Title 49 › Subtitle SUBTITLE III— - GENERAL AND INTERMODAL PROGRAMS › Chapter CHAPTER 55— - INTERMODAL TRANSPORTATION › Subchapter SUBCHAPTER I— - GENERAL › § 5505
The Secretary of Transportation, acting through the Assistant Secretary for Research and Technology, must give grants to nonprofit colleges and universities to set up and run university transportation centers. These centers must teach and train students, do transportation research, share new technology, build a multimodal knowledge base outside the Department of Transportation, and help train the next generation of transportation workers on the topics listed in section 6503(c)(1)(A)–(G). Eligible applicants are consortia of nonprofit higher education institutions. A lead school may be the lead on only one grant per year. The Secretary will choose winners in a competition based on things like the applicant’s research and education capacity, leadership, multimodal work, workforce training plans, ways to share results, use of peer review, a strategic plan with performance measures, and cost efficiency. The Secretary must pick recipients and provide funds within 1 year after the law is enacted. Grants include: 5 consortia getting $2,000,000–$4,000,000 each (100% match required); 10 regional centers (one per the 10 Federal regions) getting $1,500,000–$3,000,000 each (100% match required), with one of those focused on comprehensive safety, congestion, connected and autonomous vehicle issues and related cybersecurity; and up to 20 other recipients getting $1,000,000–$2,000,000 each (50% match required). Matching funds may include amounts available under section 504(b) or 505 of title 23. The Secretary must give applicants copies of their review materials on request (with reviewer names removed) and post a public report about the review process. The Secretary must consult outside experts, run a public online clearinghouse, review programs at least every two years and post those reviews, and may spend no more than 1.5% of program funds for coordination, evaluation, and oversight in fiscal years 2022–2026. Program funds remain available to obligate for 3 years after the last day of the fiscal year for which they are authorized. Surveys and interviews needed for program evaluation are not subject to chapter 35 of title 44.
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Transportation — Source: USLM XML via OLRC
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Citation
49 U.S.C. § 5505
Title 49 — Transportation
Last Updated
Apr 6, 2026
Release point: 119-73