WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today Congressman David Wu chaired a hearing in the Science Subcommittee on Technology and Innovation that examined the research activities of the U.S. Department of Transportation.

Earlier this year, Secretary LaHood laid out four key priorities that would guide DOT policies: safety, economic competitiveness, environmental sustainability, and community livability. The hearing sought to examine how DOT’s research agenda could best support those priorities.

“I think we can all agree that DOT has established laudable goals,” said Congressman Wu. “However, as chair of the subcommittee that oversees the National Institute of Standards and Technology, the federal agency charged by the Constitution with maintaining the nation's systems of weights and measures, I've learned two things: one, if you cannot define something, you don’t you know you're doing it; and two, if you can't measure it, it doesn't exist.

“I think it’s important to better understand the definition of Secretary LaHood's four key priorities, the main elements of an R&D agenda that will support these priorities, the metrics required to ensure we are making a difference, and finally, what is necessary to ensure that R&D results are used in the field.”

During the hearing, Robert Skinner, Jr., executive director of the Transportation Research Board of the National Academies, discussed how Portland can serve as a model for future research at DOT.

“Portland, Oregon, is one of the great successes in managing land use and investing in transit,” Skinner said, “but we do not understand whether communities need to replicate all the things that Portland and the state of Oregon have done to foster the urban form that Portland has achieved. We also do not have good insight about the successes or failures of efforts to replicate elements of Portland’s strategy in other regions.”

Neil Pederson, who commented on behalf of the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials, further clarified some of the research needed to make a real difference in areas like livability.

“Turning abstract thoughts into a reality is a tremendous challenge, and some of the tools planners and engineers will need include: guidance on street and transit designs that contribute to biking, walking, and the success of transit service; model policies for land use and transportation interactions that encourage local trips to be made on local streets, thus preserving capacity on arterials for longer-distance trips; and best practices for incorporating community-based design into the transportation planning and design process,” Pederson said.
    
The annual budget for surface transportation research, development, and technology transfer activities at DOT is over half a billion dollars per year.

The witness testimony from today’s hearing will contribute to the reauthorization of Congressman Wu’s surface transportation bill, H.R. 2569. This legislation reauthorizes surface transportation research, development, and technology transfer activities.