The UTC program was established by the United States Department of Transportation in 1987 and was authorized by the United States Congress as part of the Surface Transportation and Uniform Relocation Assistance Act.
[1] In 1991 the UTC program was reauthorized for six years and four new transportation centers were added.
[1] In 2005 the UTC program was again reauthorized in the Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users (SAFETEA-LU).
The number of UTCs increased to 60, some competitive and others explicitly named in the bill.
The UTC program mission is "to advance U.S. technology and expertise in the many disciplines comprising transportation through the mechanisms of education, research and technology transfer at university-based centers of excellence".