The Smart Community Resource Center (SCRC) is a collection of resources that can be used by practitioners to advance Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) and smart community transportation projects. Created and managed by the U.S. Department of Transportation ITS Joint Program Office (JPO), this website is a living resource that is routinely updated with new materials and tools to aid in deploying smart community technologies that will benefit U.S. communities in a wide variety of ways. A “smart community” is a community that uses innovative technologies, data, and analytics to improve the well-being of the community and address local transportation, safety, mobility, and equity challenges. The SCRC helps to advance deployment of ITS and emerging transportation technology solutions by sharing technical resources so agencies can better leverage funding made available through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL), (enacted as the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (Pub. L. 117-58, Nov. 15, 2021)) which provides a once-in-a-generation investment in our Nation’s infrastructure.

Transportation Challenges Facing the Nation

Safe, reliable, and equitable transportation is essential to moving goods efficiently and connecting people to jobs, education, healthcare, and recreational activities to improve their quality of life. “Communities face a variety of challenges, including safety, congestion, and barriers that limit accessibility for some travelers. Transportation also contributes to pollution and climate change,” says ITS JPO Director Brian Cronin. “Across the country, communities are looking for proven and innovative solutions to address these challenges.”

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, 42,795 people died on America’s road in 2022—roughly 117 people every day. Traffic crashes are a leading cause of death for teenagers in America, and disproportionately impact people who are Black or African American and American Indian or Alaska Native. At the same time, traffic congestion results in delays for travelers and impacts the efficient movement of goods, while also increasing vehicular emissions and pollution. Finally, many citizens face transportation accessibility challenges. People that live in underserved communities and people with disabilities may be limited in their ability to use the existing transportation system to reach their desired destinations, services, and activities.

Fortunately, communities do not have to face these challenges alone. The USDOT is committed to working with communities to address these challenges through the deployment of ITS and emerging transportation technologies.

BIL: Goals

On November 15, 2021, the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (Public Law 117-58), also known as BIL, was signed into law by President Biden. The largest long-term investment in our infrastructure and economy in our Nation’s history, BIL provides unprecedented funding over fiscal years (FY) 2022–2026 in new Federal investment in infrastructure, including roads, bridges, mass transit, water infrastructure, climate change resilience, and broadband. In addition to providing funding for infrastructure and ITS deployments, BIL also includes a requirement for the USDOT to “make available to the public on an Internet website a resource center, to be known as the ‘Smart Community Resource Center.’ ”

This monumental piece of legislation has comprehensively influenced the goals and initiatives of USDOT, including improving public safety and climate resilience, creating jobs across the country, and delivering a more equitable future. It aims to address the challenges and risks affecting communities across the United States, and the establishment of the SCRC is one way that it aims to do so. “The BIL includes an unprecedented amount of funding to States, Tribal governments, and local communities to advance the deployment of ITS technologies. The SCRC intends to supply resources to deployers to increase the likelihood of successful ITS deployments,” says Cronin.

More specifically, BIL requires that the SCRC exists as a compilation of resources or links to resources for States and local communities to use in developing and implementing—(1) intelligent transportation system programs; or (2) smart community transportation programs. It further states that the SCRC should include: “existing programs and resources for intelligent transportation system or smart community transportation programs, including technical assistance, education, training, funding, and examples of intelligent transportation systems or smart community transportation programs implemented by States and local communities.”

How ITS Can Help Address Transportation Challenges

Smart communities use advanced information and communications technologies to find new ways to solve not only common problems like potholes, pollution, and traffic, but deep-rooted problems like safety, equity, and mobility for all Americans. These communities create an intelligent, integrated information network by applying sensors and wireless communications technologies to infrastructure, vehicles, wearables, and other physical devices, and communities use this network to receive, analyze, and share data in realtime to make better decisions and provide more responsive, efficient, data-driven services.

Smart transportation and ITS technologies are a key aspect to the successful functioning of a smart community. ITS technologies are used to monitor traffic conditions and are used to manage and operate transportation systems to enhance efficiency and safety, among other benefits. Some of the more traditional ITS technologies deployed across the country include traffic sensors, closed-circuit television cameras, and traveler information systems that allow public agencies to monitor traffic conditions and actively respond to congestion and incidents. Ramp meters, variable speed limits, and advanced traffic signal systems, and transit signal priority, among other solutions, have proven to be beneficial in enhancing safety and improving the efficiency of the transportation system.

Emerging transportation technologies have the potential to provide additional assistance—including transformational benefits to communities. Among these technologies are vehicle-to-everything (V2X) technologies that use wireless communications to enable vehicles to communicate with each other, with other road users such as pedestrians and bicyclists, and with roadside infrastructure. Data collected from connected vehicles as well as Internet of Things (IOT) devices will provide powerful insights that help agencies better operate transportation systems. Predictive analytics and artificial intelligence offer opportunities for communities to address problems in realtime. Finally, emerging mobility services, such as micro mobility services and shared vehicle services integrated with transit services, will make travel in communities more efficient and accessible. These services are evolving from an emphasis on private automobile ownership to more flexible options that incorporate shared-use mobility.

Important Resources Provided by the SCRC

The SCRC features information for community leaders trying to advance the deployment of ITS and emerging technologies for addressing their real-world problems. The site is a regularly updated resource center with documents, publications, and other resources to help agencies plan and implement smart communities. Resources range from technical documents to information about funding opportunities.

“Our goal is to make it easier for deployers to find information. There are a lot of excellent resources on the Internet, but it can be challenging for people to find the information they are looking for—or to even know that some of these resources even exist. Our vision is for the SCRC to be the one-stop shop for ITS and smart community transportation information that is organized in a user-friendly way,” says Cronin.

The SCRC is currently being updated to categorize resources in three sections: goal areas, technology areas, and enabling or crosscutting areas. The Goal Areas section—a work in progress—details current challenges and ways in which ITS can help in five areas: safety, mobility, equity, climate, and economic competitiveness. The safety goal area, for example, shares insight into safety problems plaguing our roads and intersections and ways where smart transportation can make them safer for all using innovative technologies, data, and analytics to address local challenges in urban, suburban, and rural communities. Site visitors can learn about the Safe System Approach, a comprehensive framework to address and mitigate transportation risks. The SCRC provides proven ways where ITS can benefit each of the five objectives in the approach: safer people, safer vehicles, safer speeds, safer roads, and safer post-crash care.

The Technology Areas section will include information and technical resources on emerging transportation technologies, including V2X interoperable technologies, vehicle automation, and innovative mobility solutions, among others. This section provides resources related to emerging transportation technologies that agencies may consider deploying to address their transportation challenges. For example, the ITS JPO created Interoperable Connectivity pages that include resources to help agencies deploying V2X technologies. These pages include planning documents, technical systems engineering documents, evaluation materials, and even access to open-source tools developed by USDOT and being used by agencies across the country.

The Enabling Areas section will include information on crosscutting topics that are key enablers to successful deployments. Topics include systems engineering, ITS standards and architecture, cybersecurity, data management, and performance measurement and evaluation. A particularly effective source of information in this area is the ITS Deployment Evaluation Program, a program within the ITS JPO. The ITS Deployment Evaluation Program presents summaries on the benefits, costs, deployment levels, and lessons learned for ITS deployment and operations. It catalogs more than 20 years of ITS evaluation studies, research syntheses, handbooks, journal articles, and conference papers tracking the effectiveness of deployed ITS. While this program offers an abundance of resources to aid in ITS deployment, most recently, the ITS Deployment Evaluation Program launched the Benefits, Costs, and Lessons Learned Map, an interactive way for users to explore the geographic distribution of the ITS Deployment Evaluation Program’s Benefits, Costs, and Lessons Learned database.

Finally, the SCRC provides information on the many USDOT funding opportunities made possible by BIL. The Strengthening Mobility and Revolutionizing Transportation (SMART) Grants program, for example, was established by BIL with $100 million appropriated annually for FY 2022–2026. The SMART Grants program provides grants to eligible public sector agencies to conduct demonstration projects focused on advanced smart community technologies and systems to improve transportation efficiency and safety. Grants are available for projects that demonstrate at least one of the following technologies: coordinated automation, connected vehicles, intelligent sensor-based infrastructure, systems integration, commerce and delivery logistics, leveraging the use of innovative aviation technologies, smart grid, and smart technology traffic signals.

“SMART Grants provide an opportunity for State, local, and Tribal governments to demonstrate how to navigate the unique technical and policy challenges in deploying cutting-edge transportation technologies, with aid from USDOT subject-matter experts and peers,” says SMART Grants Director Stan Caldwell.

BIL has also funded the Advanced Transportation Technologies and Innovative Mobility Deployment program, also called the Advanced Transportation Technology and Innovation program, which provides competitive grants to deploy, install, and operate advanced transportation technologies to improve safety, mobility, efficiency, system performance, intermodal connectivity, and infrastructure return on investment. These funding opportunities are paramount to the goals of BIL; they create a dynamic and productive relationship between the USDOT and community members that will aid in improving public safety and climate resilience, creating jobs across the country, and delivering a more equitable future.

Moving Forward: The Future of the SCRC

Since its publication in fall 2022, the SCRC has and will continue to evolve and grow as a premier, all-encompassing portfolio of USDOT, other Federal departments, and industry resources. While managed by the ITS JPO, the website will feature resources from across the USDOT modal administrations, including the Federal Highway Administration, Federal Transit Administration, Bureau of Transportation Statistics, as well as from other Federal agencies and non-Federal sources. Currently, the ITS JPO is working on updating the SCRC to provide further information on resources related goal areas, technology areas, and enabling areas.

“Our goal is to continue to expand the SCRC to include dedicated pages for crosscutting subjects such as systems engineering, data management, and cybersecurity, among others,” says Cronin. “But more broadly, we hope that the site continues to be an important and demonstrable source of aid when it comes to deploying smart transportation and smart community technology, ultimately contributing to the success of the BIL.”

With the resources on the SCRC, practitioners can find information about ITS solutions that can result in creating safer, more efficient, and more sustainable smart communities across the country, and ultimately serve in the implementation of BIL’s goals.

J.D. Schneeberger is the ITS JPO program manager for the ITS Professional Capacity Building Program—the USDOT’s primary mechanism for educating the transportation workforce about current and future intelligent transportation technologies. He oversees the management of the SCRC.

To explore the resources that the SCRC offers, visit: https://www.its.dot.gov/scrc/#/. USDOT will continue to add relevant smart community resources, including resources from other Federal agencies and external organizations. For more information regarding the SCRC, please contact SCRC@dot.gov, or J.D. Schneeberger at john.schneeberger@dot.gov.