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Roadways and Bridges

A New Silk Road for the 21st Century

The 4,000-mile transcontinental trade route known as the Silk Road established connectivity between China and Western Europe beginning in 206 BC, according to Akhmed Baitassov, a Hubert H. Humphrey fellow with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. 

Resilient Infrastructure Can Take a Licking and Keep On Ticking

"Overcoming adversity used to be part of the American DNA. Can we build that back into our national character?" It's more than a philosophical question for Stephen Flynn, co-founder of the George J. Kostas Research Institute for Homeland Security and professor of political science at...

Rights-of-Way Increasingly Being Considered for Innovative Uses

Some states are exploring the implementation of alternative energy technologies and alternative fuel facilities along publicly-owned highway rights-of-way (ROW) to curb the impacts of climate change and achieve other benefits. In a report prepared for the Federal Highway Administration...

Cutting-Edge Research Could Help Reduce Highway Noise

Finding a dream home and then hearing a loud highway just beyond the property line is a common complaint from potential home buyers. Staff at Volpe, The National Transportation Systems Center, are conducting research to understand how to reduce the amount of motor vehicle noise from roadways.

Federal Highway Administrator Visits Volpe, Discusses Innovation

Victor M. Mendez, U.S. Department of Transportation Federal Highway (FHWA) administrator, recently spent a day at Volpe, The National Transportation Systems Center, to learn about Volpe's FHWA work portfolio and talk to staff about innovation. During the administrator's visit, Volpe experts...