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Suggested Citation:"Module 1 - Using the Guidebook." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2007. Guidebook for Freight Policy, Planning, and Programming in Small- and Medium-Sized Metropolitan Areas. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/14036.
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Suggested Citation:"Module 1 - Using the Guidebook." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2007. Guidebook for Freight Policy, Planning, and Programming in Small- and Medium-Sized Metropolitan Areas. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/14036.
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Suggested Citation:"Module 1 - Using the Guidebook." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2007. Guidebook for Freight Policy, Planning, and Programming in Small- and Medium-Sized Metropolitan Areas. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/14036.
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Below is the uncorrected machine-read text of this chapter, intended to provide our own search engines and external engines with highly rich, chapter-representative searchable text of each book. Because it is UNCORRECTED material, please consider the following text as a useful but insufficient proxy for the authoritative book pages.

The analytical framework for conventional—passenger-oriented—transportation planning, as practiced by MPOs nationwide, has a great deal of uniformity. In many cases, problems and issues from MPO to MPO are quite similar and are closely related to population levels, that is, areas of similar size often have similar transportation issues. The same cannot be said for freight planning. Problems and issues differ significantly and the dynamics of the private sector freight industry often result in smaller regions suffering from the same types of congestion and access issues that used to be reserved for large, urban areas. While there is no standard approach for addressing freight issues in a region, there is a framework for addressing freight planning that has a common sequence and common elements. This Guidebook provides a flexible, problem focused framework that allows individual MPOs to structure a tailored approach to freight plan- ning that reflects their knowledge, resources, and local conditions. Incorporating freight policy, planning, and programming activities into an existing metro- politan transportation planning process may represent additional work for MPO staff and may require the commitment of additional resources, completion of training programs, the develop- ment of targeted outreach efforts, or other strategies. Recognizing this, the approaches defined in this Guidebook represent varying levels of effort designed to help MPO staff effectively man- age the development of their freight programs; the sequential steps provided throughout the doc- ument are “guidelines” that staff should use to develop an approach that meets regional needs and matches available resources. Who Should Use This Guidebook? The Guidebook is designed for those involved in MPO freight policy, planning, and program- ming activities in small- and medium-sized metropolitan areas. It is structured to provide guidance to MPO staff members as they develop or enhance their metropolitan freight planning programs. The Guidebook defines basic approaches to help staff get started in freight planning and advanced approaches for those who are interested in more sophisticated freight planning activities or who wish to enhance existing freight planning programs. MPO staff designated to lead freight planning activities should become familiar with the entire document. Individual components of the Guide- book can then be used by practitioners to get an overview of a subject, delve into areas of particu- lar interest, or identify additional references on specific topics or on terminology of freight planning. How Should the Guidebook Be Used? To reduce the Guidebook framework to its simplest terms, Modules 1 and 2 are introductory elements that describe the process, evaluate current freight knowledge, and identify initial focus 1-1 M O D U L E 1 Using the Guidebook

areas for freight program development, including a list of proposed activities. Module 3 provides specific guidelines for a range of subject areas. These guidelines describe key activities that should be undertaken to develop specific elements of a regional freight program. Module 4 provides a set of activities to develop a comprehensive freight planning program. Module 5 identifies cate- gorized references to resources that will assist staff with freight program development activities. To effectively use the Guidebook, it is important to first work through Modules 1 and 2. Upon completion of these activities, staff will be better prepared to select an initial set of freight pro- gram development activities. Once these activities have been identified, the appropriate mix of guidelines should be selected from Module 3. In addition, the Guidebook provides the ability to develop a freight program iteratively over time. Local issues and available resources will likely prevent most MPOs from implementing all the guidelines provided in Module 3. However, as part of regular updates, the Guidebook can be used repeatedly to create a freight program that evolves over time. A description of each of the modules follows and the entire process is shown in Figure 1.1. • Module 1. Using the Guidebook. This module provides (a) guidance on who should use the guide book, (b) suggestions on how to get started, (c) an overview of the entire process, (d) a description of the modules, and (e) instructions on how to effectively use this Guidebook. • Module 2. Getting Started. This module provides a series of exercises designed to help users evaluate the degree to which freight issues and concerns already are being addressed within existing transportation planning programs. In addition, it helps users use the results of this evaluation to identify specific freight planning activities that are most appropriate for their region and organization. • Module 3. Integrating Freight into MPO Activities. This module provides specific guidelines that serve as the menu of freight policy, planning, and programming elements. This menu will be used to develop a priority list of elements to form the initial freight planning work program. • Module 4. Putting It All Together. This module provides a comprehensive list of sequential steps that could be taken to establish a freight transportation program. Although most MPOs will not undertake all of the steps at once, it is critical that staff understands how each step or activity fits into an overall freight program. • Module 5. Identifying Freight Resources. This module provides a variety of critical freight data and resource references, including resources available from FHWA’s FPD program, a list of available freight-related databases for North America, federal funding and financing pro- grams, MPO case studies, and several freight glossary sources. 1-2 Guidebook for Freight Policy, Planning, and Programming in Small- and Medium-Sized Metropolitan Areas

Using the Guidebook 1-3 Transportation improvement programming incorporates data and projects from the long- range planning process into an established set of activities that prioritize, select, and fund projects Professional Development Resources Freight Related Databases Federal Funding Programs MPO Case Studies Freight Glossary References Provides instructions on how to effectively use the Guidebook Module 2 – Getting Started Long-Range Planning Transportation Improvement Programming Unified Planning Work Program Provides a range of specific guidelines to stimulate freight policy, planning, and programming activities within established MPO program functions Provides references to available freight resources. It also includes a complete set of the case studies developed as part of this project Identifies available data, resources, and research that could be used by MPO staff to facilitate freight policy, planning, and programming activities Introduction Long-range planning covers development and maintenance of long-range plans, data collection and analysis progams, identification of needs and projects, and other research and planning initiatives The UPWP is the management plan for an MPO, which identifies and schedules all of the planning activities that need to be accomplished on an annual basis Tools Developing Freight LRP Element Developing Freight Project Evaluation Criteria Developing Regional Freight Profile Identifying Freight Needs and Deficiencies Developing Freight Policy Directive Identifying Innovative Funding and Financing Techniques Developing Freight Performance Measures Assessing Freight Project Impacts Identifying Freight Projects Addressing Freight Analysis in Corridor Plans/Studies Freight Self-Assessment An exercise to assess freight expertise relating to the region’s freight system Definition of Freight Planning Program Stage Evaluates self-assessment and describes freight planning program as basic or intermediate/advanced Identification of Program Elements and Freight Planning Guidelines Identifies appropriate mix of activities to enhance an existing or develop a new freight planning program Module 1 – Using the Guidebook Provides users with a brief backround on the importance of freight transportation policy, planning, and programming activities, and highlights the motivation for the Guidebook development Module 3 – Integrating Freight into MPO Activities Module 5 – Identifying Freight Resources Provides a comprehensive list of sequential steps that could be taken to establish a freight transportation program Module 4 – Putting It All Together 1) Assign lead... 2) Establish goals... 3) Develop profile... 4) Engage partners... 5) Define needs... 6) Key decisions... 7) Refine goals... 8) Develop data... 9) Establish measures... 10) Identify projects... 11) Develop criteria... 12) Integrate into... 13) Fund and deploy... 14) Develop process... and Training Education Outreach Partnerships Data and and Analytical Figure 1.1. Guidebook architecture.

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Guidebook for Freight Policy, Planning, and Programming in Small- and Medium-Sized Metropolitan Areas Get This Book
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TRB's National Cooperative Highway Research Program (NCHRP) Report 570: Guidebook for Freight Policy, Planning, and Programming in Small- and Medium-Sized Metropolitan Areas explores how freight policy, planning, and programming processes can be most effectively designed, initiated, and managed in metropolitan areas of these sizes. The report examines lessons learned from experiences in small- and medium-sized metropolitan areas that resulted in more effective consideration of freight issues in policy, planning, and programming decisions.

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