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    <copyright>Copyright © 2026. National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.</copyright>
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    <managingEditor>tris-trb@nas.edu (Bill McLeod)</managingEditor>
    <webMaster>tris-trb@nas.edu (Bill McLeod)</webMaster>
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      <title>Research in Progress (RIP)</title>
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      <title>Traffic Safety Improvements at Low Water Crossings</title>
      <link>https://rip.trb.org/View/2593185</link>
      <description><![CDATA[The Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) Project 0-6992 "Traffic Safety Improvements at Low Water Crossings (LWCs)" proved how easy, low-cost countermeasures improve safety at LWCs by focusing on LWC delineation, using flood-detection sensors, and warning systems to alert travelers of flooded crossings. In addition to recommending the use of raised retroreflective pavement markers (RRPMs) to improve longitudinal markings at low-water crossings, the research team recommended experimenting with internally illuminated raised pavement markers (IRPMs) at problematic locations where drivers regularly drive through high water conditions. The research team will improve safety and operations at LWCs by incorporating a tool which integrates the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA's) Multi-Radar/Multi-Sensor (MRMS) system, which combines radar, stream gauges, and environmental data to estimate rainfall rates with 1-kilometer resolution across the United States. By leveraging virtual sensor data, TxDOT will enhance the effectiveness of roadway flood warning systems, making early flood detection more robust and improving overall driver safety.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Tue, 26 Aug 2025 12:29:36 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://rip.trb.org/View/2593185</guid>
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      <title>RES2020-23: Peak Flow Estimation in Urban Drainage Areas - PART 2</title>
      <link>https://rip.trb.org/View/2487330</link>
      <description><![CDATA[In 2024, the U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Tennessee Department of Transportation, updated the methods for predicting the magnitude and frequency of floods at ungaged locations on streams in urban areas in Tennessee. The study area included streamgages in urban areas in Tennessee, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, South Carolina, and North Carolina. Regression equations were developed to predict streamflows corresponding to the 50-, 20-, 10-, 4-, 2-, 1-, 0.5-, and 0.2-percent annual excedance probabilities (AEPs) and were incorporated into the StreamStats application.  In generalized least-squares (GLS) regression, the base-10 logarithm of drainage area, the percentages of the streamgage basins in developed land use and the percentages of the streamgage basins in the Piedmont and Ridge and Valley level 3 ecoregions were statistically significant in explaining the variability in annual peak streamflows in the study area.  Pseudo R-squared of the regression equations ranged from 0.86, or 86 percent, for the 0.5 and 0.2 AEPs (the 2- and 5-year floods) to 0.71, or 71 percent, for the 0.002 AEP (the 500-year flood).  The average variance of prediction (in log base 10 units) ranged from 0.023 for the 0.2 and 0.1 AEPs to 0.05 for the 0.002 AEP.  The average variance of prediction can be reported as a percentage of the predicted value, known as the standard error of prediction, which ranged from 35.8 percent for the 0.2 AEP (the 5-year flood) to 55.4 percent for the 0.002 AEP (the 500-year flood).  Methods are presented for estimating annual peak streamflows for gaged locations, ungaged locations on gaged streams, and locations on ungaged streams. ]]></description>
      <pubDate>Tue, 07 Jan 2025 10:28:31 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://rip.trb.org/View/2487330</guid>
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      <title>Flood Assessment System for TxDOT (FAST)</title>
      <link>https://rip.trb.org/View/2359105</link>
      <description><![CDATA[The Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) wishes to move from a reactive to a proactive response during flood emergency operations. Real-time flood map services provide valuable information for TxDOT flood decision making. The National Weather Service initiated the operation of real-time flood inundation maps for Texas in October 2023. The research team will create a Flood Assessment System for TxDOT as an additional set of real-time flood maps to describe flood impact on the road and bridge system. These maps will be distributed to TxDOT's Maintenance Division staff as web services and tested in large scale flood emergency response exercises conducted with TxDOT Districts. The research team will operate and maintain 80 RQ-30 stream gages to support flood forecasting and decision making. Researchers will refine the targeted approach for RQ-30 velocity sensor calibrations to support timely rating development using velocimetry. As many of the 80 RQ-30 gauges as possible will be added to the Interagency Flood Risk Management (InFRM) Flood Decision Support Toolbox. Combining novel gauging techniques with inundation mapping provides real-time streamflow information and transportation flood impacts that enable scenario planning and proactive actions to flood events. This project will be a continuation of Project 0-7095 "Evaluating Improved Streamflow Measurement at TxDOT Bridges."]]></description>
      <pubDate>Mon, 25 Mar 2024 10:40:52 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://rip.trb.org/View/2359105</guid>
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      <title>Synthesis: The State of Knowledge and State of Practice for Non-Contact Radar Stream Gauges in Texas, the United States, and Internationally</title>
      <link>https://rip.trb.org/View/2256326</link>
      <description><![CDATA[The United States Geological Survey (USGS) and other entities have begun to use non-contact radar for stream gauging to collect near-real-time stream velocity, discharge, and stage. Use of these devices is limited compared to traditional stream gauge methods that are typically used by the USGS and local government agencies in Texas. At the state level, 
Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) is leading the way, through partnership with the USGS, to deploy these stream gauges and is constantly learning how they can best be deployed. Because the gauges measure stream velocity and water level, they are easier and more useful to install in tidal areas than traditional gauges. In some streams, there is a peak in velocity wave in advance of a peak in water surface elevation, potentially acting as an advance warning of flood levels. Installation of these gauges is far simpler than traditional gauges in areas where channel vegetation, slope, or size, may affect equipment that must be installed down in the channel. While these gages appear to be less expensive to operate and maintain than traditional USGS gauging approaches, it would be beneficial to learn from experiences in other US states, agencies, and other countries who have used these devices for longer periods of time rather than solely learning by doing.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Wed, 27 Sep 2023 16:40:20 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://rip.trb.org/View/2256326</guid>
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      <title>Operation and Maintenance of a Statewide Crest-Stage Stream Gauging Network in Ohio</title>
      <link>https://rip.trb.org/View/1253393</link>
      <description><![CDATA[Flood magnitude and frequency data are not available for many stream sites in Ohio.  Floods cause serious damage to private property as well as public buildings and highways every year.  Floods also pose a risk of personal injury and death.  Further knowledge of the magnitude and frequency of flooding could be used to reduce the risk associated with flooding.  The objective of this project is to collect additional flood data at selected stream sites throughout Ohio.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Sat, 22 Jun 2013 01:02:53 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://rip.trb.org/View/1253393</guid>
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