Below are the first 10 and last 10 pages of uncorrected machine-read text (when available) of this chapter, followed by the top 30 algorithmically extracted key phrases from the chapter as a whole.
Intended to provide our own search engines and external engines with highly rich, chapter-representative searchable text on the opening pages of each chapter.
Because it is UNCORRECTED material, please consider the following text as a useful but insufficient proxy for the authoritative book pages.
Do not use for reproduction, copying, pasting, or reading; exclusively for search engines.
OCR for page 45
CHAPTER 3
Training Approaches
and Priorities
The most important element with respect to the implementation of the findings of this NCHRP
project is that the survey public--consisting of MPOs, survey consultants, state DOTs, and other
agencies involved in the commissioning and execution of surveys--should become knowledgeable
of the recommended standardized procedures and that they should be accepted as a starting point
for the improvement of survey quality in transportation surveys.
3.1 Workshops
We suggest that there should be one or more workshops on the standardized procedures and
guidelines. Ideally, one such workshop should take place in conjunction with the TRB Annual
Meeting. It is also important that as many survey firms and consultants who use survey firms also
be involved in the workshops. Another potential manner of holding the workshop would be to
organize it as a stand-alone conference/workshop, to be held at an appropriate time and place.
3.2 Adoption by the Transportation
and Development Institute of the ASCE
The recently formed Transportation and Development Institute (TDI) of ASCE has appointed
a standards committee in the area of transportation economics and planning. At present, it has not
been completely clear for what standards this committee would become responsible. However, ini-
tial discussions with committee chairs in the TDI have indicated some considerable interest that
this committee might take a responsibility for promulgating standards and guidelines developed
out of the standardized procedures of this document. Again, however, the main problem is one of
funding, if the committee's role is also seen as one of continually updating and promulgating stan-
dards. ASCE is not in a position to provide significant funding to its committees for such activities.
Like the TRB, it tends to rely heavily on volunteer efforts of the professionals associated with it.
Therefore, it will again be necessary to consider how a source of funds might be made available to
the committee.
However, it would seem that a joint committee effort of the ASCE and TRB might provide an
appropriate mechanism for promulgating standardized procedures of this type. Furthermore,
the ASCE will bring an additional dimension, in terms of likely audiences for the standards.
3.3 National Highway Institute Course
A regular training course should be developed from the materials in this report to form one of
the National Highway Institute (NHI) courses. Development of the course would necessarily be at
45
