About Mineta Transportation Institute

The Mineta Transportation Institute (MTI) conducts research, education, and information and technology transfer, focusing on multimodal surface transportation policy and management issues. It was established by Congress in 1991 as part of the Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act (ISTEA) and was reauthorized under TEA-21 and again under SAFETEA-LU. The Institute is funded by Congress through the US Department of Transportation’s (DOT) Research and Innovative Technology Administration, by the California Legislature through the Department of Transportation (Caltrans), and by other public and private grants and donations, including grants from the US Department of Homeland Security. DOT selected MTI as a National Center of Excellence following competitions in 2002 and 2006. The internationally respected members of the MTI Board of Trustees represent all major surface transportation modes. MTI’s focus on policy and management resulted from the Board’s assessment of the transportation industry’s unmet needs. That led directly to choosing the José State University College of Business as the Institute’s home.

MTI was selected as a national Center of Excellence by the U.S. Department of Transportation through a competitive process in 2002. The Institute is also a Tier-1 University Transportation Center.

The Institute is unique in that it receives oversight from a Board of Trustees whose internationally-respected members represent all major surface transportation modes. MTI’s focus on policy and management came from a board assessment of the industry’s unmet needs. The board provides policy direction, assists with needs assessment and connects the institute and its programs with the international transportation community.