Despite efforts to understand how to successfully implement research and state DOT practices, there is still a need to understand the specific roadblocks to research implementation across the U.S and the extent that State DOT research programs are impacted. The goal of the first half of this project is to summarize challenges of research implementation in current state DOT practices and to quantify how many projects are impacted by different challenges. After a better understanding of which challenges are more prevalent, peer exchanges will be conducted on specific topics to brainstorm and solicit examples of how specific challenges are surmounted at different levels so that guidance(s) can be developed and offered to the stakeholders to improve implementation of research outcomes.     

To achieve the above, the following tasks are proposed:

1.     Review of previous NCHRP research, including NCHRP research reports and Synthesis reports on the topic.

2.     Survey of key stakeholders involved in the implementation of research emphasizing the quantification of research barriers.

3.     Organization of collected information that include what has worked well and what has not, including initial expected outcomes versus final outcomes.

4.     Conduct of implementation peer exchanges framed around information collected from tasks 1-3 that are aimed at providing additional input around implementation challenges.

5.     Development of case studies to highlight successful implementation efforts as well as unsuccessful efforts.

6.     Development of guidance for overcoming research implementation barriers based on the survey results and peer exchanges.