Research and Innovative Technology Administration December 18, 2006 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

In May 2006, the U.S. Department of Transportation (the Department) announced its National Strategy to Reduce Congestion on America's Transportation Network (the Congestion Initiative), a bold and comprehensive national program to reduce congestion on the Nation's roads, rails, runways, and waterways. One major component of the Congestion Initiative is the Urban Partnership Agreement (UPA). By separate notice in the Federal Register, the Department has solicited metropolitan areas to enter into UPAs to demonstrate strategies with a combined track record of effectiveness in reducing traffic congestion. See Applications for Urban Partnership Agreements as Part of Congestion Initiative, (71 FR 71231) dated December 8, 2006. To support this national strategy, the Department intends to award cooperative agreements to one or more successful jurisdictions to operationally test, demonstrate, and evaluate region- wide innovative technology based congestion mitigation strategies. The purpose of this notice is to solicit proposals by metropolitan areas to the Intelligent Transportation Systems Operational Testing to Mitigate Congestion (ITS-OTMC) Program for funding the implementation of innovative congestion-reducing technologies. The Department may provide successful jurisdictions up to $100 million over three years through the ITS-OTMC Program in support of innovative technology-based strategies to reduce congestion. This notice is one of three solicitations being issued by the Department in connection with the Congestion Initiative. See below ``SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Coordination with Other Congestion Initiative Solicitations.''