USA Banner

Official US Government Icon

Official websites use .gov
A .gov website belongs to an official government organization in the United States.

Secure Site Icon

Secure .gov websites use HTTPS
A lock ( ) or https:// means you’ve safely connected to the .gov website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

U.S. Department of Transportation U.S. Department of Transportation Icon United States Department of Transportation United States Department of Transportation

Technical Reports

Subscribe to Technical Reports

Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) Technology and Evaluation Implementation

From June 2015 to January 2018, the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) contracted Transportation Technology Center, Inc. (TTCI) to perform a 3-year study to develop guidelines for the implementation of Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) technology by North American railroads. To achieve this goal...

Effect of Temperature on Wheel Shelling

In 2014, Transportation Technology Center, Inc. (TTCI) reviewed and summarized published data and the capabilities of twin disk machines that included a unique machine that allows elevated temperature testing. TTCI suggested a methodology for future testing on this thermally controlled twin disk...

Extended Field Trials of LRAIL for Automated Track Change Detection

LRAIL is a 3-dimensional laser inspection system that combines high-speed laser triangulation sensors and artificial intelligence to automatically inspect the condition of, and detect safety-related changes in, railway infrastructure. For this project, LRAIL technology was installed on a...

Consistent Trespasser Intent Determination Criteria Pilot Project

This document describes a pilot project that evaluated the potential for developing standardized criteria that railroads can use to determine the probable intent (i.e., suicide or accident) of individuals involved in trespasser strikes on railroad right-of-way in the United States. These...

Validating a 70-Ton Higher Speed Freight Truck Design: Phase II

Previously, Phase I of this project demonstrated viable market potential and operating economics for high speed freight service, and established that the higher speed truck (HST) prototype design is capable of meeting the dynamic and structural requirements expected in higher speed freight...

Wireless Digital Train Line for Passenger Trains

This research project evaluated current wireless communication standards used by high-speed passenger rail services around the globe and determined, based on those findings, an architecture design suitable for U.S. high-speed rail implementations that addresses application requirements,...

Railroad Wireless Communications Roadmap

The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) sponsored a project conducted by Transportation Technology Center, Inc. (TTCI) to analyze railroad wireless communication needs and future uses. TTCI examined the railroads’ general wireless communication needs and future uses, and analyzed in further...