USDOT Awards $110 Million for 20 University Transportation Centers to Advance AI Transit and Safety

WASHINGTON, DC — The United States Department of Transportation (USDOT) Office of the Assistant Secretary for Research and Technology (OST-R) announced the selection of 20 premier university consortia to receive $110 million in multi-year research awards through the University Transportation Centers (UTC) Program.

Advancing Next-Generation Autonomous Transit and Bridge Sensors

The funding packages provide up to $15 million per National UTC consortium led by institutions including Carnegie Mellon, UC Berkeley, Texas A&M, and Michigan Tech. Research programs will focus on deploying artificial intelligence computer vision to predict highway bridge fatigue before cracks appear, developing cellular vehicle-to-everything (C-V2X) safety warning communications at high-risk intersections, and optimizing heavy-duty electric truck fast-charging loads along interstate freight corridors.

Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg stated that American university researchers are pioneering the breakthrough technologies that will make transportation safer, cleaner, and more resilient for generations to come.

Engineering Deans and Autonomous Vehicle Sector Praise

University engineering deans celebrated the awards, noting that funding supports over 500 graduate student research fellowships in civil, electrical, and systems engineering.

Autonomous vehicle safety coalitions praised the UTC focus on standardized safety validation testing for self-driving freight trucks.

Five-Year Program Launch Date

Consortia research programs and testing laboratories will formally initiate academic operations on October 1, 2026.