Congestion & Mobility

This four-day program is designed for experienced highway work zone personnel who seek training in work zone traffic control.

This four-day program is designed for experienced highway work zone personnel who seek training in work zone traffic control.

This four-day program is designed for experienced highway work zone personnel who seek training in work zone traffic control.

The three-day event featured panelists from NASA, FAA, universities, industry, and more including associate director of Rutgers CAIT Dr. Pat Szary who presented on the safety and security roles that AI might play in the future of air mobility. A major theme of the event was addressing next steps in further implementing UAS.

Rutgers’ CAIT was awarded a $3.5 million grant from USDOT’s Research and Innovative Technology Administration under the University Transportation Center (UTC) program. This is the third time CAIT has successfully competed to retain its UTC status.

CAIT director Dr. Ali Maher and civil engineering professor Dr. Franklin Moon offered their thoughts on New Jersey infrastructure and encouraged lawmakers to view researchers in higher education as a resource and partner for finding solutions to the state’s pressing issues.

A CAIT research report spurred legislation to establish a task force to examine difficulties that adults with developmental disabilities face just getting around.

The Region 2 UTC consortium is focusing on developing practical tools and methods to improve infrastructure health, durability, and resilience. Partners are: Atlantic Cape Community College, Columbia, Cornell, NJIT, Polytechnic University of Puerto Rico, Princeton, Rowan, SUNY–Farmingdale, and University at Buffalo.

News from the USDOT Region 2 University Transportation Center led by Rutgers Center for Advanced Infrastructure and Transportation. Includes stories on recent events, research, and faculty accomplishments and activities.

News from the USDOT Region 2 University Transportation Center led by Rutgers CAIT

FHWA acting administrator Brandye Hendrickson has announced the fifth round of the agency’s Every Day Counts (EDC) program, 10 selected proven, yet underutilized innovations to enhance safety, reduce congestion, shorten project timelines, and improve sustainability.

FHWA has developed a comprehensive set of programs, strategies, and tools for managing safer, smarter, more efficient temporary traffic control. How can you start using them?

Dr. Cecilia Feeley will be using a safe, virtual environment to study how people with autism react to different types of pedestrian infrastructure. She is recruiting participants for the study now.

About 25 percent of fatal accidents in work zones involve large commercial vehicles. That’s about one fatality every three days. According to Texas A&M research, there are two main categories for countermeasures that could bring this number down.

The New Jersey Department of Transportation and the New Jersey Turnpike Authority are advancing more than $1.1 billion in construction contracts for 2019.

NJDOT announced the first awards in the new Local Freight Impact Fund program totaling $30.1 million to help municipalities safely manage large truck traffic. It is supported by the gas tax that was part of the 2016 TTF reauthorization.

The Murphy administration announced that the New Jersey Transportation Infrastructure Bank is now offering low-interest loans to municipalities and counties to help them reduce the overall cost of local transportation projects.

A CAIT proposal transforms part of downtown New Brunswick into a test bed for technologies that collect, process, analyze mobility big data—a crucial component to future integration of autonomous vehicles, a safer pedestrian and cycling environment, and robust public transit.

EDC-4 Safe Transportation for Every Pedestrian (STEP) tech sheets, complete with stats and clear graphics, provide information on safety benefits and design considerations for five STEP countermeasures.

FHWA offers a new, free tool to help with data collection and decision making when it comes to implementing intelligent transportation systems in construction and maintenance work zones.

The short-term goal of this research is to develop a guideline that agencies can implement into their own decision-making processes when evaluating rapid-repair materials. Down the road, researchers hope to develop new methods of testing rapid-repair materials and freeze-thaw cycles so that it becomes standardized.

NJDOT recently received a $16,000 grant through the FHWA's ASAP program. Using the money, they will partner with NJLTAP and other stakeholders to develop a workshop designed to spread and implement proven safety countermeasures, from rumble strips to roundabouts, throughout the state.

The goal of “Road to Zero” is to eliminate traffic fatalities by 2050. Coalition members develop priorities; take action individually and collaboratively; and encourage partners and stakeholders to help ensure safe mobility for all people.

Roadway work crews face many dangers: inattentive drivers, hazardous dust, night work, and soon, autonomous vehicles. More than 250 construction, engineering, public works, and law enforcement pros gathered at the NJ Work Zone Safety Conference, held each year in conjunction with National Work Zone Awareness Week.

As the Region 2 UTC lead institution, Rutgers CAIT gathered its consortium partners and high-level industry leaders to discuss the next round of UTC projects, clients’ priorities, and collaboration. Discussions focused on finding real-world implementable solutions for pressing transportation issues in the region.

Ride-sharing services are beginning to integrate with existing public transit to provide multimodal transportation for commuters. APTA published a study showing services like Uber and Lyft can complement fixed routes of traditional transit.

Roadway departure crashes are among the most severe type of motor vehicle accidents. There are many contributing factors to these crashes and several safety measures that can reduce the number and/or severity of run-off-road and head-on collisions that occur when a vehicle strays from its proper travel lane.

A CAIT researcher has developed two fully-interactive virtual environments that mesh innovative VR technology with the needs of infrastructure managers. Roadside crews can step into both of these bridge and pump-station environments, and step out with the hands-on experience they need to do their jobs.

In the 2020s, public and private sectors will find succession planning an increasing concern as boomers retire and members of Generation X ascend to top leadership ranks. This will affect transportation too, as car-centric boomers are replaced by millennials who have reinvented a transit-dependent urban geography.

NJDOT officials extended the application deadline for the federally-funded Safe Routes to School grants to September 18, 2018, giving schools additional time to gather information they need to be eligible for a grant.

New Jersey's conference observing National Work Zone Safety Week celebrated its 20th year in 2019 and drew more than 250 transportation professionals from construction, public works, maintenance operations, engineering, utilities, and public safety.

NJDOT has released its strategic plan, establishing its organizational objectives for 2018–2022. It reflects the Secretary’s priorities for achieving the agency’s mission through four strategic goals; Safety, Infrastructure, Innovation, and Accountability.

Beyond Traffic 2045 presents USDOT’s is the most comprehensive report in decades to outline current and anticipated U.S. transportation needs. With its record for unique products and solutions, CAIT nabbed a slot as one of only 18 Beyond Traffic Innovation Centers.