February - 2018

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2 Minute Update Texas: James Bass on TxDOT in 2018

James Bass started his career at the Texas Department of Transportation as a part-time employee 33 years ago. Since then he’s moved through the ranks within the Financial Management Division—climbing in 2016, to the very top of the organization when he assumed the role of Executive Director. In this Two Minute State DOT Update filmed in January, at the TRB Annual Meeting in Washington D.C., Bass addressed the big issues facing TxDOT in the coming years. He also provides insi

Innovation in Motion: Iowa DOT Immersing the Public in Virtual Reality

Innovation in Motion—is a new video series that highlights the many ways state departments of transportation are using technology and design to transform the way they do business. In this, the first episode-- you’ll see a first of its kind, virtual reality (VR) software program developed from the ground up by a team of experts from the Iowa State Department of Transportation and Iowa State University. The team unveiled its high-tech software program for public engagement at

In Texas, Bad Transportation Policy Is Killing Us

This morning we saw some fresh evidence that, if you are a pedestrian, this city is passively trying to make you inconvenienced, if not actively trying to kill you. Even without any sidewalk-blocking construction, walking in Dallas can be dangerous, something backed up by the data and plenty of personal anecdotes: Spend a week hoofing it from downtown to the Cedars during afternoon rush hour, and you’ll begin treating the desperate sprint across eastbound Griffin Street on Ak

WATCH: SpaceX Successfully Launches Most Powerful Rocket In Decades

The world's newest, most powerful rocket in decades has reached space. It took a few weather delays Tuesday, but the private space company SpaceX successfully launched its Falcon Heavy rocket from the Kennedy Space Center. Watch the video of the launch at the top of this page. (If you'd like to skip ahead to the very moment the rocket lifts off, you can find it about 29:50 into the video.) Not long after the massive craft blasted off NASA's historic Launch Pad 39A, arcing a f

GPA: 10M-TEU capacity in 10 years

At the 50th annual Georgia Foreign Trade Conference Monday, GPA Executive Director Griff Lynch reviewed the strategic plan for Georgia's ports that will allow for 10 million twenty-foot equivalent container units, 1 million rail lifts, and more than 1 million auto and machinery units per year. "Georgia is home to both the single largest container and roll-on/roll-off facilities in North America," Lynch said. "Our goal is to maximize capacity, create jobs and reduce impact on

To Care for Aging Bridges, Minnesota Taps the Power of Drones

How do you inspect a bridge for signs of dangerous deterioration? It’s not easy. You’d either need to lower yourself on rope over the guard rails, or use specialized equipment like a “snooper”—a heavy-duty truck with a long, extending arm. Those can set back transportation departments as much as $1 million each. And you need a lot of them: More than 55,000 bridges are in need of repair or replacement in the U.S., according to the American Road and Transportation Builders Asso

Alternative Fuel Vehicle Fees, Higher Gas Tax May Fund US Infrastructure

A higher gas tax and new fees for alternative-fuel vehicles are among the ways America can pay for a major overhaul of its outdated infrastructure — and create jobs in the process, says a bipartisan group that includes U.S. Rep. Elizabeth Esty. “This will put people to work, and everybody knows we need to do it,” said Esty, a three-term Democrat who co-chairs the U.S. House Problems Solvers Caucus Infrastructure Working Group. “We think there is narrow window of a couple mont

VIDEO: Disney's Magic Highway - 1958

#roads #transportation #innovation #autonomousvehicles #rail

Infrastructure: the bipartisan job creator rural America needs

Infrastructure is one of the smartest investments we can make in our country. It allows businesses to grow and compete. It keep us safe. It creates millions of jobs—good paying jobs that cannot be outsourced overseas. And, it’s bipartisan. It’s one of the first things President Trump said he wanted to get done after he was elected. The time has come to work together to get this done, and get it done right. We cannot let another year go by without action. The good news is, the