrans Library & History Center

Missouri Highway Project Uses 'Smog-Eating Concrete'

2010-10-29T08:27:00.000-07:00

Missouri Highway Project Uses 'Smog-Eating Concrete'
Click to view story and video on KTVI-TV

Interactive Highway Safety Design Model version 2010

2010-07-28T10:44:00.000-07:00

The U.S. Federal Highway Administration has released the 2010 version of its Interactive Highway Safety Design Model (IHSDM), which is a suite of software analysis tools for evaluating safety and operational effects of geometric design decisions on two-lane rural highways, rural multilane highways, and urban/suburban arterials. IHSDM is a decision-support tool. The 2010 version includes six evaluation modules that cover crash prediction, policy review, design consistency, intersection review, traffic analysis, and driver and vehicle modules.
http://www.ihsdm.org/wiki/Welcome

Comprehensive Intersection Resource Library

2010-07-20T09:27:00.000-07:00

The U.S. Federal Highway Administration has launched a website that provides access to a broad cross section of publications, educational materials, and other media that addresses traditional signalized intersections, traditional unsignalized intersections, roundabouts, highway/rail grade crossings, and alternative intersection designs such as single-point intersections. Information on the site can be found by keyword search or browsed by title, author, or topic.
http://safety.fhwa.dot.gov/intersection/resources/fhwasa09027/

Driving Innovation 2010: FHWA's Highways for LIFE video

2010-07-06T09:20:00.000-07:00

The U.S. Federal Highway Administration’s Highways for LIFE program has released a video that describes the program, which is designed to advance longer–lasting highway infrastructure using innovations to accomplish the fast construction of efficient and safe highways and bridges. The video is slightly more than eight minutes long.

Bridge Engineering Distinguished Speaker Series at the University at Buffalo.

2010-05-11T15:11:00.000-07:00

Some of the nation’s leading experts in the field of bridge engineering are participating in a new Bridge Engineering Distinguished Speaker Series at the University at Buffalo. Held on Monday evenings at 5:00 p.m. EDT, the presentations cover a wide variety of topics in bridge engineering, including project development, public policy and learning from bridge failures.For more information visit:
http://mceer.buffalo.edu/publications/bulletin/10/24-01/07BridgeSeries.asp

U.S. DOT Strategic Plan: Share Your Ideas

2010-05-11T09:54:00.000-07:00

The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) has launched a website designed to collect comments on its strategic plan for 2010 to 2015. The plan focuses on transportation safety, maintaining a state of good repair, promoting investments that bring lasting benefits, fostering livable communities, and environmentally sustainable transportation policies.
https://dotstrategicplan.ideascale.com/a/panelDetails.do?id=8329&detailID=115081

Tracking Bay Bridge East Span Construction in Real Time

2010-04-29T11:33:00.001-07:00

The Toll Bridge Program Oversight Committee (Caltrans, the Bay Area Toll Authority and the California Transportation Commission) has teamed up with Google Earth to give Bay Area residents and bridge enthusiasts around the world a virtual view from their computers of the Bay Bridge East Span’s self-anchored suspension span as it rises from the Bay. Google Earth users who have the “3D Buildings” feature turned on can view a model of the future bridge and monitor the ongoing construction.

You can find instructions for accessing the East Span on Google Earth as well as views of daily progress on the bridge (taken by stationary cameras) at http://bata.mtc.ca.gov.

Study of Rural Transportation Issues

2010-04-28T14:30:00.000-07:00

This report reviews transportation and its effect on rural communities, with an emphasis on agricultural transportation. It looks in depth into each of the four major modes of transportation commonly used by agriculture in the United States: trucking, railroads, barges, and ocean vessels, examining each in the light of its ability to meet rural America’s transportation needs now and in the future. It identifies some broad issues that merit attention from policy makers. Access the report at http://www.ams.usda.gov/AMSv1.0/RuralTransportationStudy

A Look at Unusual Airports

2010-04-19T21:58:00.000-07:00

The Popular Mechanics Web site has a slideshow on what it calls "The World's 18 Strangest Airports." From airports on artificial islands to airports with 18-hole golf courses, from runways with hills in the middle to ocean beaches as runways, this gallery provides a look at some truly remarkable airports. Check it out at http://www.popularmechanics.com/technology/engineering/architecture/4346192?do=print

FHWA's TIM(Traffic Incident Management) Performance Measurement Knowledgebase

2010-02-09T10:22:00.000-08:00

The U.S. Federal Highway Administration has launched a website designed to provide transportation professionals the knowledge and tools they need, including sample documents and models from other states, to successfully implement program-level traffic incident management (TIM) performance measures in their state.
http://www.ops.fhwa.dot.gov/eto_tim_pse/preparedness/tim/knowledgebase/index.htm

AASHTO Launches High Speed Rail Website

2010-02-01T08:57:00.000-08:00

AASHTO launched a new website which brings together news and information, best practices, and technical assistance etc. about high speed and intercity passenger rail.
http://www.highspeed-rail.org/Pages/default.aspx

FHWA Releases MUTCD 2009 Edition

2009-12-17T08:09:00.000-08:00

The MUTCD's new 2009 edition features many new and updated requirements, ranging from changes in highway signs and bike lanes to the color of high-visibility garments worn by road workers, and will become effective January 15th, 2010. http://mutcd.fhwa.dot.gov

New Applications for TRISWorld and TRB Publications Index

2009-12-16T16:40:00.000-08:00

RSS Feeds and other Web 2.0 sharing applications are now available on both TRISWorld (http://trisworld.trb.org) and the TRB Publications Index (http://pubsindex.trb.org). RSS Feeds on the Research in Progress database were implemented this Fall. Users are now able to get RSS feeds to update specific search results on the various TRB databases.

TRB Research in Progress Online Database Update

2009-11-19T14:07:00.000-08:00

The Transportation Research Board (TRB) has enhanced the Research in Progress Database (RiP). User can now get RSS (Really Simple Syndication) feed of updates to RiP searches, including recent projects added, or new projects entered on a specific topic. RSS feed is often referred to as a Web feed—a data format used for providing users with frequently updated content. RSS is an XML-based syndication format for distributing Web content. Many kinds of content can be distributed using the RSS format including Research in Progress search results, topic alerts, and new projects that have been added to the RiP Database.
The RiP website includes descriptive summaries of ongoing research projects for all transportation modes, including transit, highway, rail, as well as state DOT research, university transportation centers research and more. Subscription information to RSS is available online at: http://rip.trb.org/feeds/rss_help.asp

TRB Publications Index

2009-11-19T14:05:00.000-08:00

The Transportation Research Board (TRB) Publications Index has been updated to include historical and contemporary publications. TRB publications by mode are displayed upfront on the website. This upfront display of “publications by modes” makes it easier for a user to locate desired information. The index contains over 41,000 papers, articles, and reports published by the Transportation Research Board, Highway Research Board, Strategic Highway Research Program, or the Marine Board from 1923 to date. More online at: http://pubsindex.trb.org

Ten Social Networking Websites to Keep You in the Loop

2009-11-19T14:02:00.000-08:00

September 14, 2009. Ten government information technology social networking websites will keep you “In the Know.” For example, FedScoop - Not strictly a social-networking site, it is the most comprehensive one-stop introduction to government-related blogs and other Web 2.0 sources. More online at: http://fcw.com/articles/2009/09/14/social-networking-sites-keep-you-in-the-loop.aspx?s=gov2_201009

Making Places: News and Ideas from Projects for Public Spaces

2009-11-19T13:59:00.000-08:00

Project for Public Spaces released this first installment of a two-part newsletter on transportation innovations in the United States and abroad. The Feature Story, “From Place to Place: Reinventing Transportation Planning through Placemaking,” highlights initiatives that are helping communities rethink how to connect people with the goods, services, and destinations they need and desire. In this newsletter the focus is on several new endeavors in the United States, followed by an upcoming issue that looks at innovative transportation planning practices abroad. “The real point of transportation planning is to get people to places they want to go, and therefore all transportation planning should start with Placemaking.” More online at: http://www.pps.org/info/newsletter/from_place_to_place/

Innovative Transportation Technologies

2009-11-19T13:54:00.000-08:00

The University of Washington has one of the most comprehensive websites advocating innovative transportation technologies. The purpose of the website is to provide information about unconventional (therefore innovative) transportation technologies. Some of these technologies are operational, some are under development, and some are still conceptual. The website is intended to be an information resource for graduate students in the Transportation Engineering and Urban Planning programs at the University of Washington in Seattle, and for other interested persons around the world.
More online at: http://faculty.washington.edu/jbs/itrans

Redwood Highway 100th anniversary

2009-11-05T14:03:00.000-08:00

This year marks the 100th anniversary of the beginning of the Redwood Highway, which started as a ten-mile stretch near Ukiah and grew into the primary auto route between San Francisco and Josephine County in Oregon. Now part of Highway 101, the original Redwood Highway project lasted from 1909 to 1923, as part of the development of the statewide highway system.

The Highway and its subsequent improvements greatly increased traffic from San Francisco to points north, with the flow enlarged to full stream by the completion of the Golden Gate Bridge in 1937. Some of the more interesting sights include three drive-through trees, scenic drives along the Avenue of the Giants, and roadside stops such as the Legend of Bigfoot, Confusion Hill, and the Trees of Mystery. Take a tour along the Redwood Highway at http://www.redwoods.info/showrecord.asp?id=1579/
Link to the map developed in recognition of the Redwood Highway Centennial at http://www.northcoastca.com/Redwood%20Hwy%20Map.pdf.

California Asphalt Pavement Forum

2009-11-05T10:19:00.000-08:00

Get the latest information on trends, technologies and techniques that are essential to success in the asphalt pavement industry at the first annual California Asphalt Pavement Forum on Thursday, November 12, 2009, at the Doubletree Hotel in Sacramento. Shakir Shatnawi, Caltrans State Pavement Engineer, and Bob Pieplow, Caltrans Chief of Engineering Services, are featured speakers. To see the conference agenda, and to register, visit http://calapaconference.eventsbot.com/

The Impacts of Sea-level Rise on the California Coast

2009-10-12T08:31:00.000-07:00

In an analysis prepared for three California state agencies,the California Energy Commission, California Department of Transportation, and the Ocean Protection Council, the Pacific Institute report, The Impacts of Sea-Level Rise on the California Coast, concludes that sea-level rise will inevitably change the character of the California coast, and that adaptation strategies must be evaluated, tested, and implemented if the risks identified in the report are to be reduced or avoided. Populations and critical infrastructure at risk are shown in detailed maps prepared by the Pacific Institute available online at
http://www.pacinst.org/reports/sea_level_rise/report.pdf

Going, going, gone: free pubs for transportation professionals

2009-09-25T09:58:00.000-07:00

The Technology Transfer Program at the UC-Berkeley Institute of Transportation Studies offers FREE transportation-related materials from various sources (federal and California government, state transportation agencies, national organizations such as AASHTO, etc.) to eligible employees of California-serving, transportation-related, public agencies. Check out their service (called "Going, going, gone...") at http://www.techtransfer.berkeley.edu/g3/home.php.

State Transportation Departments use Twitter to send traffic/road construction updates for individual roads

2009-09-25T08:01:00.000-07:00

Transportation Departments Burn Rubber on Twitter
Link to article in Government Technology:
http://www.govtech.com/gt/articles/726973

New FHWA/Trasnportation Pooled Fund publication

2009-09-21T09:02:00.000-07:00

The National Incident Management System: A Workbook for State Department of Transportation Frontline Workers. Available on-line at http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/security/emergencymgmt/profcapacitybldg/docs/nims/nims_wkbk.pdf

Texas Transportation Institute's 2009 Urban Mobility Report

2009-09-17T15:35:00.000-07:00

Current information on the nation's traffic picture is outlined in the 2009 Urban Mobility Report published by Texas Transportation Institute. Available online at http://mobility.tamu.edu/ums/

FHWA published new Primer on Congestion Pricing and Transit

2009-09-17T15:15:00.000-07:00

The Federal Highway Administration published a new Primer on Congestion Pricing and Transit, which examines the results of congestion pricing in the United States and internationally, and the relationship to transit services. Available online at http://ops.fhwa.dot.gov/publications/fhwahop09015/fhwahop09015.pdf

New Caltrans guide for geotextiles

2009-09-16T14:00:00.000-07:00

A new design guide for using “subgrade enhancement geotextiles” (SEG) in road construction has been produced by Caltrans.

The 18-page document is intended to assist pavement design engineers in five areas: 1)what are SEGs and what functions do they serve; 2) how to determine if geotextile materials are needed for a project; 3) how to determine the material’s engineering properties; how to install and how to construct new pavement using geotextiles; and 5) calculating cost savings, in the amount of aggregate, by using geotextiles.

For more information and to examine this guide: www.dot.ca.gov/hq/esc/Translab/ope/Subgrade-Enhancement-Geotextile-Guide.pdf

Moving Cooler: An Analysis of Transportation Strategies for Reducing Greenhouse Gas Emissions

2009-09-16T12:22:00.000-07:00

The Moving Cooler study is the first comprehensive examination of transportation efficiency and its relationship to greenhouse gas (GHG) reduction and consumer savings. Prepared by Cambridge Systematics and published by the Urban Land Institute, it offers an objective, scientific analysis of the effectiveness and cost of almost 50 scalable transportation strategies to reduce GHG emissions. It looks at the possibilities of transportation efficiencies by examining two basic approaches: travel activity, and vehicle and system operations. View an executive summary, fact sheet at more at:
http://www.movingcooler.com/

GAO report on Metropolitan Planning Organizations (MPOs)

2009-09-16T12:02:00.000-07:00

The Government Accountability Office has released a report that examines the responsibilities of metropolitan planning organizations (MPOs) and the efforts made by the U.S. Department of Transportation to provide oversight to improve transportation planning. View the report at http://www.gao.gov/new.items/d09868.pdf

FHWA publishes new manual on prefabricated bridge construction

2009-09-16T11:56:00.000-07:00

The Federal Highway Administration has published a new manual on connections used in prefabricated bridge construction. Connection Details for Prefabricated Bridge Elements and Systems (FHWA-IF-09-010) can help engineers save time and money as they design prefabricated bridge projects, whether they involve new construction, replacement or rehabilitation.

The manual is organized so that a designer can choose and adapt appropriate connection details to use on a project. Separate chapters cover details for superstructures, substructures and foundations. The details are printed on two-page data sheets that can be removed from the manual and copied, enabling the designer to build a detail library for each project.

The connection details, which have been used on more than 150 ABC projects, come from state and federal agencies, international organizations, researchers and producers. For each connection detail, the manual provides a project description and contact information for the source so manual users can follow up for more information.

To complement the manual, FHWA developed an online Information Exchange for Bridges to house information on innovative products and processes that can be used in preparing project descriptions, specifications and construction drawings. Available at https://knowledge.fhwa.dot.gov/cops/ep.nsf/home, the exchange will provide updated information on connection details as they are developed and contributed to the exchange.

To download the manual, visit www.fhwa.dot.gov/bridge/prefab/if09010. To view a recording of the Web conference on how to use the manual, visit www.nhi.fhwa.dot.gov/about/innovationseries.aspx.

New Report by Transportation For America on condition of Nation's Highways & Bridges

2009-09-16T11:30:00.000-07:00

Report Names Worst Highway in US
http://abcnews.go.com/US/report-names-worst-highways-us/story?id=8495816

New AASHTO publication

2009-09-09T10:18:00.000-07:00

Today's AASHTO Daily Transportation Update (http://news.transportation.org/daily_update.aspx) features a new resource, the Manual for Bridge Evaluation. This all-inclusive manual incorporates allowable stress, load factor, and load and resistance factor rating methods into one publication. Policy and procedure guidelines for determining the physical condition, maintenance needs, and load capacity of highway bridges are also featured. The Caltrans Library has copies of this publication in paper and CD-ROM formats; contact us at library@dot.ca.gov.

Upcoming conferences

2009-09-03T11:07:00.000-07:00

Two major national transportation conferences are coming to California in the next few months.

The 2009 National Highway Data Workshop and Conference (HiDaC) will be held September 22-24, 2009, in Oakland. The conference is co-hosted by Caltrans and the University of California Berkeley Institute of Transportation Studies Technology Transfer Program. Attendance is free (registration required); participants have the option to attend in person or via web cast. See http://www.techtransfer.berkeley.edu/hidac/ for more details.

The AASHTO 2009 Annual Meeting will take place in Palm Desert October 22-26. See the conference information at http://www.dot.ca.gov/aashto2009/.

Life Cycle of a Highway

2009-08-28T08:35:00.000-07:00

A new spot video, Life Cycle of a Highway, produced by the Missouri Department of Transportation, vividly illustrates what happens below the surface of highways after 50 years of car and truck traffic have passed over them. MoDOT is making the 2-minute video available to all states to use in communicating the need to reinvest in highways; view or download at
ftp://ftp.modot.org/CRmedia/Lifecycle%20of%20a%20HWY/.

State DOT Executives Stress Importance of Transportation Bill

2009-08-24T11:05:00.000-07:00

State DOT Executives Stress Importance of Transportation Bill

State transportation officials said this week that uncertainty about future federal funding is forcing them to limit planning for large new projects in favor of simple, less-costly maintenance and repairs.

Hitting the Roads- -An Interview with Ray LaHood

2009-08-24T08:21:00.000-07:00

Hitting the Roads – An Interview with Ray LaHood
Link to interview in Via:
http://www.viamagazine.com/top_stories/articles/lahood_roads_sep09.asp

University of Maine’s Advanced Engineered Wood Composite Center's “bridge-in-a-backpack” technology.

2009-08-19T07:52:00.000-07:00

Transportation Secretary Eyes University of Maine Bridge Technology
Link to story in the Bangor Daily News:
http://www.bangordailynews.com/detail/116582.html

AASHTO's new website,"Real Transportation Solutions"

2009-08-18T12:09:00.000-07:00

AASHTO has released a new website and report focused on strategies to reduce transportation greenhouse gas emissions. AASHTO calls for limiting growth in VMT to 1% per year, increasing vehicle fuel efficiency, shifting to low- or no- carbon dioxide emitting fuels, and improving efficiency and operations of roadways. See: http://wwwcf.fhwa.dot.gov/exit.cfm?link=http://www.transportation1.org/RealSolutions.

TRB's Redesigned Website

2009-08-18T12:01:00.000-07:00

On August 14, 2009, TRB unveiled its redesigned website. The site is designed to make it easier for users to find TRB news, announcements, and publications based on more than 35 different transportation subject areas. The new site highlights selected transportation research-related products that have been developed at the federal and state levels, and within the academic and international transportation communities. The new RSS (really simple syndication), facebook, e-mail to a friend, twitter, and other functionalities make it easier than ever to keep up with and share the latest on transportation research. See: http://www.trb.org/Main/Public/Home.aspx.

The states and the stimulus

2009-08-18T10:38:00.000-07:00

A report issued yesterday by Smart Growth America, titled The states and the stimulus, finds that states are using only 0.9% of the federal Recovery Act transportation stimulus money on public transportation projects. Link to the report at: http://www.smartgrowthamerica.org/documents/120days.pdf
Wall Street Journal article: http://blogs.wsj.com/environmentalcapital/2009/06/30/roads-less-traveled-states-spending-on-roads-not-public-transportation/