Background: A major and continuing need of state highway and transportation departments involves assembling, analyzing, and evaluating operating practices, administrative procedures, and legal issues associated with highway and transportation projects. Individual state legal experiences need to be compared and made available for possible wider application. Research to identify and evaluate legal options facilitates the handling of both immediate and long-range needs of engineering, planning, and administrative aspects of transportation programs.

NCHRP Project 20-06 was established in 1968 to meet these needs. It is a continuing project under the direction of the TRB staff Counsel for Legal Research. Numerous legal and right of way problems affecting the operations and the services and facilities provided by state transportation agencies have been researched since the beginning of the project. Results are made available to state transportation departments and other public and private agencies through publication of Legal Research Digests and Selected Studies in Transportation Law (SSTL). SSTL is jointly sponsored with TRB’s Transit Cooperative Research Program and is comprised of the following volumes:

• Volume 1 Construction Contract Law (NCHRP)
• Volume 2 Eminent Domain (NCHRP)            
• Volume 3 Environmental Law and Transportation (NCHRP)
• Volume 4 Tort Liability (NCHRP)                     
• Volume 5 Transit Law (TCRP)
• Volume 6 Transit Labor 13(c) Decisions (TCRP)
• Volume 7 Transit Charter Bus Service: Decisions and Documents (TCRP)
• Volume 8 Transportation Law and Governmental Relations (NCHRP)

• NCHRP 20-06/Topic 26-01, Effects of Indian Treaties on Development and Operation of Transportation Facilities

• NCHRP 20-06/Topic 26-02, Analysis of Arbitration and Holdings in Construction Disputes
  
  
• NCRHP 20-06/Topic 26-03, Multistate Coordination and Harmonization for AV Legislation
  
  
• NCHRP 20-06/Topic 26-04, Pandemimcs and Contractual Issues

Completed Projects:

• Legal Research Digest 1: Continuing Project on Legal Problems Arising Out of Highway Programs, 6 p. (1988)
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 2: Supplement To Liability of State Highway Departments for Design, Construction, and Maintenance Defects, 20 p. (1988)
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 3: Supplement to Liability of State and Local Governments for Negligence Arising Out of the Installation and Maintenance of Warning Signs, Traffic Lights, and Pavement Markings, 10 p.  (1988)
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 4: Supplement to Personal Liability of State Highway Department Officers and Employees, 9 p. (1988)
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 5: Supplement to Labor Standards in Federal-Aid Highway Construction Contracts, 19 p. (1989)
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 6: Impact of the Discretionary Function Exception on Tort Liability of State Highway Departments, 25 p. (1989)
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 7: Liability of Public Agencies Arising Out of Rejection of Bids and Misaward of Contracts, 17 p.  (1989)
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 8: Continuing Project on Legal Problems Arising Out of Highway Programs, 11 p.  (1989)
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 9: Supplement to Liability of State and Local Governments for Snow and Ice Control, 11 p. (1990)
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 10: Supplement to Liability of the State for Injury-Producing Defects in Highway Surface, 10 p. (1990)
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 11: Impact of 42 U.S.C. §1983 (Civil Rights Act) On Highway Departments, Personnel, and Officials, 21 p. (1990)
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 12: Suspension, Debarment, and Disqualification of Highway Construction Contractors, 27 p.  (1990)
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 13: Civil RICO (Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act) Applications in the Highway Construction Industry, 27 p. (1990)
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 14: Supplement to Liability of State Highway Departments for Defects in Design, Construction, and Maintenance of Bridges, 10 p. (1990)
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 15: The Application of NEPA (National Environmental Policy Act) to Federal Highway Projects, 22 p. (1990)
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 16: Supplement to Payment of Attorney Fees in Eminent Domain and Environmental Litigation, 17 p. (1990)
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 17: The Public Duty Defense to Tort Liability, 25 p.  (1990)
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 18: Supplement to Planning and Precondemnation Activities as Constituting a Taking Under Inverse Law, 10 p. (1991)
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 19: Continuing Project on Legal Problems Arising Out of Highway Programs, 11 p. (1991)
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 20: Supplement to Legal Aspects of Historic Preservation in Highway and Transportation Programs, 40 p. (1991)
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 21: Supplement to Liability of the State for Highway Traffic Noise, 8 p. (1991)
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 22: Authority of State Departments of Transportation to Mitigate the Environmental Impact of Transportation Projects, 12 p. (1992)
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 23: Supplement to Valuation Changes Resulting From Influence of Public Improvements, 21 p. (1992)
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 24: Continuing Project on Legal Problems Arising Out of Highway Programs, 8 p.  (1992)
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 25: Supplement to Minority and Disadvantaged Business Enterprise Requirements in Public Contracting, 28 p. (1992)
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 26: Supplement to Legal Implications of Highway Department's Failure to Comply with Design, Safety, or Maintenance Guidelines, 10 p. (1992)
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 27: Supplement to Liability of the State for Injury or Damage Occurring in Motor Vehicle Accident Caused by Trees, Shrubbery, or Other Vegetative Obstruction Located in Right-of-Way or Growing on Adjacent Private Property, 12 p. (1993)
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 28: Preventing and Defending Against Highway Construction Contract Claims: The Use of Changes or Differing Site Conditions Clauses and New York State's Use of Exculpatory Contract Provisions and No Claims Clauses, 51 p. (1993)
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 29: Highways and the Environment: Resource Protection and the Federal Highway Program, 46 p. (1994)
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 30: Legal Issues Relating to the Acquisition of Right of Way and the Construction and Operation of Highways over Indian Lands, 24 p. (1994)
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 31: Federal Air Quality Laws Governing State and Regional Transportation Planning, 31 p. (1994)
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 32: Federalism and the Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act of 1991, 23 p. (1995)
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 33: Freedom of Information Acts, Federal Data Collections, and Disclosure Statutes Applicable to Highway Projects and the Discovery Process, 28 p. (1995)
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 34: Transportation Agencies as Potentially Responsible Parties at Hazardous Waste Sites, 29 p. (1995)
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 35: Continuing Project on Legal Problems Arising Out of Highway Programs, 8 p.  (1995)
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 36: Photographic Traffic Law Enforcement, 43 p.  (1996)
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 37: Indemnification and Insurance Requirements for Design Consultants and Contractors on Highway Projects, 25 p. (1996)
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 38: Risk Management for Transportation Programs Employing Written Guidelines as Design and Performance Standards, 22 p. (1997)
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 39:Liability of Contractors to State Transportation Departments for Latent Defects in Construction after Project Acceptance, 14 p. (1997)
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 40: Liability of Highway Departments for Damages Caused by Stormwater Runoff, 23 p. (1998)
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 41: Application of Outdoor Advertising Controls on Indian Land, 31 p. (1998)
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 42: Enforcement of Environmental Mitigation Commitments in Transportation Projects: A Survey of Federal and State Practice, 18 p. (1999)
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 43: Application of the Fourth Amendment to the Inspection of Commercial Motor Vehicles and Drivers, 33 p. (2000)
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 44: Reexamination of the Line between Governmental Exercise of the Police Power and Eminent Domain, 63 p. (2000) 
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 45: The States' Immunity From Suit in Federal and State Court, 24 p. (2000)

• Legal Research Digest 46: Drug and Alcohol Testing—A Survey of Labor-Management Relations, 61 p. (2001)
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 47: Judicial Enforcement of Variable Speed Limits, 25 p. (2003)
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 48: Civil Rights in Transportation Projects, 24 p. (2003)
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 49, Emergency Contracting: Flexibilities in Contracting Procedures during an Emergency, 28 p. (2007)
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 50: Current Practices in the Use of Alternative Dispute Resolution, 45 p. (2008)
  
  
• TRB’s Selected Studies in Transportation Law: Volume 2: Eminent Domain, 294 p. (2009)
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 51: Major Legal Issues for Highway Public-Private Partnerships, 39 p. (2009)
  
  
• TRB's Selected Studies in Transportation Law: Volume 3: Environmental Law and Transportation: 2010 Supplement, 218 p. (2010)
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 52: Record Keeping Requirements for State Departments of Transportation, 59 p. (2009)
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 53: Liability Aspects of Bikeways, 55 p. (2010)
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 54: Practice Under the Environmental Provisions of SAFETEA-LU, 28 p. (2010)
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 55: Identification, Prevention, and Remedies for False Claims in Highway Improvement Contracting, 109 p. (2011)
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 56: The Ramifications of Post-Kelo Legislation on State Transportation, 33 p. (2012)
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 57: Tort Liability Defense Practices for Design Flexibility, 52 p. (2012)
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 58: Legal Issues Surrounding the Use of Digital Intellectual Property on Design and Construction Projects, 48 p. (2013)
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 59: Enforceability of Local Hire Preference Programs, 40 p. (2013)
  
  
• Research Results Digest 385: The Legal Definitions of “First Responder”, 31 p. (2013)
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 60: Legal Aspects of Conservation Easements—A Primer for Transportation Agencies, 29 p. (2013)
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 61: Legal Aspects of Performance-Based Specifications for Highway Construction and Maintenance Contracts, 61 p. (2013)
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 62: Eminent Domain and Fair Market Value in a Depressed Real Estate Market, 64 p. (2014)
  
  
• TRB’s Selected Studies in Transportation Law: Volume 1: 2014 Supplement: Construction Contract Law, 553 p. (2014)
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 63: Effect of MUTCD on Tort Liability of Government Transportation Agencies, 99 p. (2014)
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 64: Legal Aspect of Environmental Permitting in the Emergency Response Environment, 73 p. (2015)
  
  
• NCHRP Project 20-06/Topic 19-04 Use of Social Media in Transportation Agencies

Phase I, a survey of state departments of transportation, states attorneys general guidance, agency practices, reported decisions, administrative rules and guidance (to determine what they doing with the information), has been completed, and a report with the conclusions was submitted to TRB. The panel subsequently decided to proceed with Phase II which consists of further research, case and statutory/regulatory analysis, and additional primary data collection.

Status: Project terminated.

• Legal Research Digest 65: Liability Aspects of Pedestrian Facilities, 72 p. (2015)
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 66: Due Diligence for Insurance Coverage in Transportation Construction Contracts, 60 p. (2015)
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 67: Permissible Arranges in Scope of Work for Construction Contracts, 46 p. (2015)
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 68: Liability of Design-Builders for Design, Construction, and Acquisition Claims, 127 p. (2015)
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 69: A Look at the Legal Environment for Driverless Vehicles, 80 p. (2016)
  
  
• Research Results Digest 395: Claims Related to Stormwater Discharge, 11 p. (2015)
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 70: Takings and Mitigation, 36 p. (2016)
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 71: Liability of Transportation Entity for the Unintentional Release of Secure Data or the Intentional Release of Monitoring Data on Movements or Activities of the Public,60 p. (2016)
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 72: Summary of Federal Law Restricting Use of Highway Safety Data in Tort Litigation, 64 p. (2016) 

• Legal Research Digest 73: Primer on Patentability and Use of Ideas Developed by Contractors Performing Work for State and Federal Transportation and Local Planning Agencies, 37 p. (2017)
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 74: Liability of State Departments of Transportation for Design Errors, 61 p. (2017)
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 75: 01 Legal Requirements for State DOT Participation in Conservation Plans, 35 p. (2017)
  
  
• NCHRP 20-06/Topic 23-02, How Does the Law Treat Tortious or Illegal or Harmful Actions Undertaken to Avoid or Minimize Harm in Emergencies? (Terminated)
  
  
• NCHRP 20-06/Topic 23-03, The Use of Limited Access Facilities in Generating Revenue for State DOTs (Terminated, Reproduced as Topic 24-04)
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 76: Update of Selected Studies in Transportation Law, Volume 8, Section 3: Indian Transportation Law (2019)
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 77, Update of Selected Studies in Transportation Law, Volume 8, Section 1: Civil Rights and Transportation Agencies (2019)
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 78, Condemnation Hierarchy - Competing Public Uses (2019)
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 79, The Effectiveness of State False Claims Acts in Protecting State Transportation Funding (2020)
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 80, Buy America Requirements for Federal Highway Projects (2020)
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 81, The Legal Issues Concerning the Use of Transportation Facilities to Generate Revenue for State DOTs (2020)
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 82, Potential Liability Associated with Unstable Slope Management Programs (2020)
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 83, Guidelines for Drafting Liability Neutral Transportation Engineering Documents and Communication Strategies (2020)
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 84, Fit It, Sign It, or Close It: State of Good Repair in an Era of Budget Constraints (Co-funded with TCRP J-05) (2021) 
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 85 Public Liabilities Relating to Driveway Permits (2022)
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 86 Managing Enhanced Risk in the Mega Project Era (2022)
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 87 Encampments of Unhoused Individuals in Transportation Rights-of-Way: Laws and State DOT Practices (2022)
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 88 Consequential Damages Provisions in Construction Contracts: Legal Issues (2022)
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 89 Planning and Environment Linkages: Review of Statutory Authority and Case Law (2023)
  
  
• Legal Research Digest 90 Best Value Procurement for Highway Constructions: Legal Issues and Strategies (2023)

See below additional information regarding these projects based on data from our semi-automated system.

20-06/Topic 17-01 Update of Selected Studies in Transportation, Volume One: Transportation Contract Law