New IDEAS for Transit: Transit IDEA Program Annual Report - January 2016

TRB’s Innovations Deserving Exploratory Analysis (IDEA) program has issued its New IDEAS for Transit: Transit IDEA Program Annual Report, which summarizes recent investigations conducted under the Transit IDEA program. The U.S. Federal Transit Administration (FTA), the U.S. Federal Railroad Administration, the U.S. Federal Highway Administration, and the member states of the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials sponsor IDEA programs that promote innovation beyond the scope of traditional research programs in the areas of transit, safety, and highways.

The Transit IDEA Program is designed to help foster concepts that have the potential to enhance security, increase ridership, and improve efficiency for transit agencies. IDEA programs differ from traditional research programs in two ways: IDEA projects are initiated by researchers rather than by a request for proposals, and funding can support initial testing of unproven concepts.

The Transit IDEA Program is funded by the FTA as part of the Transit Cooperative Research Program, a cooperative effort of the FTA, TRB, and the American Public Transportation Association. The program is managed by TRB.