Summer 2011

Message from the Chair by Daniela Bremmer, ABC30 Committee Chair	Greetings ABC30 committee friends and members. I hope you had a good year thus far. I welcome all new and existing members as the committee rotated its membership for the next three years and thank those who have served the committee so diligently over the past years. Your support and work was invaluable.
A Decade of Transparency at Washington State Department of Transportation by Laura Cameron and Dan Genz
Bringing Performance-Based Management to WMATA by Patricia Hendren	With the national focus on public agency accountability and transparency, transit agencies are looking for more effective ways to guide decision making, promote their agency and unify employees. The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) is no different and has taken a number of steps towards creating a more accountable and sustainable future. In 2010, the Office of Performance was created to increase the usage of performance information throughout the agency.
Lessons from trying a Jobs-Housing Balance Indicator for Virginia Regional Planning by John Miller	In the second edition of the ITE Transportation Planning Handbook, Atkins stated: ―Livability is one of those terms that is nearly impossible to define, as the definition will vary greatly depending on the individual and their values.
Measuring Livability by Elizabeth Sanford	Livability is a multifaceted, dynamic, and flexible concept that is closely related to integrated planning. Many transportation agencies and associations at national, state, and regional levels have been thinking about how to measure this concept; this article presents some initial thoughts. Livability is a relatively new goal area for many agencies. When developing performance measures, agencies often focus on measures that can be easily quantified, such as impacts of transportation on the natural environment (e.g.
Performance-Based Planning in Central Indiana by Joe Guerre	The Indianapolis Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) represents a 9-county region around Indianapolis, with a population of over 1,800,000. The MPO recently completed a major update to its Long Range Transportation Plan (LRTP). The 2035 LRTP reflects the national trend in performance-based planning. This article briefly summarizes the performance framework used to develop the plan. For further details refer to the 2035 LRTP, which is available on the Indianapolis MPO’s web site.
Travel Time Reliability for Systems Planning Reporting and Project Programming by Doug McLeod	Travel time reliability is recognized as an important quality of service measure to travelers, motorists and freight haulers. For statewide reporting and system level prioritization of projects, application of an on-time arrival predictive model is the most appropriate way to address travel time reliability. A predictive model also can be used to conduct “what if” analyses and testing possible Intelligent Transportation System (ITS) strategies. FDOT’s Travel Time Reliability Model FDOT’s travel time reliability model consists of four major components:
Another Successful Performance Measurement Conference! by Katie Turnbull	The Transportation Research Board’s 4th International Transportation Systems Performance Measurement Conference was held May 18-20, 2011 at the Beckman Center in Irvine, California. The conference was sponsored by the TRB Performance Measurement Committee, the Federal Highway Administration, and the Federal Transit Administration.
MoDOT’s Performance System Offers Stability in Uncertain Times by Mara Campbell	Much like a roadmap, organizations need foundational documents to guide activities from long-range planning to daily business decisions. This focus can be especially important during periods of political upheaval, leadership changes and tight budgets. At the Missouri Department of Transportation, those foundational documents are the Value Statements and the Tangible Results. This past year, MoDOT worked with its managers to revisit these two organizational documents and subsequently further refine its performance measures.

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