The Federal Transit Administration's (FTA) State Safety Oversight Rule (49 CFR Part 659) requires oversight for all rail transitagencies in revenue operation after January 1, 1997. This report summarizes activities performed to implement the State SafetyOversight Program during Calendar Year 2000. This report is a compilation and analysis of rail fixed guideway system accident and crime statistics. Information provided by State Oversight Agencies documenting the safety and security performance of the railtransit industry in 2000 is presented, including a discussion of the probable causes of accidents and unacceptable hazardous conditions.

This interim report to Congress summarizes the progress and initial results of the Federal Highway Administration's (FHWA) and the four pilot communities' participation in the Nonmotorized Transportation Pilot Program (NTPP) from its inception through May 2007. Section 1807 of the Safe, Accountable Flexible Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users (SAFETEA-LU), P.L. 109-59, established the NTPP in August 2005. Over the span of 4 years, the legislation provides $25 million in contract authority for each of the NTPP's four pilot communities (Columbia, Missouri; Marin County, California; Minneapolis, Minnesota; and Sheboygan County, Wisconsin) "to construct ... a network of nonmotorized transportation infrastructure facilities, including sidewalks, bicycle lanes, and pedestrian and bicycle trails, that connect directly with transit stations, schools, residences, businesses, recreation areas, and other community activity centers."

A web-based study assessed pilots' ability to learn and remember traffic symbols that may be shown on a Cockpit Display of Traffic Information (CDTI). These displays convey data obtained from Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast (ADS B) and related Aircraft Surveillance Applications System (ASAS) technologies, as well as other surveillance data sources. Three aspects of using the traffic symbols were evaluated: intuitiveness, ease of learning, and ease of remembering the symbols. Four symbol sets were tested, each with approximately 22 symbols. Each participant saw only one of the four symbol sets. The sets used different visual features of the traffic symbol to represent the Directionality, Data Quality, Air/Ground State, Alert Level, Selection State, and Pairing State of nearby aircraft.

This is the 2002 FARS coding and validation manual presented by the U.S. Department of Transportation.

The Petersburg National Battlefield (PETE) Alternative Transportation Feasibility Study investigates alternative solutions to several transportation problems affecting the park today. PETE consists of four jurisdictions: Grant's Headquarters at City Point, Eastern Front, Western Front, and Five Forks Battlefield. Comprising 2,659 acres of land interspersed among two cities and two counties in southeast Virginia, PETE's current transportation problems include site-specific access issues, wayfinding and navigational challenges, and inefficient transportation-based interpretive programs.

This report describes engineering studies that were conducted to examine thedeformation behavior of flat, welded steelsandwich panels under two quasi-static loading conditions: (1) uniaxial compression;and (2) bending with an indenter.Testingand analysisare conducted to studythe force-displacement response of sandwich structures with different core geometries: (1) pipe or tubular cores with outer diameters equal to 2, 3, and 5 in;(2) a 2-inchsquare diamond core;and (3) adouble corrugated core called an X-corewith a 5-inchcore height.Deformation and local collapse modes of sandwich panels under these loading conditions are also studied. Moreover, the work described in this report represents basic researchto investigate the concept of applying welded steel sandwich structures as a means to offer protection to railroad tankcars-especially those carrying hazardous materials-in the event of an accident

As part of the Federal Aviation Administration's (FAA) initiative towards affordable flight simulators for U.S. commuter airlines, this study empirically examined the effect of six-degree-of-freedom simulator platform motion on recurrent pilot training and evaluation in the presence of a wide field-of-view visual system. Sound scientific data on the relationship between the motion requirement and its effect on the transfer of pilot performance/behavior to and from the airplane is all the more important given that the FAA may mandate the use of simulators for airline pilot training and evaluation. The study addressed the question of whether the motion provided by an FAA qualified Level C simulator affects 1) pilot performance/behavior and instructor grading criteria during First Look evaluation,2) the courseof Trainingin the simulator, and 3) the Transfer of skills acquired during Training in the simulator with or without motion to the simulator with motion as a stand-in for the airplane. Every effort was made to avoid deficiencies in the research design identified in a review of prior studies, by measuring pilot stimulation andresponse, testing both maneuvers and pilots that are diagnosticof a need of motion, avoiding pilot and instructor bias, and ensuring sufficient statistical powerto capture operationally relevant effects.

In support of the U.S Department of Transportation's (DOT) National Strategy to Reduce Congestion on America's Transportation Network, the Federal Highway Administration's (FHWA) Office of Natural and Human Environment (HEPN) and Office of Transportation Management (HOTM) sought assistance from The Volpe National Transportation Systems Center to explore attitudes about congestion pricing.For this exploratory study, focus groups were convened in Northern Virginia and Philadelphia among the general public, business owners and managers, and owners and managers of shipping and transportation logistics firms. The purpose of these focus groups was to obtain feedback on a specific congestion pricing scenario and to better understand the public's concerns regarding congestion pricing. A secondary purpose was to learn more about how to communicate with the public on the topic of congestion pricing.

The Volpe Center Acoustics Facility, in support of theFederal Highway Administration(FHWA), investigatedthe implementation of pavement effects inthe FHWA Traffic Noise Model (TNM). Three options were considered, resulting in the recommendation of two options: 1) implementation of user-defined pavement-specific emission levels (REMELs), with proof of adequate data; and 2) implementation of on-board sound intensity (OBSI)-adjusted tire/pavement noise source levels, implemented as a large database in the FHWA TNM and also as a user-defined option. Each option would also include adjusting for the pavement sound absorption by applying pavement-specific effective flow resistivity (EFR) values.

Bus Rapid Transit or BRT, can be a rather generic term applied to a variety of bus-based transportation systems. In some instances the 'Bus Rapid Transit' term is applied to bus services that have been improved or intensified through the introduction of enhanced infrastructure, such as bus lanes or corridors, the use of higher capacity vehicles operating a more intense service, or it may be applied, probably more correctly, to a bus-based system that bridges the quality and capacity gap between a normal municipal bus service and a Light Rail Transit (LRT) system. Bus Rapid Transit for the 21st Century examines the development of BRT, particularly in Britain and Ireland, and at the elements that should be incorporated in a BRT scheme fit for the 21st century.

In recent years interest has grown in Smart Growth as a mechanism for improving environmental quality. In Our Built and Natural Environments, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) summarizes technical research on the relationship between the built and natural environments, as well as current understanding of the role of development patterns, urban design, and transportation in improving environmental quality. Our Built and Natural Environments is designed as a technical reference for analysts in state and local governments, academics, and people studying the implications of development on the natural environment.

This report is the second in a series focusing on methods to determine the puncture velocity of railroad tank car shells.

Don't Jump, a reference for planning for and executing the evacuation of major passenger lifts, including gondolas and ski lifts. Includes information about pre-planning evacuation operations, training of rescue personnel, transportation logistics, command oversight, communications, public information, security and safety. The knowledge and skills each individual rescuer must possess, including data about rope performance, knot construction, first aid and triage, and then the physical act of lowering passengers. Integrating air operations utilising helicopters and on-site air traffic control for the movement of rescuers, retrieval of stranded passengers and summit evacuation, and dovetailing plans with the plans of local agencies like the Fire Service and EMS.

The Transportation Security Administration has taken three primary actions since October 2010 to enhance security of inbound cargo on passenger and all-cargo aircraft.