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Electric Vehicles

FHWA Seeking Information on EV Charging Systems

The Federal Highway Administration, along with the Joint Office of Energy and Transportation, recently issued a Request for Information or RFI regarding electric vehicle (EV) charging technologies and infrastructure needs for medium-

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AASHTO
Tobi Osunbayo

The Stream by AASHTO: Delving into NEPA

The latest episode of the “The Stream by AASHTO” podcast – formerly the Environmental Technical Assistance Program or ETAP podcast – discusses the role of the National Environmental Policy Act or NEPA

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State DOT News Briefs
Tobi Osunbayo

MassDOT Issues $37M in Regional Transit Grants

The Massachusetts Department of Transportation recently issued some $37 million through two separate state grant programs to support regional public transportation providers. [Above photo by MassDOT] The agency said this

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Active Transportation
Tobi Osunbayo

Michigan DOT Podcast Talks Benefits of Trails

The latest “Talking Michigan Transportation” podcast – produced by the Michigan Department of Transportation – interviewed Julie Clark, chief executive officer for the Traverse Area Recreation and Transportation or TART Trails advocacy

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Planning and Environment Linkages
Tobi Osunbayo

Biden-⁠Harris Administration Finalizes Reforms to Modernize Environmental Reviews, Accelerate America’s Clean Energy Future, Simplify the Process to Rebuild our Nation’s Infrastructure, and Strengthen Public Engagement

Bipartisan Permitting Reform Implementation Rule implements new permitting efficiencies included in the Fiscal Responsibility Act; includes additional reforms to improve federal permitting processes WASHINGTON — As part of the Biden-Harris Administration’s all-of-government

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Infrastructure
Tobi Osunbayo

USDOT Issues $23M in Thriving Communities Funds

The U.S. Department of Transportation recently awarded $23.6 million in Thriving Communities Program or TCP grants to three national “capacity builders” and six regional providers that will provide roughly 112 communities – including

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Carbon Reduction
Amber Garnett

Biden-Harris Administration Announces Nearly $830 Million in Grants to Make Transportation Infrastructure More Resilient to Climate Change

The Biden-Harris Administration today announced nearly $830 million in grant awards for 80 projects nationwide that will help states and local communities save taxpayers money while strengthening surface-transportation systems and making them more resilient to extreme weather events worsened by the climate crisis, flooding, sea-level rise, heat waves, and other disasters.

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Transportation Policy
Amber Garnett

FHWA Offering $250M in Congestion Reduction Grants

The Federal Highway Administration recently made $250 million available, over five years, in competitive grants to support multimodal solutions that reduce vehicular traffic and air pollution in heavily congested metropolitan

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Wildlife and Ecosystems

Tennessee DOT Wins 2023 National Pollinator Award

The Tennessee Department of Transportation received the 2023 Pollinator Roadside Management Award from the North American Pollinator Partnership Campaign for its efforts to enact pollinator-friendly roadside practices statewide. [Above photo

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Electric Vehicles

NCDOT Issues Online Map of EV Charging Locations

The North Carolina Department of Transportation recently published an online map marking the locations for the first batch of electric vehicle or EV charging stations funded through the federal National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure

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Transportation Policy
Amber Garnett

FHWA Issues Finalized GHG Performance Measurement Rule

The Federal Highway Administration recently issued a finalized performance measurement rule to provide state departments of transportation and Metropolitan Planning Organizations with a “national framework” for tracking transportation-related greenhouse gas emissions GHGs,

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Wildlife and Ecosystems
Amber Garnett

Wyoming DOT Completes Dry Piney Wildlife Crossing

The Wyoming Department of Transportation recently completed a long-awaited project aimed at reducing wildlife-vehicle collisions along the Green River in western Wyoming. [Above image by Wyoming DOT] The agency released

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Active Transportation

ETAP Podcast Discusses Active Transportation

The second episode of a four-part Environmental Technical Assistance Program or ETAP podcast series focuses on the crucial connections required between planners, policymakers, and local communities in order to make

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Innovation

FHWA Seeks 2024 EEA Program Entries

Now through November 3, the Federal Highway Administration will be accepting nominations for its 2024 Environmental Excellence Awards or EEA program. [Above image via FHWA] Since the program started in

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Waste Management/Recycling
Amber Garnett

Arizona DOT Hosts Highway Litter Cleanup Event

The Arizona Department of Transportation and its “Adopt a Highway” volunteer program recently conducted a roadway trash cleanup event; collecting 214 bags worth of litter from along state highways across

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A person standing in front of a bus.
Transportation Policy

MBTA Develops, Adopts Comprehensive Vision Statement

The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority recently issued a comprehensive “vision statement” outlining the agency’s values, goals, and metrics that will help it improve safety, service, equity, sustainability, and culture. [Above

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Man standing in front of a welcome to Mississippi sign
Waste Management/Recycling
Amber Garnett

Mississippi DOT Relaunches Anti-Littering Campaign

The Mississippi Department of Transportation recently relaunched a statewide anti-littering campaign, aimed at encouraging Mississippians to put trash where it belongs and recycle whenever possible. [Above photo by the Mississippi

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Environmental Protection Agency of the United States logo
Stormwater
Amber Garnett

U.S. EPA Announces Sewer Overflow and Stormwater Reuse Municipal Grants Program

On August 10, 2023, EPA announced the availability of approximately $50 million in grants through the Sewer Overflow and Stormwater Reuse Municipal Grant (OSG) Program. Funds can be used for the planning, designing, and construction of combined sewer overflows (CSOs), sanitary sewer overflows (SSOs), and stormwater management projects. See below for a link to the FY 2023 OSG Allotment Memorandum.

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Supporting Communities through FTA's Areas of Persistent Poverty Program.
Transportation Policy

FTA Issues $20M from Persistent Poverty Program

The Federal Transit Administration plans to award $20 million to 47 communities to help improve public transportation options in areas that are experiencing, in the agency’s words, “long-term economic distress.” [Above image

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Screenshot of Climate Policy Database from US Climate Alliance
Carbon Reduction
Amber Garnett

U.S. Climate Alliance Launches First-of-its-Kind Climate Policy Database

On July 13, 2023, the U.S. Climate Alliance — a bipartisan coalition of 25 governors representing approximately 60 percent of the U.S.economy and 55 percent of the U.S. population — launched a new website and first-of-its-kind Climate Policy Database, which, together, provide one of the country’s most detailed snapshots of state-led climate action to date.

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Man with a beard standing in the forest.
Stormwater

ETAP Podcast: WSDOT Stormwater Management

The latest episode of the Environmental Technical Assistance Program or ETAP podcast digs into the innovative stormwater management practices of the Washington State Department of Transportation. [Above photo of Tony

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Five people standing beside an American flag.
Active Transportation

MassDOT Helps Provide Trail Improvement Funding

The Massachusetts Department of Transportation recently helped provide some $11.6 million in funding through the MassTrails Grant Program to support 68 trail improvement projects statewide. [Above photo via MassDOT] Those projects seek

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Call for Research Proposals
Amber Garnett

TERI Proposals Due July 7

The Transportation and Environmental Research Ideas (TERI) database is a central storehouse for tracking and sharing new transportation and environmental research ideas. Suggestions for new ideas are welcome from practitioners across the transportation and environmental community.

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UAB logo in the streets.
Active Transportation

University Unveils Distracted Pedestrian Prevention App

Researchers at the University of Alabama Birmingham recently unveiled a new smartphone-based application called “StreetBit” that uses Bluetooth beacon technology to prevent pedestrians from becoming distracted while navigating road crossings. [Above photo

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2023 Most Climate-Resilient Cities
Carbon Reduction
Amber Garnett

Most Climate-Resilient Cities (2023)

According to Architectural Digest, these are the 3 Best Cities for Climate Change in the United States: Denver, Colorado Raleigh, North Carolina Salt Lake City, Utah Check out the full

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Open stretch of road from the sidewalk.
Context Sensitive Solutions
Amber Garnett

FHWA Issues Tribal Grants, Seeks Program Input

The Federal Highway Administration recently issued millions in tribal roadway safety grants while also launching two new efforts to help states, cities, and local governments improve road safety as well. 

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Cars on a highway.
Infrastructure
Amber Garnett

ETAP Podcast: The I-24 Motion Test Bed

In this episode of the Environmental Technical Assistance Program or ETAP Podcast, Lee Smith – interim traffic operations division director at the Tennessee Department of Transportation – and Professor Dan

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Veer right sign.
Emerging Technologies
Amber Garnett

Michigan DOT Details U.P. Highway Improvements

In 2022, the Michigan Department of Transportation made a series of improvements to the highways crisscrossing the state’s Upper Peninsula or U.P. region, with projects widening road shoulders, upgrading weather

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Heavy machinery scooping rocks out of a ditch.
Innovation
Amber Garnett

How Arizona DOT Reuses Materials

The Arizona Department of Transportation recently outlined how it reuses a variety of highway construction materials – such as asphalt, concrete, and steel – to reduce overall transportation project costs

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A barbed wire fence in a wooded area.
Wildlife and Ecosystems
Amber Garnett

Arizona DOT Highlights Elk Fencing Project

The Arizona Department of Transportation recently highlighted the benefits of its collaboration with the Arizona Game & Fish Department (AZGFD) to reduce elk-vehicle crashes on northbound I-17 south of Flagstaff in a

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A deer running across the road.
Wildlife and Ecosystems
Amber Garnett

Colorado DOT Building I-70 Wildlife Crossing

The Colorado Department of Transportation recently began work on the I-70 Genesee wildlife-crossing project, one of several I-70 Floyd Hill projects to improve both highway safety and traffic flow ahead

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A road closed sign with barricades blocking a road.
Stormwater
Amber Garnett

Kansas DOT Wins Two Environmental Awards

The Kansas Department of Transportation recently received two awards for its stormwater management policies from the Water Environment Federation or WEF. [Above photo by the Kansas DOT] The agency received

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A small man-made waterfall.
Water Quality & Wetlands
Amber Garnett

FHWA Helps Initiate $1B Fish Passage Program

The Federal Highway Administration, along with the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service and the National Ocean and Atmospheric Administration, recently made $1 billion in grants available over the next five

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Ed Sniffen. Deputy Director of the Transportation for Highways, Hawaii DOT.
Resilience
Amber Garnett

Video: Hawaii DOT Talks Transportation Resiliency

The American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials recently released a video highlighting how the Hawaii Department of Transportation incorporates resiliency into its infrastructure strategy. [Above image via AASHTO]

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A team of people picking up litter off the side of the road.
Waste Management/Recycling
Amber Garnett

WSDOT Joins Statewide Anti-Litter Campaign

The Washington State Department of Transportation and Washington State Department of Ecology are joining forces on a new statewide anti-littering campaign entitled “Simple As That” to help prevent littering by

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A truck driving down an empty road with a large field of wildflowers.
Emerging Technologies
Amber Garnett

ETAP Podcast: Next Generation Highways

In this episode of the Environmental Technical Assistance Program or ETAP Podcast, Jessica Oh – strategic partnerships director in the sustainability and public health office within the Minnesota Department of

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A construction site at a fallen rock way.
Resilience

NYSDOT Begins Roadway Flood Control Project

The New York State Department of Transportation recently began construction on a flood resiliency project in Oswego County; part of the state’s Lake Ontario Resiliency and Economic Development Initiative or REDI. [Above photo

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Four young girls holding many bird houses.
Wildlife and Ecosystems

State DOTs Give an Assist to the Birds

Across the country, state departments of transportation provide support to a wide variety of efforts aimed at supporting numerous bird species and their habitats. [Above photo by the NCDOT] For

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A ferry docked in North Carolina.
Carbon Reduction
Amber Garnett

FTA Makes $300M in Ferry Grants Available

The Federal Transit Administration is making nearly $300 million available through three competitive grant programs to boost access to rural ferry services, bolster existing and new urban services, and lower

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Man giving a woman an award
Waste Management/Recycling

Louisiana DOTD Wins Award for Brine Management

Scott Boyle (seen above), assistant administrator of operations for District 2 of the Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development, recently received an award on behalf of his district’s handling of

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Cacti forest
Context Sensitive Solutions
Amber Garnett

Arizona DOT Wraps up Cactus-Saving Project

The Arizona Department of Transportation recently completed a bridge replacement project near Globe, AZ, which triggered the return of an endangered species of cactus transplanted and preserved by the agency

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Workers clearing litter from roadside
Waste Management/Recycling
Amber Garnett

PennDOT Gears up for Spring Litter Removal Effort

The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation and Department of Environmental Protection are joining forces to encourage local businesses and residents to support the state’s spring “Pick Up Pennsylvania” campaign, focused on removing litter

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Electric vehicle station
Electric Vehicles

AASHTO Helps Launch EV States Clearinghouse

The American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials recently helped establish a free repository of information on electric vehicles available to state agencies. State agencies must create a free

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Team bringing puzzle pieces together
Planning & Project Delivery
Amber Garnett

AASHTO’s CEE Hosting Virtual Peer Exchange

The American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials Center for Environmental Excellence will host a virtual peer exchange discussing alternative project delivery and the National Environmental Policy Act or

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Gander
Electric Vehicles

ETAP Podcast: School Bus Electrification

In this episode of the Environmental Technical Assistance Program or ETAP Podcast, Sue Gander (seen above)  – director of the electric school bus initiative for the World Resources Institute –

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Team bringing puzzle pieces together
Planning & Project Delivery
Amber Garnett

AASHTO’s CEE Hosting Virtual Peer Exchange

The American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials Center for Environmental Excellence will host a virtual peer exchange discussing alternative project delivery and the National Environmental Policy Act or

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Road leading to city in Colorado
Planning & Project Delivery
Amber Garnett

Colorado DOT Issues Transportation Demand Grants

The Colorado Department of Transportation recently awarded $492,000 in grants to communities and organizations statewide in support of “transportation demand management” strategies that help relieve traffic congestion and lower greenhouse

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Workers fixing a roadway barrier
Carbon Reduction
Amber Garnett

Caltrans Approves Use of Low-Carbon Cement

The California Department of Transportation recently approved the use of low-carbon cement to help reduce the carbon footprint of the state’s transportation system. [Above photo by Caltrans] Known formally as

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Seal of the executive office of the president of the United States
Transportation Policy
Amber Garnett

AASHTO Comments on Proposed NEPA Changes

The American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials sent a 35-page letter to the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) on November 18 in support of changes to the National

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Adopt a highway sign in Arkansas
Waste Management/Recycling
Amber Garnett

State DOTs Step Up Roadway Litter Removal Efforts

The Tennessee Department of Transportation, the Arkansas Department of Transportation, and the Arizona Department of Transportation are the latest agencies to beef up anti-litter activities across their respective states. [Above

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FHWA Now Accepting Nominations for 2022 Environmental Excellence Awards
Active Transportation
Amber Garnett

FHWA Now Accepting Nominations for 2022 Environmental Excellence Awards

The Environmental Excellence Awards (EEAs) recognize outstanding transportation projects, processes, and organizations that incorporate environmental stewardship into the planning and project development processes using Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) funding sources. Any organization, agency, group, or individual in the public, private, or non-profit sectors may submit a nomination Entries are due by December 15, 2021.

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People in front of Smart Mobility Corridor sign
Carbon Reduction
Holly Hawkins

Ohio Unveils Connected Mobility Corridor

The recently opened 33 Smart Mobility Corridor in central Ohio is a connected highway project that seeks to enhance motor vehicle safety, reduce traffic congestion, and improve fuel economy. [Above

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Snow plow covered in snow
Water Quality & Wetlands

MnDOT Trying to Cut Back on Its Salt

When it snows in Minnesota, drivers want the roads and bridges cleared – now. However, simply dumping mass amounts of salt on the roads is an outdated practice for the

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Workers paving a sidewalk
Active Transportation

New Mexico DOT Unveils Five-Year Pedestrian Safety Plan

The New Mexico Department of Transportation recently adopted a five-year pedestrian safety plan that focuses on reducing pedestrian fatalities statewide, making infrastructure improvements, launching informational pedestrian safety campaigns, plus change

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Bug interacting with flower
Sustainability
Amber Garnett

Minnesota DOT Issues Fifth Sustainability Report

The Minnesota Department of Transportation released its fifth annual “Sustainability and Public Health Report,” documenting the agency’s progress towards its sustainability and climate goals. Based on data through 2020, the

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River with deer in it
Wildlife and Ecosystems
Amber Garnett

ITD Shares Award for Eco-Friendly Bridge Work

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]The construction of the new Rock Creek Bridge to replace a culvert on US-20 recently won an engineering excellence award from the American Civil Engineers Council of Idaho – an

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Pedestrians in crosswalk
Active Transportation
Amber Garnett

States Finding Ways to Reduce Pedestrian Fatalities

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text] While a new report from the Governors Highway Safety Association showed pedestrian fatalities trended up in the first half of 2020, the report also noted how several state-directed efforts are successfully

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Florida bicycle month logo
Active Transportation
Amber Garnett

Florida DOT Highlights March as Bicycle Month

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text] The Florida Department of Transportation is kicking off its celebration of Florida Bicycle Month this March by highlight its online resources for bicycle safety and its ongoing commitment to spend $100

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Zero emission bus with wheelchair ramp
Air Quality
Amber Garnett

FTA Providing $180M in Low-No Emission Grants

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]The Federal Transit Administration is making up to $180 million in competitive grant funds through a notice of funding opportunity for its Low or No Emission or “Low-No” grant program. [Photo courtesy of

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Subway train with people taking pictures of it
Air Quality
Amber Garnett