The National Cooperative Highway Research Program (NCHRP) is the states? research program?funded by State Planning and Research funds and driven by their needs. Each year the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) Standing Committee on Research selects 40 to 50 new projects that reflect the changing priorities and challenges of states as they plan, design, construct,
operate, or maintain the nation?s highway infrastructure. The program produces more than 60 products annually that are intended to help states improve the way they do business.
NCHRP surveys its project panelists and principal investigators on a four-year cycle to learn about project outcomes, successes, and challenges. The most recent survey, conducted in 2012 for projects completed between June 2004 and June 2009, revealed that NCHRP products are being used extensively. The results are being incorporated into state practices, support the development of AASHTO standards, and are being used as the basis for state-specific follow-up research.
However, NCHRP is committed to continuous process review and improvement. To identify ways to further facilitate the application of its products, NCHRP initiated this project with the following objectives:
? Identify the people, processes, and practices that have supported successful, effective, and efficient application of research results.
? Analyze the factors that promote?or prevent?NCHRP product implementation.
? Develop criteria to guide future activities that support implementation.
? Recommend process improvements by NCHRP and others to meet the criteria and overcome obstacles.
NCHRP Synthesis 461: This synthesis examines implementation practices used by public-sector nontransportation agencies, nonprofits, and academia to accelerate practical application of research
results. The emphasis is on practices that might be useful for transportation agencies to create more responsive research programs. A series of implementation case examples and
practices are presented.
Information for this study was gathered through a comprehensive literature review of U.S. and selected international sources. Agency websites were searched and interviews were conducted with key individuals at case example agencies.
The agenda is attached. The meeting notes will be attached when completed.
NCHRP FY2019 Unfunded Research Projects
NCHRP FY2018 Unfunded Research Projects
NCHRP FY2017 Unfunded Research Projects
There are approximately 4,000 fatalities in crashes involving trucks and buses in the United States each year. Though estimates are wide-ranging, possibly 10 to 20 percent of these crashes might have involved fatigued drivers. The stresses associated with their particular jobs (irregular schedules, etc.) and the lifestyle that many truck and bus drivers lead, puts them at substantial risk for insufficient sleep and for developing short- and long-term health problems.
Research Needs on CMV Driver Fatigue, Long-Term Health and Highway Safety assesses the state of knowledge about the relationship of such factors as hours of driving, hours on duty, and periods of rest to the fatigue experienced by truck and bus drivers while driving and the implications for the safe operation of their vehicles. This report evaluates the relationship of these factors to drivers? health over the longer term, and identifies improvements in data and research methods that can lead to better understanding in both areas.
Transportation Research Board (TRB) E-Circular 144:
he objective of this effort was to develop a series of specific research needs statements on climate change and transportation for distribution to universities, students, research organizations, government agencies, and other interested parties for consideration in conducting and funding research in this important area.
This report develops a proposed agenda of prioritized safety research needs in the area of highway infrastructure and operations. It was developed to provide options to the U.S. transportation community on how to direct research to the areas where it can provide the most benefit. The agenda is based on a prioritization methodology developed by the research team, which can be applied on a recurring basis to update the agenda over time. Both the agenda and the methodology documented in this report will provide valuable input to all those involved in the conduct and management of highway safety research at all levels of government, the private sector, and academia.
As the entity responsible for conducting strategic planning for TRB, the Executive Committee of the Transportation Research Board developed the current Strategic Plan, which was adopted in June 2014. The plan includes an overview of TRB’s strengths, opportunities, limitations, and challenges, and provides details on its vision and goals, and strategies and action items TRB will employ to achieve its vision and goals. Appendices to the plan include the environmental scan, performance assessment, gap analysis, and more. An action plan for the strategic plan will be developed during the second half of 2014 and first half of 2015.