Japan

The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) has had active technical cooperation with Japan's highway transportation authority since 1992. Cooperative activities have encompassed joint research, annual workshops, exchange of experts and information gathering field studies. These activities have helped engineers in the U.S. and Japan gain better insight into engineering principles covering many areas of interest to both countries, including pavements, bridge design and wind engineering, bridge maintenance, tunnel safety, earthquake and geotechnical engineering, Intelligent Transportation Systems, traffic safety, and the environment.

In April 2005, FHWA-Japan cooperation was folded into the umbrella U.S.-DOT Science and Technology Cooperation Implementing Arrangement with Japan through a formal amendment.

There has been considerable U.S.- Japan cooperation in the Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) area. Cooperation is mutually beneficial because both countries operate strong ITS research and technology programs and both face similar traffic congestion and traffic safety problems. U.S.-Japan ITS cooperation centers around a joint research program focused on intersection collision avoidance, which is one of the U.S. DOT's highest road safety priorities.

Japanese nationals have participated in an ongoing exchange program with FHWA in which they come to the U.S. for an extended period of time to study U.S. transportation processes, technology, and services. This effort has resulted in a fruitful exchange of information for both countries.