U.S. DOT Volpe National Transportation Systems Center

Understanding Construction Change Orders: announcing a new report from the U.S. Department of Transportation (U.S. DOT) Project Delivery Center of Excellence on some of the major causes of construction change orders and best practices that reduce their use: is.gd/CnhHXE This new resource identifies those common issues that result in change orders and cause project delays and overruns, as well as best practices to minimize and mitigate their use. The report also highlights noteworthy project delivery practices and approaches of project sponsors who have successfully addressed the impacts of change orders. The U.S. DOT Project Delivery Center of Excellence developed this resource in collaboration with national organizations representing transportation agencies, industry partners, and practitioners. Special thank you to American Public Transportation Association, American Road & Transportation Builders Association (ARTBA), American Society of Civil Engineers, and AASHTO (American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials) (American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officers). Ultimately, understanding the underlying causes of change orders and deploying best practice strategies can help practitioners prevent or minimize the potential negative consequences of change orders. This will improve the likelihood of delivering the benefits of federal transportation funding to the public by ensuring projects are constructed on time and on budget. Thanks to our team who developed this important resource: Alaaddin Baskurt, Andrea Vann Easton, Cynthia Maloney, Luisa Paiewonsky, Sean Walsh, and Lorin Willett. For more on the U.S. DOT Project Delivery Center of Excellence: is.gd/LJEJnk

In honor of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s life and the legacy of his work advancing the civil rights of all Americans, we’ll pause on Monday to give our team time to reflect on ways we can further work for racial justice, serve our communities, and advocate for others. His life’s work aligns with our mission to transform transportation for all.

We recently released Freight and Fuel Transportation Optimization Tool (FTOT) Version 2024.3 to the public. FTOT is a national, multimodal, optimization model that transportation analysts can use to assess optimal supply chain freight and fuel transport patterns, costs, and emissions. We developed FTOT in support of the Federal Aviation Administration Office of Environment and Energy, with additional sponsorship from the United States Department of Defense Office of Naval Research and the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Policy Office. FTOT is also currently being used in support of Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA), the DOE Bioenergy Technologies Office, and Oregon State University. Version 2024.3 includes user-customizable first-mile last-mile costs, user-customizable demand fulfillment incentives, updates to the Tableau dashboard, and other bug fixes and documentation updates. Many thanks to the U.S. DOT Volpe Center development team supporting this project, which includes: Dan Flynn, PhD, Olivia Gillham, Michelle Gilmore, Kirby Ledvina, Kristin Lewis, PhD (PM), Mark Mockett, Alex Oberg, Tess Perrone Poe, Scott Smith, PhD, Gretchen Reese, Jaewoong Yun, and Kevin Zhang, PhD. Get access to FTOT here: tinyurl.com/pkjt8yud 

Now Hiring: We’re seeking an executive to lead and oversee our Technical Center for Policy, Planning, and Environment, one of four Technical Centers at the U.S. DOT Volpe Center that undertakes transportation policy analysis and research to advance a 21st century transportation enterprise. The Policy, Planning, and Environment Technical Center Director provides executive leadership and direction to eight technical divisions and one program office with more than 250 total employees, a portfolio of 270+ projects, and annual obligations of more than ~$50M. Seeking a diverse group of well-qualified candidates. Apply now or share with your networks: is.gd/wM2ozC Learn more about our Policy, Planning, and Environment team’s work: is.gd/rUfAEv

Our own Sean Laffey, P.E. recently delivered a presentation at the New England ITS Annual Meeting, attended by more than 100 transportation professionals from across the New England region. His presentation highlighted Intelligent Transportation Systems Joint Program Office efforts to strengthen professional capacity building within the transportation workforce, with a focus on initiatives such as the development of the Smart Communities Resource Center, a website currently being maintained and enhanced by our team: is.gd/X4YB1g. For more on our Surface Transportation Systems Safety team’s work: is.gd/WcqB3w 

We’re hiring General Engineers to join our team of transportation professionals to lead and work on various transportation-related projects. General Engineers will be given a wide range of tasks and assignments using your engineering and project management skills for the development, evaluation, and operation of transportation systems. Seeking a diverse group of well-qualified candidates. Apply now! is.gd/EWLUsM

We recently managed and oversaw the demolition of a decommissioned Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) navigation facility in Key West, FL. The decommissioned equipment will be removed from FAA’s inventory, subsequently reducing future costs and liabilities to FAA, and the property will be restored for future beneficial use by the surrounding community and public beach. In support of FAA’s Real Property Disposition and Environmental Cleanup Programs, we’ve been coordinating and implementing actions necessary to facilitate disposition of real property infrastructure and to remediate contamination at FAA facilities throughout the country. Thanks to Jacob Klaybor and Haley T. for supporting this work. For more on our Environmental Science and Engineering team’s work: is.gd/p1Klgh

There’s a new reason to choose an EV—an automatic charging experience is on the way, which will make it easier to fuel up with electricity than gas. A new tech framework from SAE ITC and its industry consortium, with expertise from the Joint Office of Energy and Transportation, will create a secure way for any car to talk to any charger for the first time, industry-wide—AKA universal Plug & Charge.    Read the full news release from SAE ITC and the Joint Office of Energy and Transportation to learn how it will work and what’s next: is.gd/OWx4Fa

This past fall, a small team provided a rapid response to requests from an existing sponsor at U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) to support Hurricane Helene response efforts by surveying near-real-time traffic safety datasets for reports of landslides and other transportation system impacts in the Appalachian Mountains regions affected by the hurricane. USGS's immediate need involved locating search areas for aerial reconnaissance missions to assess damage to infrastructure from landslides and geologic debris flows caused by the heavy rains that occurred in the western North Carolina region. Our experience analyzing and reviewing crowd-sourced crash and traffic hazard reporting datasets like those from the Waze driving application allowed our team to identify additional areas of interest for aerial recon within days of the request and helped USGS to locate and survey regions that had been cut off from aid due landslides. Many thanks to the team, which included William Chupp, Emma Fox, and Joseph Reed, who look forward to continuing to support USGS through longer term analysis of the transportation impacts and safety from Hurricane Helene and assisting responses to these types of disasters. For more on our Environmental Measurement and Modeling team’s work, visit: tinyurl.com/5fkuzdpv

Now Hiring: Human Resource Specialist (Development) to serve as Training Officer for our Office of Human Resources. The ideal candidate is a seasoned professional, motivated self-starter who can use their training and development expertise to manage the lifecycle of learning events and serve as budget officer for centrally funded training. Collaboration, partnership, and customer service are important competencies to successfully fulfill this role in an HR operations environment.  Seeking a diverse group of well-qualified candidates. Apply now or share with your networks: tinyurl.com/mryme66j