Through the statewide transportation planning process, states decide how to spend fed. transportation funds -- almost $46 billion in FY 2009. Draft legislation to reauthorize federal surface transportation legislation would, among other things, revise planning requirements to recognize states' use of rural planning org. (RPO) and require performance measurement. This report examined: (1) states' planning activities and RPOs' satisfaction that rural needs are considered; (2) states' planning challenges; (3) the U.S. Dept. of Transportation's approach to overseeing statewide planning; and (4) states' use of performance measurement and opportunities to make statewide planning more performance based. Tables. This is a print on demand report.
Each State has a different process for making transportation decisions. In some, the legislature annually approves the transportation capital investment program. Others have independent or quasi-independent commissions, boards, or authorities that are responsible for transportation decisions. In all cases, elected officials at the local, regional, or State level need good information to guide their decisions, and the ISTEA planning process is designed to provide this. This guide discusses how good transportation planning can be conducted by States and presents a new framework for transportation decision making as envisioned in ISTEA.
This synthesis report will be of interest to department of transportation ( DOT) administrators, planning supervisors, managers, and staffs, as well as to planning consultants that work with them. It provides information for practitioners interested in the results of attempts to apply multimodal considerations at the statewide level and identifies key research findings. It covers post-ISTEA (Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act of 1991) processes and projects and both passenger and freight activities. The report examines the application of three multimodal aspects: alternatives, modal mix, and integration into three statewide planning functions, which include state planning, corridor studies, and financing, budgeting, and programming. The emphasis is on implementation. This report of the Transportation Research Board documents processes and research currently under development, using three approaches: a literature review, results of a survey of state DOTs, and five case studies. It cites the following states with exemplary practices in multimodal/intermodal transportation based on a 1998 report by the policy research project at the University of Texas on Multimodal/ Intermodal Transportation: Florida, Minnesota, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Washington, and Wisconsin.
TRB's National Cooperative Highway Research Program (NCHRP) Synthesis 326: Strategic Planning and Decision Making in State Departments of Transportation examines state and provincial transportation departments' experience with strategic planning and synthesizes current approaches to linking strategic planning with other decision-making processes, including operational and tactical planning, resource allocation, performance management, and performance measurement.
A multi-disciplinary approach to transportation planningfundamentals The Transportation Planning Handbook is a comprehensive,practice-oriented reference that presents the fundamental conceptsof transportation planning alongside proven techniques. This newfourth edition is more strongly focused on serving the needs of allusers, the role of safety in the planning process, andtransportation planning in the context of societal concerns,including the development of more sustainable transportationsolutions. The content structure has been redesigned with a newformat that promotes a more functionally driven multimodal approachto planning, design, and implementation, including guidance towardthe latest tools and technology. The material has been updated toreflect the latest changes to major transportation resources suchas the HCM, MUTCD, HSM, and more, including the most current ADAaccessibility regulations. Transportation planning has historically followed the rationalplanning model of defining objectives, identifying problems,generating and evaluating alternatives, and developing plans.Planners are increasingly expected to adopt a moremulti-disciplinary approach, especially in light of the risingimportance of sustainability and environmental concerns. This bookpresents the fundamentals of transportation planning in amultidisciplinary context, giving readers a practical reference forday-to-day answers. Serve the needs of all users Incorporate safety into the planning process Examine the latest transportation planning softwarepackages Get up to date on the latest standards, recommendations, andcodes Developed by The Institute of Transportation Engineers, thisbook is the culmination of over seventy years of transportationplanning solutions, fully updated to reflect the needs of achanging society. For a comprehensive guide with practical answers,The Transportation Planning Handbook is an essentialreference.
"The United States Code is the official codification of the general and permanent laws of the United States of America. The Code was first published in 1926, and a new edition of the code has been published every six years since 1934. The 2012 edition of the Code incorporates laws enacted through the One Hundred Twelfth Congress, Second Session, the last of which was signed by the President on January 15, 2013. It does not include laws of the One Hundred Thirteenth Congress, First Session, enacted between January 2, 2013, the date it convened, and January 15, 2013. By statutory authority this edition may be cited "U.S.C. 2012 ed." As adopted in 1926, the Code established prima facie the general and permanent laws of the United States. The underlying statutes reprinted in the Code remained in effect and controlled over the Code in case of any discrepancy. In 1947, Congress began enacting individual titles of the Code into positive law. When a title is enacted into positive law, the underlying statutes are repealed and the title then becomes legal evidence of the law. Currently, 26 of the 51 titles in the Code have been so enacted. These are identified in the table of titles near the beginning of each volume. The Law Revision Counsel of the House of Representatives continues to prepare legislation pursuant to 2 U.S.C. 285b to enact the remainder of the Code, on a title-by-title basis, into positive law. The 2012 edition of the Code was prepared and published under the supervision of Ralph V. Seep, Law Revision Counsel. Grateful acknowledgment is made of the contributions by all who helped in this work, particularly the staffs of the Office of the Law Revision Counsel and the Government Printing Office"--Preface.
The transportation sector is faced with new legislative mandates as reflected by the Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act (ISTEA) of 1991. ISTEA, coupled with the Clean Air Act Amendments (CAAA) of 1990, provides an impetus for change in transportation planning and project implementation. Statewide transportation planning is one of the mechanisms for change that ISTEA provides. Statewide transportation plans integrate planning for multiple transport modes to balance the mobility needs of the state with future revenue sources. To support this requirement, FHWA and FTA have issued statewide transportation planning rules. These rules identify twenty-three factors to be addressed in statewide plans. The case studies included in this report demonstrate examples of coordination.
