Partnership for the Advancement of Infrastructure and Its Renewal Through Innovative Technologies Transportation Component (PAIR-T) White Paper.
Partnership for the Advancement of Infrastructure and
Its Renewal Through Innovative Technologies
Transportation Component (PAIR-T) White Paper.
(1938 K)
Civil Engineering Research Foundation
NIST GCR 98-766; 22 p. September 1998.
Sponsor:
National Institute of Standards and Technology,
Gaithersburg, MD
Available from:
INFORMATION ON PAIR contact: The Civil Engineering
Research Foundation (PAIR Secretariat), 1015 15th
Street, NW, Suite 600, Washington, DC 20005.
Telephone: 202-842-0555.
Fax: 202-789-2943.
Website:
www.cerf.org. Email: corporate@cerf.org
Order number: PB99-115958
Keywords:
infrastructure
Abstract:
The Partnership for the Advancement of Infrastructure
and its Renewal (PAIR) is conceived as an umbrella
partnership of existing and future government, private
sector, and academic programs to develop the innovative
products and practices needed to revitalize and advance
the nation's physical infrastructure. Our national
"infrastructure" comprises the civil and military
transport, water, sewerage, waste management, electrical
power, gas and liquid fuels, and communications systems.
The Partnership will create a constituency-a national
partnership based on the recognition that all of us in
the public and private sectors are stakeholders and
users of the infrastructure and it is only collectively
that we can make an impact on revitalizing this critical
national asset through innovation. This paper sets forth
the vision, objectives, participants, collaboration
areas, and fimding considerations for the transportation
component of PAIR, which is called "PAIR-T." The purpose
of PAIR-T is to create an environment that fosters an
unprecedented level of collaboration and synergy on
research and development (R&D), demonstration, testing,
evaluation, and, especially, technology transfer to
state and local institutions, the true custodians of the
nation's civil transport infrastructure. The ultimate
goal of PAIR-T is to accelerate the comprehensive
renewal and advancement of the aging civil transport
infrastructure, moving toward the realization of a truly
"sustainable" system. Theoretically, this ultimate
sustainable system will be so maintenance-free, durable,
and efficient that fewer and fewer human, economic, and
environmental resources will be required to operate and
maintain it. In the near term at least. the reality is
likely to be somewhat less grand. More likely the
Partnership may mean that more resources are freed so
that a greater part of the transport infrastructure that
is wanting may be rebuilt or replaced at a faster pace
than would otherwise be possible.
Building and Fire Research Laboratory
National Institute of Standards and Technology
Gaithersburg, MD 20899