Global Benchmarking Study on Unmanned Aerial Systems for Surface Transportation: Domestic Desk Review

Federal Highway Administration;Volpe National Transportation Systems Center, Technical Reference Center2020PDFBriefFischer, StephanieLu, JasonVan Fossen, KirstenLawless, EmilyJohn A. Volpe National Transportation Systems Center (U.S.)United States. Federal Highway AdministrationUnited States. Federal Highway AdministrationUnited StatesGround transportationUnmanned aircraft systemsTransportation policyTransit oriented developmentFHWA-HIF-20-091DOT-VNTSC-FHWA-20-15693JJ318N300013, HW05A1This desk review presents a high-level summary of the current state of the practice of unmanned aerial systems (UAS) in the United States. The use of UAS by State Departments of Transportation (DOTs) for surface transportation use cases is steadily increasing, but States continue to report challenges in developing and implementing fully-functioning UAS programs. This report includes a summary of commonly used use cases, current and planned research, operational considerations, data management and analysis strategies, and opportunities for future research.109