The American Transportation Research Institute board of directors has approved the 2019 Top Research Priorities, a list of recommended research topics identified by ATRI’s research advisory committee.

Research topics include a wide-array of critical industry issues, including truck parking, younger driver safety, the return-on-investment of new truck safety technologies and the impact of “nuclear” verdicts on the trucking industry. The list of topics was developed by ATRI’s research advisory committee at its meeting held in Phoenix earlier this year and was vetted and approve by the board of directors.

The 2019 ATRI top research priorities are:

• Standardizing Truck Parking Information Systems – developing ideal truck parking data formats and standards based on truck driver preferences.

• Rethinking Mileage-Based Safety Metrics – given the growth in E-commerce and other changing industry trends which have changed trip lengths and route locations, examine the potential for new metrics to evaluate safety performance beyond traditional rates per million vehicle miles traveled.

• Analyzing Younger Driver Safety in Intrastate Driving – quantifying the safety performance of 18-20 year old truck drivers who are currently driving in intrastate operations versus experienced interstate commercial drivers.

• Revising the ROI of Truck Safety Technologies – updating cost-benefit analyses that ATRI originally conducted for FMCSA on several more advanced safety technologies being deployed today.

• Impact of "Nuclear" Verdicts on Trucking – documenting and quantifying historical trends associated with growing jury awards and out-of-court settlements.

• Tolls: Who Pays and Where Does the Money Go? – updating ATRI’s previous infrastructure analyses to focus on tolls; comparative analysis of toll revenue reinvestment in roads versus administration, and the equity of toll formulas for cars and trucks.

ATRI begin collecting data for the Truck Parking Information Systems research through a driver’s survey at the Mid-America Trucking Show, kicking off March 28 in Louisville, Kentucky.