Partner Involvement Speeds New Specifications

TRB's latest National Cooperative Highway Research Program (NCHRP) Paths to Practice explores how findings from NCHRP Report 796: Development and Calibration of AASHTO Load and Resistance Factor Design (LRFD) Specifications for Structural Supports for Highway Signs, Luminaries, and Traffic Signals were fast-tracked for use by state departments of transportation. Prior to the report's release, TRB worked with the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) to share the early results of the investigation, which helped to guide the specification language approved by AASHTO. As a result, the specifications were implemented faster and smoother than in the past, and training sessions prepared state transportation officials quickly.