BACKGROUND

Many states have developed transportation performance management programs to support a broad range of activities such as strategic planning and decision making, comprehensive asset management, transportation system performance, project management and cost control, and demonstration of effective departmental stewardship of public funding. Implementation and integration of transportation performance management programs is essential, not only for transportation agencies to make the transition to more business-like operations, but also to ensure that departmental responses to emerging issues are being effectively and efficiently carried out. To date, research into transportation performance management programs has focused primarily on specific areas of measurement, tools, and institutional frameworks necessary for evaluating performance of projects and programs. More information is needed on in-depth examples of how transportation performance management programs are being integrated into key decision-making processes (e.g., departmental management, strategic planning, and transportation system performance). In recent years, a growing number of states (e.g., Washington, Virginia, Maryland, and Florida) have initiated comprehensive transportation performance management programs designed to inform the public about departmental actions to fulfill statutory mandates, while using performance management programs to evaluate and monitor progress on project delivery, budget and cost controls, and program efficiency. There is a need for detailed analyses of how transportation performance management programs are implemented and integrated into decision-making processes that govern the way departments of transportation in the United States deliver services to their customers.

OBJECTIVE

The objective of this research is to develop a guidebook that reflects current practice in designing, implementing, and sustaining transportation performance management programs in state DOTs. The guidebook will include effective performance management frameworks and related tools and will particularly focus on how performance management programs are being integrated into decision making.


The guidebook has been published as NCHRP Report 660 and is available here.

The project final report, which includes supplemental information about the conduct of the research, is available here.