Office of Operations
21st Century Operations Using 21st Century Technologies
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Integrating Travel Time Reliability into Transportation System Management

Executive Summary

This report documents a Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) project led by the Office of Operations to address the gaps between planning and operations. Its intent was to evolve the state of the practice by building a methodology supported by the data and analysis tools developed under the Second Strategic Highway Research Program (SHRP2). The project was motivated by the need to connect system-level, goal and objective-setting in the transportation planning process and operations planning that occurs among operators. Long-range transportation planning is typically not linked to detailed, tactical operations decisions made at the corridor or network level. The objectives of this project were to:

  • Develop and demonstrate a framework or method for integrating travel time reliability concepts and analysis in systems management, operations, systems planning, and programming.
  • Show how the framework can be used to connect planning-level reliability goals and objectives to operational objectives and transportation systems management and operations (TSMO) strategies and tactics.

The project team reviewed over 30 documents to identify examples and overarching guidance on the use of operational and reliability analysis to develop transportation system management goals, objectives, and performance targets and make planning, investment, and tactical decisions. The team found examples of State departments of transportation (DOTs) and metropolitan planning organizations (MPOs) using reliability or operational analysis in setting direction for performance targets and in identifying needs for system performance improvements. There was limited use found of reliability and operational analysis in forecasting the benefits of operational improvements or tactical decisions. The project team identified several barriers to the use of travel time reliability analysis tools in planning and implementing system management strategies including technical, institutional, and financial.

The document-based research and input from an expert practitioner group led to the development of a basic five-step methodology that provides a connection from system-level goals and objectives developed at the planning level to more detailed operational objectives, operational approaches, and tactics deployed at the corridor or network level. This methodology recommends the use of reliability data and analysis tools, when available, to move from one step to the next. By using this methodology, the operational tactics or actions taken to manage the transportation system are derived from and contribute to system-level goals and objectives. This methodology is iterative such that objectives and targets are revisited based on the actual or forecasted impact of the tactics. This methodology is shown in figure 1.

Diagram depicts the five step methodology for linking broader system-level goals to more detailed operational objectives. These include step 1, establishing system-level goals; step 2, developing system-level objectives and setting targets; step 3, developing corridor or network-level objectives and setting targets; step 4, identifying the operational approach; and step 5, selecting operational tactics. Step 5 leads back to steps 2 and 3 and a label indicates the need to revisit targets base on the tactics selected.
Source: FHWA.
Figure 1. Diagram. Methodology for linking from system-level goals and objectives developed at the planning level to more detailed operational objectives, operational approaches, and tactics.

Continued refinement of this methodology through future efforts should further explore correlations between this methodology and other processes to create a unified process that harmonizes terminology, anticipates the integration of emerging transportation services and technologies, and identifies opportunities to overcome structural constraints (e.g., funding timelines, institutional silos) that obstruct a seamless approach to systems management from planning through implementation.

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