Since its inception, the National Transportation Safety Board has been concerned about the evacuation of commercial airplanes in the event of an emergency. Several accidents investigated by the Safety Board in the last decade that involved emergency evacuations prompted the Safety Board to conduct a study on the evacuation of commercial airplanes. The study described in this report is the first prospective study of emergency evacuation of commercial airplanes. For the study, the Safety Board investigated 46 evacuations that occurred between September 1997 and June 1999 that involved 2,651 passengers. Eighteen different aircraft types were represented in the study. Based on information collected from the passengers, the flight attendants, the flight crews, the air carriers, and the aircraft rescue and firefighting (ARFF) units, the Safety Board examined the following safety issues in the study: (a) certification issues related to airplane evacuation, (b) the effectiveness of evacuation equipment, (c) the adequacy of air carrier and ARFF guidance and procedures related to evacuations, and (d) communication issues related to evacuations. The study also compiled some general statistics on evacuations, including the number of evacuations and the types and number of passenger injuries incurred during evacuations. As a result of the study, the National Transportation Safety Board issued 20 safety recommendations and reiterated 3 safety recommendations to the Federal Aviation Administration.

Motorcoach safety has received increased public attention after several serious accidents during 2011, some of which involved curbside carriers. As a result, the National Transportation Safety Board conducted an investigation of motorcoach safety with an emphasis on curbside operations. The objectives of the investigation were to (1) describe the characteristics of the curbside business model among interstate motorcoach carriers; (2) describe the safety record of interstate motorcoach carriers, including those that use a curbside business model; and (3) evaluate the adequacy of safety oversight for interstate motorcoach carriers using a curbside business model. This report focuses primarily on those issues that pertain only to curbside operations.

About 7:00 p.m, . central standard time, on December 20, 1998, National Railroad Passenger Corporation train No. 21, the Texas Eagle, derailed on Union Pacific Railroad tracks in Arlington, Texas. Train 21 was en route from Chicago, Illinois, to San Antonio, Texas. The train was traveling westbound at a reduced speed of about 36 mph due to reports of rough track near milepost 231. Three locomotives and six cars derailed in a curve at milepost 230.62. Of the 198 passengers and 18 employees on the train, 12 passengers and 10 employees were injured. No fatalities resulted from the accident. The damages were estimated at about $1.4 million

This safety report represents the culmination of a year-long National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) effort focused on the problem of substance-impaired driving. The report addresses the necessity of providing all the following elements to achieve meaningful reductions in alcohol-impaired driving crashes: stronger laws, improved enforcement strategies, innovative adjudication programs, and accelerated development of new in-vehicle alcohol detection technologies. Moreover, the report recognizes the need for states to identify specific and measurable goals for reducing impaired driving fatalities and injuries, and to evaluate the effectiveness of implemented countermeasures on an ongoing basis.

This project addresses the various transportation issues involving Shenandoah National Park, helps to facilitate the participation of Shenandoah National Park in regional traveler-information systems, addresses various access and safety issues at some of Shenandoah's main attractions, and helps to provide a better understanding of the socioeconomic conditions and trends in the Shenandoah Valley region that may potentially influence current and future visitation. Key findings and future directions are summarized below.

NPS, as part of their General Management Plan (GMP) realignment, worked with Volpe to develop a series of alternative transportation methods in Valley Forge National Historical Park. Automobiles are the predominant means of transportation in the park, posing a threat to the preservation of park resources and pristine quality. Suggested alternatives to automobile transport include shuttle buses and similar efforts that reduce the need for automobile travel within the park. Beyond relieving congestion, alternative modes of transportation allow the visitor more options in terms of guided tours. This report presents an overview of the current transportation system at Valley Forge. Alternative solutions and an analysis of the impacts on ridership are presented. A cost analysis is done with regards to implementing the shuttle bus. Finally, an implementation strategy is set forth.

Congress requires the Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS) of the Research and Innovative Technology Administration (RITA) to report on transportation statistics to the President and Congress. This Transportation Statistics Annual Report is the 13th such report prepared in response to this congressional mandate, laid out in 49 U.S.C. 111 (1). In addition to presenting the state of transportation statistics, the report focuses on transportation indicators pertinent to the Strategic Plan of the U.S. Department of Transportation; the RITA report, Transportation Vision for 2030; and the 13 topics specifi ed in the Safe, Accountability, Flexible, Effi cient Transportation Equity Act: a Legacy for Users, under 49 U.S.C. III(c)(5).

The Guide to Transportation Management Center (TMC) Data Capture for Performance and Mobility Measures is a two-volume document consisting of this summary Guidebook and a Reference Manual. These documents provide technical guidance and recommended practices regarding concepts, methods, techniques, and procedures for collecting, analyzing, and archiving TMC operations data to develop measures of roadway and TMC performance, as well as documenting the benefits of TMC activities for a variety of stakeholders. This guide is designed to be used by TMC technical and management staff involved in developing, implementing, and/or refining a TMC performance monitoring program.

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) is an independentfederal agency charged with determining the probable cause of transportation accidents, promoting transportation safety, and assisting victims of transportation accidents and their families. We investigate accidents, conduct safety studies, evaluate the effectiveness of other government agencies' programs for preventing transportation accidents, and review the appeals of enforcement actions involving aviation and mariner certificates issued by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and the US Coast Guard (the Coast Guard), as well as the appeals of civil penalty actions taken by the FAA.

On June 8, 1995, a Douglas DC-9-32, N908VJ, was being operated by ValuJet Airlines as a scheduled, domestic passenger flight under the provisions of Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 121.

TThis report presents the results of a Substance Abuse Program and Methods of Evaluation study conducted by the Volpe National Transportation Systems Center in fiscal year 2000. The study determines the progress of the Drug and Alcohol Compliance Program in meeting U.S. Department of Transportation and Federal Transit Administration (FTA) strategic goals and objectives. The analysis also allows the FTA to determine whether the current program is operating effectively and efficiently while providing options for allowing limited resources to optimize results. Utilizing 5 years of data and 7 years of experience administering the program, the assessment demonstrates the effectiveness of the FTA Drug and Alcohol program and the ability of transit agencies to contribute significant economic benefits to both industry and society as a whole by effectively enforcing the regulations.

On June 9, 2009, about 2135 mountain daylight time, an Agusta S.p.A. A-109E helicopter, N606SP, impacted terrain following visual flight rules flight into instrument meteorological conditions near Santa Fe, New Mexico. The commercial pilot and one passenger were fatally injured; a highway patrol officer who was acting as a spotter during the accident flight was seriously injured. The entire aircraft was substantially damaged. The helicopter was registered to the New Mexico Department of Public Safety and operated by the New Mexico State Police (NMSP) on a public search and rescue mission under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 without a flight plan. The helicopter departed its home base at Santa Fe Municipal Airport, Santa Fe, New Mexico, about 1850 in visual meteorological conditions; instrument meteorological conditions prevailed when the helicopter departed the remote landing site about 2132.

This report is the final deliverable of an internship which is part of the fifth year curriculum of the faculty of Aerospace Engineering at the Delft University of Technology. The two authors had the privilege of conducting their internship at the John A. Volpe National Transportation Systems Center. There they worked in the Environmental Measurement and Modeling Division. The main assignment consisted of finding a method to model the fuel burn of turboprop aircraft flying over America's national parks. To do this the authors first had to get familiarized with the Aviation Environmental Design Tool (AEDT), which is a model capable of calculating the noise and fuel burn emissions of aircraft.

The Volpe Center Acoustics Facility, in support of the Federal HighwayAdministration (FHWA) and the California Department of Transportation(Caltrans), has been conducting a study to quantify and assess the accuracyof FHWA's Traffic Noise Model (TNM) and make recommendations on its use. The TNM Validation Study involves highway noise data collection and TNMmodeling for the purpose of data comparison. Phase 1 of the study has beencompleted. For this phase, over 100 hours of traffic noise data werecollected at 17 highway sites around the country.

This report presents the results of the study to extend the useful attenuation range of the Approximate Method outlined in the American National Standard, "Method for Calculation of the Absorption of Sound by the Atmosphere" (ANSI S1.26-1995), and provide a basis for replacing the current Society of Automotive Engineers Aerospace Recommended Practice 866A, "Standard Values of Atmospheric Absorption as a Function of Temperatureand Humidity" (SAE ARP866A). The report describes the implementation of the one-thirdoctave-band adaptations of the ISO/ANSI pure-tone equations, and the development and testingof the proposed SAE Method.

The Volpe Center Acoustics Facility (Volpe) in support of the Federal Highway Administration(FHWA) is conducting a multiple-phase study to assess the accuracy and make recommendations onthe use of FHWA's Traffic Noise Model (TNM). The TNM Validation Study involves highway noisedata collection and TNM modeling for the purpose of data comparison. In 2002, Volpe completedPhase 1 of the study. For this phase, over 100 hours of traffic noise data were collected atseventeen highway sites around the country. The seventeen sites included: open areas next tothe highway with acoustically soft ground (e.g., lawn); open areas with acoustically hardground (e.g., pavement or water); and areas next to the highway with an open area behind asingle noise barrier. Results indicated that TNM Version 2.0 was, on average, over-predictingwhen measured sound level data were not calibrated using a reference microphone, i.e., whensite bias was not accounted for.

Many comments have been received as a result of the Federal Railroad Administration's (FRA) issuance of a Proposed Rule for the Use of Locomotive Horns at Highway-Rail Grade Crossings1. This rule contains numerous provisions, two of which are addressed in this study. The first provision addressed in this study states that the sound level generated by the horn, when measured at the side of the locomotive, shall not exceed the sound level measured in front of the locomotive. In the late 1980's it became the de facto standard to install horns on the top/center portion of the locomotive. This was done in an attempt to reduce the noise exposure for the locomotive cab occupants. However, due to propagation effects at the measurement locations, the result was that measured sound levels off to the side of the locomotive were often higher than levels in front of the locomotive. The FRA proposed this provision to prevent the excessive distribution of sound to the side, which adds to community noise exposure. This provision could force railroad operators to relocate most center-installed horns. A large number of negative comments were received on this provision, suggesting that this relocation would be unacceptable for the locomotive crew.