Transportation Research Board
HomeContact Us Directory E-NewsletterFollow Us RSS

The National Academies
Text Size: Increase Text SizeDecrease Text Size| Share:


Finance Research at TRB

The mission of the Transportation Research Board is to provide leadership in transportation innovation and progress through research and information exchange, conducted within a setting that is objective, interdisciplinary, and multimodal. This page highlights recently released TRB reports, meeting announcements, requests for proposals, and other announcements related to finance. In addition, it includes links to selected finance research-related activities taking place at the federal and state levels, and within the academic and international transportation communities. Finally, this page also highlights and provides links to TRB programs and activities, which are the source of most of TRB’s finance-related research products.

What's New

TRB Finance-Related Programs and Activities

2014 TRB 93rd Annual Meeting and Transportation Research Record Call for Papers2014 TRB 93rd Annual Meeting and Transportation Research Record Call for Papers
May 15, 2013
TRB standing committees have issued  calls for papers for the TRB 93rd Annual Meeting, January 12-16, 2014, in Washington, D.C, and the Transportation Research Record: Journal of the Transportation Research Board (TRR). While papers addressing any relevant aspect of transportation research will be considered, some committees are soliciting papers in specific subject areas to help potential...
50th Anniversary for the Transportation Research Record: Journal of the Transportation Research Board 50th Anniversary for the Transportation Research Record: Journal of the Transportation Research Board
May 15, 2013
The 2013 series marks the 50th year of TRB’s peer-reviewed journal, which debuted as the Highway Research Record in 1963; became the Transportation Research Record in 1974, with Number 480; and added the subtitle, Journal of the Transportation Research Board, in 2000, with Number 1653. In all, TRB has published more than 25,000 papers in volumes of the TRR Journal and continues to build on its ...
TRB Webinar: Transportation Funding Challenges and Opportunities in the Age of the Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century (MAP-21) Legislation
May 2, 2013
TRB will conduct a webinar on May 14, 2013 from 2:00 p.m.- 3:30 p.m. ET that will examine the funding and finance impacts of the Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century (MAP-21) legislation, including its successes and shortcomings. Participants must register in advance of the webinar, and there is a fee for non-TRB Sponsor employees. The Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century surf...
Practices and Performance Measures for Local Public Agency Federally Funded Highway ProjectsPractices and Performance Measures for Local Public Agency Federally Funded Highway Projects
May 2, 2013
TRB’s National Cooperative Highway Research Program (NCHRP) Synthesis 442: Practices and Performance Measures for Local Public Agency Federally Funded Highway Projects explores what performance measures, delivery practices, strategies, and tools are currently used in relation to federally-funded local public agency (LPA) highway project development and delivery, and how they are used to measure...
RFP: Inventory of State Passenger and Freight Rail Programs
May 1, 2013
TRB’s National Cooperative Rail Research Program (NCRRP) has issued a request for proposals to prepare an inventory of existing state passenger and freight rail programs; identify innovative funding mechanisms in this inventory; and conduct an analysis of targeted innovative funding programs extracted from this inventory that may be of use to other state or local governments. Proposals are due ...
Review of the Federal Aviation Administration’s Oversight of ARRA Airport Grant PaymentsReview of the Federal Aviation Administration’s Oversight of ARRA Airport Grant Payments
April 29, 2013
The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Office of the Inspector General has released a report that evaluates whether the Federal Aviation Administration’s oversight of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) grantees was sufficient to prevent or detect improper payments and ensured that funds adhered to ARRA requirements.
Road Haulage Charges and Taxes: Summary Analysis and Data Tables 1998-2000
April 22, 2013
The International Transport Forum has released a report that updates the database on heavy goods vehicle charges and taxes in Europe, and includes 2012 figures for taxes on vehicles, fuel, and road use.
TRB Webinar: Life-Cycle Cost Analysis
April 18, 2013
TRB will conduct a webinar on May 23, 2013 from 2:00 p.m.- 4:00 p.m. ET that will explore the basics of an economic analysis tool called the Life-Cycle Cost Analysis (LCCA) and how it can be used in the Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century (MAP-21) legislation. Participants must register in advance of the webinar, and there is a fee for non-TRB Sponsor employees. A certificate for 2 Pr...
Review of Amtrak’s New Cost Accounting SystemReview of Amtrak’s New Cost Accounting System
April 10, 2013
The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Office of the Inspector General has released a report that assesses Amtrak’s Performance Tracking System, which is a new cost accounting system required by the Passenger Rail Investment and Improvement Act of 2008.
When the Road Price is Right: Land Use, Tolls, and Congestion Pricing
April 6, 2013
The Urban Land Institute has released a report that discusses five case studies of policy options for tolling and factors that would affect land development in metropolitan areas.

National Cooperative Highway Research Program (NCHRP)
NCHRP conducts research in problem areas that affect highway planning, design, construction, operation, and maintenance nationwide.
Synthesis of Information Related to Highway Problems
TRB's Synthesis of Information Related to Highway Problems searches out and synthesizes useful knowledge from all available sources and prepares concise, documented reports on specific topics. Reports from this endeavor constitute an National Cooperative Highway Research Program (NCHRP) report series, Synthesis of Highway Practice.
Transit Cooperative Research Program (TCRP)
TCRP is an applied, contract research program that develops near-term, practical solutions to problems facing transit agencies.
Synthesis of Information Related to Transit Problems
TRB's Synthesis of Information Related to Transit Problems searches out and synthesizes useful knowledge from all available sources and prepares concise, documented reports on specific topics. Reports from this endeavor constitute an Transit Cooperative Research Program (TCRP) report series, Synthesis of Transit Practice.
Airport Cooperative Research Program (ACRP)
ACRP carries out applied research on problems that are shared by airport operating agencies.
Synthesis of Information Related to Airport Problems
TRB's Synthesis of Information Related to Airport Problems searches out and synthesizes useful knowledge from all available sources and prepares concise, documented reports on specific topics. Reports from this endeavor constitute an Airport Cooperative Research Program (ACRP) report series, Synthesis of Airport Practice.
Commercial Truck and Bus Safety Synthesis Program
TRB's Commercial Truck and Bus Safety Synthesis Program searches out and synthesizes useful knowledge from all available sources and prepares concise, documented reports on specific topics. Reports from this endeavor constitute an Commercial Truck and Bus Safety Synthesis Program (CTBSSP) report series, Synthesis of Commerical Truck and Bus Safety Practice.
Cooperative Research Programs
TRB's Cooperative Research Programs Division manages several cooperative research programs that frequently produces reports that have relevence to issues outside of the program's core focus areas.
Technical Activities Standing Committees
TRB's Technical Activities Division provides a forum for transportation professionals in all modes and functions to identify research needs and to share information on research and issues of interest. The Division's staff of specialists in each mode and discipline work with a network of volunteers to carry out activities on behalf of TRB sponsors and the transportation community, including the TRB Annual Meeting, conferences and workshops, publications, visits to each state, and responses to inquiries. This network includes members and friends of over 200 standing committees, supplemented by designated TRB representatives in each state, over 150 universities, and 35 transit agencies.
Research in Progress in this Subject Area
TRB's Research in Progress (RiP) Database now contains more than 11,900 current or recently completed transportation research projects. Most of the RiP records are projects funded by federal and state departments of transportation. University transportation research is also included. The RiP Database also serves as a clearinghouse of University Transportation Centers ongoing research.
Research Needs in this Subject Area
An important function of TRB is to stimulate research that addresses concerns, issues, or problems facing the transportation community. In support of this function, TRB Technical Activities standing committees identify, develop, and disseminate research need statements (RNS) for use by practitioners, researchers, and others.
Research Completed in this Subject Area
TRB's TRID is integrated database that combines the records from TRB's Transportation Research Information Services (TRIS) Database and the OECD's Joint Transport Research Centre’s International Transport Research Documentation (ITRD) Database. TRID provides access to over 900,000 records of transportation research worldwide.