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What We Offer

HASS COE serves as a pivotal hub within the USDOT, concentrating expertise on automation to ensure the safety of highly automated systems. Our mission is to integrate all of the USDOT alongside government, academic, and industry partners to conduct essential research. This collaboration aims to realize a transportation automation vision that significantly enhances the quality of life for all Americans.

A Highly Automated Transportation System (HATS) utilizes advanced automation to achieve its goals—safety, efficiency, speed, or other benefits. These systems operate at a level of complexity that many exceed the understanding or predictability of even the most highly trained operators and may operate beyond their direct intervention.

At HASS COE, we adopt a systems-of-systems approach to scrutinize and provide guidance on HATS. By understanding their intermodal and multimodal implications, we can enhance each USDOT Operating Administration’s capability in assessing, predicting, and verifying the safety of emerging technologies.

Expertise

Our team brings together research and implementation specialists from government, academia, and industry versed in the many, diverse aspects of HATS: 

  • Validation, testing, and safety assurance 
  • Autonomy stack design and integration 
  • Communications and interoperability 
  • Sensor performance 
  • Simulation and virtual testing
  • Computer science 
  • State and local deployment
  • Cybersecurity 
  • Data analytics
  • Artificial intelligence/machine learning

Products and Services

At HASS COE, we support and collaborate with USDOT Operating Administrations to review, assess, and validate the safety of highly automated systems. Our approach leverages deep industry knowledge and strong relationships across several key areas:

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Convening and Engaging

  • Expert Collaboration: We convene subject matter experts from various stakeholder teams to address significant changes.
  • Federal Liaison and Advisory: We act as liaisons within USDOT and to external bodies like the Transportation, Housing, and Urban Development and Related Agencies planners.
  • Innovation Consulting: We consult on agency organizations for innovation and participate in both internal working groups and external committees and subcommittees.

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Curating Knowledge and Content

  • Editorial Resources: We develop maturity assessments, market scans, technology trends analyses, automation briefs, workshops, and TED-style talks to inform and engage teams.
  • Resource Library: We build and maintain a comprehensive "go-to" resource library of presentations, webinars, podcasts, articles, fact sheets, blogs, interviews, and more.
  • Industry Participation: We serve on panels and deliver presentations at industry events and USDOT-sponsored workshops and sessions.

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Testing and Evaluating

  • HASS Validation Tools: We develop and refine tools specifically for validating the safety of highly automated systems.
  • USDOT Validation Tools: We utilize and apply validation tools from USDOT, including those from the Federal Aviation Administration.
  • Industry Validation Tools: We promote and advance industry validation tools.

 

 

Contact Us

General Inquiries
hass-coe@dot.gov

 

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Last updated: Tuesday, September 8, 2026