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    <title>Research in Progress (RIP)</title>
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    <language>en-us</language>
    <copyright>Copyright © 2026. National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.</copyright>
    <docs>http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss</docs>
    <managingEditor>tris-trb@nas.edu (Bill McLeod)</managingEditor>
    <webMaster>tris-trb@nas.edu (Bill McLeod)</webMaster>
    <image>
      <title>Research in Progress (RIP)</title>
      <url>https://rip.trb.org/Images/PageHeader-wTitle-RIP.jpg</url>
      <link>https://rip.trb.org/</link>
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    <item>
      <title>Laws, Ordinances, and Practices Related to All-Terrain Vehicles and Utility Task Vehicles</title>
      <link>https://rip.trb.org/View/2593923</link>
      <description><![CDATA[Researchers will examine on-road allowances of all-terrain vehicles (ATVs) and utility task vehicles (UTVs) in Illinois per county as well as analyze other state’s practices. They will develop a report that may be presented to legislators that provides the risks and potential benefits of allowing ATVs and UTVs on roadways. The research will allow Illinois Department of Transportation to make better policy decisions as well as reduce fatalities and injury crashes associated with ATVs and UTVs.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Thu, 28 Aug 2025 10:08:11 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://rip.trb.org/View/2593923</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>SPR-5006: Stakeholder Engagement in Indiana's Electrification Ecosystem and Infrastructure Readiness Assessment</title>
      <link>https://rip.trb.org/View/2590601</link>
      <description><![CDATA[This research aims to develop a comprehensive policy framework and implementation roadmap that positions Indiana Department of Transportation (INDOT) as an effective leader in Indiana's electric vehicle (EV) ecosystem. The project will address the fundamental question: What policies, coordination mechanisms, and regulatory frameworks must INDOT and other government agencies establish to support Indiana's rapidly evolving electrification ecosystem while ensuring safety, reliability, and economic competitiveness?]]></description>
      <pubDate>Tue, 19 Aug 2025 14:58:24 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://rip.trb.org/View/2590601</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Managing the Prior Rights and Prescriptive Rights of Utilities

</title>
      <link>https://rip.trb.org/View/2558399</link>
      <description><![CDATA[State departments of transportation (DOTs) manage and remediate prior rights and prescriptive rights when construction necessitates property ownership transfer from utilities. NCHRP Research Report 1054: Acquiring Utility Property Interests and Reimbursing Utility Relocation Costs: A Guide provided practitioners approaches to acquire utility-owned property and reimburse utility owners for eligible relocation costs. The research scope did not address management of prior rights and prescriptive rights claims, however. State DOTs still confront issues with determinations of prior rights and prescriptive rights claims that can differ greatly from one parcel or jurisdiction to another.

A comprehensive framework to identify and manage all types of compensable and noncompensable property interests in connection with utility relocations would assist state DOTs with inconsistencies in current processes and procedures. Research is needed to review pertinent laws, regulations, and practices; document case examples that identify best practices; and identify implementation opportunities.   

OBJECTIVE: The objective of this research is to develop a guide for managing prior rights and prescriptive rights for utility relocations. The guide will contain successful applications from the state level and will incorporate varying methods and statutory requirements.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Wed, 28 May 2025 10:03:16 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://rip.trb.org/View/2558399</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Cybersecurity Analysis and Guidance to Support Secure Transportation Cyber-Physical Systems</title>
      <link>https://rip.trb.org/View/2526705</link>
      <description><![CDATA[The overarching goal of the continued work on this project is to put what the research team has learned in their first year of research with respect to the legislative schematic of the U.S. in context with the international scope of cybersecurity policy. Specifically, the objectives of this project are to evaluate United States cybersecurity transportation law and policy compared to existing international models to support continued domestic regulatory development and update the policy toolkit (including large language model (LLM) and guidance report) with insights from an expanded legislative corpus, visualized data, extended industry feedback and training, to provide a comparative analysis model of transportation cybersecurity research (identifying how the U.S. can improve its policy based on industry and international input).]]></description>
      <pubDate>Thu, 20 Mar 2025 17:15:43 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://rip.trb.org/View/2526705</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Assessing the Impacts and Challenges of Truck Platooning on Highway Infrastructure in Montana</title>
      <link>https://rip.trb.org/View/2413944</link>
      <description><![CDATA[The Montana State Legislature is anticipated to introduce legislation regarding the use and regulation of truck platooning in Montana during the next legislative session in 2025. Montana Department of Transportation (MDT) Planning Division expects to be requested by the State Legislature to provide expert guidance on how the emerging technology of truck platooning will impact transportation infrastructure and systems in Montana. The rapid evolution of transportation technologies, including the emergence of truck platoons, across infrastructure, vehicles, and systems, indicates a future characterized by intelligent infrastructure, interconnected vehicles, and autonomous driving. Projections indicate a gradual yet significant adoption of automated driving systems, with forecasts suggesting that by 2050, autonomous vehicles and advanced transportation technologies could represent 50% of the US vehicle fleet. While implementing truck platooning provides several potential advantages benefiting surface transportation, the trucking industry, and overall economic growth, it also introduces a host of new challenges for MDT to navigate. These challenges primarily revolve around the uncertainty regarding how truck platooning will impact existing highway infrastructure and the traveling public. Consequently, this research project will proactively prepare MDT for this emerging technology by identifying the needs for efficient testing and deployment of truck platoons, and evaluating the anticipated challenges associated with its implementation.
This research project will help prepare MDT for the legislative session by identifying the requirements and limitations associated with operating truck platoons along with a thorough examination of the multifaceted impacts. The objectives of this research project include reviewing the current state-of-the-practice regarding national, state, and local regulatory frameworks and legislation pertaining to truck platooning. This analysis will serve to pinpoint infrastructure, traffic management policy, roadway design, and standardization needs essential for facilitating the deployment of truck platooning. The research objectives will identify how truck platoons could impact the operation and safety of the highway system. The goal of this research is to provide practical guidance for MDT decision-makers to respond to the State Legislature regarding inquiries on how truck platooning could impact Montana highways and the traveling public.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Tue, 06 Aug 2024 11:05:42 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://rip.trb.org/View/2413944</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Build America Buy America Requirements in Utility Relocations: A Guide for Transportation Agencies



</title>
      <link>https://rip.trb.org/View/2381714</link>
      <description><![CDATA[The Buy America (BA) law was enacted in 1981 and modified in the Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act (MAP-21). In 2022, the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) added the Build America Buy America Act (BABA), which expanded the list of materials required to be domestically sourced on federally funded projects. These legislative changes added requirements that impacted utility relocations on projects administered through the Federal Highway Administration. Utility companies, often operating without federal funding in their regular business practices, are not consistently familiar with the terms of BA/BABA, and procurement contracts may not expressly require BA/BABA compliance. In some cases, their interactions with state departments of transportation (DOTs) requiring BA/BABA compliance result in refusals to participate, contract, or relocate, impacting project costs and schedules. Differences in interpretation of federal BA/BABA requirements along with differences in regional laws, policies, and procedures reflect the need for additional guidance on ensuring BA/BABA compliance when working with utility companies. 

The objective of this research is to develop a guide for transportation agencies to implement practices for consistently ensuring compliance with BA/BABA requirements in utility relocations. 
]]></description>
      <pubDate>Tue, 21 May 2024 16:07:30 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://rip.trb.org/View/2381714</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Iowa Law Manual for Local Public Agency Road Departments</title>
      <link>https://rip.trb.org/View/2353417</link>
      <description><![CDATA[County road department managers are challenged with knowing what Iowa laws apply to their daily jobs.  Drainage, construction and maintenance liability, low water crossings liability, Tort law, and rural subdivisions to just name a few.  Knowing where to find the actual code sections that apply and maybe more importantly the applicable case law is very difficult for local managers.  Several IHRB projects were completed around 1980 to address some of these issues.  Many laws have changed and new cases have gone thru the courts since 1980 that effect county road departments.  The goal of this project would be to create a comprehensive updated resource document for local road department managers to know which Iowa law sections and case law that apply to county road departments.  This project is just compiling existing law and court decisions, not issuing legal opinions on issues. ]]></description>
      <pubDate>Wed, 20 Mar 2024 10:43:41 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://rip.trb.org/View/2353417</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Policy Analysis and Guidance to Support Secure Transportation Cyber-Physical Systems</title>
      <link>https://rip.trb.org/View/2334604</link>
      <description><![CDATA[In a world of automated mobility, innovative but legally unprecedented technological advances are creating a host of policy issues for legislative and regulatory bodies. Although the need for regulatory and enforcement measures is dire, there is no singular federal law or federal regulatory framework that governs cybersecurity or data privacy focusing on transportation in the United States. The overarching goal of this project is to perform a nationwide survey of existing federal and state cybersecurity and privacy regulatory measures and analyze that legislative landscape in light of identified risks and threats to the transportation industry.  The project attempts to answer: (i) what federal and/or state agencies are responsible for governing cybersecurity practices in the U.S., including risk assessment, preventative measures, detection of breaches, and remedial enforcement; and (ii) how do industry experts assess the greatest risks/threats to ensuring cybersecurity in the transportation sector?  Key contributions include developing a novel prompt-based LLM model and a domain-specific question-answering system that will ensure the security of various systems in the transportation domain.  The results of the above-discussed review and analysis could be used to construct a comprehensive transportation cybersecurity policy guidance document and/or toolkit.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Mon, 05 Feb 2024 16:09:21 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://rip.trb.org/View/2334604</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Project Delivery (Design-Build) Guidance</title>
      <link>https://rip.trb.org/View/2310558</link>
      <description><![CDATA[Departments of Transportation (DOTs) across the country have traditionally used a Design-Bid-Build procurement method in building highways and other transportation infrastructure improvements. The Design-Bid-Build method is when the DOT—or a consultant hired by the DOT—designs the project, after which bids from contractors are solicited, and, finally, the project is awarded to a contractor to build that project. This process encourages competitiveness among bidders; however, it often requires a high expenditure of resources and time in the DOT’s project-design phase. Further, any innovation in construction or materials for a project must be identified, defined, and included in the contractor’s bid package, which restricts flexibility to develop additional innovations after award. 
The primary objectives of this research study are to seek data to inform ADOT on DB policies and procedures for future project-delivery and legislative efforts. This research will include information from other state DOTs on their PDB and/or DB efforts, state legislative authority, standing policies, contractual documents, etc. It will also include how PBD and/or DB is implemented in other states as well as any notable practices they use when utilizing these contracting methods. ]]></description>
      <pubDate>Mon, 18 Dec 2023 17:12:43 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://rip.trb.org/View/2310558</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Achieving Efficient Cultural Resources Management in Project Delivery</title>
      <link>https://rip.trb.org/View/2289611</link>
      <description><![CDATA[Transportation projects in which the study area contains cultural resources in need of identification and analysis often struggle to meet project delivery schedules, particularly with respect to federally funded projects that fall under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). The now-rescinded Executive Order (EO) 13807 of 2017 first established goals of 2-year completion of environmental impact statements and 1-year completion of environmental assessments under NEPA. While EO 13807 and One Federal Decision (OFD) requirements have been rescinded, the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and Council of Environmental Quality regulations codified these required timelines. Additionally, state laws and other factors may also put pressure on agencies to conduct more efficient cultural resources identification and analyses in project delivery.

State departments of transportation (DOTs) and other transportation agencies employ various approaches to meet the project delivery timelines established in NEPA, including Planning and Environmental Linkages (PEL) studies; early project scoping; simplified review and application of historical context for common resource types; and programmatic agreements. NEPA and Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA) regulations are not triggered until there is a programmed, funded project for which environmental compliance studies are conducted. However, cultural resource analysis is critical for safeguarding cultural resources protected in federal, state, and tribal law. Research is needed to identify and analyze methods and strategies to achieve efficiencies and avoid delays in project delivery when cultural resources are affected.

OBJECTIVE: The objective of this research is to prepare tools with guidelines for completing effective cultural resource analyses in a time-constrained project delivery context. At a minimum the research should: Provide the regulatory and practical benefits of implementing efficient and timely cultural resources analyses in project delivery; Identify and address specific agency challenges to completing efficient cultural resources analyses, particularly in time-constrained project delivery processes such as those mandated by NEPA; and Advise agencies on the selection and implementation of proven methods and tools for conducting timely and effective cultural resources analyses of a range of specific resources.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Mon, 13 Nov 2023 17:58:20 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://rip.trb.org/View/2289611</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Bonding vs. Pay-as-You-Go</title>
      <link>https://rip.trb.org/View/2087690</link>
      <description><![CDATA[The objective of this study is to determine the value of financing infrastructure improvements through bonding versus a program of pay-go improvements.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Mon, 31 Jul 2023 08:21:16 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://rip.trb.org/View/2087690</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Legal Aspects of Airport Programs. Topic 15-01. Accommodating Federal Agencies at Airports and Related Contractual Concerns</title>
      <link>https://rip.trb.org/View/2061057</link>
      <description><![CDATA[Airports host multiple federal agencies that play key roles in the operations, safety, and security of their facilities. Planning and operation of airports across the United States may require accommodation of multiple federal agencies, but the legal authority defining airports’ rights and obligations to these agencies is varied and at times unclear.
ACRP Legal Research Digest 47: Accommodating Federal Agencies at Airports and Related Contractual Concerns, from TRB's Airport Cooperative Research Program, seeks to provide a single source of information concerning airports’ rights and obligations to accommodate federal agencies and to enter into cooperative agreements and other agreements.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Tue, 15 Nov 2022 20:01:52 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://rip.trb.org/View/2061057</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Cost-Effective Advanced Driver Assistance System (ADAS) to Ensure ADA-Compliant Level Boarding for Bus Rapid Transit</title>
      <link>https://rip.trb.org/View/2062439</link>
      <description><![CDATA[The Kansas City Area Transportation Authority (KCATA) will receive funding to equip buses with an advanced driver assistance system that uses precision guidance sensors to dock at stations and provide level boarding across the agency's bus rapid transit system. The project will improve accessibility and reduce dwell time, providing a better customer experience.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Tue, 15 Nov 2022 16:17:50 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://rip.trb.org/View/2062439</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Evaluations of FHWA Research &amp; Technology Program Projects. Evaluation of FHWA's Initiative on Integrating NEPA and Permitting
</title>
      <link>https://rip.trb.org/View/2018403</link>
      <description><![CDATA[[No abstract provided.]]]></description>
      <pubDate>Tue, 06 Sep 2022 11:23:21 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://rip.trb.org/View/2018403</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Strategic Futuring of Airports and their Role in the U.S. Airport System</title>
      <link>https://rip.trb.org/View/1916007</link>
      <description><![CDATA[Airports began providing needed transportation of people and goods at a time when the U.S. highway system infrastructure was quite different, and air travel made the most sense for moving between cities. Today’s aviation system has evolved over multiple decades, resulting in a patchwork of regulations and associated expectations that haven’t always been stitched together cohesively. With the benefit of hindsight, it is time to look at the relationships of those expectations. Now airports are expected to be engines of economic development, facilitators of economic justice, and models of environmental stewardship all while meeting customer expectations and supporting the needs of the community within a framework developed 75 years ago. The aviation industry has reached an inflection point, and now is time to reflect on the past and strategically plan for the future. A crystal ball cannot reveal the future of aviation, but there are systematic approaches for identifying a vision. Planning for the future requires understanding where the industry has been and how it has arrived at this point. There is a need for an analysis of the history of airport legislation, regulations, and programs as a method for understanding how airports can support the future of aviation. OBJECTIVE: The objective of this research is a report that identifies the role of airports in supporting the future of aviation. This report will consider the structure of the U.S. airport system, and individual airports and their relationships with and effects upon citizens, the environment, and local communities. 
 

 
 
]]></description>
      <pubDate>Thu, 17 Feb 2022 11:06:52 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://rip.trb.org/View/1916007</guid>
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