Overview
The Second Strategic Highway Research Program (SHRP 2) L06 research determined that agencies with the most effective transportation systems management and operations (TSM&O) activities were differentiated not by budgets or technical skills alone, but by the existence of critical processes and institutional arrangements tailored to the unique features of TSM&O applications. The significance of this finding has been validated in 40 State and regional self-assessment workshops using the Capability Maturity Model (CMM) process. This report summarizes the general background, process, and outcomes of the CMM self-assessment workshop program.
Section 1 describes the basic SHRP 2 research identifying the key dimensions of capability needed to support effective TSM&O, the CMM framework structured around these dimensions, and the criteria for capability self-assessment in each. It describes the SHRP 2 and Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) sponsored workshops to date – their structure, process, and participants – and identifies the host State Department of Transportation (DOT) and regional entities.
Section 2 presents the general findings on TSM&O state-of-the-practice based on 40 workshops and subsequent implementation plans developed at 23 of those sites.
Section 3 presents a separate discussion for each of the six dimensions including:
- Key findings for the major elements of the subject dimension;
- Key synergies with other dimensions; and
- State DOT/Regional implementation plan priorities for the subject dimension.
Section 4 uses the common implementation plan priorities for the six dimensions as the basis for determination of a set of potential national activities needed both to disseminate best practice and to support development of certain new business and technical methods and processes. Important roles are seen for FHWA, the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO), and the National Operations Center of Excellence (NOCoE).
An appendix contains a comprehensive list of implementation plan priorities as indicated in the 23 workshops.
Organizing for operations involves making transportation systems management and operations (TSM&O) a central part of an agency’s mission and institutional structure. This is accomplished by advancing TSM&O programs and projects within the agency. A specific guidance framework has been developed to help transportation agencies improve the effectiveness of their TSM&O activities. The framework, the "Operations Capability Improvement Process," is based on self-evaluation regarding the key process and institutional capabilities required from a transportation agency (or group of agencies) to achieve effective TSM&O.
This framework is adapted from a concept developed in the information technology (IT) industry called the "Capability Maturity Model," which has been tailored to the transportation community. To read more, please visit Planning for Operations.