Performance Measurement in State Departments of Transportation

TRB's National Cooperative Highway Research Program (NCHRP) Synthesis 238: Performance Measurement in State Departments of Transportation will be of interest to state transportation agency administrators, division and functional area managers, program managers, financial and human resources personnel, and others, including state legislators, who are concerned with implementing innovative programs in state departments of transportation (DOTs). It presents information on the degree to which state DOTs have developed and implemented performance measures in all transport modes for which they are responsible. With the advent of the Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act (ISTEA), as well as pressure from state governments for greater accountability of state funds, DOTs are increasingly endeavoring to develop performance measures to improve their productivity, and to respond to outside demands from state government and the public. This report of the Transportation Research Board describes how performance measures have evolved in state DOTs, the types of initiatives that have been developed, and the effectiveness of such measures in assessing performance and improving productivity, as perceived by the DOTs.