Performance Results: Assessing the Impacts of Implemented Transportation Projects
December 2011, Report

The North Jersey Transportation Planning Authority (NJTPA) has published the Final Report for their project, “Performance Results: Assessing the Impacts of Implemented Transportation Projects.” CS supported NJTPA in improving the agency’s ability to assess impacts of prior investments in the transportation system. Accompanying the Final Report is a Guidebook that documents the technical issues, approaches and challenges that transportation practitioners will need to consider as part of any project-level performance assessment process. The Guidebook serves as a living resource manual to be updated as the state of the practice in performance evaluation evolves. Click to download the Report or Guidebook.

Framework and Tools for Estimating Benefits of Specific Freight Network Investments
November 2011, Report

For the National Cooperative Freight Research Program, Cambridge Systematics led the research and development of an integrated, analytical framework to help freight planning and investment decision-makers evaluate complex freight investment decisions. This framework, which is designed to be used with existing cost/benefit, impact assessment, and other analytical tools, defines a wide range of both public and private benefits and is capable of handling projects of varying size, scale, and modal combinations. Ultimately, it can be used to enhance public planning and decision-making processes regarding freight transportation investments and facilitate public/private cooperation by transparently defining the distribution of cost burdens and potential benefits among different stakeholders.

A Guidebook for Sustainability Performance Measurement for Transportation Agencies
November 2011, Report

For TRB’s National Cooperative Highway Research Program, Cambridge Systematics assisted with the effort to prepare a guide for state departments of transportation and other transportation agencies that describes the underlying principles of sustainability as it relates to transportation, possible goals that can be used to address those principles, and performance measures that can be used to address those goals. Aspects of sustainability-related performance measures, including data sources and examples of use, are discussed. A reference compendium of performance measures has also been provided.

Uses of Risk Management and Data Management to Support Target-Setting for Performance-Based Resource Allocation by Transportation Agencies
November 2011, Report

For TRB’s National Cooperative Highway Research Program (NCHRP), Cambridge Systematics led the effort to prepare a guide that describes how risk management and data management may be used by transportation agencies to support management target-setting for performance based resource allocation. As the final product of a second phase of NCHRP Project 08-70, “Target-Setting Methods and Data Management to Support Performance-Based Resource Allocation by Transportation Agencies,” NCHRP Report 706 supplements NCHRP Report 666 published in 2010.

Crashes vs. Congestion – What’s The Cost to Society
November 2011, Report

For the American Automobile Association (AAA), Cambridge Systematics developed an update to the "Crashes vs. Congestion – What’s The Cost to Society" report that we first prepared in 2008. Originally designed to raise awareness among policymakers, DOTs, and the public about the magnitude of the safety problem and the importance of transportation investments for reducing the number and severity of crashes, AAA embarked on an update to this study in 2011 to revisit results based on the most recent available data.

Highway Safety Manual Training Guide
September 2011, Report

For the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), Cambridge Systematics led the development of a guide focused on identifying Highway Safety Manual (HSM) training currently available to state and local agencies who are considering implementation of the HSM. The guide identifies key focus groups and outlines training needs and course modules sequentially. It also provides a specific reference to training methods given limited ability to travel costs, in addition to a summary of different training delivery methods and recommendations for optimal training approaches presented in the HSM. The guide focuses only on courses directly applicable to content in the HSM and only those provided by NHI, FHWA, and ITE.

NCFRP Project 36(03): Multi-State Freight Transportation Organizations
September 2011, On-line Report

For the National Cooperative Freight Research Program (NCFRP), Cambridge Systematics conducted a study to expand upon the work completed as part of NCFRP Report #2. The research examines approaches to establishing multi-state freight transportation organizations that can effectively develop and implement long-term investment plans. The report has a special focus on the legal and financial requirements as well as the composition, structure, and decision-making components of the organization.

Frederick County Freight and Freight Dependent Land Use Study
August 2011, Report

For the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments, Cambridge Systematics led a study that identified both transportation and land use strategies to improve the way in which Frederick County prepares for the future growth of freight transportation. Appropriate transportation infrastructure recommendations were developed and a toolkit of strategies for county-wide application was produced to improve the coordination between freight-related land uses and the multimodal transportation system.

SHRP 2 Report S2-S03-RW-1: Roadway Measurement System Evaluation
August 2011, Report

For the Strategic Highway Research Program (SHRP), Cambridge Systematics assisted in SHRP 2 Safety Project S03 to document the evaluation of automated/mobile data-collection services to provide data on roadway features and characteristics considered important for safety analysis, especially analysis of data from the SHRP 2 Naturalistic Driving Study (NDS).

How We Travel: A Sustainable National Program for Travel Data
July 2011, Report

TRB Special Report 304: How We Travel: A Sustainable National Program for Travel Data assesses the current state of travel data at the Federal, state, and local levels and defines an achievable and sustainable travel data system that could support public and private transportation decision-making. Lance Grenzeback of Cambridge Systematics served on the Committee on Strategies for Improved Passenger and Freight Travel Data that produced this report.  A 4-page summary of this report is also available.

NCHRP 25-25 (67): A Practitioner’s Handbook: Optimizing Conservation and Improving Mitigation Through the Use of Progressive Approaches
July 2011, Report

For the American Association of State Highway & Transportation Officials Standing Committee of Environment (SCOE), Cambridge Systematics assembled a team of leading experts in environmental mitigation, who assessed the potential benefits of progressive approaches to the Clean Water Act or Endangered Species Act compensatory mitigation compared to more traditional techniques. This report highlights new tools and methodologies that state DOTs can use to implement cost-effective mitigation with high quality ecological results.

Chattanooga Regional Freight Profile
June 2011, Report

For the Chattanooga-Hamilton County Transportation Planning Organization (TPO), Cambridge Systematics developed a regional freight study that includes a profile of freight activity in the area, including economic output and employment related to goods movement, regional trade patterns, truck and rail safety, and a rail-highway crossing inventory. Solutions were identified based on the TPO's current project selection process so they aligned with the goals and objectives of the 2035 Long-Range Transportation Plan.

El Paso Regional Ports of Entry Operations Plan
June 2011, Report

For the Texas Department of Transportation and the City of El Paso, Cambridge Systematics led the development of a Regional Port of Entry Operations Plan for the El Paso Metropolitan region. This Operations Plan presents a new, system-based approach focused on identifying and implementing operational strategies to maximize the use of the region’s six existing crossings. The findings and recommendations included within this plan should be used by the region to plan and invest in its cross-border transportation system in a way that reflects the interests of all regional stakeholders, both now
and in the future.

Policy Options for Reducing Energy Use and Greenhouse Gas Emissions from U.S. Transportation
June 2011, Report

TRB Special Report 307: Policy Options for Saving Energy and Reducing Greenhouse Gas Emissions from Transportation examines the potential for policies targeting cars and light trucks, medium and heavy trucks, and commercial airliners to yield major changes in transportation energy use and emissions trends. Lance Grenzeback of Cambridge Systematics and CS Board Member, Emil Frankel, served on the Committee for a Study of Potential Energy Savings and Greenhouse Gas Reductions from Transportation that produced this report. A 4-page summary of this report is also available.

Adapting Transportation to the Impacts of Climate Change: State of the Practice 2011
June 2011, Report

TRB’s Transportation Research E-Circular E-C152: Adapting Transportation to the Impacts of Climate Change: State of the Practice 2011 focuses on transportation adaptation practices that can be implemented to yield potential benefits now and in the longer term. This document highlights what climate change adaptation means for the transportation industry and consists of individually authored sections that represent the viewpoints of the authors. Joanne Potter and Alan Meyers of Cambridge Systematics, and Michael Savonis co-authored one of the articles on Climate Change Impacts on Ports.

Intermodal Transportation: Moving Freight In A Global Economy
June 2011, Book

Authored by renowned transportation and logistics experts, Intermodal Transportation: Moving Freight In A Global Economy describes the evolution of transportation and discusses how all transport modes interact, change, and grow within society. Lance Grenzeback and Rich Margiotta of Cambridge Systematics co-authored a chapter on Congested Networks in this new book produced by the Eno Transportation Foundation.

NCFRP Report 10: Performance Measures for Freight Transportation
May 2011, Report

For the National Cooperative Freight Research Program (NCFRP), Cambridge Systematics identified measures to gauge the performance of the national freight transportation system. The research examined hundreds of public and private sector freight performance measures, and then recommended a set of indices organized into an "at-a-glance freight dashboard." The dashboard summarizes the current and projected future performance of the freight transport system covering freight demand, system capacity and infrastructure condition, cost, reliability, safety, and environmental effects. The measures can be applied at the national, multi-state, and state levels, and are designed to support investment, operations, and policy decisions by public and private stakeholders.

Indianapolis Metropolitan Planning Area 2035 Long-Range Transportation Plan – Volume 1
April 2011, Report

For the Indianapolis Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO), Cambridge Systematics led the development of Indianapolis Region’s Long-Range Transportation Plan. The plan supports the safe and efficient movement of people and goods within the region through the plan horizon year of 2035. The effort included developing a performance-based planning process, identifying priority corridors, refining the MPO’s project prioritization methodology, and developing a transit vision for the region. The plan established the purpose and need for major projects included in the Federal transportation funding program, identifies activities to address major transportation issues, and allocates transportation funds in the region.

NCHRP 20-24(58): Relationship Between Asset Management and Performance Management
April 2011, Paper

For the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials Committee on Performance Management (SCOPM), Cambridge Systematics developed a white paper that discusses and clarifies the relationship between performance management and asset management. Both performance management and asset management are critical concepts for the transportation industry in advancing a new era of accountability and understanding the overlaps and relationship is valuable to help minimize duplication of effort. The paper also describes a core set of performance management principles that apply to both asset management and broader performance management efforts.

Integrated Corridor Management using ITS – Analysis, Modeling and Simulation
April 2011, Paper

Vassili Alexiadis of Cambridge Systematics authored a paper that documents the analysis methodologies, tools, and performance measures used to analyze Integrated Corridor Management (ICM) and Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) strategies; and presents high-level results for the successful implementation of ICM at three Stage 2 Pioneer Sites. The paper also describes a comprehensive methodology that can be used in the analysis of ITS systems all over the world and is general and valid internationally.

Virginia Statewide Multimodal Freight Study, Phase II
April 2011, Report

For the Commonwealth of Virginia, Cambridge Systematics recently led a major comprehensive statewide multimodal freight study. This groundbreaking study focused on the critical relationship between efficient freight movement and Virginia’s economic growth and competitiveness. The results will help guide the Commonwealth’s multimodal investments, freight policies, and long-range plans through the year 2035. The study was conducted in two phases. Phase I provided analyses of current freight movement by mode, infrastructure condition and sufficiency, future forecasts, stakeholder and user inputs, and bottleneck identification. Phase II developed capital program and investment recommendations for the Commonwealth’s highways, seaports, railroads, and airports, along with supporting policy recommendations. A key part of the Phase II work was a multimodal freight benefit-cost evaluation demonstrating the long-term economic value of freight-focused investments. 

Importance of Traveler Attitudes in the Choice of Public Transportation to Work:
Findings from the Regional Transportation Authority (RTA) Attitudinal Survey
April 2011, Report

Yasasvi Popuri, Kimon Proussaloglou, Cemal Ayvalik of Cambridge Systematics, Frank Koppelman, and Aimee Lee co-authored a paper that will appear in a special issue of Transportation Journal (Springer). The report examines public transit choice in the Chicago area using data from a recent Attitudinal Survey conducted by the Regional Transportation Authority in Northeastern Illinois and demonstrates the importance of understanding trip-maker attitudes and accounting for their impact on the choice of public transportation to work. 

Cumberland Area Long-Range Transportation Plan
March 2011, Report

For the Maryland Department of Transportation, Cambridge Systematics led the development of the Cumberland Area’s Long-Range Transportation Plan to facilitate the safe and efficient movement of people and goods throughout the region. The plan assesses existing and future conditions for the multimodal network, presents a constrained project list, and identifies the region’s multimodal transportation needs and funding for projects through 2035. Specifically, the plan focuses on integrating land use planning and transportation planning and views the various transportation modes as a network, rather than as separate entities.

Accelerating Federal Program and Project Delivery
March 2011, Report

For the Orange County Transportation Authority (OCTA), Cambridge Systematics analyzed the sources of delay to implementing highway and transit projects that use Federal funding. The analyses addressed the full range of regulatory processes and administration that apply to procurement, planning, permitting, and construction phases, including practices by the grantees themselves. A series of options were developed for consideration. OCTA adopted the report and advanced its recommendations at the national level to integrate the findings in surface transportation reauthorization and regulatory reviews.

A CFO’s Handbook on Performance Management
March 2011, Paper

For the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials Center for Excellence in Funding and Finance, Cambridge Systematics prepared a CFO's Handbook on Performance Management. This paper focuses on the question of how performance management techniques can improve the funding and finance activities of state DOTs. Cambridge Systematics conducted a survey and interviews of state DOT Chief Financial Officers, as well as a review of best practices from the literature. 

Montana Transportation and Land Use Toolkit
March 2011, Toolkit

Cambridge Systematics led a team that developed a web-based toolkit to help transportation and community planners in small to mid-size communities integrate land use and transportation planning and decision-making. The toolkit, which was developed for the Montana Department of Transportation (MDT), includes detailed descriptions of more than 30 tools for planning, policy development, financing, community engagement, and technical analysis. The toolkit, which is maintained by MDT, features many comprehensive case studies and examples of tool applications along with links to related web sites and publications.

Bottleneck Performance in the I-95 Corridor Baseline Analysis Using Vehicle Probe Data
February 2011, Report

For the I-95 Corridor Coalition, Cambridge Systematics developed an analysis and reporting framework for monitoring travel conditions in the Corridor. The study was based on the continuous travel time and speed data purchased from a private data provider, Inrix, for its Vehicle Probe Project. The project monitored long distance travel between major city pairs, and performance of major bottlenecks in the Corridor. The report established a baseline for bottleneck and intercity delay in the I-95 Corridor and provided a template for using the Inrix data for performance monitoring into the future.

BHJ Study
January 2011, Report

For the Brooke-Hancock-Jefferson Metropolitan Planning Commission (BHJ), Cambridge Systematics led a Regional Freight Study to help BHJ and its stakeholders understand the nature and critical value of goods traveling to, from, and through the region, and to proactively plan for future growth. The study also helped identify the Region's economic drivers and the linkages between these drivers and the transportation system, which enabled the Region to take advantage of the existing freight infrastructure to help foster economic growth.

European Advanced Driver Training Programs: Reasons for Optimism
January 2011, Report

Susan B. Herbel of Cambridge Systematics, Simon Washington, and Robert J. Cole co-authored an article in IATTS Research, an international journal sponsored by the International Association of Traffic and Safety Sciences. The article demonstrates how European countries have shown significant promise with post-license advanced-driver training programs that focus on factors such as self actualization and driving discipline, rather than low-level mastery of skills. These programs require considerable specialized and costly infrastructure, including dedicated driver training facilities with driving modules engineered specifically for advanced driver training and highly structured curriculums. Both are clearly missing from the U.S. road safety toolbox and academic literature. Given the considerable road safety concerns associated with U.S. novice male drivers and the positive effects from the programs, further attention and research is warranted. If additional well-controlled studies can validate these programs, a pilot program in the U.S. should be considered. 

Go OHIO Transportation Futures Plan
January 2011, Report

The Go Ohio Transportation Future Plan captures cutting-edge analysis to better understand the relationship between transportation, economic growth and prosperity in the State. Cambridge Systematics conducted research for the Ohio Department of Transportation (DOT), using public outreach workshops throughout the state, at which major concepts were presented and keypad polling technology was used to obtain input from participants. This 2011 plan provides insight into future trends that will affect Ohio’s ability to move people and goods, and better understand what changes need to be made to drive positive economic growth.

Florida Trade and Logistics Study
January 2011, Report

Cambridge Systematics led a comprehensive study of Florida’s competitiveness as a global center for trade, logistics, and distribution. Funded by a coalition of public and private partners, including, the Florida Chamber Foundation, the Florida Department of Transportation (DOT), the Florida Ports Council, and business and economic development organizations statewide, the study provides a comprehensive database of current and future freight flows, as well as a series of strategy documents and potential policy proposals. 

Policy, Strategic Planning, and Management

Performance Management

Environment

Forecasting

Operations and Simulation

Transportation Safety

Tolling and Road Pricing

Economic Analysis

Freight Systems and Intermodal Planning

Transit

Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and Data Management

Corridor and Systems Planning

Asset Management