| Iowa DOT features time-lapse images of I-680 rebuilding |
| November 4, 2011 Iowa DOT |
| AMES, IOWA — The Iowa Department of Transportation is featuring time-lapse video of images captured during reconstruction of a 3.1-mile section of Interstate 680 destroyed by Missouri River flooding. Additional video collected during June-September showing the flood mitigation work and damaged roadways is available on the Iowa DOT’s video gallery. |
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| AASHTO releases proposed Systems Operations and Management Guidance |
| November 4, 2011 AASHTO |
| WASHINGTON, D.C. — The proposed AASHTO Systems Operations & Management (SO&M) Guidance has been finalized and is available on the Web. The guidance website is designed to help transportation agency managers involved with ITS and SO&M at both the state and regional level. It offers custom-tailored guidance on improving agency capabilities in SO&M based on agency self-evaluation. |
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| Texas Transportation Commission approves I-69 designation for South Texas highway |
| November 4, 2011 Texas DOT |
| AUSTIN, TEXAS — The Texas Transportation Commission took action to add Interstate 69 to the state highway system, allowing Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) officials to label the first Texas stretch of the nearly 1,000-mile interstate since I-69 received federal high-priority route designation more than a decade ago. |
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| Ann Schneider continues leadership at Illinois DOT |
| November 4, 2011 Illinois Governor's Office |
| CHICAGO — Illinois Governor Pat Quinn named Ann Schneider as secretary of the Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT). Schneider has served as acting secretary of IDOT since July 2011. Prior to her appointment, Schneider served as IDOT’s chief of operations, responsible for managing and overseeing the department’s six offices and four divisions. |
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| States prepare for new stormwater reforms by sharing best practices |
| October 27, 2011 AASHTO |
| DETROIT — State department of transportation (DOT) officials shared best practices during the AASHTO Annual Meeting in Detroit. Matthew Garrett, chairman of the AASHTO standing Committee on the Environment and director of the Oregon DOT, convened the committee to discuss proposed stormwater rules and the Safe Treatment of Polluted Stormwater Runoff Act. A panel of experts discussed innovative practices currently being used in their states to address stormwater runoff. |
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| Flordia DOT hosts connected vehicle test bed |
| October 27, 2011 Florida DOT |
| ORLANDO, FlA. — Orlando is getting a glimpse of the future of transportation with the installation of the newest Connected Vehicle Test Bed along parts of Interstate 4, International Drive, and John Young Parkway. The test bed debuted at the 18th annual Intelligent Transportation System (ITS) World Congress, Oct. 16 – 20. The test bed’s 25 miles of existing roadway feature 29, two-way radio devices that communicate with a fleet of specially equipped vehicles. It is an early test of technology that can lead to safer vehicles and crash-free roadways. |
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| Kansas DOT announces two-year schedule of projects |
| October 27, 2011 Kansas DOT |
| TOPEKA, KAN. — The Kansas Department of Transportation (KDOT) announced that hundreds of transportation projects that will preserve, expand, and modernize the Kansas highway system have been scheduled for the next two years. The projects, which will be funded under T-WORKS, the transportation program passed by the 2010 Legislature, will improve 1,404 miles of highway and replace 93 bridges. The work will be done in the 2012-13 fiscal years, which began July 1. The estimated cost of the projects is $650 million. |
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| Washington State and Florida honored for America's Best Transportation Projects |
| October 19, 2011 AASHTO |
| DETROIT — The people have spoken, casting more than 100,000 votes in the fourth annual America's Transportation Awards competition. Holding tight onto an early lead, the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) claimed the People's Choice Award for its Operation I-5 Partnership Project. A panel of transportation experts also weighed in on its favorite project in America, selecting the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) as the Grand Prize winner for its Interstate 10/Interstate 95 interchange rebuild known as "The Big I" project. |
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| Indian River Inlet Bridge construction reaches milestone |
| October 19, 2011 Delaware DOT |
| REHOBOTH BEACH, DEL. — The Delaware Department of Transportation (DelDOT) announced that the last section of main span deck concrete was poured for the new Indian River Inlet Bridge during the late evening hours of Tuesday, Oct. 18, 2011. The final concrete deck pour links the north and south side of the bridge together over the inlet waterway. This event represents an historic milestone in the bridge's construction. |
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| TxDOT developing Rural Transportation Plan |
| October 19, 2011 Texas DOT |
| AUSTIN, TEXAS — The Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) is currently developing a Rural Transportation Plan 2035 (TRTP) as a component of the Statewide Long-Range Transportation Plan 2035 (SLRTP). The TRTP will focus on rural areas of the state and transportation projects that connect users in rural areas to urban markets, jobs, and services. As a component of the SLRTP, the TRTP will provide a blueprint for the development of a more safe, efficient, and less-congested transportation network between population centers, and compliment other transportation plans and programs such as the Texas Statewide Rail Plan, the Texas Airport Systems Plan, and the Unified Transportation Program. |
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| AASHTO board elects Michigan's Steudle and Rhode Island's Lewis |
| October 19, 2011 AASHTO |
| DETROIT — The American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) board of directors voted at its annual meeting in Detroit to elect Michigan Transportation Director Kirk Steudle as the association's president for the next year. Rhode Island Transportation Director Michael Lewis was elected AASHTO vice president. |
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| MoDOT plan has directed $177 million to highway projects |
| October 10, 2011 Missouri Department of Transportation |
| JEFFERSON CITY, MO. — The director of the Missouri Department of Transportation said the agency's plan to reduce staffing, facilities, and equipment has resulted in $177 million being redirected to critical road and bridge projects in Missouri. Kevin Keith told the six members of the Missouri Highways and Transportation Commission that as of Sept. 30, the department had eliminated 667 staff positions, closed 23 facilities, and disposed of 245 pieces of equipment under its Bolder Five-Year Direction. Those moves have allowed the department to save $177 million since March 2010 when the initial plan was put into action. More than $64 million of that money has been used to improve the state's rural roads. |
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| Seattle meets nine-year bridge rehab and replacement target |
| October 10, 2011 Seattle Department of Transportation |
| SEATTLE — The Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT) announced that Bridging the Gap met its first nine-year goal by completing five bridge rehabilitation and replacement projects. This five project goal, a commitment made to voters as part of the levy, was achieved with the on-time and under-budget completion of the East Marginal Way and South Horton Street Bridge. Having achieved this in less than five years, SDOT will soon begin work on another bridge replacement project, the Airport Way S Viaduct over Argo Railroad Yard, and will explore adding two additional structures before the levy expires in 2015. |
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| AASHTO app now available on Android OS devices |
| October 10, 2011 AASHTO |
| WASHINGTON, D.C. — The American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) announced that the AASHTO Mobile app is now available for Android-powered mobile devices. AASHTO Mobile, which debuted as an iPhone app in June, features real-time traffic conditions powered by INRIX, a provider of traffic information and driving services to leading automakers, navigation providers, and transportation agencies around the world. The app also features optimized versions of two popular transportation news sites: the Daily Transportation Update and the AASHTO Journal, a weekly news report. |
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| CDOT launches website for Colorado Bridge Enterprise projects |
| October 5, 2011 Colorado DOT |
| DENVER — The Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) officially launched a website that will track the status of Colorado’s poor bridges as they are being planned, designed, and constructed through the Colorado Bridge Enterprise (CBE). The website, www.coloradodot.info/programs/BridgeEnterprise, consists of current program statistics that are updated on a monthly basis as well as an interactive map that shows the status of all poor bridges, currently 119. Information about the CBE’s bond program and business opportunities for consultants and constructors is also available along with frequently asked questions. |
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| Online voting extended for America's Transportation Award competition |
| September 30, 2011 AASHTO |
| WASHINGTON, D.C. — The American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO), AAA, and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce announced a one week extension for online voting in the America's Transportation Awards competition. The winning state will be awarded a $10,000 prize to give to a charity or non-profit of its choosing. The original cutoff date for public voting was Friday, Oct. 7. The voting will now continue through the end of the day on Friday, Oct. 14. |
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| DelDOT/DART receives $13 Million for major Northeast Corridor rail chokepoint |
| September 30, 2011 U.S. Department of Transportation |
| WILMINGTON, DEL. — U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood announced a $13.3 million grant for the Delaware Department of Transportation (DelDOT) to add a third track immediately south of the Wilmington, Del., station. The additional track will eliminate a chokepoint on the Amtrak Northeast Corridor (NEC), improving on-time performance, with increased schedule flexibility on the Amtrak high-speed Acela and Northeast Regional services, as well as local commuter rail service. |
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| New report: Reinventing the Urban Interstate |
| September 30, 2011 TRB |
| WASHINGTON, D.C. — TRB’s Transit Cooperative Research Program (TCRP) Report 145: Reinventing the Urban Interstate: A New Paradigm for Multimodal Corridors presents strategies for planning, designing, building, and operating multimodal corridors — freeways and high-capacity transit lines running parallel in the same travel corridors. It is available at http://onlinepubs.trb.org/onlinepubs/tcrp/tcrp_rpt_145.pdf. |
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| AGC’s third annual Safety Day highlights worker safety training |
| September 30, 2011 AGC of N.J. |
| EDISON, N.J. — Each year in the state of New Jersey, nearly one out of every 10 construction workers on the state’s highway construction projects is injured on the job. According to U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, there were 87,400 worker injuries at job sites — including 600 on highway, street, and bridge construction projects — in New Jersey in 2009 (the most recent numbers that have been released). |
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| FHWA releases geosynthetic-reinforced soil-integrated bridge system video |
| September 27, 2011 FHWA |
| WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) released a video that illustrates how to build a geosynthetic-reinforced soil integrated bridge system (GRS-IBS). It is intended to educate designers, engineers, contractors, and inspectors on the fundamentals of the GRS-IBS. The video follows the GRS-IBS Interim Implementation Guide (FHWA-HRT-11-026). |
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| TRB seeks best practices in GIS-based asset management |
| September 27, 2011 TRB |
| WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Transportation Research Board’s National Cooperative Highway Research Program (NCHRP) issued a request for proposals to develop guidance for how state departments of transportation and other transportation agencies can enhance their asset-management capabilities through effective adoption of geographic information systems (GIS) technologies and encourage more extensive adoption of GIS technologies by conducting pilot demonstrations and workshops on implementation of GIS-based asset management. Proposals are due Nov. 11, 2011. |
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| MoDOT's goal is to re-open flooded roads by end of 2011 |
| September 27, 2011 Missouri Department of Transportation |
| ST. JOSEPH, MO. — The Missouri Department of Transportation (MoDOT) said its goal is to get flooded roadways open as quickly and safely as possible by the end of 2011. |
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| Illinois Tollway uses helicopter LiDAR mapping for corridor surveying |
| September 22, 2011 AeroMetric |
| SHEBOYGAN, WIS. — AeroMetric completed 36 miles of high-accuracy mapping along I-88 for the Illinois Tollway. I-88 is undergoing a mill and resurfacing program, and the design engineers required a high-precision base map to prepare construction documents. By employing a helicopter mapping solution, AeroMetric offered the team a creative and innovative approach to transportation corridor surveying. This is the first time the Illinois Tollway has used helicopter-based high accuracy mapping LiDAR technology for a corridor survey. |
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| Virginia receives preliminary approval to toll I-95 |
| September 20, 2011 Virginia DOT |
| RICHMOND — The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) has granted the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) preliminary approval to toll I-95 under the Interstate Reconstruction and Rehabilitation Pilot Program. In a Sept. 14 letter, FHWA Administrator Victor Mendez granted the conditional provisional approval and outlined steps required to move forward. Preliminarily, VDOT estimates it could generate $250 million over the first five years of the toll program and over $50 million annually thereafter. |
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| CDOT invites public comment on proposed I-70 Twin Tunnels improvements |
| September 19, 2011 Colorado DOT |
| IDAHO SPRINGS, COLO. — The Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) is encouraging the public to participate in a Sept. 27 meeting regarding proposed improvements to immediately address safety issues and improve traffic flow at the Twin Tunnels east of Idaho Springs, one of the most critical congestion bottlenecks on the Interstate 70 (I-70) Mountain Corridor. CDOT proposes widening the interstate to three eastbound lanes between Idaho Springs and the base of Floyd Hill, enlarging the eastbound bore of the tunnels and addressing safety issues on the eastbound highway curves between the tunnels and Floyd Hill. |
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| Armstrong named Iowa DOT lead engineer in southeast Iowa |
| September 16, 2011 Iowa DOT |
| AMES, IOWA — The Iowa Department of Transportation (DOT) announced the appointment of Jim Armstrong, P.E., as the District 5 engineer. The Iowa DOT’s District 5 covers 20 counties with boundaries of Warren, Clark, and Decatur counties on the west; and Marion, Mahaska, Keokuk, Washington, and Muscatine counties on the north. |
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| ARTBA selects 2011 Transportation Development Hall of Fame Class inductees |
| September 9, 2011 ARTBA |
| WASHINGTON, D.C. — Three distinguished American engineers have been selected for induction into the highest place of honor in the transportation design and construction industry: the American Road & Transportation Builders Association (ARTBA) Foundation’s Transportation Development Hall of Fame. Launched in 2010, the hall honors individuals or families from the public and private sectors who have made extraordinary contributions to U.S. transportation development during their careers. |
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| Hatch Mott MacDonald, IEW Construction, and NJDOT partner to restore service on storm-damaged I-287 |
| September 9, 2011 Hatch Mott MacDonald |
| MILLBURN, N.J. — Hurricane Irene, which battered the Atlantic Coast of the United States at the end of August, caused significant damage to New Jersey’s transportation infrastructure, and caused serious impacts to drivers throughout the region. In Boonton, the northbound lanes of I-287, a major, six-lane highway, were closed due to severe embankment scour and roadway failure. After extreme weather events, an immediate and effective response is critical for minimizing impacts on the region’s citizens and economy. The New Jersey Department of Transportation (NJDOT), along with IEW Construction Group (Trenton, NJ) and Hatch Mott MacDonald (HMM), a Millburn, NJ-based engineering firm, immediately mobilized following Hurricane Irene to implement emergency repairs to this critical highway link. |
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| US 93 to Hoover Dam Project receives top environmental award |
| September 8, 2011 Arizona DOT |
| PHOENIX — The Arizona Department of Transportation (ADOT) has been recognized nationally for its creative and innovative solutions on a project that makes traveling safer for motorists, while protecting wildlife and connecting ecosystems. The Federal Highway Administration awarded one of its top environmental honors — the 2011 Exemplary Ecosystem Initiative Award — to ADOT for the successful completion of the US 93 Hoover Dam to milepost 17 project, which opened to the public before Thanksgiving in 2010. The project widened US 93 to a modern four-lane divided highway and includes three wildlife crossings for bighorn sheep in the Lake Mead National Recreation Area. |
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| TRB hosts social media workshop for transportation community |
| September 7, 2011 TRB |
| WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Transportation Research Board is holding a free, online-only, day-long workshop to educate the transportation community on the uses of social media on Wednesday, Sept. 21. "Keeping up with Communication Technology: An Online Workshop on the Practical Use of Social Media" will include two plenary sessions and eight breakout sessions. Each session will feature a speaker or host from the transportation industry. Those registered may participate in as many or as few sessions as desired. |
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Department of Transportation makes steps to ensure the structure's ecological footprint is as small as possible, leaving room for natural habitats to flourish.
