On Tuesday, May 19, Center Director Jonathan Gifford served as a panelist at a public Information Technology & Innovation Foundation (ITIF) event in Washington, DC. The event, Getting There in the Digital Age: How to Craft a 21st Century Surface Transportation Bill, focused on leveraging information technology to improve every aspect of the U.S. transportation network—from roadways and private vehicles to commercial truck fleets and public transit systems. While new technology will create tremendous benefits, including improved safety, greater mobility, lower environmental impact, and increased productivity, it will require a new approach to federal surface transportation policy and funding.
At the event, ITIF released a new report, Driving ICT Innovation In the 2015 Surface Transportation Reauthorization Bill, which articulates key principles and provides actionable policy recommendations to make ICT-based innovation a central focus of both the 2015 transportation bill and U.S. transportation policy overall.