House Passes Two Rail Data Security Bills
Washington, D.C. - Today, the House overwhelmingly passed two bipartisan railroad data and information security bills: H.R. 4921, the “STB Information and Security Act,” and H.R. 4925, the “FRA Safety Data Improvement Act.” Both pieces of legislation were unanimously approved by the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure on February 14, 2018 at a Full Committee markup. H.R. 4921, the “STB Information and Security Act,” is sponsored by U.S. Rep. Paul Mitchell (R-MI). This bipartisan...
U.S. Department of Transportation Announces $22.5 Million Grant for Commuter Rail Extension in San Rafael, California
WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Transportation’s (USDOT) Federal Transit Administration (FTA) today announced the award of a $22.5 million grant to the Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit District (SMART) for the San Rafael to Larkspur commuter rail extension. The project will provide an important connection for North Bay residents to access regional ferry service serving downtown San Francisco and destinations throughout the Bay Area. "This grant will improve transportation links for the hund...
PennDOT Outlines Policy Action Plan for Increased Safety Oversight of Highly Automated Vehicles
Pittsburgh, PA – PennDOT unveiled a multi-step action plan Monday to establish stepped-up safety oversight of Highly Automated Vehicles in Pennsylvania. PennDOT Secretary Leslie S. Richards outlined the voluntary testing policy at the first day of a two-day Automated Vehicle Summit in Pittsburgh. This was the second AV summit held in Pennsylvania over the last year and reflects the groundwork the Wolf Administration has taken to prepare for the benefits and challenges presented by this emergi...
Hands-On Training Center Opened, Dedicated to Highway First Responders
DOUGLAS COUNTY—CDOT, Douglas County and the Colorado State Patrol (CSP) today celebrated the grand opening of the state's first traffic incident management (TIM) training center. This will be second such facility in the United States dedicated to providing hands-on training in a realistic and full-scale setting for first responders. Most training currently is conducted online or in a classroom, but rarely beyond a tabletop exercise with matchbox vehicles. Since this dedicated center replic...
2018 National Work Zone Awareness Week: "Everybody’s Responsibility"
(WASHINGTON) - What’s happening on the nation’s roadways should always have the full attention of motorists, but it’s even more critical as drivers approach and pass through construction work zones, the American Road & Transportation Builders Association (ARTBA) says. Paying attention to signs, maintaining safe following distances, signaling intentions and “expecting the unexpected,” are keys to preventing work zone crashes that kill and injure drivers, passengers, pedestrians and workers....
FTA Announces Certification of State Safety Oversight Programs for Virginia and Colorado Ahead of Important Deadline
WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Transit Administration (FTA) today announced that Virginia and Colorado have obtained federal certification of their rail transit State Safety Oversight (SSO) Programs, in advance of an important safety deadline. Federal law requires states with rail transit systems in the engineering or construction phase of development or in operation to obtain FTA certification of their SSO Programs by April 15, 2019. In Virginia, the Department...
States to Recoup Large Emergency Road Repair Costs From Reloaded FHWA Fund
State departments of transportation are in line to receive substantial federal payments this year to help them cover costs to repair federal-aid roads and bridges that have been damaged by natural disasters or other emergencies. That's because Congress in its Bipartisan Budget Act, which became law Feb. 9, included $1.374 billion for Federal Highway Administration's "emergency relief" account. The agency taps what it calls the ER funds to help states pay both for quick repairs in the wake of...
Washington Metro Area Transit Authority has Contracted ForgeFX Simulations to Produce an Immersive VR Computer Simulation to Enhance Operator Training
SAN FRANCISCO - ForgeFX Simulations is pleased to announce that they’ve been awarded a contract from the Washington Metro Area Transit Authority (WMATA) to produce a Virtual Reality (VR) simulator to help improve training for Metro operators. Harnessing cutting-edge technology, the WMATA VR operator training simulator will help increase risk awareness and hazard identification, improve proactive problem solving, and greatly enhance equipment operator training. VR-based training simulators im...
Advice and Best Practices from City Leaders on IoT Solutions
Event Information: Getting Started with IoT - A Primer for Government Government leaders have questions as IoT-powered solutions like smart traffic signals, intelligent lighting and self-driving vehicles become more common. How can the Internet of Things benefit our community? Where should we start in planning for and implementing this new technology? How do we get the most out of the IoT investments we’re already making? For answers to these questions and more, join Government Technolo...
2018 National Work Zone Awareness Week, April 9-13 – "Work Zone Safety: Everybody's Responsibility"
Each year in the spring, National Work Zone Awareness Week (NWZAW) is held to bring national attention to motorist and worker safety and mobility issues in work zones. Since 1999, FHWA has worked with the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) and the American Traffic Safety Services Association (ATSSA) to coordinate and sponsor the event. Over the years, other transportation partners have joined the effort to support NWZAW. In addition to a National event co...
Stormwater Interview with Robert Page, P.E., Vice President, HNTB
TriMet’s Banfield Type 1 Substation Replacement Project
February Issue 2026
