Potential Research and Development Areas of Interest for the Advanced Research Projects Agency-Infrastructure (ARPA-I); Request for Information, 38590-38592 [2023-12621]
Download as PDF
ddrumheller on DSK120RN23PROD with NOTICES1
38590
Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 113 / Tuesday, June 13, 2023 / Notices
• Pilkington North America, Inc.,
Grant of Petition for Decision of
Inconsequential Noncompliance; 78 FR
22942 (April 17, 2003)
• Fuji Heavy Industries USA, Inc.,
Grant of Petition for Decision of
Inconsequential Noncompliance; 78 FR
59088 (September 25, 2013)
• Toyota Motor Corporation., Grant of
Petition for Decision of Inconsequential
Noncompliance; 68 FR 10307 (March 4,
2003)
• Mitsubishi Motors North America,
Inc., Grant of Petition for Decision of
Inconsequential Noncompliance; 80 FR
72482 (August 27, 2015) 1
• Custom Glass Solutions Upper
Sandusky Corp., Grant of Petition for
Decision of Inconsequential
Noncompliance; 80 FR 3737 (January
23, 2015)
• Supreme Corporation, Grant of
Petition for Decision of Inconsequential
Noncompliance; 81 FR 72850 (October
21, 2016)
• Ford Motor Company, Grant of
Petition for Decision of Inconsequential
Noncompliance; 78 FR 32531 (May 30,
2013)
• Ford Motor Company, Grant of
Petition for Decision of Inconsequential
Noncompliance; 80 FR 11259 (March 2,
2015)
• General Motors, LLC, Grant of
Petition for Decision of Inconsequential
Noncompliance; 79 FR 23402
(September 25, 2015) 2
AGC concludes by stating its belief
that the subject noncompliance is
inconsequential as it relates to motor
vehicle safety and its petition to be
exempted from providing notification of
the noncompliance, as required by 49
U.S.C. 30118, and a remedy for the
noncompliance, as required by 49
U.S.C. 30120, should be granted.
NHTSA notes that the statutory
provisions (49 U.S.C. 30118(d) and
30120(h)) that permit manufacturers to
file petitions for a determination of
inconsequentiality allow NHTSA to
exempt manufacturers only from the
duties found in sections 30118 and
30120, respectively, to notify owners,
purchasers, and dealers of a defect or
noncompliance and to remedy the
defect or noncompliance. Therefore, any
decision on this petition only applies to
the subject equipment that AGC no
longer controlled at the time it
determined that the noncompliance
existed. However, any decision on this
1 AGC included the incorrect date of the cited
Federal Register notice. 80 FR 72482 was published
on November 19, 2015.
2 AGC included the incorrect date of the cited
Federal Register notice. 79 FR 23402 was published
on April 28, 2014.
VerDate Sep<11>2014
18:45 Jun 12, 2023
Jkt 259001
petition does not relieve equipment
distributors and dealers of the
prohibitions on the sale, offer for sale,
or introduction or delivery for
introduction into interstate commerce of
the noncompliant equipment under
their control after AGC notified them
that the subject noncompliance existed.
(Authority: 49 U.S.C. 30118, 30120:
delegations of authority at 49 CFR 1.95 and
501.8)
Otto G. Matheke, III,
Director, Office of Vehicle Safety Compliance.
[FR Doc. 2023–12566 Filed 6–12–23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910–59–P
DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
[Docket No. DOT–OST–2023–0092]
Potential Research and Development
Areas of Interest for the Advanced
Research Projects Agency—
Infrastructure (ARPA–I); Request for
Information
Department of Transportation
(DOT).
ACTION: Notice; request for information
(RFI).
AGENCY:
The Advanced Research
Projects Agency—Infrastructure (ARPA–
I) is a newly-designated agency within
the U.S. Department of Transportation
(DOT) that was authorized by the
Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act
of 2021 (IIJA) November 15, 2021 (also
known as the Bipartisan Infrastructure
Law). ARPA–I was established by
Congress ‘‘to support the development
of science and technology solutions that
overcomes long-term challenges and
advances the state of the art for United
States transportation infrastructure.’’
ARPA–I will have a single overarching
goal and focus: to fund external
innovative advanced research and
development (R&D) programs that
develop new technologies, systems, and
capabilities to improve transportation
infrastructure in the United States. The
purpose of this Request for Information
(RFI) is to obtain input from interested
parties on potential areas for future
innovative advanced research and
development programs to be funded and
managed by ARPA–I, subject to the
availability of appropriations.
DATES: Written submissions must be
received within 45 days of the
publication of this RFI.
ADDRESSES: Please submit any written
comments to Docket Number DOT–
OST–2023–0092 electronically through
the Federal eRulemaking Portal at
https://regulations.gov. Go to https://
regulations.gov and select ‘‘Department
SUMMARY:
PO 00000
Frm 00113
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
of Transportation (DOT)’’ from the
agency menu to submit or view public
comments. Note that, except as
provided below, all submissions
received, including any personal
information provided, will be posted
without change and will be available to
the public on https://
www.regulations.gov. You may review
DOT’s complete Privacy Act Statement
in the Federal Register published on
April 11, 2000 (65 FR 19477) or at
https://www.transportation.gov/privacy.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For
questions about this RFI, please email
ARPA-I@dot.gov. You may also contact
Mr. Timothy A. Klein, Director,
Technology Policy and Outreach, Office
of the Assistant Secretary for Research
and Technology (202–366–0075) or by
email at timothy.klein@dot.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The
Advanced Research Projects Agency—
Infrastructure (ARPA–I) is a newlydesignated agency within the U.S.
Department of Transportation (DOT)
that was established by Congress ‘‘to
support the development of science and
technology solutions that overcomes
long-term challenges and advances the
state of the art for United States
transportation infrastructure.’’ (Pub. L.
117–58, Section 25012, November 15,
2021; 49 U.S.C. 119). ARPA–I is
modeled after the Defense Advanced
Research Projects Agency (DARPA)
within the U.S. Department of Defense,
and ARPA–E (Energy) within the U.S.
Department of Energy. It will offer a
once-in-a-generation opportunity to
improve our nation’s transportation
infrastructure, both physical and digital,
and will support DOT’s strategic goals
of Safety, Economic Strength and Global
Competitiveness, Equity, Climate and
Sustainability, and Transformation.
ARPA–I will focus on developing and
implementing technologies, rather than
developing policies and processes or
providing regulatory support. An
ARPA–I funded technology should have
a clear pathway to commercialization
and widespread cross-modal
deployment within 5–10 years, to have
a substantial and transformative
beneficial impact on DOT’s priorities. A
typical ARPA–I program might run for
multiple years, have a significant
budget, and include multiple activelymanaged R&D projects within that
single program.
ARPA–I will augment and
complement existing R&D activities
within DOT’s Office of the Assistant
Secretary for Research and Technology
(OST–R) and DOT’s Operating
Administrations, and will not supplant
or duplicate those efforts. Those efforts
E:\FR\FM\13JNN1.SGM
13JNN1
Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 113 / Tuesday, June 13, 2023 / Notices
currently include the U.S. DOT
Research, Development and Technology
(RD&T) Strategic Plan as well as the
activities of the University
Transportation Centers (UTCs). ARPA–I
will fund innovative teams of
researchers and developers that might
include academic institutions,
innovators, industry, Federally funded
research and development centers
(FFRDCs), infrastructure owners and
operators (IOOs), and others. These
teams will be funded to develop
commercializable technologies that
solve persistent problems in
infrastructure design, development,
construction, and deployment.
The aims of ARPA–I include
‘‘lowering the long-term costs of
infrastructure development, including
costs of planning, construction, and
maintenance; reducing the lifecycle
impacts of transportation infrastructure
on the environment, including through
the reduction of greenhouse gas
emissions; contributing significantly to
improving the safe, secure, and efficient
movement of goods and people;
promoting the resilience of
infrastructure from physical and cyber
threats; and ensuring that the United
States is a global leader in developing
and deploying advanced transportation
infrastructure technologies and
materials.’’ (IIJA, 2021)
ddrumheller on DSK120RN23PROD with NOTICES1
Specific Questions
Responses to this RFI are intended to
inform DOT on areas of focus for future
innovative R&D funding programs to be
undertaken by ARPA–I.
DOT is providing the following
specific questions to prompt feedback
and comments. DOT encourages public
comment on any of these questions, and
also seeks any other information
commenters believe is relevant.
DOT is requesting information from
all interested entities and stakeholders,
including innovators and technology
developers, researchers and universities,
transportation system operators,
transportation-focused groups,
organizations and associations, and the
public.
DOT is interested in receiving
succinct and relevant responses to the
following six questions:
Safety
Improving the safety of our
transportation system users is of critical
importance to achieving the objectives
of the DOT’s National Roadway Safety
Strategy (https://
www.transportation.gov/NRSS) and
DOT’s vision of zero fatalities and
serious injuries across all modes of
transportation. There are many current
VerDate Sep<11>2014
18:45 Jun 12, 2023
Jkt 259001
38591
and existing DOT safety R&D efforts that
span the full spectrum from roadway
and intersection design, active and
passive vehicle safety systems, policy
and regulatory support, human factors
and human behavior research, to
vulnerable road user safety
improvements (such as the U.S. DOT
Intersection Safety Challenge), and
more. Safety spans all transportation
modes and is an all-pervasive
overarching goal at DOT. A number of
safety research programs are currently
underway at DOT, including the Federal
Highway Administration (FHWA)
Improving Highway Safety for All Users
Program Request for Information, the
National Highway Traffic Safety
Administration (NHTSA) Vehicle Safety
Research Program, and many others. In
this current RFI, DOT is seeking
information on additional,
complementary, and supplemental
program areas that ARPA–I can address
in developing innovative new
infrastructure technologies that enhance
Safety across our transportation system.
Question 1: Are there new and
emerging areas of innovation, including
external early-stage research and
development, that ARPA–I should
contemplate funding as a part of its
Safety area of concentration, noting the
agency’s high-risk, high-reward focus? If
yes, what are these areas, and why
should DOT consider funding them?
Digital Infrastructure
Advanced Construction Materials and
Methods
Freight and Logistics Optimization
The development of advanced
infrastructure construction materials
and methods, including for roads,
highways, bridges, airports, ports,
railways, and pipelines, has long been a
priority for DOT. There are considerable
efforts ongoing including at the Federal
Aviation Administration (FAA) and
FHWA in the development of low
embodied carbon materials, new
construction materials and new
construction methods for infrastructure.
For example, these might include 3D
concrete printing of large structures
such as bridges, culverts, and roadways,
and related advanced construction
methods.
Question 2: Are there new and
emerging areas of innovation, including
external early-stage research and
development, that ARPA–I should
contemplate funding as a part of its
Advanced Construction Materials and
Methods area of concentration, noting
the agency’s high-risk, high-reward
focus? If yes, what are these areas, and
why should DOT consider funding
them?
PO 00000
Frm 00114
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
Advances in digital infrastructure and
digitalization abound. These include
(but are not limited to) new technologies
for mapping, sensing, connectivity and
communications, networking, and
computation. Transportation
infrastructure is one of the largest
sectors of our economy that has only
begun to participate in the ‘digital
revolution’ of information technology.
The potential advantages of
digitalization are pervasive, from the
development of advanced centralized
traffic management systems to advanced
driver assistance systems (ADAS), GPS
(or GNSS) applications, machine vision
and artificial intelligence. There is a
considerable body of work being
conducted across DOT in digital
infrastructure, including at FHWA,
FAA, the Intelligent Transportation
System Joint Program Office (ITS JPO),
and the Highly Automated Systems
Safety Center of Excellence (HASS COE)
within OST–R.
Question 3: Are there new and
emerging areas of innovation, including
external early-stage research and
development, that ARPA–I should
contemplate funding as a part of its
Digital Infrastructure area of
concentration, noting the agency’s highrisk, high-reward focus? If yes, what are
these areas, and why should DOT
consider funding them?
The seamless movement of freight
across transportation modes is an
essential requirement for our economic
health and well-being. The COVID–19
pandemic exposed the vulnerability of
our economy to disruptions in freight
and logistics operations, as part of the
larger breakdown in supply chains and
their continuity. Increasing the
resilience of freight and goods
movement across our nation is essential
to ensuring the uninterrupted flow of
food, fuel, commodities, and consumer
and industrial products from source to
destination. DOT conducts research
across all transportation modes in the
area of freight and logistics and has
recently instituted the Office of
Multimodal Freight Infrastructure and
Policy within the Office of the Secretary
(OST), as established by the IIJA,
Section 21101 (49 U.S.C. 118).
Question 4: Are there new and
emerging areas of innovation, including
external early-stage research and
development, that ARPA–I should
contemplate funding as a part of its
Freight and Logistics Optimization area
of concentration, noting the agency’s
high-risk, high-reward focus? If yes,
E:\FR\FM\13JNN1.SGM
13JNN1
38592
Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 113 / Tuesday, June 13, 2023 / Notices
Issued in Washington, DC, on June 6, 2023.
Robert C. Hampshire,
Acting Assistant Secretary for Research and
Technology.
what are these areas, and why should
DOT consider funding them?
Climate and Resilience
Our transportation infrastructure is
increasingly susceptible to damage from
climate-related events, from drought to
floods to sea level rise. Increasing the
resilience of our infrastructure and
mitigating negative effects on our
transportation system across all modes
is an imperative for DOT. Climate and
resilience research is being conducted
across all transportation modes at DOT,
including in the newly reestablished
DOT Climate Change Center, and
includes the reduction of greenhouse
gas (GHG) emissions from
transportation, the reduction of
embodied carbon in infrastructure
materials, and increasing physical and
cyber resilience across the
transportation system.
Question 5: Are there new and
emerging areas of innovation, including
external early-stage research and
development, that ARPA–I should
contemplate funding as a part of its
Climate and Resilience area of
concentration, noting the agency’s highrisk, high-reward focus? If yes, what are
these areas, and why should DOT
consider funding them?
Other Areas in Transportation
Infrastructure
DOT currently conducts a
considerable amount of R&D work, both
internally and externally, in many areas
pertinent to transportation
infrastructure.
Question 6: Are there other new and
emerging areas of innovation associated
with transportation infrastructure,
including external early-stage research
and development, that ARPA–I should
contemplate funding, noting the
agency’s high-risk, high-reward focus? If
yes, what are these other areas, and why
should DOT consider funding them?
ddrumheller on DSK120RN23PROD with NOTICES1
Confidential Business Information
Do not submit information disclosure
of which is restricted by statute, such as
trade secrets and commercial or
financial information (hereinafter
referred to as Confidential Business
Information ‘‘CBI’’) to Regulations.gov.
Comments submitted through
Regulations.gov cannot be claimed as
CBI. Comments received through the
website will waive any CBI claims for
the information submitted.
VerDate Sep<11>2014
18:45 Jun 12, 2023
Jkt 259001
[FR Doc. 2023–12621 Filed 6–12–23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910–9X–P
DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY
Office of the Comptroller of the
Currency
FEDERAL RESERVE SYSTEM
FEDERAL DEPOSIT INSURANCE
CORPORATION
Agency Information Collection
Activities; Submission for OMB
Review; Comment Request
Office of the Comptroller of the
Currency (OCC), Treasury; Board of
Governors of the Federal Reserve
System (Board); and Federal Deposit
Insurance Corporation (FDIC).
ACTION: Joint notice and request for
comment.
AGENCY:
In accordance with the
requirements of the Paperwork
Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA), the OCC,
the Board, and the FDIC (the agencies)
may not conduct or sponsor, and a
respondent is not required to respond
to, an information collection unless it
displays a currently valid Office of
Management and Budget (OMB) control
number. On February 21, 2023, the
agencies, under the auspices of the
Federal Financial Institutions
Examination Council (FFIEC), requested
public comment for 60 days on a
proposal to revise and extend the
Consolidated Reports of Condition and
Income (Call Reports) (FFIEC 031,
FFIEC 041, and FFIEC 051), and the
Report of Assets and Liabilities of U.S.
Branches and Agencies of Foreign Banks
(FFIEC 002), all of which are currently
approved collections of information.
These proposed revisions to the Call
Reports and the FFIEC 002 result from
the 2022 statutorily mandated review of
the Call Reports, Call Report process
revisions, and reporting of certain
Federal Home Loan Mortgage
Corporation and similar securitizations.
DATES: Comments must be submitted on
or before July 13, 2023.
ADDRESSES: Interested parties are
invited to submit written comments to
any or all of the agencies. All comments
will be shared among the agencies.
OCC: You may submit comments, by
any of the following methods:
• Email: prainfo@occ.treas.gov.
SUMMARY:
PO 00000
Frm 00115
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
• Mail: Chief Counsel’s Office, Office
of the Comptroller of the Currency,
Attention: 1557–0081, 400 7th Street
SW, Suite 3E–218, Washington, DC
20219.
• Hand Delivery/Courier: 400 7th
Street SW, Suite 3E–218, Washington,
DC 20219.
Instructions: You must include
‘‘OCC’’ as the agency name and ‘‘1557–
0081’’ in your comment.
In general, the OCC will publish
comments on www.reginfo.gov without
change, including any business or
personal information provided, such as
name and address information, email
addresses, or phone numbers.
Comments received, including
attachments and other supporting
materials, are part of the public record
and subject to public disclosure. Do not
include any information in your
comment or supporting materials that
you consider confidential or
inappropriate for public disclosure.
You may review comments and other
related materials that pertain to this
information collection beginning on the
date of publication of the second notice
for this collection by the following
method:
• Viewing Comments Electronically:
Go to www.reginfo.gov. Hover over the
‘‘Information Collection Review’’ tab
and click on ‘‘Information Collection
Review.’’ Underneath the ‘‘Currently
under Review’’ section heading, from
the drop-down menu select
‘‘Department of the Treasury’’ and then
click ‘‘submit.’’ This information
collection can be located by searching
by OMB control number ‘‘1557–0081.’’
Upon finding the appropriate
information collection, click on the
related ‘‘ICR Reference Number.’’ On the
next screen, select ‘‘View Supporting
Statement and Other Documents’’ and
then click on the link to any comment
listed at the bottom of the screen.
• For assistance in navigating
www.reginfo.gov, please contact the
Regulatory Information Service Center
at (202) 482–7340.
Board: You may submit comments,
which should refer to ‘‘Call Report and
FFIEC 002 Revisions,’’ by any of the
following methods:
• Agency Website: https://
www.federalreserve.gov. Follow the
instructions for submitting comments at:
https://www.federalreserve.gov/
generalinfo/foia/ProposedRegs.cfm.
• Email: regs.comments@
federalreserve.gov. Include ‘‘Call Report
and FFIEC 002 Revisions’’ in the subject
line of the message.
• Fax: (202) 395–6974.
• Mail: Ann E. Misback, Secretary,
Board of Governors of the Federal
E:\FR\FM\13JNN1.SGM
13JNN1
Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 113 (Tuesday, June 13, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 38590-38592]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-12621]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
[Docket No. DOT-OST-2023-0092]
Potential Research and Development Areas of Interest for the
Advanced Research Projects Agency--Infrastructure (ARPA-I); Request for
Information
AGENCY: Department of Transportation (DOT).
ACTION: Notice; request for information (RFI).
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: The Advanced Research Projects Agency--Infrastructure (ARPA-I)
is a newly-designated agency within the U.S. Department of
Transportation (DOT) that was authorized by the Infrastructure
Investment and Jobs Act of 2021 (IIJA) November 15, 2021 (also known as
the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law). ARPA-I was established by Congress
``to support the development of science and technology solutions that
overcomes long-term challenges and advances the state of the art for
United States transportation infrastructure.'' ARPA-I will have a
single overarching goal and focus: to fund external innovative advanced
research and development (R&D) programs that develop new technologies,
systems, and capabilities to improve transportation infrastructure in
the United States. The purpose of this Request for Information (RFI) is
to obtain input from interested parties on potential areas for future
innovative advanced research and development programs to be funded and
managed by ARPA-I, subject to the availability of appropriations.
DATES: Written submissions must be received within 45 days of the
publication of this RFI.
ADDRESSES: Please submit any written comments to Docket Number DOT-OST-
2023-0092 electronically through the Federal eRulemaking Portal at
https://regulations.gov. Go to https://regulations.gov and select
``Department of Transportation (DOT)'' from the agency menu to submit
or view public comments. Note that, except as provided below, all
submissions received, including any personal information provided, will
be posted without change and will be available to the public on https://www.regulations.gov. You may review DOT's complete Privacy Act
Statement in the Federal Register published on April 11, 2000 (65 FR
19477) or at https://www.transportation.gov/privacy.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For questions about this RFI, please
email [email protected]. You may also contact Mr. Timothy A. Klein,
Director, Technology Policy and Outreach, Office of the Assistant
Secretary for Research and Technology (202-366-0075) or by email at
[email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Advanced Research Projects Agency--
Infrastructure (ARPA-I) is a newly-designated agency within the U.S.
Department of Transportation (DOT) that was established by Congress
``to support the development of science and technology solutions that
overcomes long-term challenges and advances the state of the art for
United States transportation infrastructure.'' (Pub. L. 117-58, Section
25012, November 15, 2021; 49 U.S.C. 119). ARPA-I is modeled after the
Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) within the U.S.
Department of Defense, and ARPA-E (Energy) within the U.S. Department
of Energy. It will offer a once-in-a-generation opportunity to improve
our nation's transportation infrastructure, both physical and digital,
and will support DOT's strategic goals of Safety, Economic Strength and
Global Competitiveness, Equity, Climate and Sustainability, and
Transformation. ARPA-I will focus on developing and implementing
technologies, rather than developing policies and processes or
providing regulatory support. An ARPA-I funded technology should have a
clear pathway to commercialization and widespread cross-modal
deployment within 5-10 years, to have a substantial and transformative
beneficial impact on DOT's priorities. A typical ARPA-I program might
run for multiple years, have a significant budget, and include multiple
actively-managed R&D projects within that single program.
ARPA-I will augment and complement existing R&D activities within
DOT's Office of the Assistant Secretary for Research and Technology
(OST-R) and DOT's Operating Administrations, and will not supplant or
duplicate those efforts. Those efforts
[[Page 38591]]
currently include the U.S. DOT Research, Development and Technology
(RD&T) Strategic Plan as well as the activities of the University
Transportation Centers (UTCs). ARPA-I will fund innovative teams of
researchers and developers that might include academic institutions,
innovators, industry, Federally funded research and development centers
(FFRDCs), infrastructure owners and operators (IOOs), and others. These
teams will be funded to develop commercializable technologies that
solve persistent problems in infrastructure design, development,
construction, and deployment.
The aims of ARPA-I include ``lowering the long-term costs of
infrastructure development, including costs of planning, construction,
and maintenance; reducing the lifecycle impacts of transportation
infrastructure on the environment, including through the reduction of
greenhouse gas emissions; contributing significantly to improving the
safe, secure, and efficient movement of goods and people; promoting the
resilience of infrastructure from physical and cyber threats; and
ensuring that the United States is a global leader in developing and
deploying advanced transportation infrastructure technologies and
materials.'' (IIJA, 2021)
Specific Questions
Responses to this RFI are intended to inform DOT on areas of focus
for future innovative R&D funding programs to be undertaken by ARPA-I.
DOT is providing the following specific questions to prompt
feedback and comments. DOT encourages public comment on any of these
questions, and also seeks any other information commenters believe is
relevant.
DOT is requesting information from all interested entities and
stakeholders, including innovators and technology developers,
researchers and universities, transportation system operators,
transportation-focused groups, organizations and associations, and the
public.
DOT is interested in receiving succinct and relevant responses to
the following six questions:
Safety
Improving the safety of our transportation system users is of
critical importance to achieving the objectives of the DOT's National
Roadway Safety Strategy (https://www.transportation.gov/NRSS) and DOT's
vision of zero fatalities and serious injuries across all modes of
transportation. There are many current and existing DOT safety R&D
efforts that span the full spectrum from roadway and intersection
design, active and passive vehicle safety systems, policy and
regulatory support, human factors and human behavior research, to
vulnerable road user safety improvements (such as the U.S. DOT
Intersection Safety Challenge), and more. Safety spans all
transportation modes and is an all-pervasive overarching goal at DOT. A
number of safety research programs are currently underway at DOT,
including the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) Improving Highway
Safety for All Users Program Request for Information, the National
Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) Vehicle Safety Research
Program, and many others. In this current RFI, DOT is seeking
information on additional, complementary, and supplemental program
areas that ARPA-I can address in developing innovative new
infrastructure technologies that enhance Safety across our
transportation system.
Question 1: Are there new and emerging areas of innovation,
including external early-stage research and development, that ARPA-I
should contemplate funding as a part of its Safety area of
concentration, noting the agency's high-risk, high-reward focus? If
yes, what are these areas, and why should DOT consider funding them?
Advanced Construction Materials and Methods
The development of advanced infrastructure construction materials
and methods, including for roads, highways, bridges, airports, ports,
railways, and pipelines, has long been a priority for DOT. There are
considerable efforts ongoing including at the Federal Aviation
Administration (FAA) and FHWA in the development of low embodied carbon
materials, new construction materials and new construction methods for
infrastructure. For example, these might include 3D concrete printing
of large structures such as bridges, culverts, and roadways, and
related advanced construction methods.
Question 2: Are there new and emerging areas of innovation,
including external early-stage research and development, that ARPA-I
should contemplate funding as a part of its Advanced Construction
Materials and Methods area of concentration, noting the agency's high-
risk, high-reward focus? If yes, what are these areas, and why should
DOT consider funding them?
Digital Infrastructure
Advances in digital infrastructure and digitalization abound. These
include (but are not limited to) new technologies for mapping, sensing,
connectivity and communications, networking, and computation.
Transportation infrastructure is one of the largest sectors of our
economy that has only begun to participate in the `digital revolution'
of information technology. The potential advantages of digitalization
are pervasive, from the development of advanced centralized traffic
management systems to advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS), GPS
(or GNSS) applications, machine vision and artificial intelligence.
There is a considerable body of work being conducted across DOT in
digital infrastructure, including at FHWA, FAA, the Intelligent
Transportation System Joint Program Office (ITS JPO), and the Highly
Automated Systems Safety Center of Excellence (HASS COE) within OST-R.
Question 3: Are there new and emerging areas of innovation,
including external early-stage research and development, that ARPA-I
should contemplate funding as a part of its Digital Infrastructure area
of concentration, noting the agency's high-risk, high-reward focus? If
yes, what are these areas, and why should DOT consider funding them?
Freight and Logistics Optimization
The seamless movement of freight across transportation modes is an
essential requirement for our economic health and well-being. The
COVID-19 pandemic exposed the vulnerability of our economy to
disruptions in freight and logistics operations, as part of the larger
breakdown in supply chains and their continuity. Increasing the
resilience of freight and goods movement across our nation is essential
to ensuring the uninterrupted flow of food, fuel, commodities, and
consumer and industrial products from source to destination. DOT
conducts research across all transportation modes in the area of
freight and logistics and has recently instituted the Office of
Multimodal Freight Infrastructure and Policy within the Office of the
Secretary (OST), as established by the IIJA, Section 21101 (49 U.S.C.
118).
Question 4: Are there new and emerging areas of innovation,
including external early-stage research and development, that ARPA-I
should contemplate funding as a part of its Freight and Logistics
Optimization area of concentration, noting the agency's high-risk,
high-reward focus? If yes,
[[Page 38592]]
what are these areas, and why should DOT consider funding them?
Climate and Resilience
Our transportation infrastructure is increasingly susceptible to
damage from climate-related events, from drought to floods to sea level
rise. Increasing the resilience of our infrastructure and mitigating
negative effects on our transportation system across all modes is an
imperative for DOT. Climate and resilience research is being conducted
across all transportation modes at DOT, including in the newly
reestablished DOT Climate Change Center, and includes the reduction of
greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from transportation, the reduction of
embodied carbon in infrastructure materials, and increasing physical
and cyber resilience across the transportation system.
Question 5: Are there new and emerging areas of innovation,
including external early-stage research and development, that ARPA-I
should contemplate funding as a part of its Climate and Resilience area
of concentration, noting the agency's high-risk, high-reward focus? If
yes, what are these areas, and why should DOT consider funding them?
Other Areas in Transportation Infrastructure
DOT currently conducts a considerable amount of R&D work, both
internally and externally, in many areas pertinent to transportation
infrastructure.
Question 6: Are there other new and emerging areas of innovation
associated with transportation infrastructure, including external
early-stage research and development, that ARPA-I should contemplate
funding, noting the agency's high-risk, high-reward focus? If yes, what
are these other areas, and why should DOT consider funding them?
Confidential Business Information
Do not submit information disclosure of which is restricted by
statute, such as trade secrets and commercial or financial information
(hereinafter referred to as Confidential Business Information ``CBI'')
to Regulations.gov. Comments submitted through Regulations.gov cannot
be claimed as CBI. Comments received through the website will waive any
CBI claims for the information submitted.
Issued in Washington, DC, on June 6, 2023.
Robert C. Hampshire,
Acting Assistant Secretary for Research and Technology.
[FR Doc. 2023-12621 Filed 6-12-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-9X-P