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Public Transportation 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 public transportation. In addition, it includes links to selected public transportation 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 public transportation-related programs and activities, which are the source of most of TRB’s marine transportation-related research products. |
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What's New
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TRB Public Transportation-Related Programs and Activities
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 Fuel Cell Buses in U.S. Transit Fleets: Current Status 2018February 15, 2019 The National Renewable Energy Laboratory at the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has released a report that summarizes the progress of fuel cell electric bus (FCEB) development in the United States and discusses the challenges of introducing fuel cell propulsion in transit. DOE and the U.S. Federal Transit Administration have established performance and cost targets for FCEBs. |
Public Transit Leading in Transition to Clean TechnologyFebruary 14, 2019 The American Public Transportation Association (APTA) has released a report that outlines where the public transportation industry is regarding electrification. It also explores how agencies are planning for the future of electric transportation. This report updates APTA’s 2012 report entitled Transit on the Cutting Edge of Clean Technology. |
Climate and Air Pollutant Emissions Benefits of Bus Technology Options in São PauloFebruary 14, 2019 The International Council on Clean Transportation has released a report that outlines questions pertinent to the São Paulo bus fleet, which has recently introduced cleaner engine technologies. These questions include: To what degree can alternative transit bus technologies and fuels improve the emissions performance of diesel buses currently used in the São Paulo fleet? What technology procurem... |
 TRB Webinar: Energetic Value: The Design and Economics of Microgrids at AirportsFebruary 14, 2019 TRB will conduct a webinar on Wednesday, March 20, 2019, from 2:00 PM to 3:30 PM ET that features research from the Airport Cooperative Research Program (ACRP) Synthesis 91/ Transit Cooperative Research Program (TCRP) Synthesis 137 : Microgrids and Their Application for Airports and Public Transit. The research describes microgrids that airports and public transit agencies can implement to incr... |
Housing and Classrooms, Not Parking: Overcoming Zoning Gridlock in NoHoFebruary 14, 2019 The Rudin Center for Transportation at New York University has released a report that determines how land use policy in New York City affects transit-rich neighborhoods. In particular, it emphasizes the NoHo neighborhood in Manhattan, or North of Houston Street, which is bounded by Broadway, East Houston, Bowery, and Astor Place. |
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 Zero-Emission Bus Evaluation Results: County Connection Battery Electric BusesFebruary 11, 2019 The U.S. National Renewable Energy Laboratory has released a report that presents the results of demonstrations of low- and zero-emission technologies for transit buses in the East Bay area of San Francisco. The goal of these demonstrations is to facilitate commercialization of advanced technologies for transit buses in order to increase efficiency and improve transit operations. |
Hearing: The Cost of Doing Nothing: Why Investing in Our Nation’s Infrastructure Cannot WaitFebruary 9, 2019 On February 7. 2019, the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure held a hearing to examine the current state of the nation’s roads, bridges, transit systems, railroads, ports, and airports in order to address infrastructure needs. The Committee heard testimony from public officials, the private sector, and non-profit organizations. Witness statements and a w... |
Transit and Livability: Results from the National Community Livability SurveyFebruary 9, 2019 The Upper Great Plains Institute at North Dakota State University has released a report that analyzes the connection between transit and livability in U.S. communities. The goal of this report is to conduct a survey in both urban and rural communities in the United States in order to determine the role of transportation and public transit toward quality of life. |
NTSB and TRB Webinar: Leading Future Improvements in Transportation Safety February 3, 2019 TRB and the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) will cohost a webinar on Tuesday, March 5, 2019 from 2:00 to 3:30 PM ET. The webinar will cover the 2019-2020 NTSB’s Most Wanted List and TRB’s Critical Issues in Transportation 2019 report . Presenters will focus on issues of safety and security across all modes of transportation. The NTSB Most Wanted List identifies what the NTSB has pri... |
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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. |
Transit Innovations Deserving Exploratory Analysis (IDEA) Program
TRB's Transit Innovations Deserving Exploratory Analysis (IDEA) Program is designed to provide an opportunity to investigate new and unproven concepts or to evaluate novel applications of technologies that have been tried, tested or used for transit systems practice.
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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.
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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. |
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