SHRP 2 Background
To address the challenges of moving people and goods efficiently and safely on the nation’s highways, Congress has created the second Strategic Highway Research Program (SHRP 2). Administered by the Transportation Research Board (TRB), SHRP 2 is a targeted, short-term research program carried out through competitively awarded contracts to qualified researchers in the academic, private, and public sectors. SHRP 2 addresses four strategic focus areas: the role of human behavior in highway safety (Safety); rapid highway renewal (Renewal); congestion reduction through improved travel time reliability (Reliability); and transportation planning that better integrates community, economic, and environmental considerations into new highway capacity (Capacity). Under current legislative provisions, SHRP 2 has expanded its efforts to include activities such as office and field pilot tests and product validations that help to prepare research results for implementation. Additional information about the program is available on the website: www.TRB.org/SHRP2.
Reliability Focus Area
The major objective of SHRP 2 Reliability research is to greatly improve the reliability of highway travel times by reducing the frequency and effects of events that cause travel times to fluctuate unpredictably. The results of the research program should help local, state, and national agencies reduce travel time variability for travelers and shippers. The Reliability research plan addresses both recurring and nonrecurring congestion with an emphasis on nonrecurring congestion. The following seven potential sources of unreliable travel times (i.e., events that cause variable travel times) were identified: traffic incidents, work zones, demand fluctuations, special events, traffic control devices, weather, and inadequate base capacity.
The Reliability focus area targets travel time variation—that frustrating characteristic of the transportation system that means you must allow an hour to make a trip that normally takes 30 minutes. Not only is reliability an important component for travelers and shippers, it is also an area of the congestion problem in which transportation agencies can make significant gains even as travel demand grows. The seven sources of unreliability account for approximately half of total delay. Reducing reliability-related delay will also result in fewer crashes, reduced vehicle emissions and fuel use, and other benefits. These benefits can be realized through a mix of leading-edge research into a better understanding of strategies and their consequences, new technology and practices, and reducing institutional barriers so that our existing knowledge can be more fully exploited.
The goals of the Reliability focus area are built around the first five of the seven sources of unreliable travel times mentioned above. Work on weather-related issues will be coordinated with the Road Weather Management R&D program under way at the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA). Related research on inadequate base capacity is being undertaken in the SHRP 2 Capacity focus area and elsewhere and will be closely coordinated by SHRP 2 staff.
Project Background
Research and development work in a number of Reliability focus area projects has been completed or will be completed between now and the end of the TRB SHRP 2 Cooperative Agreement with FHWA in 2015. Many of the research projects have produced products that can be used by implementing agencies to improve how they address reliability issues.
FHWA and the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) will jointly assume responsibility for deployment of these products during the next three years. An initial implementation schedule has been agreed to by FHWA and AASHTO and endorsed by the SHRP 2 Implementation Advisory Committee for those products identified as priorities by both FHWA and AASHTO. These organizations are working in partnership with TRB to develop detailed implementation plans for individual priority products. As additional funding becomes available for SHRP 2 implementation, additional products may be added to the initial implementation schedule. Those products not identified as being among the highest priorities for implementation will be deployed primarily through technical training and support activities.
In the Reliability focus area a majority of the priority products will be implemented in two major groupings: products that address organizational and business process issues related to Reliability, and products that are technical tools for analyzing Reliability strategies. The first group of products is scheduled to begin implementation activities in 2012; implementation activities for the second group will begin in 2014. All of these products will be incorporated into a Knowledge Transfer System that is being developed under Project L17. The technical analysis tools being developed by SHRP 2 for evaluating travel time reliability and the expected effectiveness of various strategies will be pilot tested in Project L38. Implementation planning is under way to identify how best to market and deploy related products as suites of products.
From the time that work is completed on a research contract until the time that implementation activities are fully supported by FHWA and AASHTO, TRB is expected to provide support to FHWA, AASHTO, and the user community as implementation-planning activities take place and as implementation actually begins. These implementation activities could be expected to include:
• fulfilling requests for SHRP 2 research team members to speak before AASHTO committee meetings, FHWA business meetings, conferences and other industry and professional events
• preparing presentation material and conducting webinars to help educate the user and stakeholder community about the product
• providing advice to agency management and technical staff who are considering using the product
• developing and assisting with the development of communication, marketing and educational information
• educating FHWA and AASHTO staff who will have lead responsibility for implementation
• providing technical assistance for early implementers and FHWA and AASHTO staff
• preparing for and participating in knowledge transfer and implementation plan workshops
• maintaining and keeping the product current until implementation has begun
• performing minor updates and refinements to the product until implementation has begun
TRB will require support from a contractor team that is knowledgeable about the products and the research that formed the foundation for the Reliability focus area products. The contractor team should also be familiar with the current state of practice. The implementation activities described above will also require demonstrated skills in written and oral communication, change management, technology deployment, and practical knowledge and experience in a diverse range of specialty topics which the Reliability focus area covers. The contract team will be required to work closely with staff from FHWA and AASHTO, together with their contractors, as implementation planning and execution take place. Depending on the nature and scope of the specific tasks, it may be necessary for the contract team to engage additional subcontractors who have the requisite background and expertise related to a particular product or task. The exact level of effort and required number of activities listed above for individual products will not be known until the contract is under way.
Therefore, TRB and the contract team will need to remain flexible in the amount of funding that will be allocated to each individual task listed in the Statement of Work. The level of effort and schedule for each task will also vary based on the specific need. Individual tasks will be assigned to the contract manager by the SHRP 2 Responsible Staff Officer (RSO) in writing. Each task request will identify the scope of work, a maximum level of effort, deliverables, and schedule and will generally address any necessary travel (travel will be a direct cost and subject to federal travel requirements). The contractor will provide an email proposal that will confirm scope, deliverables, schedule, and travel and will identify proposed staff hours, and budget. All requested work tasks will be as outlined and will be consistent with the terms of the overall contract. At the conclusion of each task the contractor shall provide a summary report that addresses the completed work for that task.
Project Objectives
Project L55 has four principal objectives:
1. To fulfill requests to TRB for speaking engagements and other presentations regarding SHRP 2 Reliability products until such time that FHWA and AASHTO have assumed these responsibilities
2. To assist TRB in providing technical expertise to FHWA and AASHTO regarding SHRP 2 Reliability products during their implementation planning processes
3. To assist TRB in providing technical assistance to FHWA and AASHTO staff and the user community regarding individual SHRP 2 Reliability products until such time as FHWA and AASHTO are able to fully assume these responsibilities
4. To assist TRB in maintaining and performing minor upgrades to SHRP 2 Reliability products until such time as FHWA and AASHTO have assumed these responsibilities.
Statement of Work
This statement of work describes the key tasks to be performed for SHRP 2 Project L55. It should be noted that the task descriptions are intended to provide a framework for conducting the implementation planning and support activities. SHRP 2 is seeking the insights of proposers on how best to achieve the objectives listed above. Proposers should respond to the complete range of possible scopes of work recognizing the diverse range of technical topics and implementation support activities during the period of performance. Proposals must demonstrate the proposer’s thinking regarding issues that will affect the project’s success.
Tasks
The proposal must use a task structure to describe the general approach to meeting project objectives. A brief description of possible tasks to be performed for Project L55 is provided in this section of the Statement of Work. The scope identified in the following task descriptions are considered essential, but proposers are invited to suggest different approaches that would accomplish the same objectives more effectively or efficiently.
For purposes of developing a staffing plan and budget for the proposal, the contractor can expect to spend the percent of the contract indicated next to each task. The percentage of the contract that will actually be spent on each task will depend on the support activities that will be required at the time of the contract and could vary from the percentages shown below.
Following are the task descriptions:
Task 1: Develop a Detailed Scope of Work (5%)
The lead members of the contractor team will meet with appropriate TRB, FHWA, and AASHTO staff members for each product to determine detailed schedules for completion of research and development related activities by TRB’s contractors and the schedule for implementation planning and implementation activities by FHWA and AASHTO. The contractor will review the readiness of each product for deployment, the readiness of FHWA and AASHTO to support implementation, and expectations regarding the bundling of SHRP 2 products with other SHRP 2 products or other programs under way or planned by FHWA and AASHTO. Working together with TRB, FHWA, and AASHTO staff, the contractor will identify activities under each of the tasks listed below that are anticipated for both high-priority and lower-priority products. The contractor will identify any additional expertise that may need to be added to the contract team after this review is complete. The contractor will produce an amplified work plan and preliminary budget that TRB will review with FHWA and AASHTO staff. It is recognized that both the work plan and the budget will be preliminary at this stage and will change as needs are identified during the course of the contract.
Deliverable: An amplified work plan that outlines for each SHRP 2 Reliability product anticipated support activities, schedule, personnel involved, and preliminary cost estimates.
Task 2: Make Technical Presentations (20%)
TRB anticipates receiving a number of requests to have persons familiar with individual SHRP 2 Reliability products and product groups to make presentations on specific products, groups of products or on the overall Reliability focus area. These technical presentations may be before AASHTO committees or subcommittees, FHWA meetings, conferences or other industry and professional events. Knowledgeable, effective, and experienced presenters from the contract team should prepare and deliver presentations, and where appropriate perform follow up coordination and communication activities. At these events the person speaking will be speaking on behalf of the SHRP 2 program and TRB, rather than for their firm. The specific requirements for each presentation and approval of individual presentation requests will be mutually agreed to by the RSO and the contractor. Presentations should reflect established protocols for branding and be consistent with programmatic marketing goals.
Note 1: If the presenter attends more of the event than the portion that he or she is on the program, the extra time the person spends at the event will not be reimbursed by Project L55.
Note 2: Travel expenses associated with the scope of work may be reimbursed through the TRB-SHRP 2 travel expense reimbursement process or may be directly billable to the L55 Project. Decisions regarding which method will be used will be made on a task order by task order basis by the RSO. All travel must follow federal travel regulations and must be booked through one of the National Academies preferred travel agencies if TRB is directly reimbursing travel expenses. For the purposes of the proposal, assume that travel expenses will be covered under Project L55.
Deliverable: Presentations to various groups on behalf of TRB. A library of all presentations will be maintained by the contractor in a database that will be accessible by TRB, FHWA, and AASHTO staff.
Task 3: Conduct Webinars for SHRP 2 Reliability Products (10%)
As research is completed and products first become available, TRB will conduct webinars to educate the potential user and stakeholder community about the research results and the products of the research. In addition to educating the user community, a second objective of this task is to begin to generate interest in the product from the potential user community. Contractor staff who are familiar with SHRP 2 Reliability research and products and the related state of the practice should prepare and deliver the webinar presentations. Some webinars may be jointly sponsored by TRB, FHWA, and/or AASHTO, as well as by other groups such as industry associations. Depending on the product and the demand for a particular webinar, some webinar presentations may be repeated. All webinar presentations will be prepared following the protocols in place for TRB webinars.
Deliverable: Webinar presentation materials will be provided to the RSO prior to each webinar and will be included in the library of presentations to be maintained under Task 2.
Task 4: Provide Expertise in Knowledge Transfer and Implementation Plan Workshops (10%)
FHWA and AASHTO, with support from TRB, will conduct an Implementation Plan Workshop for each SHRP 2 Reliability product shortly before the beginning of the implementation phase. These workshops are intended to identify the audiences, strategies, tactics, and preliminary budgets to be used during the implementation phase of the SHRP 2 product deployment to users and stakeholders. Participants at the workshops include subject matter experts, SHRP 2 staff and research contractors, staff from FHWA and AASHTO responsible for implementation, and representatives from potential implementing agencies. Key elements of the workshop include a presentation summarizing the research and describing the product, as well as availability of product experts to address questions regarding the product, the research, and the existing state of practice. The contractor should provide experts (e.g. research contract team members) for the workshops who can fulfill these functions.
Note 1: A second type of workshop, called a Knowledge Transfer Workshop will occur for some products in which an overall strategy for product readiness, product transfer, and implementation will be developed. There may be occasions where similar services as described above would be required for Knowledge Transfer Workshops. Knowledge Transfer Workshops will be conducted for some high- and low-priority products at different stages between the completion of research and the beginning of the implementation.
Note 2: A primer that describes Implementation Plan Workshops and Knowledge Transfer Workshops and the details of the planning, conduct, and outcomes of the workshops is available at: https://onlinepubs.trb.org/onlinepubs/shrp2/SHRP2_ImplementationPrimer.pdf.
Deliverable: Presentations and participation during Implementation Plan and Knowledge Transfer Workshops.
Task 5: Provide Technical Assistance to FHWA, AASHTO, and Early SHRP 2 Product Users (25%)
As FHWA and AASHTO prepare to assume responsibility for implementation of SHRP 2 Reliability products, their staff will need to be educated and provided technical assistance regarding the background research, the research outcomes, and the product. Similar education and technical assistance may be needed by early users of the product. In addition, once implementation begins, FHWA and AASHTO staff as well as users of the product can be expected to need additional assistance. The contractor should provide technical experts who are familiar with the research and the product and who have experience in technical training and successful technology deployment. These experts will work with TRB to educate and assist appropriate FHWA and AASHTO staff and users on an as-needed basis until such time that FHWA and/or AASHTO staff or contractors are able to assume this responsibility.
Deliverable: Education and technical assistance for FHWA, AASHTO, and implementing agency staff.
Task 6: Maintain and Update a Product Until Implementation Begins (10%)
For those products where there is a gap in time between when the research project ends and when the product has been transferred to FHWA, AASHTO, or another party, there may be a need for ongoing maintenance and/or minor updating or refinements to the product. In these instances the contractor will provide the resources to ensure that necessary maintenance, updates, or refinements occur in a timely manner.
Deliverable: Ongoing maintenance, updates, and refinements to products as needed.
Task 7: Assist in the Development of Communication, Marketing, and Educational Materials (10%)
Both prior to and during early stages of implementation communication, marketing, and educational materials will be developed by FHWA and/or AASHTO for each product. Technical writers and in some instances, technical expertise will be required from the contractor to assist TRB communication staff as they work with FHWA and/or AASHTO’s communications and marketing experts and consultants in developing these communication, marketing, and educational materials, including preparing materials for non-technical audiences and materials that demonstrate the benefit and value of implementation of SHRP 2 products.
Deliverable: Communication and technical assistance for TRB to assist FHWA and/or AASHTO in developing and preparing communication, marketing, and educational materials.
Task 8: Provide Input to Strategic Implementation Issues (10%)
As FHWA and AASHTO undertake implementation of SHRP 2 products there may be strategic and programmatic issues regarding implementation on which the contractor will be called to provide input based on the expertise of the staff available. Examples of this task would include packaging of related products, addressing change management issues, successful implementation approaches for process related SHRP 2 products, estimating return on investment expected from implementation of SHRP 2 products, defining anticipated outcomes, and successful implementation strategies for deployment of IT products.
Deliverable: The contractor can be expected to prepare defined briefing papers and participate in meetings and workshops related to strategic and programmatic matters.
