Transit Cooperative Research Program Overview
The Transit Cooperative Research Program (TCRP) was initially authorized in the Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act (ISTEA) of 1991 and was reauthorized in the Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century (TEA-21), the Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users (SAFETEA-LU), Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century (MAP-21) Act, and Fixing America’s Surface Transportation (FAST) Act. The program was created on May 13, 1992, by a Memorandum Agreement among three participants: The National Academy of Sciences, acting through its Transportation Research Board; The Transit Development Corporation, educational and research arm of the American Public Transportation Association (APTA); and the Federal Transit Administration (FTA). The Memorandum Agreement outlines the operating procedures for the program.
NEED AND PURPOSE
The
nation's growth and the need to meet mobility, environmental, and energy objectives
place demands on public transportation systems. Current systems, some of which
are old and in need of upgrading, must improve efficiencies to serve customer
demands. Research is necessary to solve operating problems, to adapt
appropriate new technologies from other industries, and to introduce
innovations into the public transportation industry. The TCRP program serves as
one of the principal means by which the public transportation industry can
develop innovative near-term solutions to meet demands placed on it.
The
need for TCRP was originally identified in TRB Special Report 213,
Research for Public Transit: New Directions, published in 1987 and based on
a study sponsored by FTA. A report by APTA, Transportation 2000,
also recognized the need for local, problem-solving research. Modeled after the
longstanding and successful National Cooperative Highway Research Program, TCRP
conducts applied research and produces timely reports and other tools useful to
public transportation professionals. TCRP research addresses a broad spectrum
of concerns including, but not limited to, facilities, vehicles, equipment,
service concepts, operations, maintenance, human resources, administrative
practices, funding and finance, planning, and policy. The results of TCRP research
are used to solve problems for and to introduce innovation to the public
transportation industry. Consistent with the parent organization, the National
Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM), the TCRP strives to
inform discussions, facilitate dialogue across disciplines, and inform decision
making.
PROGRAM PARTICIPANTS
The primary participants in TCRP are (a) an independent governing board organized by the TCRP Oversight and Project Selection (TOPS) Commission, (b) TRB as program manager and secretariat for the TOPS Commission, (c) APTA as a vital link to the public transportation community, and (d) FTA as program sponsor. Other important participants in TCRP include public transportation professionals, state and local government officials, equipment and service suppliers, and research organizations. Each of these participants has different interests and responsibilities; however, each is an integral part of the cooperative research effort.
SELECTION OF RESEARCH
Research
problem statements for TCRP are solicited periodically but may be submitted to
TRB by anyone at any time. It is the responsibility of the TOPS Commission to
formulate the research program by identifying the highest priority projects. As
part of the evaluation, the TOPS Commission defines funding levels and expected
products.
The TCRP
focuses on research that is consistent with, and supportive of, U.S. DOT
strategic goals and TCRP strategic priorities. The U.S. DOT strategic goals are
presented below:
• SAFETY:
Reduce Transportation-Related Fatalities and Serious Injuries Across the
Transportation System.
Safety has
consistently been DOT’s top strategic and organizational goal. To improve
transportation safety, DOT seeks to work effectively with State, local, Tribal,
and private partners; address human behaviors to reduce safety risks; improve
safety data analysis to guide decisions; continue to employ safety
countermeasures; ensure that automation brings significant safety benefits; and
pursue performance-based rather than prescriptive regulations.
• INFRASTRUCTURE:
Invest in Infrastructure to Ensure Safety, Mobility and Accessibility and to
Stimulate Economic Growth, Productivity and Competitiveness for American
Workers and Businesses.
DOT seeks
to work effectively with State, local, Tribal, and private partners to guide
investments that stimulate economic growth, improve the condition of
transportation infrastructure, and enable the efficient and safe movement of
people and goods. To achieve this goal, DOT will provide guidance, technical
assistance, and research that leverages Federal funding, accelerates project
delivery, reduces project lifecycle costs, and optimizes the operation and
performance of existing facilities. By using innovative forms of financing and
project delivery, encouraging partnerships between the public and private
sectors, and strategically balancing investments across various modes of
transportation to promote greater efficiencies, DOT can maximize the returns to
the Nation’s economy and people.
• INNOVATION:
Lead in the Development and Deployment of Innovative Practices and Technologies
that Improve the Safety and Performance of the Nation’s Transportation System.
Emerging
technologies are transforming our transportation system. DOT seeks to continue
its leadership role guiding research investments and facilitating the
deployment of beneficial transportation technologies. By engaging with the
private and public sectors, DOT can leverage Federal resources to support
technology transfer and ensure the safety and security of new technologies.
• ACCOUNTABILITY:
Serve the Nation with Reduced Regulatory Burden and Greater Efficiency,
Effectiveness and Accountability.
DOT will
streamline regulations and improve organizational effectiveness of the
Department. DOT will raise accountability standards that improve the efficient
use of taxpayer funds. By streamlining business processes and investing in
workforce development, DOT will enhance its responsiveness and adaptability to
the demands of a rapidly evolving industry.
The TCRP
has adopted five Strategic Priorities:
I. Place the Public Transportation Customer First
The importance of the public transportation rider as well as the community at
large as the customer was a principal outcome of the TCRP Future Search. The
American consumer society is demanding; no industry can prosper that does not
place the customer first.
II.
Enable Transit to Operate in a Technologically Advanced Society
TCRP will support public transportation to integrate state-of-the-art
technology in all aspects of its business so that mobility needs can be served
as communities change and customer needs evolve.
III.
Continuously Improve Public Transportation
The TCRP will support communities throughout the United States to continuously
improve public transportation.
IV.
Flourish in the Multimodal Environment
More authority for public transportation investment decisions is now in the
hands of state and local decision-makers. The public transportation industry
must work harder and smarter to realize the intermodal flexibility and
community-based planning opportunities offered by federal and other programs.
V.
Revitalize Transit Organizations
Information technologies, changes in the work force, and new roles and
partnerships are revolutionizing the workplace. By reinventing themselves,
public transportation organizations can "Work Better--Cost Less."
Problem
statements should consider the FTA and TCRP priorities. While problem
statements can be submitted at any time, the deadline for submitting problems
for consideration is around June 15 of each year. To avoid duplicating the work
of others, please check information on research in progress and completed
research when preparing a research problem statement. Click here for
publications abstracts of TRB's completed research.
PROGRAM MANAGEMENT
TRB provides day-to-day program management including the following tasks:
- Assisting the TOPS Commission in identifying and prioritizing research needs;
- Appointing and coordinating expert technical panels to guide research;
- Developing and distributing Requests for Proposals (RFPs);
- Processing and evaluating proposals to select the best-qualified research agency;
- Executing contracts with the selected researchers;
- Reviewing research reports;
- Publishing and disseminating research reports; and
- Promoting the application of research results.
PROJECT PANELS
Each project is assigned to a panel, appointed by the Transportation Research Board, which provides technical guidance and counsel throughout the life of the project. Panels include experienced practitioners and research specialists; heavy emphasis is placed on including members representing the intended consumers of the research product. The panels prepare project statements and select contractors based on evaluation of the proposals received. As in other TRB activities, TCRP project panels serve voluntarily without compensation.
SELECTION OF CONTRACTORS
The
process for selecting TCRP researchers has been used by TRB in managing
cooperative research programs for more than 40 years. This open process allows
all potential research agencies to compete on the basis of technical merit and
ensures that all proposers are treated fairly and that the program has access
to the best talent available for each project. Guidance for the preparation of
proposals is included in the TCRP brochure, Information and
Instructions for Preparing Proposals (Updated November 2010).
Proposals from prospective research contractors are evaluated by the project
panels. The evaluation considers the following: (1) the proposer's demonstrated
understanding of the problem; (2) the merit of the proposed research approach
and experiment design; (3) the experience, qualifications, and objectivity of
the research team in the same or closely related area; (4) the plan for
ensuring application of results; and (5) the proposer's plan for participation
by Disadvantaged Business Enterprises--small firms owned and controlled by
minorities or women; and (6) the adequacy of the facilities. Selected agencies
perform research under contract to the National Academies, guided by the Procedural Manual for Contractors Conducting Research in the
Transportation Research Board's Cooperative Research Programs.
Guidance for the preparation of final reports for submission to the TCRP can be
found in Chapter 5 of the Procedural Manual.
FUNDING
Fixing America’s Surface Transportation (FAST) Act authorizes $5.0 M per year for TCRP for FY 2016 through FY 2020.
PRODUCTS
Primary emphasis is placed on disseminating TCRP results to the intended end-users of the research: transit agencies, service providers, and suppliers. APTA plays a key role in both conventional and innovative means of making research information available and makes maximum use of its committee structure. TCRP provides a series of research reports to transit operators, local agencies, FTA, and other interested parties; APTA arranges for workshops, training aids, field visits, and other activities to ensure that results are implemented by transit industry practitioners.
In addition to research reports, the TCRP includes a synthesis series. Synthesis reports are compendiums of the best knowledge available on measures found to be successful in resolving specific problems. To develop these syntheses in a comprehensive manner and to ensure inclusion of significant knowledge, the Transportation Research Board analyzes available information assembled from numerous sources, including numerous transit agencies. Each synthesis is an immediately useful document that records practices in use at the time of its preparation.
CONTACT
To request further information on TCRP, write or call:
Gwen Chisholm-Smith, Manager
Cooperative Research Programs
Transportation Research Board
500 Fifth Street, N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20001
(202)334-3246
gsmith@nas.edu
Program information and requests for proposals are available on TRB’s World Wide Web Site at http://trb.org/tcrp.
The TCRP Oversight and Project Selection (TOPS) Commission
In
the administration of the TCRP, it is essential to maximize both the substance
and the appearance of fairness in the selection and management of contractors,
at the same time ensuring the quality and expanding the number of potential
researchers as much as possible.
It
is in the interest of the TCRP to use the expertise of the best-qualified
individuals and organizations available to perform the research programs, while
avoiding actual or apparent conflict of interest. However, conflicts may arise
or appear to arise if members of the TOPS Commission or organizations with which
they are affiliated submit proposals on projects.
To prevent
such problems in the administration of the TCRP, members of the TOPS Commission
are not permitted to serve concurrently as principal investigators on any TCRP
projects. Additionally, the following rules will apply to all members of the
TOPS Commission for the duration of their terms of appointment:
- A TOPS Commission member is not
permitted to be involved in the selection process for TCRP contractors,
where the individual member or an affiliated organization is being
considered.
- No involvement by a TOPS
Commission member is permitted in TRB’s administration of a contract in
which the individual member or an affiliated organization is involved.
- No involvement by a TOPS
Commission member is permitted in setting or modifying administrative
policies that would directly or materially affect either the administration
of existing contracts with the individual TOPS member or affiliated
organization or the ability of the member or affiliated organization to
submit proposals.
Because of
the special position of the TOPS Commission Chairman, the following additional
rules also will apply during the Chairman’s term:
- Neither the TOPS Commission nor
the immediate administrative unit of which the Chairman is a part may
propose on any TCRP projects.
- The Chairman may not be
involved in the preparation of a proposal for a TCRP project.
- The Chairman may not work on a
TCRP project as a member of the research team or as a consultant to the
team.
When a
newly appointed Chairman of the TOPS Commission or other member of the Commission
has existing activities or commitments covered in the foregoing lists of rules
on a TCRP project at the time of appointment, those circumstances will be
disclosed without delay to the Executive Committee of TOPS and recommendations
will be made by the Executive Committee on a case-by-case basis. All issues
arising out of the need to interpret these rules will be resolved by the
Executive Committee, with the affected members standing aside as appropriate.
TCRP Project Panels
The
Transportation Research Board, as a unit of the National Academies of Sciences,
Engineering, and Medicine, accords special importance to the policies and
procedures established by the institution for assuring the integrity and hence
the public confidence in the reports. Extensive efforts are made to ensure the
soundness of reports issued by the institution by selecting highly qualified
members. Yet, if a report is to be not only sound but also effective as
measured by its acceptance in quarters where it should be influential, the
report must be, and must be perceived to be, (1) free of any significant
conflict of interest, and (2) not compromised by bias, and (3) untainted by
allegations of scientific misconduct.
To
address questions of potential bias and conflict of interest for the protection
of both the individual involved and the institution, individuals participating
in studies and other activities are asked to complete a "Potential Sources
of Bias and Conflict of Interest" form to be submitted to and reviewed by
the institution. In addition, project panels are asked to discuss the general
questions of bias and conflict of interest, and the relevant circumstances of
their individual members, at each panel meeting.
The
question of potential sources of "bias" ordinarily relates to views
stated or positions taken that are largely intellectually motivated or that
arise from the close identification or association of an individual with a
particular point of view or the positions or perspectives of a particular
group. Such potential sources of bias are not necessarily disqualifying for
purposes of panel service. Indeed, it often is necessary, in order to ensure
that a panel is fully competent, to appoint members in such a way as to
represent a balance of potentially biasing backgrounds or professional or
organizational perspectives.
It is also
essential that the work of committees not be compromised by a significant
conflict of interest or in some circumstances the significant appearance of
conflict of interest, on the part of any member of a panel or anyone associated
with the work of a panel (e.g., consultants, staff, etc.) For this purpose, the
term "conflict of interest" means any financial or other interest
which conflicts with the service of an individual because it (1) could impair
the individual’s objectivity, or (2) could create an unfair competitive
advantage for any person or organization. The existence of a significant
conflict of interest ordinarily disqualifies an individual from service.
Full
details on the program's work since inception can be found in the TCRP
Annual Report.