Summary

In the early 1980s, the state highway agencies in the United States recognized that no single state highway had the resources to pursue technical breakthroughs that could solve some of the major problems plaguing the national highways. Moreover, the level of research activity in the highway sector as a whole had declined precipitously in recent decades, whilst the challenges facing the agencies were escalating. As a result, a Strategic Highway Research Program (SHRP) was initiated. Now in its 4th year, SHRP has achieved an international dimension with established collaboration with research bodies tackling similar highway problems in countries worldwide.