1.Congress finds the following:
(1)A comprehensive and coordinated research
agenda is required to guide all Department of Transportation research,
development, and technology transfer programs on the focus areas of livability,
sustainability, and performance for the surface transportation system. The
Department currently lacks a research, development, and technology transfer
strategic plan with quantifiable goals, expected outcomes, implementation
strategies, and performance measures.
(2)The surface transportation sector
contributes 28 percent of the total United States carbon emissions. To mitigate
the impact of the surface transportation sector on the climate, the
Department’s Office of Climate Change and Environment should increase research
efforts on effective strategies to reduce emissions from surface transportation
infrastructure.
(3)Coordinated research and technology
transfer on pavement and paving practices is essential to developing roads that
are more durable, consume less energy in construction and maintenance, and are
less disruptive to the environment.
(4)Technology transfer is an integral part of
research and engineering. Additional efforts are required to ensure that
successful research results are deployed to the field.
(5)The University Transportation Center (UTC)
program conducts important research and trains future transportation
professionals. However, the system could be better integrated into the
Department of Transportation research and development activities.
2.
(a)The Administrator
shall develop annually a comprehensive strategic plan to guide surface
transportation research, development, and technology transfer activities within
and funded by the Department for the 3-year period beginning with the upcoming
fiscal year. Such strategic plan shall include—
(1)the focus areas of
national importance that such activities will address, including community
livability, sustainability, and performance measures for transportation
systems;
(2)quantifiable
goals, expected outcomes, implementation strategies, timetables, and
performance measures for each such focus area;
(3)the identification
of stakeholders and their role in identifying research needs and priorities;
and
(4)specific
activities for technology transfer and the application and utilization of
research results.
(b)Beginning
with the first submission after the date of enactment of this Act of the
President’s annual budget request to Congress, and annually thereafter, the
Administrator shall submit to the appropriate congressional committees the
strategic plan developed under
subsection (a) and shall make such plan
available to the public on the Administration’s Web site.
3.
(a)
(1)The Administrator shall develop and execute a review
process to assess the performance of each UTC.
(2)Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of
this Act, the Administrator shall develop and make available to UTCs and the
public the criteria that will be used in the review process under paragraph
(1). Such criteria shall, at a minimum, be consistent with the performance
measures identified in the strategic plan under
section 2.
(3)The
Administrator shall develop and execute the review process under paragraph (1)
in such a manner that all UTCs are reviewed during a 3-year period with the
number of UTCs being reviewed dispersed evenly throughout such period.
(4)The
Administrator shall make results of the review process for each UTC available
to the public on the Administration’s Web site.
(b)To carry out the objective of expanding the
transportation-related scientific and technical workforce, the Administrator
may establish a grant program to fund internships for students participating in
the UTC program at State departments of transportation, metropolitan planning
organizations, and other appropriate organizations as identified by the
Administrator.
(c)
(1)The
Administrator shall submit to the appropriate congressional committees and make
available to the public on the Administration’s Web site an annual report on
the UTC program, detailing—
(A)the activities of
the UTCs during the previous year and how such activities reflect the
priorities in the strategic plan;
(B)the results of the
reviews conducted during the previous year;
(C)the progress of
UTCs toward meeting the goals and performance measures identified in the
strategic plan developed under
section 2; and
(D)information about
any grants awarded under
subsection (b).
(2)Matching fund
recommendationWithin 6 months after the date of enactment of
this Act, the Administrator shall submit a report to the appropriate
congressional committees with recommendations concerning the appropriate
requirement under section 5506(j) of title 49, United States Code, for the
Federal share of costs for activities carried out using a grant awarded under
section 5506 of such title.
(3)
(A)Within 6 months after the date of enactment of this Act,
the Administrator, in consultation with the Director of the National Institute
of Standards and Technology, shall submit a report to Congress on how best to
strengthen facilitation of transportation-related technology transfer,
including through the potential establishment of transportation technology
extension centers at UTCs.
(B)In
such report, the Administrator shall—
(i)assess the role of
UTCs to enable workforce education in their regional transportation communities
and to promote the deployment and transfer of new transportation technology,
tools, techniques, and methods; and
(ii)include an
operational plan, identify the recipients of technical assistance provided by
UTCs, and identify the needs of those recipients.
4.Visiting committee
on transportation research
(a)The Secretary shall
establish a visiting committee on surface transportation research (in this Act
referred to as the Committee
), which shall review and make
recommendations regarding the quality of the surface transportation research,
development, and technology transfer activities being carried out by the
Department, including the development and execution of the strategic plan under
section 2 and the coordination of such
activities by the Administrator.
(b)The
Committee shall be composed of 15 members appointed by the Secretary. In making
such appointments, the Secretary shall—
(1)consider
recommendations submitted by the National Academies, professional societies,
business associations, labor associations, and other appropriate
organizations;
(2)to the extent
practicable, ensure that members do not have any conflicts of interest;
(3)not appoint
employees of the Federal Government;
(4)ensure that
members are eminent in relevant fields, such as transportation research,
transportation engineering, product development, labor, education,
transportation consulting, environment, or State or local government;
and
(5)select members to
provide adequate representation of a cross-section of—
(A)surface
transportation researchers, decisionmakers at the State and local levels of
government, transportation practitioners, and others in the transportation
research, development, and technology user community; and
(B)expertise in the
focus areas of national importance.
(c)
(1)Each member of the Committee shall be appointed for a
term of 3 years, except as provided in paragraphs (2) and (3).
(2)Terms of initial
appointeesAs designated by the Secretary at the time of
appointment, of the members first appointed—
(A)5 members shall be
appointed for a term of 1 year;
(B)5 members shall be
appointed for a term of 2 years; and
(C)5 members shall be
appointed for a term of 3 years.
(3)Any
member appointed to fill a vacancy occurring before the expiration of the term
for which the member’s predecessor was appointed shall be appointed only for
the remainder of such term.
(4)Any
person who has completed 2 consecutive full terms of service on the Committee
shall thereafter be ineligible for appointment during the 1-year period
following the expiration of the second such term.
(d)
(1)The Committee shall meet at least twice each year at the
call of the Chairperson and, in addition, whenever one-third of the members of
the Committee so request in writing.
(2)Each
member of the Committee shall be given appropriate notice of the call of such
meeting not less than 15 days prior to any meeting, whenever possible.
(3)Virtual
meetings; teleconferencesThe Committee may conduct meetings
using electronic methods if each member may fully participate in the
deliberations of the Committee in realtime.
(e)A
majority of the members of the Committee shall constitute a quorum.
(f)Rates of pay;
travel expensesEach member
shall serve without pay, except that each member shall receive travel expenses,
including per diem in lieu of subsistence, in accordance with applicable
provisions under subchapter I of chapter 57 of title 5, United States
Code.
(g)
(1)The Committee shall have an executive committee and may
delegate to it or to the Secretary such of the powers and functions granted to
the Committee by this Act as it determines appropriate.
(2)The Committee is authorized to appoint from among its
members such other committees as it determines necessary and to assign to
committees so appointed such survey and advisory functions as the Committee
deems appropriate to assist it in exercising its powers and functions under
this Act.
(h)
(1)The
election of the Chairperson and Vice Chairperson of the Committee shall take
place at each annual meeting occurring in an even-numbered year.
(2)The
Vice Chairperson shall perform the duties of the Chairperson in the absence of
the Chairperson.
(3)In
case a vacancy occurs in the chairpersonship or vice chairpersonship, the
Committee shall elect a member to fill such vacancy.
(i)
(1)
(A)Not later than 30 days after the submittal to Congress of
the President’s annual budget request in each year, the Committee shall
transmit an annual report to the Secretary for submission to the appropriate
congressional committees.
(B)Such
report shall deal essentially, though not necessarily exclusively, with policy
issues or matters which affect the surface transportation research,
development, and technology transfer activities at the Department. Each such
report shall comment on the strategic plan developed under
section 2. Each such report shall also identify
future areas of priority surface transportation research for the
Department.
(2)The
Committee shall transmit to the Secretary and the appropriate congressional
committees such additional reports on specific policy matters as it determines
appropriate.
5.Office of climate
change and environmentSection
102(g) of title 49, United States Code, is amended—
(1)in paragraph (1)
in the matter preceding subparagraph (A), by striking Department
and inserting Research and Innovative Technology Administration in the
Department
;
(2)by redesignating
paragraph (2) as paragraph (7);
(3)by inserting after
paragraph (1) the following new paragraphs:
(2)Impact Reduction
Research Activities
(A)The Office established under paragraph (1) shall fund or
coordinate research, development, and technology transfer activities focused
on—
(i)reducing vehicle
miles traveled;
(ii)reducing
congestion;
(iii)reducing
construction and maintenance-related emissions and energy consumption;
and
(iv)in coordination
with the Environmental Protection Agency and the Department of Energy,
assessing consumer acceptance of and infrastructure needs for alternative fuels
and improved vehicle technology and other strategies to reduce greenhouse gas
emissions and conserve energy arising from surface transportation
infrastructure, operation, and use.
(B)Research activities shall include the
following:
(i)Assessments of the
impact, cost-effectiveness, and collateral benefits of emissions and energy
reduction strategies.
(ii)The development
of technologies, tools, and techniques to reduce emissions and energy
consumption throughout the life-cycle of transportation infrastructure.
(iii)Congestion
reduction and speed management strategies.
(iv)Assessments of
the impact of land use change on surface emissions and other factors, such as
congestion, mobility, and accessibility, and barriers to land use
change.
(v)Infrastructure
requirements for alternative fuels and vehicles.
(vi)Traveler
behaviors with respect to mode-choice, response to transportation pricing
scheme, nonmotorized travel, and other emissions reducing strategies.
(vii)Emissions and
energy reduction strategies for freight transportation, including mode shifts,
freight infrastructure projects, and the effects of land use on freight
movement.
(3)The Office shall fund or coordinate
research on the impacts of climate change on surface transportation
infrastructure to understand and assess how climate change and variability may
affect transportation operation and infrastructure.
(4)
(A)The Office shall assess current and historical surface
transportation infrastructure and fuel demand management strategies that have
been implemented at the local, State, and national levels for their social,
economic, and environmental costs and benefits.
(B)The results of such assessments shall be made
publicly available through the Administration’s Web site.
(5)The Office, in consultation with the
Environmental Protection Agency and other Federal agencies, shall support the
development of more accurate tools and models for quantifying mobile emissions
and evaluating surface transportation emissions reductions strategies. The
tools and models shall incorporate such factors as—
(A)vehicle
speed;
(B)traffic flow;
(C)land use;
(D)nonmotorized
travel;
(E)transit use;
(F)traveler behavior;
and
(G)commercial traffic
and freight movement.
(6)The results of the research and development carried
out under this subsection shall be made publicly available to national, State,
and local transportation planners and
decisionmakers.
.
6.Regional green
transportation research centers
(a)Subchapter I of chapter 55 of title 49,
United States Code, is amended by inserting after section 5505 the following
new section:
5505A.Regional
Green Transportation Research Centers
(a)Green
transportation infrastructure research and technology transferThe Administrator shall make grants to
institutions of higher education or consortia thereof to establish and operate
university transportation centers to carry out research, development, and
technology transfer activities in the field of green transportation
infrastructure.
(b)The purpose of centers established pursuant
to this section shall be to—
(1)generate
innovative and cost-effective approaches to mitigating environmental impacts
throughout the lifecycle of transportation infrastructure;
(2)develop holistic
approaches to integrating green infrastructure into existing wastewater
management systems;
(3)promote adoption
of innovative green transportation infrastructure systems by State and local
governments and the private sector; and
(4)manage technology
transfer programs to disseminate information on best management practices in
the area of green transportation infrastructure to State and local governments
and the private sector.
(c)Selection of
grant recipients
(1)In order to be eligible to receive a grant
under this section, a nonprofit institution of higher learning or consortia
thereof shall submit to the Administrator an application that is in such form
and contains such information as the Administrator may require.
(2)To the greatest extent practicable, the Administrator
shall ensure that there is at least one grant recipient from each of the 10
United States Government regions that comprise the Standard Federal Regional
Boundary System.
(3)Except as otherwise provided by this section, the
Administrator shall select each recipient of a grant under this section through
a merit-reviewed competitive process on the basis of the following:
(A)Demonstrated
expertise in transportation research and environmental impacts of
transportation infrastructure.
(B)Demonstrated
research capacity and technology transfer resources.
(C)Existing or
proposed partnerships with State and local governments and private industry
involved in transportation-related construction, environmental impact
mitigation, or other areas related to green transportation infrastructure
research.
(D)Capability to
provide leadership in developing national best management practices, regional
best management practices, or both in the field of green transportation
infrastructure.
(E)Expertise in
specific regional climate characteristics which impact the effectiveness of
green transportation infrastructure technologies and practices.
(F)Demonstrated
ability to disseminate results of research and education programs through a
statewide or regionwide continuing education program.
(G)The strategic plan
the recipient proposes to carry out under the grant.
(d)The types of activities the Secretary may
support under this section include the following:
(1)Research and
development of innovative technologies, construction techniques, or best
management processes that mitigate the environmental impact of transportation
infrastructure, including—
(A)assessments of the
life-cycle environmental impact of local existing or planned transportation
infrastructure;
(B)integration of
green transportation infrastructure elements into existing transportation or
waste management systems; and
(C)research,
development, testing, and evaluation of new technologies or best management
practices.
(2)Establishment and
operation of a regional technology transfer program to disseminate information
on new technologies and best management practices to State and local
governments, institutions of higher education, and private industry in the
region.
(3)Study of the
impact of State, local, and Federal regulations on the implementation of green
transportation infrastructure technologies and practices. These studies shall
include collaboration with appropriate Federal agencies to evaluate the effect
of and possible changes to Federal and State regulations that impede
implementation of green transportation infrastructure.
(4)Public education efforts to raise awareness
of green transportation infrastructure technologies, including activities to
raise awareness and foster collaboration among regional governments, private
industry, and other public and private stakeholders.
(e)The Administrator
shall convene an annual meeting of the Centers established pursuant to this
section in order to foster collaboration and communication among Center
participants and disseminate best management practices.
(f)In
this section, the term green transportation infrastructure
includes infrastructure that—
(1)preserves and
restores natural processes, landforms (such as flood plains), natural vegetated
streamside buffers, wetlands, or other topographical features that can slow,
filter, and naturally store stormwater runoff and floodwaters for future water
supply and recharge of natural aquifers;
(2)utilizes natural
design techniques that infiltrate, filter, store, evaporate, and detain water
close to its source;
(3)minimizes the use
of impervious surfaces in order to slow or infiltrate precipitation;
(4)minimizes
life-cycle energy consumption, including during construction, maintenance, use
by vehicles, and destruction and recycling; and
(5)minimizes
life-cycle air
pollution.
.
(b)The table of sections for such subchapter is amended by
inserting after the item relating to section 5505 the following new
item:
5505A. Regional Green Transportation
Research
Centers.
.
7.National research
council reviewThe
Administrator shall contract with the National Research Council to conduct a
review of the surface transportation research, development, and technology
transfer activities at the Turner Fairbank Highway Research facility. Such
review shall assess the technical merit of research activities at such facility
and the degree to which such activities achieve stated objectives and desired
impact and make recommendations on how to improve the quality and efficiency of
such activities.
8.Pavement
research, technology transfer, and education program
(a)The Administrator shall, in consultation
with appropriate Department modal agencies, establish a pavement research,
deployment, and education program (in this section referred to as the
Program
).
(b)The
purpose of the Program shall be to—
(1)address the need
to advance pavement research; and
(2)coordinate
technology transfer efforts related to paving materials.
(c)The
Program, in coordination with Department modal agencies, shall provide funding
to UTCs and other institutions of higher education to conduct research,
development, and technology transfer activities about paving materials and
practices.
(d)Activities
carried out by the Program shall include—
(1)research and
development of innovative technologies and techniques to reduce the cost and
environmental impact of paving materials and practices, including research
on—
(A)paving materials
with improved durability;
(B)methods that
decrease the energy use in, and emissions resulting from, paving practices;
(C)paving materials
that decrease environmental impact;
(D)methods to
decrease the overall life-cycle cost of paving materials and practices;
(E)construction
techniques to increase safety and reduce construction time and traffic
disruption and congestion;
(F)pavement
evaluation technologies and techniques; and
(G)paving materials
utilizing more recycled and locally available natural material;
(2)effective
technology transfer, including efforts on—
(A)identifying and
addressing barriers to implementation for developed paving materials and
practices; and
(B)addressing the
data needs of stakeholders by developing independent studies and assessments on
topics, including—
(i)durability of
paving technologies;
(ii)emissions from
construction practices;
(iii)life-cycle
cost-effectiveness of paving materials and strategies; and
(iv)environmental
impact of paving technologies; and
(3)establishing
grants to institutions of higher education to develop training and education
programs for workforce professionals in the areas of paving materials and
practices.
(e)Not
later than 6 months after the date of enactment of this Act, the Administrator
shall submit a report to the appropriate congressional committees on the
results of the long-term pavement performance program and how the Department
intends to organize, maintain, and utilize the database.
9.For purposes of this Act, the following
definitions apply:
(1)The
term Administration
means the Research and Innovative Technology
Administration in the Department of Transportation.
(2)The term Administrator
means
the Administrator of the Research and Innovative Technology
Administration.
(3)Appropriate
congressional CommitteesThe
term appropriate congressional committees
means the Committee on
Science and Technology and the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure
of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, Science, and
Transportation of the Senate.
(4)The
term Department
means the Department of Transportation.
(5)The
term Secretary
means the Secretary of Transportation.
(6)The
term UTC
means a university transportation center established
under section 5506 of title 49, United States Code.
10.
(a)Surface
transportation research, development, and technology programTo carry out surface transportation
research, development, and technology activities, such sums as are necessary
shall be available.
(b)University
transportation researchTo carry out section 5505 and section
5506 of title 49, United States Code, such sums as are necessary shall be
available.