State Smart Transportation Initiative
@innovativedot.bsky.social
SSTI supports state transportation agencies committed to sustainability, equity, and transparent governance. ssti.us
The White House wants to make it easier to run power, fiber, and other utilities along highway corridors. Learn more about state-led efforts in a recorded SSTI webinar. www.yahoo.com/news/politic...
Trump’s new affordability push runs on highways, rail
The Transportation Department is proposing building infrastructure like water pipelines and transmission wires alongside existing roads and tracks.
yahoo.com
A commodities strategist says U.S. gasoline prices are likely to reach $5 a gallon, with diesel potentially reaching $7 to $9, adding to record fuel costs for households. www.ttnews.com/articles/hig...
Strategist sees ‘extremely high’ risk of $5 gas by November - TT
Veteran commodities strategist Jeff Currie also said U.S. diesel could reach $7 to $9 a gallon.
ttnews.com
Albuquerque and Portland, Oregon, are using speed sensors at traffic signals to give drivers traveling at or below the speed limit earlier green lights. apnews.com/article/rest...
https://apnews.com/article/rest-red-reward-drivers-portland-albuquerque-bcec5e0fe91dcaaaeb8f60e866ff7a37
apnews.com
PennDOT and Governor Shapiro are expanding Amtrak service between Pittsburgh and New York City, supported by more than $80 million in state investment. www.pa.gov/agencies/pen...
Gov. Shapiro Announces Expanded Pennsylvanian Train Service Will Begin in Nov.
Gov. Shapiro Announces Expanded Pennsylvanian Train Service Will Begin in Nov.
pa.gov
New IIHS research finds Waymo’s driverless vehicles had 68% lower police-reportable crash involvement rates than humans, though better national crash and VMT data are still needed. www.iihs.org/research-are...
Rise of the machines: crash experiences of highly automated vehicles and human drivers
'Rise of the machines: crash experiences of highly automated vehicles and human drivers' by Teoh, Eric R. / Kidd, David G. / Riexinger, Luke E.
iihs.org
Federal transportation grants favor merit over politics, but under-resourced areas still struggle to compete. Direct technical support and simpler rules can help close the gap. ssti.us/2026/09/22/g...
Grant success favored the well-resourced, not the well-connected
By Briant Novinska-Lois Competitive federal transportation grants are reaching communities without political bias, but a technical capacity gap is leaving under-resourced areas behind. A recent study…
ssti.us
Texas spent nearly $3 billion widening Houston’s Katy Freeway, but within three years, commute times were up to 51% longer. spacedaily.com/d-houston-sp...
Houston spent nearly 3 billion dollars widening a single freeway to 26 lanes to kill its traffic — and within three years the drive was taking up to 51 per cent longer, proof of a rule planners keep r...
The Katy Freeway's 26 lanes and $3 billion price tag offer a cautionary tale: induced demand means more road capacity simply generates more traffic to fill it.
spacedaily.com
One year since it opened, Amtrak's Mardi Gras line is set to hit 150,000 riders—more than double the original projections. The service is bringing more visitors and economic activity to cities along the Gulf Coast. t4america.org/2026/08/18/o...
One year in, the Mardi Gras rail line is bringing broader benefits to the Gulf Coast region - Transportation For America
For 15 years, Transportation for America worked with the Southern Rail Commission, federal officials like Mississippi Sen. Roger Wicker, and other partners to restore passenger rail service to the…
t4america.org
As federal transportation policy shifts away from sustainability, California is putting up $35 million in grants for climate resilience, multimodal transit, and underserved communities. dot.ca.gov/news-release...
Caltrans Seeking Applicants for Sustainable Transportation Planning Grants | Caltrans
State of California
dot.ca.gov
A new AAA study finds that many drivers view speed limits as appropriate but don’t think strict compliance is necessary. Instead, they often judge safe speeds by the flow of traffic and confidence in their own ability to drive safely. aaafoundation.org/research/att...
Attitudes Toward Speeding: Insights from Focus Groups and a National Survey of U.S. Drivers - AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety
This report explores driver’s attitudes towards speeding and speeding-related countermeasures through focus groups discussions with drivers and provides data on the prevalence of attitudes based on a…
aaafoundation.org
Electric bicycles are a growing concern, but that misses the larger threat posed by cars. Of 310 e-bike-related deaths from 2017 to 2024, just 6% involved a pedestrian, while 55% involved a motor vehicle. www.cpsc.gov/s3fs-public/...
https://www.cpsc.gov/s3fs-public/Micromobility_Products-Related_Deaths_Injuries_and_Hazard_Patterns_2017-2024.pdf#page=12
cpsc.gov
New York State is putting congestion pricing revenue toward a subway station renewal that will pilot the nation’s first transit thermal energy network. The project could cool subway platforms while capturing excess heat to warm nearby public buildings. www.nyc.gov/mayors-offic...
Mayor Mamdani, Governor Hochul and MTA Announce Plan to Lower Subway Platform Temperatures and Harness Thermal Energy in Lower Manhattan
A .gov website belongs to an official government organization in the United States.
nyc.gov
Electric vehicle adoption is surging worldwide, but the U.S. is falling behind. As states and local governments work to cut transportation emissions, this slowdown is a reminder that cleaner vehicles are only part of the solution. ssti.us/2026/08/31/e...
Electric vehicle adoption is surging worldwide, but not in the U.S.
The New York Times reports that global sales of electric and hybrid vehicles have surged over the past few years, rising from 4 percent of sales in 2020 to 29 percent today. That's good news for…
ssti.us
New research suggests low-cost, quick-build projects can increase driver yielding and reduce speeds, offering safety benefits similar to more permanent infrastructure in many cases. www.cts.umn.edu/news-pubs/ne...
Research finds pedestrian-focused infrastructure can boost safety | Center for Transportation Studies
Pedestrian injuries and fatalities have significant personal, societal, and financial impacts, making it crucial to identify effective strategies to improve pedestrian safety. A research project by…
cts.umn.edu
Five Americans die every hour from toxic vehicle pollution. In 2024, vehicle emissions contributed to more than 41,800 premature deaths, and country leads the world in new pediatric asthma cases linked to vehicle pollution. www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026...
Five Americans die every hour from toxic vehicle emissions, study finds
Research suggests 41,800 premature US deaths in 2024 were attributable to road pollution
theguardian.com
1 in 3 Americans say road accidents are their top daily safety risk, more than crime or violence. news.gallup.com/poll/712673/...
Americans Lead World in Viewing Politics as Risk to Safety
The World Risk Poll finds that one in 10 Americans name politics as the top risk to daily safety, with no other country rating it as a greater risk.
news.gallup.com
Texas and Oklahoma DOTs agreed to share real-time corridor data. The exchange includes traffic, incidents, and lane-closures to improve operations and traveler information. www.txdot.gov/about/newsro...
Texas and Oklahoma announce data sharing agreement
The Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) and the Oklahoma Department of Transportation (ODOT) today announced the successful execution and implementation of a bi-state data sharing agreement…
txdot.gov
As self-driving cars become more common, larger gaps between vehicles and slower traffic speeds could make it easier for people to cross the street safely. doi.org/10.1016/j.aa...
Redirecting
doi.org
In California, some communities are calling for bans on drive-throughs citing health, safety, and environmental concerns. www.nytimes.com/2026/08/01/u...
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/08/01/us/drive-throughs-california-culver-city-in-n-out.html
nytimes.com
Despite global road deaths falling, the U.S. has made little progress, highlighting shortcomings in how we measure and approach road safety. ssti.us/2026/08/17/a...
As global road deaths are falling, the U.S. is being left behind
Road deaths are declining around the world, even as more than 1 billion additional vehicles have been added since 2011. The U.S., however, is not following this trend, highlighting shortcomings in how...
ssti.us
75% of Americans support having bike lanes where they live and 33% want more. The support comes as the U.S. DOT redirects $1.73 billion from cycling improvements to city streets. www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026...
US push to defund ‘DEI bike lanes’ will make roads less safe, advocates say
Trump administration boasts of cutting $1.73bn already allocated for cycling improvements to city streets
theguardian.com
A review of 73 studies found that in-vehicle touchscreens generally perform worse than physical buttons or voice controls for driver safety and usability. doi.org/10.1016/j.tr...
doi.org
More states are moving beyond widening roads to adopting policies that reduce VMT. Four states already have VMT mitigation laws, and several others are considering similar legislation. www.brookings.edu/articles/why...
Why more states are passing laws to help people drive less | Brookings
Which states have VMT mitigation laws, why some efforts have failed, and where VMT mitigation policies could become law.
brookings.edu
Florida DOT has signed a statewide agreement to develop floating solar energy panels on stormwater ponds. www.solarpowerworldonline.com/2026/05/flor...
Florida DOT leases potentially all its stormwater ponds for floating solar development
Floating solar contractor D3Energy has signed a master lease with the Florida Dept. of Transportation (FDOT) to serve as the exclusive developer of
solarpowerworldonline.com
Speeding saves the average driver only about 54 seconds of travel time per day compared to driving the posted speed limit. In return, drivers pay more for fuel and face greater safety risks. doi.org/10.1038/s444...
Speeding incurs substantial environmental and economic costs nationwide for negligible travel time savings - Communications Sustainability
Obeying speed limits can save over six million gallons of fuel and fifty thousand metric tonnes of carbon dioxide per day with minimal delay, based on analysis of more than one hundred twenty million…
doi.org
In a study of Midwestern DOT roadside planting practices, MnDOT's efforts stood out. Other DOTs can improve functional diversity in seed mixes and include more early blooming plants. doi.org/10.1016/j.tr...
doi.org
Each year, hundreds of pedestrian deaths in parking lots and driveways are excluded from national crash data, leaving a major gap in how agencies measure and address traffic safety. Counting these crashes could help DOTs target dangerous locations. ssti.us/2026/08/03/f...
Federal numbers understate danger to walkers and bikers
Every year, resources are poured into counting and preventing pedestrian deaths. But because parking lots and driveways are classified as private property, fatal crashes involving people walking in…
ssti.us
FHWA quietly removed bike lanes, speed safety cameras, and other "Proven Safety Countermeasures" from its website. Fortunately, they are still available in the agency's 2021 report, which NACTO has archived. www.npr.org/2026/07/16/n...
Bike lanes and speed cameras disappear from the DOT's list of proven safety measures
The Federal Highway Administration quietly stripped bike lanes and other safety recommendations from a key list of best practices. Critics say those measures are proven to cut crashes and save lives.
npr.org
A childcare center opened inside Grand Rapids' main transit hub. The first of its kind in the state, it has direct access to 17 bus lines, making childcare more accessible. www.mlive.com/news/grand-r...
mlive.com
Vermont will implement a mileage-based road user fee for battery EVs beginning in 2027. The fee is capped at $178 per year. roadpricing.blogspot.com/2026/07/verm...
Vermont will be the next US state to implement RUC
Road pricing news, congestion charging, congestion pricing, road user charging, toll roads news
roadpricing.blogspot.com