Mineta said private and public sector participants have committed significant cost sharing for the project, in effect doubling the buying power of the $2.5 million being provided by the federal government.
"This public-private partnership will help ensure the safety and security of our highways, urban centers, national landmarks, and national institutions," Secretary Mineta said. "Successful operational testing of new technology for enhancing security may speed up use by industry and provide better protection against terrorists."
The purpose of the test is to assess the effectiveness of different technologies and procedures and determine the costs and benefits of each to the safety and security of hazardous materials being transported by trucks. The test will independently assess which combination of technology and procedures is the safest and most cost-effective for protecting different types of hazardous cargo from being hijacked by terrorists.
The two-year effort will include 100 trucks equipped with a variety of existing technologies. The project will test capabilities such as biometric driver verification, off-route vehicle alerts, stolen vehicle alerts, cargo tampering alerts and remote vehicle disabling.
DOT has awarded the contract for this project to the Battelle Memorial Institute of Columbus, OH. The Battelle team includes the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance, the American Transportation Research Institute, Qualcomm Inc., Total Security Systems International and several motor carrier companies and technology component vendors.
