In FY01 and FY02, the OTC received $400K each year from Oklahoma Department of Transportation (ODOT), and beginning FY03 it began receiving significant federal funding ($350K in FY03, $2 million in FY04 and $1.5 million in FY05) for surface transportation research. In addition, the center received $2 million in FY04 and $4 million in FY05 for transit research.

These funds allowed the faculty, researchers, and students at each of the OTC institutions to work collaboratively on research projects covering a broad spectrum of topics. These topics include:

• Multimodal transportation and logistics
• Freight movement analyses and forecasting
• Bridge and roadway structural health and security
• Sensor deployment
• Intelligent Traffic Systems
• Emerging material technologies
• Energy harvesting.

OTC’s transit research thus far has focused on information technology in demand response transit systems, transportation planning and web-based education. Some of these projects are completed, while others remain in progress. The OTC was designated as a National University Transportation Center (UTC) in the 2001 federal highway bill reauthorization, SAFETEA-LU.