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U.S. Department of Transportation

The Regional Concept for Transportation Operations: A Practitioner's Guide

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U.S. Department of Transportation
Federal Highway Administration

FHWA-HOP-11-032

Contact Information: Operations Feedback at OperationsFeedback@dot.gov.

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Table of Contents

empty cell
empty cell 1.1 Purpose and Background
empty cell 1.2 What is an RCTO?
empty cell 1.3 Benefits of an RCTO
empty cell 1.4 Updating and Maintaining an RCTO
Chapter 2 Putting the RCTO into Practice – RCTO Demonstration Sites
empty cell 2.1 Portland,Oregon
empty cell 2.2 Tucson, Arizona Metropolitan Area
empty cell 2.3 Southeast Michigan
empty cell 2.4 Hampton Roads, Virginia
Chapter 3 Developing an RCTO – Key Insights for Success
empty cell 3.1 The Motivation Leading to an RCTO
empty cell 3.2 Collaborative Forum for Developing an RCTO
empty cell 3.3 Linking the RCTO and the Planning Process
empty cell 3.4 The "What" and the "How" of the RCTO
Chapter 4 Looking Ahead
Appendix A A Practitioner's Checklist for Developing and Maintaining an RCTO
Appendix B RCTO Fundamentals
empty cell Foundations in Systems Thinking
empty cell RCTO Scope
empty cell RCTO Initiatives

List of Tables

Table 1 Overview of Portland, Oregon Demonstration Site
Table 2 Overview of Tucson, Arizona Demonstration Site
Table 3 The Tucson Team's RCTO Focus Areas, Objectives, and Performance Measures
Table 4 Approach for Meeting Operations Objectives
Table 5 Overview of Southeast Michigan Demonstration Site
Table 6 The Southeast Michigan Team's RCTO Focus Areas and Objectives
Table 7 Approach for Meeting Operations Objectives
Table 8 Overview of Hampton Roads, Virginia Demonstration Site
Table 9 The Hampton Roads Team's RCTO Objectives and Performance Measures for the TIM Focus Area
Table 10 Approach for Meeting Operations Objectives
Table 11 Guide to Topics Covered in Chapter 3
Table 12 Action Plan from the PAG RCTO showing Organizational Responsibilities in Integrating Area Traveler Information with Arizona 511
Table 13 Example of a Resource Estimate for Activities Identified in the PAG RCTO

List of Figures

Figure 1 The 2007 FHWA Publication, Regional Concept for Transportation Operations – The Blueprint for Action
Figure 2 Development Phases of an RCTO
Figure 3 The 2007 FHWA Publication, The Collaborative Advantage – Realizing the Tangible Benefits of Regional Transportation Operations Collaboration
Figure 4 Benefits of Implementing an RCTO can Accrue to Individual Agencies and to End Users of the Regional Transportation System
Figure 5 The RCTO can Evolve from "Problem-Driven" to a Broader, Integrated Approach to Regional Transportation System Management and Operation
Figure 6 Map of the RCTO Demonstration Sites
Figure 7 Map of Southeast Michigan
Figure 8 Map of Hampton Roads, Virginia
Figure 9 The Three Crucial Components to the Motivation for an RCTO
Figure 10 Metropolitan Mobility The Smart Way Executive Summary by Metro and ITS Oregon

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U.S. Department of Transportation
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Washington, DC 20590
Toll-Free "Help Line" 866-367-7487
www.ops.fhwa.dot.gov

Publication No.: FHWA-HOP-11-032

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