Volpe Center: Volpe Center Highlights

Information Resources

Volpe Center Highlights - Fall 2005

Director's Notes

Volpe Center Hurricane Relief Efforts

"There's a lot of work ahead and I pledge that we will continue to be partners every step of the way in making sure that the Gulf region has a transportation system that meets the needs of the local community and of the nation."

U.S. DOT Secretary Norman Y. Mineta
October 6, 2005

The hurricanes that hit the Gulf Coast this year dramatically demonstrated the importance of robust transportation systems for response to and recovery from disasters. In the short term, transportation links must be repaired to provide service as people rebuild their businesses and their lives. In the longer term, there must be a clear planning effort to ensure that there is adequate infrastructure to meet future needs-- both normal and disaster related. As a transportation systems center, the Volpe Center understands the interrelated nature of the components needed to ensure the health of the region and to help protect it from future catastrophes. As part of the recovery effort, there is an opportunity to apply a multimodal systems approach to rebuilding the transportation infrastructure.

The Volpe Center is proud to have been part of the Hurricane Katrina response effort. Several Center staff members responded to the DOT Chief of Staff's call for volunteers to assist the Department and the Federal Emergency Management Agency. Their efforts were directed toward immediate emergency relief--matching hurricane victims to housing and other social services, and providing technical assistance in setting up computer networks and databases. One Center staff member, in his role as Regional Emergency Transportation Representative, worked at the Barksdale Air Force Base near Shreveport, Louisiana, supporting the coordination and movement of emergency supplies and personnel.

In Katrina's wake, the Volpe Center provided immediate response to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMSCA), which needed to ensure that motor carriers could participate in the transport of goods for the relief effort. However, many of these carriers were licensed for intrastate transport only. To address this problem, FMCSA called on the Center to modify the agency's Licensing and Insurance system to temporarily accommodate the interstate operation of these carriers.

Hurricane Katrina also underscored the importance of well-coordinated emergency response. The Volpe Center has played an important role in formulating emergency preparedness guidelines for all modes of transportation, and has designed and facilitated workshops that bring together emergency response agencies and transportation agencies. These workshops help key responders to create networks and work together to prepare and protect their communities.

The importance of New Orleans as a port became starkly apparent following the hurricanes. The Center's experience in improving the efficiency of commercial ports and terminals is clearly applicable to the Katrina recovery effort. Through the Agile Ports and Terminals Project, for example, the Center is currently supporting the Office of Naval Research in evaluating state-of-the-art technologies for material and cargo handling, high-speed ground transportation, cargo tagging and tracking, and information management to improve the efficiency of commercial ports and terminals. The Center's role includes coordinating activities of federal, state, local, and contractor organizations.

We thank our volunteers for putting aside their own daily lives to help the hurricane victims. A great deal remains to be done, and the Center is well positioned to provide assistance on the federal, state, or local level.

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