FHWA Research Web Site Gets New Look

Federal Highway Administration
September 9, 1998

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Wednesday, September 9, 1998
Contact: Jim Pinkelman
Telephone: 202-366-0660
FHWA 38-98

Federal Highway Administrator Kenneth R. Wykle today announced that his agency will show off a new look for its web site at Turner-Fairbank Highway Research Center, McLean, Va. Turner-Fairbank is the nation's most advanced surface transportation research and development facility.

"Safety is President Clinton's highest transportation priority, and the research we conduct continues to make significant contributions toward solving America's highway-related problems," Wykle said. "The upgraded web site will make it one of the nation's premier and comprehensive research-oriented cybersites and serve as a more valuable tool to our many partners and customers."

This Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) site, www.tfhrc.gov, is not new but has had a make-over that incorporates new technologies and reaches out to a broader audience. In addition, new author, title and subject indexes will make it easier for users to find specific information in which they are interested.

The web site contains more than 7,000 files on subjects such as pavements, structures, human factors and traffic management and has been a popular source of information for highway and corporate researchers, engineers and students. It averages more than 30,000 hits a month and has received several awards, including selection as a "Times Pick" by the Los Angeles Times, one of the "top 5 percent" in government by the Internet search engine Lycos, and one of the top 50 sites in the transportation category by Links2Go.

The new look is the third generation for the Turner-Fairbank site, which was originated in summer 1996. The enhanced site features Shockwaver and frames technology. New microsites in several research areas, such as materials technologies and artificial intelligence, are being created. Highway research information on topics such as pedestrian and bicyclist issues, photometric retroreflectivity and waste product recycling also will be included.

The FHWA's home page is http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/