FDOT held a peer exchange, which is a review of a state DOT’S Research, Development, and Technology program by representatives of other state DOTs, federal transportation agencies, academic institutions, the Transportation Research Board (TRB), and other entities to exchange information and best practices.

The theme of the April 25-27, 2017, FDOT Peer Exchange was “How to Prepare a State Research Roadmap in the Contexts of National Research Activity and Emerging Technologies.”

The meeting was held in Tallahassee and participants from AASHTO, FHWA, TRB, NCHRP, IBM, Caltrans, Georgia DOT, Montana DOT, Texas A&M Transportation Institute, University of Albany, and the UFTI were invited to participate. UFTI’s T2 Center managed the logistics and contributed to the final report which includes an introduction of participants, explanation of the purpose of the peer exchange, summary of sessions, lessons learned, and recommendations for next steps.

As a result of the in-depth discussion throughout the meeting, FDOT identified a comprehensive list of primary takeaways to focus the efforts of the state DOT research roadmap development in the contexts of national agenda/activity and emerging technologies.

The information gleaned will directly support roadmap development for FDOT’s research program and the UF Campus Testbed for Advanced Transportation Technologies.

UFTI’s Dr. Lily Elefteriadou, Aschkan Omidvar, and Jeri Shell attended the peer exchange, and Dr. Elefteriadou made a presentation on the development and implementation of the advanced transportation technologies testbed in Gainesville, Florida.