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National Bridge and Structure Competition

TRAC & RIDES is an educational outreach program from the American Association of State Highway Transportation Officials (AASHTO). The program offers hands-on activities that introduce students in grades K-12 to the work world of transportation and civil engineering and inspire them to consider careers in those fields.

Here are the basics of the competition. 

1. There are three divisions: grades 7-8, 9-10, 11-12.
2. Students form teams of up to three people. Each team needs to have an adult adviser. Each school can have up to five teams.
3. Teams submit an application to the competition.
4. Teams receive a bridge design kit.
5. Teams make a design and proposal package and send it in to be judged.
6. The top seven teams in each division nationally are invited to the AASHTO spring meeting to compete against each other. The trip is paid for by the competition.
7. Teams can win cash prizes!

Here are some important competition dates:

1. Nov 5: Team application deadline
2. Nov 30: Kits shipped out
3. Feb 19: Proposal deadline
4. Mar 18: Winners notified
5. May 20-22: Competition Finals at Spring Meeting in Park City, Utah

Competition guidelines and more information:

https://tracrides.transportation.org/national-trac-bridge-challenge/

MnDOT would love to help schools and students interested in participating. We can help you find an adviser and answer questions about bridge design.  

Contact:
Marcia Lochner
STEM Outreach Liaison
stemoutreach.dot@state.mn.us
651-366-3097

For more information on MnDOT's STEM Education and Outreach: mndot.gov/stem