Keynote: Deputy Assistant Secretary Hampshire on Update on Current and Planned USDOT Automation Research- ARTS 23
Hello everyone, thank you all for having me here. I’m Dr. Robert Hampshire, I’m the Deputy Assistant Secretary for Research and Technology and Chief Scientist at USDOT. Welcome to this plenary session.
I am pleased to be back again with you this year to talk about Current and Planned Activity in AV Research from the DOT perspective, more specifically from my office—I’ll give you an update about the work that we’re doing across the modes and highlight some specific activities that relate to automation and automation research.
It has been a tremendous year in terms of DOT programming, and we have lots to talk about on the automation front. Last year, I talked about the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) and strategic planning - and I gave you all the roadmap, so to speak, for where DOT was heading and a big overview of what was coming. Now we’re hitting the road.
We started with our strategic plan and how it structured our efforts - and how those efforts serve key policy priorities in the BIL. Now we’re at a point where we’re actively heading into the future with scalable technology and a full suite of programs and opportunities open to address our transportation needs today.
Let’s start with Advanced Research Projects Agency - Infrastructure (ARPA-I).
ARPA-I is a new agency at DOT focusing on transportation and infrastructure, modeled after the very successful ARPA-E and DARPA models. It’s a crosswalk to tackle opportunities by supporting breakthroughs that extend beyond our existing R&D portfolios, as well as build community-oriented R&D agendas. We are incredibly enthusiastic about ARPA-I – we believe that it will catalyze the development of innovative technologies, systems, and capabilities to transform the nation’s physical and digital infrastructure.
It will enable us to more quickly and effectively build a transportation system that reflects our values – one that is safe, equitable, climate-friendly, resilient, and strengthens our economy. The ARPA-I website is up and on June 13, together with the White House, ARPA-I launched an RFI with questions related to safety, advanced construction materials and methods, digital infrastructure, freight logistics and optimization, climate and resilience, and other areas in transportation infrastructure.
I highly encourage you to look and respond to the RFI. We want to hear from you about what you see as challenges and where there are opportunities. You have until July 28, to weigh in.
In conjunction with this, our Intersection Safety Challenge is also open through September 25.
It’s a $6 million prize competition aimed at improving intersection safety by leveraging machine vision, sensor fusion, and real-time decision making to create safer conditions for pedestrians, cyclists, and drivers at intersections.
This challenge not only ensures that we continue to promote innovative research and development (R&D) and safety efforts, but also to create foundational technologies: tools and methods that will enhance transportation planning decisions, infrastructure design, and traffic signaling. All that relies in part on having solid digital infrastructure: again, widescale deployment of sensor technology, curb tech, smart signals, and more.
This is an excellent segue into our University Transportation Centers (UTC) Program.
The UTC program and the research that has come from it, have played a necessary and vital role in advancing state of the art transportation research and technology. The UTC program, as some or most of you know, works through a consortium of schools to advance technology and expertise across transportation disciplines through education, solutions-oriented research and technology transfer, and the exploration and sharing of cutting-edge ideas and approaches.
We just recently announced the winner of our latest UTC grant competition, and they are off and running. We now have 34 UTCs (with a 35th being recompeted) across the country. Secretary Buttigieg and I have been making visits to some of the schools, and they have amazing things on the horizon in terms of cutting-edge research in the field of automation.
We’ve also awarded $94 million through the Department’s Strengthening Mobility and Revolutionizing Transportation (SMART) Grants Program. Secretary Buttigieg made the announcement back in March and so far, we have awards for 59 projects across 33 states through the first round of funding.
Projects selected under this first stage of funding cut across technology areas and represent a variety of project types.
While there were no automation projects selected for Stage 1 grants, “coordinated automation” was included as a technology area, and there are additional SMART Grant funding rounds coming with the FY23 Notice of Funding Opportunity expected to open next month for the second round of Stage 1 SMART grants.
The Federal Highway Administration announced the Advanced Transportation Technology and Innovation (ATTAIN) Program and more than $52 million in grants were awarded for eight states.
As part of President Biden’s Investing in America agenda, these ATTAIN grants will fund technology-based solutions that improve the travel experience for millions of Americans who use our highway and transit systems, with expanded eligibility for projects in communities that have previously lacked investments, including rural areas and areas of persistent poverty.
One example - the Minnesota's Autonomous Rural Transit Initiative (MARTI) project received $9,302,812 in funding to expand a current ADS pilot. The pilot is a free on-demand automated micro-transit service in Grand Rapids, MN that is intended to make transit services more reliant, convenient and accessible in rural communities, including for wheelchair users. The project area includes disadvantaged communities.
The FY23 ATTAIN Notice of Funding Opportunity is expected to open later this year. We also have the ITS4US Program. This is a multi-modal effort aimed at enabling communities to demonstrate integrated technology deployments supporting independent and seamless travel for all users across all modes, regardless of location, income, or disability.
As part of Buffalo’s ITS4US, the site will be deploying up to two, level 4 ADS-equipped buses to help solve first mile / last mile transportation barriers that affect underserved populations. These buses will be integrated with the trip planning platform created as part of this deployment and will provide circulation in the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus (BNMC) and surrounding residential neighborhoods as an on-demand service. This service provides travel in the BNMC and residential neighborhoods and support for first- and last-mile transit connections.
Very briefly I’ll give a rundown of some of our modal activities:
In September 2022, FTA announced a Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) to solicit proposals for transit bus automation demonstrations of Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS) and automation of bus movements in transit bus yards and in June announced $11.6 million to six projects. Examples of projects include strategies for avoiding collisions with pedestrians, improved emergency braking, and precision movement for bus fueling, charging, and maintenance.
Federal Highways is working in collaboration with other USDOT modal agencies and the Volpe Center to develop a study on the existing and future impacts of self-driving vehicles on transportation infrastructure, mobility, the environment, and safety.
NHTSA ADS safety performance research program has been exploring methods, metrics, and tools for assessing the safety of ADS-equipped vehicles as a complete system. Their research focuses on advancing multiple assessment methods, including simulation, test track, and on-road evaluations in 6 key areas.
Federal Motor Carriers Through their Automated CMV Evaluation (ACE) program, the FMCSA conducts joint research with multiple modal offices and other stakeholders on the integration of ADS-equipped CMVs into the transportation network. FMCSA’s research focuses on the safe and efficient operation of ADS-equipped CMV’s by motor carriers for roadside inspection, work zone, port drayage, emergency response and normal driving scenarios.
Later this year FMCSA is planning to award a Phase II Tech-Celerate Now program, they also have other ongoing ADAS activities include a naturalistic field study to quantify the efficacy of ADAS systems from real world driving data and jointly NHTSA and FMCSA have announced a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) on June 22, 2023, that would require AEB systems on heavy vehicles. This proposed rule could prevent over 19,000 rear-end crashes, save lives, and prevent thousands of injuries every year.
Also, PHMSA funded the Battery Logistics Integrated Safety System (BLISS) to address numerous recent incidents of battery fires and explosions that occurred in transportation. BLISS is a Phase II Small Business Innovation Research project to develop an intelligent battery packaging system that will be able to detect and communicate to emergency responders if there is a thermal runaway.
The BLISS and Compact Leak Detector work done by PHMSA are examples of particularly specific government roles in ADS-related research. I also want to highlight that PHMSA will be part of the USDOT Listening Session that will be held later this afternoon.
I want to note that our automation research and resources are available via:
- National Transportation Library (NTL – just celebrated its 25th anniversary)
- Repository & Open Science Access Portal (ROSA-P)
- ITS JPO Automation Program Website
- ITS Professional Capacity Building (PCB) Website
Again, these are just a few examples of ongoing work. We have launched whole ecosystem of programs for you to look forward to and engage with. We’re really moving along and making tremendous strides forward. I highly encourage you to keep an eye out in over the coming months for more.
DOT is a world leader in accessible transportation and is conducting foundational research and taking action to support an increase in independent mobility of all travelers through automation and other advanced and emerging technologies. But honestly, none of that will reach its full potential unless we take the opportunity to look at integrated, technical solutions to pressing transportation issues—which means engaging ALL of you to build a more resilient, sustainable, and equitable transportation system.
I say this all the time and it is still true--we all have a stake and a vested interest in helping to build a system that pushes the boundaries of how we imagine transportation to achieve our shared safety, equity, climate, and economic development goals, and reflects the kind of innovative and transformative ideas this nation needs.
Again, thank you for having me here. Please do not hesitate to connect with our office and explore upcoming opportunities.
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