Designing for Operations
Designing for operations is the collaborative and systematic consideration of management and operations (M&O) during transportation project design and development. Designing for operations is typically reflected in increased or formalized collaboration between designers and operators and the development of design guidelines and procedures that reflect a broad range of operational considerations.
An effective approach to mainstreaming the practice of designing for operations stems from a strong connection to planning at the State and metropolitan levels. During planning for operations, regional or statewide objectives and performance measures for the operation of the transportation system are established. In overview, these operations objectives and performance measures provide designers and operators direction and a specific purpose when considering how to incorporate operations into the design of a transportation facility.
Performance-Based Practical Design
Performance Based Practical Design modifies the traditional highway design process by taking a "design up" approach where transportation decision makers exercise engineering judgment to build up the improvements from existing conditions to meet both project and system objectives. PBPD uses appropriate performance-analysis tools, considers both short and long term project and system goals while addressing project purpose and need. Information, case studies, and other materials on the FHWA Performance Based Practical Design initiative can be found at https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/design/pbpd/.
Transportation systems management and operations (TSMO) strategies can help agencies improve the safety, reliability, and cost‐effectiveness of their PBPD solutions. By incorporating the consideration of TSMO strategies into their Performance Based Practical Design processes, designers can expand the variety of design options available to them and perhaps postpone or reduce the need for conventional capacity improvements. Additionally, many of these operational strategies can be quickly deployed to offer benefits to the travelling public sooner than conventional capacity improvements.
- Use of Narrow Lanes and Narrow Shoulders on Freeways: A Primer on Experiences, Current Practice, and Implementation Considerations
- Use of Freeway Shoulders for Travel — Guide for Planning, Evaluating, and Designing Part-Time Shoulder Use as a Traffic Management Strategy
