This article was originally published in Catalyst, August 2021.
The transit needs of Carver County, Minnesota, are undergoing a shift driven by changes in population size and demographics. Student researchers from the U of M teamed up with county planners to identify and address these changing needs.
Continue reading U Students Offer Ideas For Transit Changes in Carver CountyThis article was originally published in Catalyst, August 2021.
As vehicles switch from gas-fueled to electric and revenues from the gas tax begin to decline, experts in the transportation industry are looking for alternative ways to fund roadways. Distance-based user fees (DBUFs) have been gaining political traction as a possibility.
Continue reading Transition to Distance-Based Fees: Where do we go from here?This article was originally published in Catalyst, August 2021.
With the arrival of its fully outfitted autonomous vehicle in July, the University’s MnCAV Ecosystem is ready to facilitate research and testing of sensing technologies, vehicle control, platooning, traffic patterns, and other topics related to connected and autonomous vehicles (CAVs).
Continue reading State-Of-The-Art Vehicle to Drive CAV ResearchAfter road construction, the adjacent disturbed soil has a diminished capacity to sustain vegetation, overall soil health is compromised from soil disturbance and there is an increased risk for erosion.
Soil quality in these areas can be replenished by importing topsoil (the preferred choice) or using organic composts. If organic compost is not available, proprietary soil amendments provide a cost-effective alternative. But information regarding the effects, mix ratios and application techniques for these products is limited. Research is needed to better understand optimal organic compost ratios and how to integrate these amendments to improve soil quality.
Continue reading New Project: Comparison of Compost and Proprietary Soil Amendments for Vegetation EstablishmentWhile commercially available self-driving vehicles may still be decades away, an increasing number of vehicles on the market offer advance driver assistance systems (ADAS). For example, ADAS features include adaptive cruise control, steering automation, and hands-free steering.
Continue reading New Project: Tool to Estimate the Safety Impact of Vehicle Levels of Automation on Minnesota RoadsWhen local roads are temporarily used as haul roads or as detour routes, MnDOT compensates local agencies. However, local agencies believe the compensation model is outdated and inadequate, especially for local roads not built for large volumes of heavy vehicles. The methodology also has not been updated to reflect that local agencies have invested more local property and sales tax revenue into their systems beyond the gas tax.
Continue reading New Project: MnDOT Haul and Detour Routes – Impacts on Local RoadsThe National Road Research Alliance (NRRA) is hosting “Performance Benefits of Fiber-Reinforced Thin Concrete Pavement and Overlays” on September 21 at 10 a.m. CST, presented by Manik Barman, University of Minnesota Duluth.
Continue reading Research Pays Off Webinar Series: Performance Benefits of Fiber-Reinforced Thin Concrete Pavement and OverlaysPavement markings contain glass media to provide retroreflectivity. These markings are slipperier than surrounding pavement. The sudden difference in friction between pavement and pavement markings can create a safety hazard for pedestrians (including those with disabilities), bicyclists and motorcyclists, especially during wet conditions.
Continue reading New Project: Pavement Marking/Colored Pavement Friction Differential and Product DurabilityEarly preventive maintenance of concrete pavement—maintenance performed in the first five to seven years of pavement life—is a low-cost way to increase pavement service life. But no quantitative evaluations of service life extension have been conducted that compare early intervention to late or no intervention.
Without these comparisons, meaningful determinations of pavement life extension operations cannot be made. Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) research has found that agency projects focused on the end-of-service life may redirect funds from rehabilitation projects that could improve overall system quality.
Continue reading New Project: Benefits of Preventive Concrete Pavement MaintenanceIntersections can be controlled through pretimed systems or vehicle-actuated systems, which detect the presence of a vehicle. Good vehicle detection is the foundation of actuated systems. While loop detectors have been effective workhorses of vehicle detection for MnDOT, changes in vehicle fleets—for example, the use of nonferrous materials—and an increased need to detect vulnerable road users has resulted in an increased use of nonintrusive detection technologies (NIT).
Continue reading New Project: Performance Evaluation of Detection Technologies for Signalized Intersections in Minnesota
Crossroads 