Overview
This brochure provides an overview of analytical methods that may be applied to assess the impacts and benefits of various operations strategies that are targeted at mitigating the negative effects of traffic congestion caused by non-typical conditions such as incidents, high demand (special events), inclement weather, and other causes.
Analyzing operations projects within a conventional benefit/cost analysis framework designed to assess more traditional capacity expansion projects can be challenging since many traditional benefit/cost analyses focus on measurement of project benefits based on "typical" (average demand, good weather, no incident) days.
Many operations strategies, meanwhile, are specifically targeted at non-typical conditions that occur as a result of non-recurring traffic incidents, inclement weather conditions, or periods of high demand. Since a disproportionate amount of the expected benefits of these strategies are incurred during non-typical conditions, the use of conventional analysis methods focused solely on typical recurring conditions will often result in the severe underestimation of potential benefits.
Therefore, a different approach to conducting analysis and benefit/cost estimation for operations strategies is often required to fully assess and capture the expected benefits. In response to the needs of system operators to conduct these specialized analyses, several initiatives have been undertaken in recent years at the national, state, and regional levels to develop enhanced analysis methodologies capable of assessing the benefits of operations strategies specifically targeted at improving travel during non-typical conditions.