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they have operational responsibilities. This is magnified by fessionals, that is inherent in undertaking the implementa-
the need to spend Federal dollars predominately based on tion of a grand plan of action that has never before been done.
specified spending categories.
· The aversion among states and localities to becoming ho- By comparison, it is arguable that formulating an Interstate
mogenized under the weight of "one-size-fits-all" legal re- Asset Management Framework that will be widely accepted
quirements and technical processes that can fail to consider and embraced in today's setting reflects the need for an even
their individual and unique situations and challenges, and greater miracle, with the technical challenges, though signifi-
which can encourage superficial and misleading "apples cant, paling in comparison to the institutional. However, with
and oranges" comparisons that can easily distort reality. nothing short of the continued economic security and pros-
perity of the United States on the line, it is imperative that this
Notwithstanding these reasons why an asset manage- miracle happen. The chapters of this report describe the frame-
ment framework for the IHS has not emerged, the initiative work for managing and operating consistently the assets asso-
represented by this project signals an emerging recognition ciated with the IHS in order to help achieve this vision.
of the need for and potential benefits of establishing such a
framework.
1.3 Report Organization
The framework presented here is intended to help move
consideration of IHS investment decisions away from what is The remainder of this report is organized into the following
often a patchwork combination of incomplete and inconsis- chapters:
tent "factual" information and the even more nebulous array
of subjective policy-level and political pressures to a more ob- · Chapter 2 presents the Interstate Asset Management Frame-
jective, fact driven, repeatable, performance-based approach. work, providing an overview of transportation asset man-
It provides a national vision that can be implemented based agement concepts, detailing how these concepts can be
on sensitivity to unique state, regional, and local conditions applied to IHS assets, describing where the present effort
and realities. The framework cannot eliminate the influence has focused on developing these concepts further, and out-
of more subjective pressures on investment decisions. How- lining the recommended approach to develop an agency's
ever, it can be used to objectively assess and communicate the Interstate Asset Management Plan applying the framework.
consequences of actions and decisions driven by factors that · Chapter 3 details an approach to incorporating risk man-
are perhaps more subjective and less defensible. agement in the Interstate Asset Management Framework,
The initial deployment of the IHS to physical standards details the steps in the approach, and discusses institutional
that are consistent, and with connections that met without responsibilities in implementing risk management.
fail at mutually agreeable state line crossings, is something of · Chapter 4 summarizes readily available data and tools for
an institutional "miracle"--a miracle perhaps explained by managing IHS assets, and provides guidance on how existing
several key factors: data and tools can be used to support the Interstate Asset
Management Framework.
· A compelling need to provide an enhanced level of highway · Chapter 5 describes the performance management approach
service for the post World War II burgeoning population central to the framework. This section recommends a set of
of cars and trucks. performance measures to use in characterizing conditions of
· A clear vision by a motivated President whose personal ex- an agency's IHS assets and documents the approach used to
periences in the now famous 1919 cross-country caravan develop the recommended set of measures.
which he led and with the German autobahns he encoun- · Chapter 6 provides implementation guidance, discussing
tered in the closing days of the Second World War provided practical issues in implementing the Interstate Asset Manage-
more than a sufficient basis for his proactive leadership. ment Framework, potential focus areas for an implementa-
This vision of the system as critical to the future of the na- tion effort, leadership roles, implementation benefits, and
tion's growth and to its defense has served as focus for this potential challenges.
great infrastructure construction. · Chapter 7 presents the conclusions of the NCHRP 20-74
· A too-good-to-turn-down funding mechanism that pro- research effort.
vided 90/10 funding that was recalculated every two years · Appendix A describes the literature review performed, which
based upon each state's proportionate requirements in re- focuses on recent research on risk management, asset man-
lation to all other states and the national commitment to a agement data and tools, and performance management.
"cost to complete" approach to build the system. · Appendix B describes the pilot application performed as
· The energy, commitment, and long-term "buy-in" among part of the research to test application of the Interstate
political stakeholders, as well as among technical-level pro- Asset Management Framework.
