'TRB's National Cooperative Highway Research Program (NCHRP) Report 574: Guidance for Cost Estimation and Management for Highway Projects During Planning, Programming, and Preconstruction explores approaches to cost estimation and management designed to overcome the root causes of cost escalation and to support the development of consistent and accurate project estimates through all phases of the development process, from long-range planning, through priority programming, and through project design. NCHRP Web-Only Document 98 details the steps followed by the research team in the development of NCHRP Report 574"--Publisher's description.
The essential, authoritative guide to providing accurate, systematic, and reliable estimating for construction projects—newly revised Pricing and bidding for construction work is at the heart of every construction business, and in the minds of construction consultants’ poor bids lead to poor performance and nobody wins. New Code of Estimating Practice examines the processes of estimating and pricing, providing best practice guidelines for those involved in procuring and pricing construction works, both in the public and private sectors. It embodies principles that are applicable to any project regardless of size or complexity. This authoritative guide has been completely rewritten to include much more contextual and educational material as well as the code of practice. It covers changes in estimating practice; the bidding process; the fundamentals in formulating a bid; the pre-qualification process; procurement options; contractual arrangements and legal issues; preliminaries; temporary works; cost estimating techniques; risk management; logistics; resource and production planning; computer-aided estimating; information and time planning; resource planning and pricing; preparation of an estimator’s report; bid assembly and adjudication; pre-production planning and processes; and site production. Established standard for the construction industry, providing the only code of practice on construction estimating Prepared under the auspices of the Chartered Institute of Building and endorsed by a range of other professional bodies Completely rewritten since the 7th edition, to include much more contextual and educational material, as well as the core code of practice New Code of Estimating Practice is an important book for construction contractors, specialist contractors, quantity surveyors/cost consultants, and for students of construction and quantity surveying.
TRB’s National Cooperative Highway Research Program (NCHRP) Synthesis 424: Engineering Economic Analysis Practices for Highway Investment explores how U.S. transportation agencies have applied engineering economics--benefit–cost analyses and similar procedures--to decisions on highway investments.
Scoping is the process of developing a project's objectives, need, preliminary cost estimate, and preliminary schedule based on a recognized need that the project is intended to address. This study (INDOT/JTRP SPR 3944) was launched by the Indiana Department of Transportation (INDOT)/Joint Transportation Program (JTRP) to develop a synthesis of scoping processes in different State Highway Agencies (SHA). The study was conducted using a qualitative exploratory approach focusing on the review of project scoping practices across different SHAs. Focused interviews with personnel from State Highway Agencies (SHA) along with the review of documents gathered during the literature search and resources provided by SHAs were the avenues used for data collection in the study.The study focused on eleven themes for the assessment of project scoping procedures: (1) primary entity with responsibility for scoping projects, (2) timeline for scoping activities, (3) functional groups within the State Highway Agency involved in scoping, (4) cost estimation procedures, (5) application of Context Sensitive Solutions (CSS), (6) addressing maintenance needs, (7) methods of assessing scope creep, (8) tracking the quality and effectiveness of scoping processes, (9) environmental consideration in scoping processes, (10) data collection and data sharing, and (11) scoping practices which have evolved/benefited the State Highway Agency. The report presents key findings of the study and provides suggestions for further investigation by INDOT.
"TRB Conference Proceedings 43: Key Issues in Transportation Programming summarizes plenary and breakout sessions of a November 2006 conference that explored the current state of the practice and long-term implementation experience associated with the programming process, successful practices in linking planning and programming, and the linking of programming processes to the development of performance measures and asset management systems. The conference also examined programming and politics, data requirements and data manageability, and effective approaches to public involvement for programming."--Pub. desc.
A multi-disciplinary approach to transportation planning fundamentals The Transportation Planning Handbook is a comprehensive, practice-oriented reference that presents the fundamental concepts of transportation planning alongside proven techniques. This new fourth edition is more strongly focused on serving the needs of all users, the role of safety in the planning process, and transportation planning in the context of societal concerns, including the development of more sustainable transportation solutions. The content structure has been redesigned with a new format that promotes a more functionally driven multimodal approach to planning, design, and implementation, including guidance toward the latest tools and technology. The material has been updated to reflect the latest changes to major transportation resources such as the HCM, MUTCD, HSM, and more, including the most current ADA accessibility regulations. Transportation planning has historically followed the rational planning model of defining objectives, identifying problems, generating and evaluating alternatives, and developing plans. Planners are increasingly expected to adopt a more multi-disciplinary approach, especially in light of the rising importance of sustainability and environmental concerns. This book presents the fundamentals of transportation planning in a multidisciplinary context, giving readers a practical reference for day-to-day answers. Serve the needs of all users Incorporate safety into the planning process Examine the latest transportation planning software packages Get up to date on the latest standards, recommendations, and codes Developed by The Institute of Transportation Engineers, this book is the culmination of over seventy years of transportation planning solutions, fully updated to reflect the needs of a changing society. For a comprehensive guide with practical answers, The Transportation Planning Handbook is an essential reference.
Boston's Central Artery/Tunnel Project, a 7.8 mile system of bridges and underground highways and ramps, is the most expensive public works project ever undertaken in the United States. The original cost estimate of $2.6 billion has already been exceeded by $12 billion, and the project will not be completed until 2005, seven years late. The Massachusetts Turnpike Authority (MTA), the public steward of the project, requested that the National Research Council carry out an independent assessment of the project's management and contract administration practices, with a focus on the present situation and measures that should be taken to bring the project to a successful conclusion. This report presents the committee's findings and recommendations pertaining to cost, scheduling, and transitioning from the current organization dominated by consultants to an operations organization composed largely of full-time MTA staff. The report recommends that MTA establish an external, independent, peer-review program to address technical and management issues until the transition to operations and maintenance is complete; begin a media campaign now to teach drivers how to use the new system safely; and develop, immediately implement, and maintain a comprehensive security program.
