In response to the federal SAFETEA-LU requirements, nearly all state departments of transportation (DOTs) have started to use performance measurement at some point in the planning and/or programming process. Although these performance measures are routinely monitored, they are generally completed during the project development process on a project-by-project basis for anticipated future conditions. No state has a fully developed post-implementation tool to monitor and evaluate capital investment programs at a system (statewide) level. The primary objective of this study is to establish a systematic, comprehensive, and robust tool for the Indiana DOT (INDOT) to routinely perform an ex-post facto appraisal of its investment program at the system level. Using historical highway expenditure and performance data, the link between investment and performance was characterized in four asset areas—pavements, bridges, safety, and mobility. Linear regression models were developed to quantify the relationships. Additionally the short-term economic development impacts, in terms of jobs-created and earnings-added, were estimated for the total investment each year. The most recent surface transportation reauthorization, Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century (MAP-21), sets a precedent for performance-based management of the nation’s transportation network. The present study provides a monitoring methodology that can be used to demonstrate the effectiveness of INDOT’s investment of surface transportation funds and the improvement program to legislative bodies responsible for funding decisions. It also provides a mechanism to communicate the impacts of transportation investment to the general public.
展开▼
