Highway construction projects are characterized by the large amount of data that needs to be collected, processed, and exchanged among the different project participants. Collection of construction inspection data, in particular, allows field personnel to monitor project performance with the ultimate goal of improving productivity and lowering costs. The accomplishment of these two goals could lead to better construction project management and performance that could in turn reduce the time required for project delivery.

Living snow fences (LSF) are a form of passive snow control designed to mitigate blowing and drifting snow problems on roadways. Blowing and drifting snow can increase the cost of highway maintenance and create hazardous driving conditions when snow is lifted off the ground by wind and transported toward a road. LSF disrupt wind patterns, causing blowing snow to be deposited in designated areas around the fence and away from the road.

This study was initiated with the aim of evaluating the relative impact of different cross-linking agents on the rheological and morphological properties of polymer modified asphalt binders (PMAs). To complete this objective, two cross-linking agents (an aromatic oil and silicon oxide) were selected for evaluations. The cross-linking agents were then added to a styrene-butadiene-styrene (SBS) polymer modified binder (virgin PG 70-22) at different dosages. The selected cross-linking dosages were 2 and 4% by weight of virgin binder.

Solid state lighting technology is advancing rapidly to a point where light emitting diode (LED) lighting systems can be viable replacements for existing lighting systems using high pressure sodium (HPS). The present report summarizes analyses conducted to document existing lighting conditions along a parkway (Southern State Parkway, Long Island) and an arterial roadway (Central Avenue, Albany County).

A paradox of industrialized society is the overreliance on unsustainable fossil fuel energy for transportation and insufficient use of sustainable bodily energy for more physically active modes of transport. Different modes of transportation require varying levels of physical activity, with cars being the most sedentary, followed by public transportation, and active transportation (walking and biking).

The New York State Department of Transportation (NYSDOT) maintains an inventory of over 17,000 highway bridges across the state. As per New York State’s Uniform Code of Bridge Inspections, all bridges in New York State are inspected biennially, or more often as necessary. Bridge inspectors are required to assign a condition rating for up to 47 structural elements of each bridge, including 25 components of each span of a bridge, in addition to the general components common to all bridges based on visual inspection of these elements.

The New York City Department of Transportation (NYCDOT) Seismic Design Guidelines Report was updated in September 2008 by Weidlinger Associates to reflect current state-of-the-art knowledge. The NYCDOT seismic design guidelines are for use in the Downstate Zone which consists of New York City, Rockland County, Westchester County and Nassau County. NYSDOT has adopted the AASHTO LRFD Seismic Design Specifications for the Upstate Zone.

In the last year or so, a nationwide discussion has been sparked regarding the accuracy, reliability, and adequacy of the public safety requirements that are imposed on for-hire vehicle (“FHV”) providers. Much of the debate has centered around whether the breadth and scope of driver vetting requirements imposed on drivers providing services through new transportation network companies, or “TNCs,” are comparable to those vetting requirements that have been established for traditional for-hire vehicle providers.

The objective of a statistical analysis of the politics of mega‐project decision‐making is to examine political and other project indicators and compare their impact on project decisions and performance. To our knowledge, no statistical analysis that establishes systematic political patterns across international, multi‐type transportation mega‐projects exists. Hence we developed an extensive database with relevant variables.

In 2007, a number of asphalt pavements in New York State flushed. An extensive forensic and laboratory investigation was conducted to determine why particular New York State asphalt pavements constructed in 2007 had undergone “atypical” flushing. Analysis of quality control records, laboratory characterization of field cores, and a laboratory mixture evaluation component were conducted to help best determine the potential reasoning for unexpected pavement flushing.