About Us

2020 marks the Volpe Center’s 50th year advancing transportation innovation for the public good. As the National Transportation Systems Center, our mission is to help the transportation community navigate its most challenging problems.

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Our Work

Illustration depicting multiple modes of transportation undergoing construction and improvements, including rail, freight, and roadways.
U.S. DOT awarded $1 billion for 70 critical transportation infrastructure projects in 44 states. Learn more about what went into selecting the awardees from a pool of 660 potential projects.
BUILD Discretionary Grant Program: Technical, Cost-Effectiveness, and Readiness Evaluations
A container ship on the water.
Volpe developed a low-cost, unclassified, near real-time network that is used to track vessels as they traverse the world’s waterways.
Maritime Safety and Security Information System (MSSIS)
A container-transporting truck.
From a single operator to an entire system, Volpe experts help transportation professionals understand how goods and people move today—and how they can move better in the future.
Optimizing Freight and Fuel Movement with Flow Analysis
A drone in-flight.
The Volpe Center has worked with the U.S. Air Force to develop and deploy a low-cost automated solution that is helping accelerate the safe integration of drones into the national airspace.
System Enables Drone Operators to "Detect and Avoid" Other Aircraft
Railroad tracks.
Track and infrastructure failure is the second leading cause of train derailments in the U.S. Vehicle-track interaction research investigates wheel-rail contact forces and their consequences to reduce railroad derailments and improve safety.
Staying on the Rails with Vehicle-Track Interaction
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Publications

Featured Report

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Blockchain for Unmanned Aircraft Systems

News

Alumni panelist Mary Stearns with a Volpe Center colleague in the 1970s.
Hear perspectives from Volpe’s 50th anniversary Federal Women’s Program alumnae panel, which featured four experts who have left their marks on the national and global transportation system.
Follow Your Passion and Push the Boundaries
A driver smiles in a truck window.
FMCSA partnered with the U.S. DOT Volpe Center to design and develop the Commercial Driver’s License (CDL) Drug and Alcohol Clearinghouse, an online database that helps identify drug and alcohol program violations and keep the nation’s roads safe.
Keeping Unsafe Drivers off the Road with the New CDL Drug and Alcohol Clearinghouse
Banner image for secretary's message.
In honor of the Volpe Center’s 50th anniversary, U.S. Transportation Secretary Elaine L. Chao released a special video message to celebrate the Center’s sustained contributions to advancing transportation innovation for the public good.
U.S. Transportation Secretary Elaine L. Chao Celebrates the U.S. DOT Volpe Center
A report cover.
In honor of Public Service Recognition Week, “Volpe Voices” pays tribute to 50 years of staff dedication to advancing transportation innovation for the public good.
U.S. DOT Volpe Center Releases Video Celebrating its Workforce
A report cover.
The U.S. DOT Volpe Center recently published a new report which provides a high-level study of unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) and their flight operations that may benefit from the application of blockchain concepts.
New U.S. DOT Volpe Report: Blockchain for Unmanned Aircraft Systems
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The U.S. Department of Transportation (U.S. DOT) Volpe National Transportation Systems Center is proud to announce that the year 2020 marks the U.S. DOT Volpe Center’s 50th year advancing transportation innovation for the public good.
The U.S. DOT Volpe Center’s 50th Anniversary—Join Us in Celebrating Our History and Future
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Careers

Located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, Volpe attracts motivated, talented professionals who put their expertise to work in the service of others and resolve real-world transportation problems.

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