Is developing a transportation sustainability program and establishing project level best practices (criteria) cost effective?

This question is one of the reasons why sustainability programs have not been well adopted and endorsed by many transportation management, engineering and maintenance representatives at the federal, state and local level and transportation lending institutions. Sustainability-cost effectiveness is an area that has not been well articulated to upper management and key decision makers.
The bottom-line is that many of the transportation decision makers do not care or see the value of sustainable elements, such as environmental habitat enhancement, unless there is a cost savings or perceived value. It is a challenge to put a cost toward increasing lynx mobility via sub-grade animal crossings or avoidance of species habitat. Read More

Why is it that the general public who use the federal and state highway transportation system are unwilling to invest in maintaining their current infrastructure system? Why is there so little political leadership to address this critical issue?  Read More

One of the many challenges facing federal state and local transportation agencies developing sustainable "green highway systems" is the lack of research and the subsequent adoption as inclusions in design/contractor specifications. If new sustainability based actions are to be realized on highways, new approaches and technologies need to be tested, proven and adopted by DOTs. A menu of sustainability based specifications needs to be provided to transportation designers, contractors and operation/maintenance professionals to improve implementation timing.  Read More

Summary of the 2011 Transportation Research Board (TRB) Waste Management & Resource Efficiency Committee Workshop; “Sustainability & Liability in Transportation”

The Sustainability & Liability in Transportation Workshop was held in Portland, Oregon (hosted by the Oregon Department of Transportation) from July 25-27, 2011. There were a total of 37 presentations given by national and international transportation professionals during the first two days of the workshop. The third day involved a boat tour of the Portland Harbor Superfund Site. The workshop was well attended by representatives from state departments of transportation, the Federal Highway Administration and transportation consulting firms. Read More

Sustainability based rating systems have become quite numerous over the past few years.  It is estimated that there are over 200 individual rating systems for civil engineering projects. I thought it would be informative to share a summary of some rating systems that are or are currently being planned to be used by transportation agencies. It is hard to determine if these rating systems will eventually be consolidated into just a few credible rating systems or programs. Many programs that have been developed are specific to an organization’s operations, environmental needs, local context and sustainability philosophy.  Read More

Planning and Environmental Linkages (PEL) is a very popular tool being used by FHWA and State Departments of Transportation (DOTs) in an attempt to improve the transportation planning process, while streamlining the NEPA process. The PEL concept is to integrate environmental, community and economic factors (sounds like sustainability elements) into the planning process.  Read More

Departments of Transportations (DOTs) and some municipal transportation departments have sustainability policies, programs and projects that are consistent with their environmental philosophy, stewardship guidance and mission statements. They fund numerous types of research projects in an attempt to protect and enhance the traveling public (community), the local environment and economic-social resources.  Some DOTs and municipalities have programs or guidance that address sustainability based element integration into transportation planning, NEPA, design, operation and maintenance and demolition. Many sustainability based actions are consistent with state and local climate action plans and existing stewardship guidance. Read More

No matter what it is called, climate change, climate chaos, global warming, or greenhouse effect, the dramatic warming of the earth represents a long term risk to State Departments of Transportation (DOTs). Many transportation professionals feel that this risk is non-existent or insignificant, since it is gradual and the effects are subtle and random. The two significant snow storms in Washington D.C. in the winter of 2009-2010 demonstrate the chaotic and episodic nature to our climate. These events had a significant impact on the momentum of climate change management in the US from a political and public point of view. Read More

Instituting sustainability into transportation processes is an area of interest of many State DOTs, municipal transportation departments and the Federal Highway Administration.  Many State DOT engineering managers claim to endorse sustainability without really understanding the sustainability concept, how to successfully integrate it into their transportation processes or even fully endorsing the concept. To really develop and implement a cost effective transportation sustainability program, sustainable design elements must be identified early in the design scoping phase of the project (with management support) as opposed to later in the design process where sustainable design elements are simply considered an afterthought. Read More

There is an enormous untapped resource that is managed by all US DOTs that can make a difference in electrical generation and consumption; it is called right of way (ROW). This often unused land area along highway systems can contain several types of alternative energy systems that can be used to generate electrical power for highway interchange lighting, signal lighting, rest areas, and maintenance facilities. Generated power can also be sent to the “grid” as a potential source of additional utility power and revenue. DOTs need to take a proactive sustainable management approach by taking advantage of this ROW as a resource; to reduce reliance of fossil fuel generated electricity that will reduce highway operation and maintenance costs.  Read More