E – 1579 Alternative Uses of Highway Right of Way

This online engineering PDH course describes concerns and requirements for siting and implementing renewable energy projects in highway right of ways (ROWs). Aiming to increase renewable energy production, the Federal Highway Administration and state and local transportation agencies recently have expressed a growing interest in installing decentralized renewable energy technologies on spaces not traditionally considered for electricity generation. From a highway ROW perspective, however, there are considerable economic, ecological, legal, and political uncertainties related to whether accommodating renewable energy technologies and alternative fuel facilities is an acceptable highway land management practice. This course discusses the implications and feasibility of implementing renewable energy and fuel options in the ROW.

This course is based on the report, “Alternative Uses of Highway Right‐of‐Way,” prepared by the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Research and Innovative Technology Administration John A. Volpe National Transportation Systems Center, for the Federal Highway Administration Office of Real Estate Services, January, 2012.