Operations Performance Measurement
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The Transportation Research Board (TRB) Performance Measurement Committee focuses on research on all transportation-related performance measures, including Operations Performance Measures. For more information on the Committee, visit the TRB Performance Measurement Committee Web site.
Featured Program
The Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) has a mature and highly-regarded performance measurement initiative that results in the quarterly Gray Notebook, a compendium of performance measures on the state's intermodal transportation system that includes a section on congestion-related metrics as well as other operations performance measures. Visit the WSDOT Accountability & Performance Information Web site for more information.
Performance measurement is the use of evidence to determine progress toward specific defined organizational objectives. This includes both quantitative evidence (such as the measurement of customer travel times) and qualitative evidence (such as the measurement of customer satisfaction and customer perceptions).
Operations performance measurement, therefore, measures progress toward meeting the objectives of transportation system management and operations. Although the specific objectives of management and operations activities vary among organizations, most relate to the overall goals of transportation mobility, productivity, and safety.
The FHWA Office of Operations is leading numerous activities to advance the implementation and practice of operations performance measurement at the Federal, State, and local level:
- Mobility Monitoring Program
A multi-year program to develop, demonstrate, and implement mobility and reliability performance measures. - Urban Congestion Reports
A monthly snapshot of traffic congestion and reliability trends at the national and city level, developed using archived traffic operations data. - National Traffic Congestion and Reliability Reports
Technical reports that communicate recent trends in congestion as well as strategies to manage congestion and improve mobility. - Travel Time Reliability Measures
Guidance documents on the need for, calculation of, and implementation of travel time reliability measures.
The following pages provide links to information and resources to assist in implementing operations performance measurement:
