An opportunity may exist for a Public-Private Partnership between State DOTs and the telecommunications industry by utilizing the State's freeway right-of-way (ROW) for the installation of fiber optic cables. Several States have bartered access to their ROW in return for fiber communications capacity to be used for their deployment of ITS facilities on the freeway or to produce revenue. These have been termed "Shared Resource" projects. Shared Resource Projects are facilitated by the FHWA delegation of authority to individual States so that they can establish their own utility accommodation policy approved by the FHWA Division Office. The FHWA has issued guidance on the installation of fiber optics in freeway ROW in December 2000, which was approved by American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO). See www.fhwa.dot.gov/realestate/index.htm.