Legal Research Programs

TRB manages programs of small studies focused on analyzing legal issues in the highway, transit, and airport fields.  The programs are supported by the National Cooperative Highway Research Program (NCHRP), the Transit Cooperative Research Program (TCRP), and the Airport Cooperative Research Program (ACRP).

The results of research conducted under these programs are published as the NCHRP, TCRP, or ACRP Legal Research Digest series.  Each document is intended to provide highway, transit, or airport attorneys with authoritative, well-researched, specific information that is limited in scope. The studies focus on legal issues and problems having national significance to their respective industry. The Legal Research Digest provides highway-, transit-, and airport-related legal research on a wide variety of legal topics.

Each program initiates two to four new projects each year.

Individual studies for ACRP’s Legal Aspects of Airport Programs, TCRP’s Legal Aspects of Transit and Intermodal Transportation Programs, NCHRP’s Legal Problems Arising out of Highway Programs are implemented by James McDaniel, Counsel for Legal Research Projects, jmcdaniel@nas.edu, 202-334-3209.