August Research and Reports Brief

Operations Performance Measures: The Foundation for Performance-Based Management of Transportation Operations Programs (8 page PDF)

Transportation Operations: Cost-Effective Congestion Solutions

Transportation agencies have traditionally focused on building physical facilities such as highways, bridges, and transit systems. However, it has become increasingly difficult to build new highways or expand existing ones due to environmental impacts and the high cost of construction. Further, it has been estimated that roughly half of all congestion experienced by U.S. highway travelers is due to nonrecurring events or disruptions, such as traffic incidents, inclement weather, work zones, and special events (e.g., sporting venues, evacuations).

As a result, transportation operations has emerged as a highly cost-effective solution to the national congestion problem. Its focus is to manage the flow of traffic efficiently on the existing highway system, in other words, to get the most out what we already have.

In concept, this is similar to how the electric grid is managed, operators constantly monitor the system looking for disruptions or areas where demand is high and take appropriate actions to address the problems.

Many agencies have started to produce periodic performance reports. The links below provide examples. Because this is a new concept, some experimentation in graphical design and reporting formats is desirable.

A decade of transparency: The Gray Notebook

The Gray Notebook is the Washington State DOT's quarterly accountability report. Starting with the first report in May 2001, the agency has used the quarterly document to provide the latest information on system performance and project delivery. Click

HERE for the report and the 'Navigating the Gray Notebook' webpage.

2010 Transportation Metropolitan Atlanta Performance Report

The Transportation MAP Report was initiated in 2003 by a group of regional agencies with the objective of documenting current developments, trends, achievements and issues with Metropolitan Atlanta's transportation system.

This report summarizes measures grouped in six areas: Mobility, Transit Accessibility, Air Quality, Safety, Customer Satisfaction, and Transportation System Performance. The report's content is organized so that it reflects the outlined structure by functional area, with each area including a high-level summary for one or more specific performance measures.

Additionally, detailed information about the freeway travel times, planning time index and buffer time index is provided in the Appendix. These measures are obtained for the 13-county Atlanta area. Click HERE for the website and to access previous editions.

National Capital Region Congestion Report

This report is produced on a quarterly basis by the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments. Click HERE for the report.

For additional information on this report, contact Rich Taylor at rich.taylor@dot.gov. A couple of other website to visit include:

FHWA Operations Performance Measures website (LINK)

FHWA Planning for Operations website (LINK

Safety Evaluation of Transverse Rumble Strips on Approaches to Stop-Controlled Intersections in Rural Areas (8 page PDF)

This report examines the impact of transverse rumble strips on crashes, specifically total crashes, injury crashes, and specific crash types.

FEDERAL TRANSIT AUTHORITY

Fuel Cell Electric Bus Program: Research Accomplishments through 2011 (87 page PDF)

This report summarizes the accomplishments of fuel-cell-transit-bus-related research and demonstrations projects supported by FTA through 2011.

It catalogs fuel cell electric bus research projects in the United States and describes their impact on commercialization of fuel cell power systems and electric propulsion for transit buses. Few barriers remain to reaching full commercialization of fuel cell electric buses. This report documents progress toward overcoming these barriers.

MINETA TRANSPORTATION INSTITUTE

Advancing High Speed Rail In The United States (88 page PDF)

This report builds on a review of international experience with high-speed rail projects to develop recommendations for a High-speed rail policy framework for the United States.

The international review looked at the experience of Korea, Taiwan, China, and several countries in Europe. Countries in Asia and Europe have pursued HSR to achieve various goals, which include relieving congestion on highway networks, freeing up capacity on rail network for freight train operations, and reducing travel time for travelers.

Some of the key rationales do not work well in the US context. As an example, in the US, freight companies own most of the rail network and, hence, do not need government intervention to free up capacity for their operations.

The report concludes that the potential to reduce travel times, coupled with improved travel time reliability and safety, will be the strongest selling points for HSR in the US. HSR lines work best in high-density, economically active corridors.

Given that there are a limited number of such corridors in the US, this study recommends that the US HSR project funding mix be skewed heavily toward state bonds guaranteed by the federal government. This will ensure that the states that benefit directly from the projects pay most of the costs, making it more palatable to states that may not have HSR projects. For the projects that span multiple states, member states may have to negotiate the level of financial responsibility they will bear, and this will require detailed negotiations and financial setups that are not addressed in this report.

Other measures that the federal government needs to put in place include designating a key agency and dedicated funding source, and developing regulations and specifications for HSR design and construction. States that embark on HSR projects should start with formal legislation and put in place structures to ensure sustained political support throughout the planning and construction of the project. The federal government also needs to move quickly to foster educational and training centers to build up the HSR workforce in the country.

Amenity or Necessity? Street Standards as Parking Policy
(66 page PDF)

This paper explores the rationales underlying the use of minimum street width requirements to mandate street parking. A survey of 97 cities reveals that this mandate is not a technical necessity based on safety concerns or an amenity reflecting market demand, two common beliefs held by decision-makers.

Many residents are likely unwilling to pay for street parking if it is unbundled from housing. The hidden parking policies should be made transparent and subject to public oversight, the double standard between private and public streets should be eliminated, and parking on residential streets should be optional.

TRANSPORTATION RESEARCH BOARD

Climate Change: Evidence, Impacts, and Choices (36 page PDF)

This booklet lays out the evidence that human activities, especially the burning of fossil fuels, are responsible for much of the warming and related changes being observed around the world.

The booklet summarizes projections of future climate changes and impacts expected in this century and beyond. Finally, the booklet examines how science can help inform choices about managing and reducing the risks posed by climate change.

The information is based on a number of National Research Council reports, each of which represents the consensus of experts who have reviewed hundreds of studies describing many years of accumulating evidence.

The National Research Council also presents a video that explains how scientists have arrived at the state of knowledge about current climate change and its causes. Click HERE for the video webpage.

Climate Change and Transportation: Summary of Key Information (18 page PDF)

This report highlights the key findings of a variety of studies on the subject of climate change and its ramifications for the transportation sector conducted by the National Research Council.

This summary was prepared by Cynthia J. Burbank, Joyce A. Wenger, and Daniel Sperling, members of the TRB Special Task Force on Climate Change and Energy.

The document includes references that identify the sources of findings from the studies cited in this summary. Any conclusions drawn from the studies are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the views of the Special Task Force, TRB, or NRC.

Implementation and Outcomes of Fare Free Transit Systems (105 page PDF)

The purpose of this synthesis is to document the past and current experiences of public transit agencies that have planned, implemented, and operated fare-free systems. An extensive literature review and the results of a survey of public transit agencies that provide fare-free service are used to document such important issues as:

Why and where have fare-free public transit systems been implemented?
How was the system conceived and implemented?
What was the funding environment and institutional structure?
What were the intended and actual outcomes?
What are the benefits and challenges of a fare-free public transit system?
What is the business case for operating on a fare-free basis?
If a fare-free policy was discontinued, why and how was it discontinued?
What evaluations were conducted after the fare free system was implemented?

Walking and Bicycling in the United States - The Who, What, Where, and Why (15 page PDF)

Under National Cooperative Highway Research Program Project 07-19, a research team led by Paul Ryus of Kittelson & Associates will assess current and innovative technologies and methods and will provide guidance for transportation practitioners on how best to collect pedestrian and bicycle volume data. The project began in April 2012 and is scheduled for completion in spring 2014.

The assessment will consider the feasibility, availability, quality, reliability, cost, and compatibility of volume data. The guidance will include methods to (a) mine and manage data sources efficiently; (b) acquire and use data from new and innovative technologies; and (c) summarize and disseminate pedestrian and bicycle volume data for site-specific, local, and systemwide needs assessments, project development, and safety management.

Use of the U.S. Census Bureau's Public Use Microdata Sample (PUMS) by State DOTs and MPOs (85 page PDF)

The report is designed to serve as a reference for transportation planners. Census microdata are the confidential records of specific individuals and housing units from whom Decennial Census or American Community Survey responses have been obtained. The records available in the Public Use Microdata Sample (PUMS) data products, so that users can develop their own tabulations.

The Relationship Between Vehicle Miles Traveled and Economic Activity (74 page PDF)

VMT in the U.S. have exhibited an upward trend over time similar to that observed for gross domestic product (GDP) and personal income (PI). While conventional wisdom suggests that economic growth leads to more driving and thus higher VMT, it is theoretically possible that the causation could also be the other way around.

If causation is from VMT to GDP, then legislation such as the Federal Surface Transportation Policy and Planning Act of 2009's directive to annually reduce national per capita VMT could potentially have an adverse impact on overall economic activity.

This study uses times series techniques to empirically test for Granger causality between VMT and various measures of national economic activity over time. In most circumstances the causal relationship is found to be from economic activity to VMT, confirming conventional wisdom and suggesting that exogenous shocks to VMT would not negatively impact national GDP. The relationship between national VMT and GDP is found to be dependent on the stage of the business cycle, in particular GDP leads VMT in economic upturns or normal times, but VMT tends to lead GDP recessions. For the 98 urban areas included in this study no significant causal relationship was found between VMT and economic activity in either direction.

A derived demand analysis was conducted to explore the relationship between VMT and economic activity on a more micro level to determine where potential adverse impacts from VMT reduction policies might arise and how policy could be formulated to mitigate those impacts. Factors found to significantly contribute to the demand for VMT in urban areas, included lane miles, personal income, population density, fuel cost, transit use, and the percent of employment in the construction or wholesale sectors. Both transit use and population density were found to be negatively related to VMTPC and per capita VMT was found to be higher the more western and the larger the population size of an urban area.

Kevin F. Tierney, Needham, Massachusetts, collected and synthesized the information and wrote the report. This synthesis is an immediately useful document that records the practices that were acceptable within the limitations of the knowledge available at the time of its preparation. As progress in research and practice continues, new knowledge will be added to that now at hand.

VARIOUS REPORTS

2020 Census - Sustaining Current Reform Efforts Will Be Key to a More Cost-Effective Enumeration (21 page PDF)

Highlights of GAO-12-905T, a testimony before the Subcommittee on Federal Financial Management, Government Information, Federal Services, and International Security, Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, U.S. Senate

Obtaining an accurate census in the face of societal trends such as increased privacy concerns and a more diverse population has greatly increased the cost of the census.

At $13 billion, 2010 was the costliest census in U.S. history. Without changes, future enumerations could be fiscally unsustainable.

GAO's past work noted that early planning, leading management practices, and strong congressional oversight, can help reduce the costs and risks of the enumeration. GAO also identified four key lessons learned from 2010 that could help secure a more cost-effective 2020 Census. The Bureau agreed and is taking steps to address them.

As requested, this testimony focuses on the Bureau's progress on these lessons learned and what remains to be done going forward. It is based on GAO's completed work, including an analysis of Bureau documents, interviews with Bureau officials, and field observations of census operations in urban and rural locations across the country.

Essential Smart Growth Fixes for Rural Planning, Zoning, and Development Codes (52 page PDF)

Published by the United States EPA- Smart Growth

This publication sets forth several actions that small-town and rural jurisdictions could take to address some of their most challenging growth issues. Rural communities around the country have used these actions to guide development. These essential fixes, identified by a national panel of rural smart growth experts, can address specific development issues or become a foundation for more comprehensive revisions. This publication describes policy options and does not present a recipe or a prescribed order for implementing these policies. Each community must determine what is appropriate for its needs and context.

Infrastructure Banks and Surface Transportation (10 page PDF)

Published by the Congressional Budget Office

CBO analyzes an illustrative federal infrastructure bank-one that is representative of those in many recent proposals.3 That entity, which would be federally funded and controlled, would select new, locally proposed construction projects for funding on the basis of a number of criteria, including their costs and benefits, and would provide financing for the projects through loans and loan guarantees.

To repay the loans, projects financed through the infrastructure bank would have to include tolls, taxes, or other dedicated revenue streams. Financial assistance could be made to any consortium of partners with an eligible project. For example, a group of state and local entities could apply, as could a group of private, nongovernmental partners.

The bank could provide the subsidy amounts needed to compensate private-sector investors for benefits that accrue to the general public and the economy at large.

Opportunity Cost of Inaction: High-Speed and High Performance Passenger Rail in the United States ( 18 page PDF)

This paper addresses the initial investment and on-going cost of operation and maintenance of high-performance passenger rail (HPPR) in four of the FRA's sanctioned HPPR regional networks - Northeast, Chicago Hub, California, and Northwest - over a 40 year period.

The system can generate a net benefit of at least $660 million annually. If the nation should forgo this opportunity, it stands to sustain a cost of at least $26.4 billion in foregone economic benefits over the next four decades.

The regional opportunity costs are also substantial. Not building HSR in California would cost the state $8.2 billion in foregone benefits over 40 years. The Midwest would forego $11.7 billion over 40 years. The Northeast Corridor would forego $5.5 billion over 40 years. The Pacific Northwest would forego $1.1 billion over 40 years.

Review of Federal and State Practices to Expedite Completion of Highway Projects (52 page PDF)

Highlights of GAO-12-593

Projects to construct, improve, and repair roads and bridges are fundamental to meeting the nation's mobility needs. However, completing highway projects which generally involves four phases consisting of (1) planning, (2) preliminary design and environmental review, (3) final design and right-of-way acquisition, and (4) construction can sometimes take a long time.

In 2005, SAFETEA-LU established provisions to help expedite highway projects, including streamlining some portions of the environmental review process, allowing states to assume greater environmental review responsibilities under certain conditions, and establishing efforts that permitted delegation of some authority from the federal government to states.

GAO was asked to (1) describe the process and factors that could affect highway project time frames, (2) examine state DOTs' views on the benefits and challenges of the provisions to expedite highway projects established in SAFETEA-LU, and (3) describe additional initiatives that state DOTs and FHWA have implemented to expedite the completion of highway projects.

GAO surveyed officials from 52 state DOTs, including all states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico; interviewed officials at FHWA, state DOTs, and federal resource agencies (agencies tasked with protecting natural, historic, or cultural resources); and analyzed legislation, regulations, and other reports and publications. U.S. DOT provided technical comments on a draft of this report, which GAO incorporated as appropriate.

Marta Elena Perales

MPO Statewide Coordinator

Illinois MPO Advisory Council
233 S Wacker Suite 800
Chicago IL 60606
marta@ilmpo.org
www.ilmpo.org