Transtec is helping Texas DOT (TxDOT) and the University of Texas Center for Transportation Research (UT) design and construct a testbed facility in Austin for the assessment of new technologies that can improve traffic safety, operations, and management.
Texas SMARTTrack (Safety, Mobility, Autonomy, Research, Testing) will enable TxDOT to develop new standards and specifications to implement new technologies to improve safety. SMARTTrack will also enable universities to conduct research on advanced transportation solutions. SMARTTrack will also be available to private companies who need a testbed for their new products and services.
Texas SMARTTrack’s development is a regional partnership between TxDOT, UT, City of Austin, Central Texas Regional Mobility Authority, Capital Area Metropolitan Planning Organization, and others. Transtec’s unique combination of expertise in research, engineering, construction, and testbed design and construction was the uncommon skill set TxDOT needed for this effort. Transtec has completed design and construction supervision at many testbeds worldwide, including new facilities designed for automated vehicles, electric vehicles, and a future of mixed autonomy.
The need for Texas SMARTTrack is greater today than ever before. Research and engineering advancements in the automotive and transportation industries have produced vehicles and roadways that are designed to be the safest in history. And yet, despite all that effort, crashes are actually increasing. Crash rates nationwide have been increasing every year since 2015, and 2021 had a full 30% more fatalities than 2015. Texas has experienced at least one fatality on Texas roads every day since November 7, 2000. TxDOT spends billions to engineer safety on Texas roads and has a goal to achieve zero road fatalities by 2050.
But why is safety decreasing when TxDOT is investing billions in safer roads? According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), crashes are increasing because of the one factor TxDOT cannot control: the driver’s behavior. According to NHTSA, driver error accounts for 94% of vehicle crashes. The leading examples of driver error include drunk driving, speeding, no seatbelt use, distracted driving and drowsy driving. Until driver-related contributing factors are addressed, fatal crash rates may continue to increase.
If the #1 cause of crashes is driver error, how can we reduce driver error? Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS) features like automatic emergency braking, lane departure, blind-spot detection, and adaptive cruise control are helping mitigate human error. A McKinsey and Company study showed that autonomous vehicles which would not rely on the driver would reduce crashes by 90%. The implementation of emerging technologies that can increase safety and reduce crashes is the most effective way to reverse the trend of increasing roadway fatalities. That is why TxDOT has created Texas SMARTTrack as the facility to enable the implementation of these technologies.
Transtec’s role is to provide the skills needed to conceive, design and build this unique facility, and to drive this project to successful completion. In addition to Transtec’s test track and pavement engineering skills, Transtec has assembled a team of world-class experts who work with TxDOT, UT, the many regional agencies, and the private companies who all want to use this facility well into the future. Ultimately, SMARTTrack will enable TxDOT and the nation to address the #1 safety problem of driver error by implementing new technologies that can reduce driver error and save lives.
