2.0 DATA SOURCES, AVAILABILITY, AND RISKS

2.1 Data Sources

Two primary data sources will be used in this test plan. The first data source is on-line search engines. Two on-line search tools, Google Alerts and Vocus, will be used to monitor news articles, radio and television coverage, and other media sources. Information from the Minnesota UPA agency partners represents the second data source. Press releases, outreach activities, public education, and marketing information provided by the partnership agencies will be documented and analyzed. As available, letters, e-mails, and telephone calls received by the agencies will also be examined.

Google Alerts and Vocus. Google Alerts is a free on-line search engine that tracks news articles, web-based information, blogs, video, and other media information based on search terms. Members of the Battelle team, including the Texas Transportation Institute (TTI), have signed up with Google Alerts and have entered key terms based on each of the UPA sites. Examples of key terms for the Minnesota UPA projects include I-35W HOT lanes, Priced Dynamic Shoulder Lanes, lane guidance for shoulder-running buses, park-and-ride lots, Second and Marquette downtown bus lanes, and Minnesota UPA. Vocus is a private company providing a range of web-based products and services. TTI's Media Relations group contracts with Vocus for a variety of services, including tracking media and on-line coverage based on search terms. Key words for the Minneapolis UPA projects have been added to TTI's search terms at no cost to the national UPA evaluation.

Minnesota UPA Partnership Agency Information. Information from the Minnesota UPA agencies will also be used in the content analysis test plan. Reports, documents, press releases, outreach and public education activities, and marketing materials from the partnership agencies will be reviewed and analyzed on an ongoing basis. Mn/DOT, the Metropolitan Council, Metro Transit, MVTA, and other partners use these methods to communicate with the public, travelers in the targeted corridors, policy makers, and other groups. In addition, memoranda of understanding (MOUs), resolutions approved by agency and jurisdiction boards and committees, executive actions, legislation, and other related documents will be obtained from partnership agencies and reviewed on an ongoing basis. Examples of this information might include agency resolutions authorizing initial participation in the Minnesota UPA application, committing project funding, and designating staff support.

The partnering agencies, with the assistance of the Hubert H. Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs at the University of Minnesota, have undertaken an outreach and education program as part of the UPA process. Staff from the Institute and the Center for Transportation Studies have included Battelle team members on the distribution list for these efforts. In addition, the Mn/DOT and the MARQ2 websites send out regular updates on the status of construction and other project elements. Members of the Battelle team signed up for these notifications and have been receiving the regular updates. Members of the Battelle team will monitor these activities and will document press releases and other outreach activities. Members of the Battelle team will also obtain and analyze any MOUs, agency and jurisdiction resolutions, legislation, executive actions, and other related documents. To the extent the information is available, members of the Battelle team will also obtain information from the agencies on letters, e-mails, and telephone calls received about the UPA projects.

2.2 Data Availability

As Table 2-1 highlights, partial pre-deployment information is available from the two sources used in this test plan. In addition, Battelle team members were able to attend one of the initial stakeholder outreach forums in August, 2008. It is anticipated that post-deployment information will be available, with the possible exception of extensive tracking of letters, e-mails, and telephone calls received by the partnership agencies.

Table 2-1. Available Pre- and Post-Deployment Information

Data Source	Pre-Deployment	Post-Deployment
Google Alerts and Vocus	Partial	Yes
Partnership Agencies	Partial	Yes

2.3 Potential Risks

There do not appear to be any significant risks associated with obtaining information from the sources outlined previously, except with some agency records as noted below. Members of the Battelle team have been receiving information from Google Alerts, Vocus, Mn/DOT, and the MARQ2 project, and no interruption in these data sources is expected. Team members have also reviewed the legislation providing Mn/DOT with the authority to implement and operate the PDSL and providing funding for the telecommuting program and other project elements.

While Metro Transit maintains tracking logs of letters, e-mails, and telephone calls, other partnership agencies no longer maintain extensive tracking logs. This limiting factor represents a potential risk that some feedback from the public and other groups may not be recorded. Available information will be provided to members of the Battelle team, but not all comments may be captured. Since the Battelle team will continue to have access to letters to the editor, opinion pieces, blogs, and other publicly available information through Google Alerts, Vocus, Mn/DOT, and the MARQ2 project, the risk that significant information for the content analysis will be lost is judged to be low. Thus, no special efforts to address the low risk are recommended.