NJ Transportation Research Ideas Browse Random ideas

The quality of the materials going into roads and bridges is the chief indicator of the lifespan and overall strength of what was built. Current sampling methods can cause contractors to purchase extra materials, which increases costs. Any onsite sampling can cause a delay in construction. Being able to adequately test materials without creating these issues is a benefit to all involved.

This is a priority, because areas where there are high concentrations of roads (e.g., cities) tend to have worse air quality. Although combustion emissions are a component of that, wear products from brakes, tires, and clutches are significant pollutants, as well. Using road salting and street sweeping, which are existing operations, there is an opportunity to address a significant component of air pollution due to roadways.

As a state worker, I know the importance and cost of the guide rail and when we are talking about safety it's very much important to have guide rails on turns and bridges.

So by using this idea (Rollers in the guide rail's columns) we can decrease the number of ACCIDENTS near guide rails. and save drivers' lives and reduce the amount of injury too. Also, this idea will not cost you more in a modification in guide rails. So it's easy to install and very helpful.

I can share the draft design too for this idea.

Potential for reduced traffic deaths and less damage to roads, lower pedestrian fatalities
Increases goodwill through humor
More memorable messages

Internal curing can minimize concrete cracking at very early age. Early age cracking, most are due to shrinkage caused by lacking of curing, will hurt the long-term performance and the durability of concrete. It may cause severe corrosion of rebars, as chlorides and other aggresive ions from deicing chemicals can easily penetrate deep into the concrete layer. Internal curing can also lead to a denser structure of concrete, so that the material is better performed when freeze-thaw cycles happen.

Considering the geographic location of New Jersey and the dense polulation, the pavement maintenance cost is huge each year. Therefore, improve the quality of pavement can not only save efforts and costs of repairing, but also making it a safer place to commute for NJ residents.

Every year planning becomes more and more important as the need for funds grows faster than the available funds at hand. A tool that can give greater confidence and understanding of the effects of such funds would be an important advantage.

Improved safety, operations and access for all modes of transportation after snow events

Potential reduction in motorist and pedestrian lawsuits

Potential cost savings resulting from reduction in roadway pavement damage due to impeded drainage and refreezing.

Potential damage cost and delay reductions due to crash incident factor mitigation.

Creates an organized and systematic post event snow-management process suitable for ongoing applications.

Offers opportunity to better coordinate post-event snow clearance with NJ TRANSIT and county / municipal DPW crews and programs

Encourages use of public transportation removing personal vehicles from roadways assisting roadway plowing and clearance operations.

At the DOT, now more than ever, there is a growing demand on our maintenance crew, the need to be more cost effective in our designs, as well as provide solutions for green infrastructure. Creating cost effective, environmentally sustainable practices that can be replicated throughout the state will allow maintenance resources to be allocated to more urgent needs as well as help to create hundreds of nearly self sustainable sites across NJ. The sites will also help to reduce the spread of invasive plants, which will allow for our native planting to thrive on our Capital projects. The low maintenance sites can become a model to be used not only for the DOT but for the county and local municipalities to use along their roads.

Such a regional asset could be used by schools, camps, advocates in order to assist New Jersey in its Towards Vision Zero safety campaign.

This is a priority as many bridges within the state are near the end of their service life currently. This study if implemented now can gather critical information to better understand effects of corrosion at the end of a bridge's service life, and help develop models which could be used to predict how steel will respond given a certain environment. This information would allow designers to add these considerations into future bridge designs.

- Increased multimodal travel safety and land area security

- Less land devoted to parking equals more for businesses and public spaces in sustainable designs

- Improved traffic flow and safety due to community-wide parking access management

- Increased permeable surfaces / reduced stormwater management

-Optimized parking capacity vs. temporal demand

- Increased transit parking availability in built-out areas

- Reduced / shared parking construction and maintenance cost burdens on businesses

- Increased productive and taxable land areas in communities

- Potential new business model for parking management companies and community parking authorities

When not only are the traffic and pedestrian volumes exceeding our capacities, but the tools needed to break new ground in mitigation are also outpacing our ability to understand and utilize, it is imperative that a successful government embrace and utilize these new technologies in a way that does not have to rely on private industry in an emerging and volatile market.

#1 Cost-savings: You incorporate bike facilities into the pavement (where appropriate) during the scheduled resurfacing and do not have to do it at a later date.

#2 Bicycle Safety: NJ is a designated pedestrian/bicycle focus state by FHWA. This designation is given for having the highest fatality rates in the nation. This should be more than enough evidence.

There are a large number of pedestrian fatalities and this change may save a life or several.

New Jersey Congress passed a 2018 Bill - A4377 that requires DOT and OIT to develop materials concerning capabilities of airports in NJ and establishes the "Public Use Airports Task Force". Within this recently approved legislation, section 2 of P.L.2019, c.483, there are 18 objectives to be undertaken. These are the first four identified within the legislation. The Task Force must present report of findings to the Governor and to the Legislature no later than 24 months after organization of task force. This research project would benefit meeting this legislative goal.