Via AASHTO Journal

State departments of transportation interested in nominating their projects or programs for the 2015 America's Transportation Awards have just a few days left to do so. The nomination period opened Feb. 20 and all applications must be submitted online by 9 p.m. eastern time on March 31.

The award competition is sponsored by AASHTO, in cooperation with the AAA motor club and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.

It recognizes the best transportation projects or programs across the nation each year by state DOTs, focusing on efforts that finish under budget, improve the quality of life or community development and display the best use of innovation.

Within each category, projects are divided into three size groups – large (more than $200 million), medium ($26 million to $200 million) and small (under $26 million).

Projects first compete on a regional level, and states can win awards for new projects or special programs in the various categories in four geographic regions. After that, 10 regional award winners with the highest scores compete for the national Grand Prize and People's Choice Award. Last year, a record 37 states nominated 73 projects for the competition.