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Remarks by TRB Vice Chairman Michael Meyers at the Interstate 50^th Anniversary Kick-Off Celebration

Mr. Secretary, Commissioner, etc. and distinguished guests,

It is highly appropriate that, as we come together to commemorate the 50^th anniversary of the Interstate Highway System, that we do so at the Transportation Research Board Annual Meeting. Although my remarks will focus on the importance of research in enhancing the future performance of the Interstate System, it is important to look back at the origins of the Interstate and acknowledge the tremendous efforts of those who conceptualized and developed the wonderful system we have today. And it is particularly important, in my mind, to note that this System was based on the results of research and analysis, probably moreso than any other major public works program in the history of the U.S., if not the world.

In preparing for my remarks, I examined many of the published and unpublished histories of the Interstate System with special attention given to the role of research and analysis. The historical record is impressive and amazing.

However, I fear that many in our generations (and I use the plural of "generation" on purpose) do not understand what was truly accomplished. I have coined a term that has resulted from my experience in teaching thousands of students and interacting with many people over my career to date...I call it the "chauvinism of the present." By this I mean, many have the perspective that our ancestors clearly were not as smart as us, were limited in what they could achieve because they didn't have the technology we have today, and although much was accomplished, it pales in comparison to what we can achieve. No where is this "chauvinism of the present" more in error than with the development of the Interstate Highway System.

In a 1920 address to the Road Builders Association, Mr. Thomas MacDonald, Head of the Bureau of Public Roads, stated that "we have found by scientific study of the character, origin, and destination of highway travel that 90 percent of the traffic which uses our average highway is of local character." Further, in 1922, on the topic of the then burgeoning professional focus of highway engineering, he said, "this development illustrates as it does the leadership attained through a determination of the facts by research and investigation and their application to our modern conditions unhampered by limitations and mystifying and inaccurate traditions." (And, Mr. Secretary, if one looks at the broader context of Mr. MacDonald's remarks, I believe he was referring to "politics" when he said, "limitations and mystifying and inaccurate traditions").

Now, I fully understand that the term "research" as used by Mr. MacDonald is different than the meaning of the word today. However, it is very clear in the reading of the history of the development of the Interstate Highway System, that analysis, research, and investigation served as its foundation. If investigations had not been done on design standards, materials, right-of-way requirements, bridge loadings, traffic behavior, and the many other critical components of basic highway design, prior to the initiation of the Interstate program, we would probably still be in the midst of Interstate construction today.

Fast forward 50 years, the Interstate Highway System is now facing important challenges. And although I don't want to fall victim to my own "chauvinism of the present" syndrome, I will be so bold as to suggest that these challenges are perhaps more daunting than those faced many years ago....simply because the world of "getting things done" is so much more complex. The growth in population and the location of that population in the country and in metropolitan areas has placed significant pressures on major urban freeway systems designed originally to serve our nation's downtowns. The highway funding scheme so brilliantly laid out initially to fund the Interstate System is beginning to be stretched....with perhaps the most important question here being, "what do we do now?" Freight movement, the global position of our nation's economy, and the critical role of the Interstate System in supporting freight movement, are much more important than five decades ago. Increased sensitivity to community and environmental impacts severely limits any ability to increase the capacity of existing urban Interstate roads, at least in most metropolitan areas. The rapid increases in technology seen over the past two decades, and the likely continued application in the future of technologies that we can only dream of today, raise not only questions about innovation in transportation infrastructure provision and system management, but also will we have the right mix of professional skills and abilities in the future?

All of these, and I assure you thousands of other, questions lend themselves to "scientific study," using Mr. MacDonald's terms. And thanks to many in this room, and to you Secretary Mineta for providing U.S. DOT leadership, Congress did provide in SAFETEA-LU research funding for the study of many of the issues that will be of critical importance for the future of the Interstate Highway System. The Strategic Highway Research Program (SHRP II) is a targeted, short-term, results-oriented program of highway research aimed at advancing highway performance and in improving system safety. Four areas, in particular—safety, renewal, reliability and capacity—will be emphasized. A user-oriented, peer-reviewed process under the auspices of the TRB chose these four areas because of their likely impact on the nation's economy and on the quality of life for our nation's citizens. Reflecting a significant difference from the scientific inquiry of Mr. MacDonald's day, this research portfolio encompasses multiple research disciplines, provides a critical mass of resources to make a difference in a short time frame, and focuses on innovation as applied to an existing road network.

I suspect, however, as my prior list of changes over the past 50 years suggests, that there will many other researchable issues and topics that will engage the nation's research community. In my many years of participating in and observing public policy development and program implementation, I have concluded that the most effective and successful initiatives are those that are data-based, problem-focused, and performance-measured. Our nation's efforts to enhance the performance of the Interstate Highway System must be similarly founded. Research is fundamental to this foundation. And as incoming Chair of the TRB Executive Committee, I can with complete bias assure you that the TRB community is very capable of helping the U.S. DOT and the nation in making this foundation as strong as possible.

Thank you.