The U.S. Department of Transportation is asking supply chain professionals to identify the specific bottlenecks currently affecting the flow of commerce. According to a report from FreightWaves, DOT issued a Request for Information on Tuesday to shape its Research, Development, and Technology Strategic Plan for fiscal years 2026 through 2030.

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This planning cycle is being drafted with a focus on improving goods mobility and reducing congestion, which is considered by some to be the single most expensive and disruptive point of failure in a supply chain. Michael Rutherford, DOT’s Assistant Secretary for Research and Technology, said congestion mitigation will be a priority in an updated National Freight Strategic Plan, which DOT plans to publish in the coming weeks.

“We want to see a more focused and more nuanced discussion of freight bottlenecks,” Rutherford said during a panel discussion at the Transportation Research Board meeting in Washington, D.C. “Where is congestion already showing signs of infrastructure failures? Where instead is travel time reliability indicating a need for better traffic management? How should we think about these relative bottlenecks, not only in their own terms but also in the broader context of changes that promise to reshape future demands on our nations freight network?”

Federal law requires the Secretary of Transportation to develop a five-year plan to guide all federal transportation research activities. DOT’s mandate covers several areas vital to goods movement, including improving mobility, reducing congestion, and promoting safety.

The RFI also highlights the need to improve the durability and life of infrastructure and reduce transportation cybersecurity risks. DOT is inviting the public to weigh in on a list of questions that will help dictate how tax dollars are allocated.

Source: IndexBox Market Intelligence Platform