Techniques for Effective Highway Construction Projects in Congested Urban Areas (2011)

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43 APPENDIX A Survey Questionnaire NCHRP Project 20-5 Synthesis Topic 41-09 Techniques for Effective Construction of Highway Projects in Congested Urban Areas Survey Questionnaire This survey is intended to solicit valuable input regarding how your agency is handling a variety of project implementation challenges and how you are finding success in doing so. This research is being conducted by Tom Warne and Associates, who is under contract to NCHRP to perform this work. Surveys have been sent to all state DOTs with urban areas that are larger than 1,000,000 residents. In addition, the survey has been sent to selected large cities that are facing similar issues on their urban corridors. INSTRUCTIONS This survey will take approximately 30 minutes to complete. It must be completed at one sitting. Please answer the questions to the best of your ability. If in doubt, just give us your best answer. The questions have been designed so that you will not have to go get additional information or run reports to provide the answers sought. You should be able to answer each one based on your knowledge of what your agency does on these projects. You already know the answers to these questions—we just need you to respond to each one based on what you know. Your participation in this research effort is greatly appreciated. If you have any questions about this survey, how the data will be used, or the final report for this project please feel free to contact the Principal Investigator, Thomas R. Warne, PE of Tom Warne and Associates. His contact information is as follows: Thomas R. Warne, PE Tom Warne and Associates, LLC 9874 S. Spruce Grove Way S. Jordan, UT 84095 801-302-8300 (office) 801-541-2619 (cell) E-mail: twarne@tomwarne.com Section 1—Background Information 1. Agency name: 2. Agency address: 3. Your name: 4. Your phone number: 5. Your e-mail address: 6. Your position: 7. How many years have you been with your agency? a. Less than 1 b. 1–5 c. 6–10 d. 11–20 e. More than 20 8. How many years have you been in your position? a. Less than 1 b. 1–5 c. 6–10 d. 11–20 e. More than 20 The National Academy of Sciences (NAS), through the Transportation Research Board (TRB), conducts studies relating to contem- porary transportation issues. The National Cooperative Highway Research Program (NCHRP) of TRB was established to fund and execute these research projects and publish these reports. As part of this on-going research program it has become clear that transportation agencies are facing more and more challenging situations as they construct important road and highway projects in congested urban areas. Many transportation agencies are seeking solutions to the vexing problems associated with these projects including right-of-way concerns, utility relocations, high traffic volumes, sensitive stakeholder issues, environmental commitments, and many more.

44 Section 2—Capital Program Characteristics 9. What is the size of your agency’s annual capital improvement program? a. Less than $100 million b. $101–200 million c. $201–500 million d. $501 million—1 billion e. More than $1 billion f. Comments: 10. Construction work in congested urban corridors can take many forms. Please identify the kind of work your agency does on your urban corridors. (Check all that apply.) a. Improvements on urban arterial streets with only some access control b. Improvements on urban arterial streets with aggressive access control c. Improvements on controlled access highways d. None of the above e. Comments: 11. If you had to identify a trend in the project types most often constructed on the urban corridors by your agency, which of the following would be the most prevalent? (Check all that apply.) a. No discernable trend b. Minor non-pavement or safety improvements [landscaping, Intelligent Transportation System (ITS), sign replacement, signal synchronization] c. Minor pavement and safety rehabilitation (pavement rehabilitation or overlay, minor improvement to safety features) d. Major pavement and safety rehabilitation [pavement replacement, major improvements to safety features (e.g., barrier replacement)] e. Major reconstruction including new capacity, pavement replacement, new structures f. Other—Please specify: g. Other—Please specify: h. Comments: 12. Has your agency taken any special measures to address the issues associated with constructing projects in congested urban corridors? a. Yes b. No c. Not sure d. Comments: 13. Are these special measures taken as individual project measures or are they programmatic? (e.g., Are you using acceleration programmatically or on a project by project basis?) a. Individual projects b. Programmatic c. Describe any programmatic measures taken: 14. What types of actions has your agency taken to address the issues associated with construction of projects in congested urban corridors? (Check all that apply.) a. No actions b. Organizational or structural changes in your agency c. Changes in staffing (e.g., additional staff, staff reductions, hiring individuals with different skill sets, etc.) d. New or different equipment e. Different contracting methods (e.g., design-build, job order contracting, CM/GC, A+B, etc.) f. Work hour modifications g. Coordination with local communities h. New or specialized training for employees i. More use of consultants j. Context Sensitive Design or Context Sensitive Solutions k. Pay differentials for employees working on these projects l. Other—Please specify: m. Other—Please specify: n. Comments:

45 Section 3—Project Delivery Strategies 15. Which is the most commonly used project delivery method (by number of projects) on your urban corridors? (Select one.) a. Design-bid-build b. Design-bid-build with A + B c. Design-build d. Construction Manager/General Contractor (CM/GC) e. Construction Manager at Risk (CM at R) f. Other—Please specify: g. Other—Please specify: h. Comments: 16. What are the reasons for choosing the method identified in Question 15? (Check all that apply.) a. Shorter construction schedule b. Price certainty (knowing what the final cost will be) c. Opportunities for innovation on the part of designers d. Opportunities for innovation on the part of contractors e. Ease of contract administration on the part of your agency f. Improved management of traffic during construction g. Improved management of stakeholder issues during construction h. Pressure or input from industry groups or associations i. Required by rule or law j. Pressure or input from elected officials k. Other—Please specify: l. Other—Please specify: m. Comments: 17. Do you use financial incentives for accelerating construction in your congested urban corridors? a. Yes b. No If the answer to Question 17 is “Yes” then please answer the following. If Question 17 is “No” then proceed to Question 18. 18. What are the reason(s) for using incentives on your urban corridor projects? (Check all that apply.) a. Shorten the construction schedule b. Improve the overall quality of the project c. Finish the project and open it by a certain date d. Promises to the public or elected officials e. Reduce the impact of construction on the traveling public f. Other—Please specify: g. Other—Please specify h. Comments: 19. Do you use financial disincentives for construction in your urban corridors? a. Yes b. No If the answer to Question 19 is “Yes” then please answer the following. If Question 19 is “No” then proceed to Question 20. 20. What are the reason(s) for using disincentives on your urban corridor projects? (Check all that apply.) a. Shorten the construction schedule b. Improve the overall quality of the project c. Finish the project and open it by a certain date d. Promises to the public or elected officials e. Reduce the impact of construction on the traveling public f. Other—Please specify: g. Other—Please specify: h. Comments: 21. Does your agency use both financial incentives and disincentives on the same urban corridor projects? (Check one.) a. Never b. Sometimes c. Often d. Very often e. Always f. Comments:

46 22. Describe a project delivery technique that your agency uses to more effectively construct projects in urban corridors which would be of value to other agencies. Section 4—Utilities 23. How often do utilities have a significant impact on the reconstruction efforts of urban corridors? (Check one.) a. Never b. Sometimes c. Often d. Very often e. Always f. Comments: 24. What is the nature of the impacts utilities have on the construction efforts in urban corridors? (Check all that apply.) a. Financial b. Schedule c. Quality of the work d. Stakeholder relations e. Contract administration activities on the part of the agency f. Number of bidders on a project g. Other—Please specify: h. Other—Please specify: i. Comments: 25. What strategies has your agency used to mitigate the impacts of utilities on the urban corridor construction projects administered by your agency? (Check all that apply.) a. Early coordination with impacted utility companies b. Payment of some relocation expenses even if not required by law c. Payment of all relocation expenses even if not required by law d. Litigation e. Modifying state law to require more effective coordination between your agency and the utility companies f. On-going project specific coordination meetings with utility companies even before construction is started g. Other—Please specify: h. Other—Please specify: i. Comments: 26. Which of the following has your agency found to be most effective in dealing with the impacts of utilities in congested urban corridors? (Check 2.) a. Early coordination with impacted utility companies b. Payment of some relocation expenses even if not required by law c. Payment of all relocation expenses even if not required by law d. Litigation e. Modifying state law to require more effective coordination between your agency and the utility companies f. On-going coordination meetings with utility companies even before a specific project is started g. Other—Please specify: h. Other—Please specify: i. Comments: 27. Describe a technique your agency has used to mitigate the impact that utilities have had on your urban corridor projects which you would like to share with other agencies? Section 5—Right-of-Way 28. In what way does right-of-way acquisition and related activities impact urban corridor construction in your agency? (Check all that apply.) a. Construction schedule (delays) b. Project schedule (delays before construction or letting) c. Project costs (increases) d. Increased project administration effort on the part of your agency e. Decreased interest from potential bidders f. Issues or problems with local communities g. Issues or problems relating to property owners who are not acquired h. Other—Please specify: i. Other—Please specify: j. Comments:

47 29. What is most difficult about the right-of-way acquisition process in your state as it relates to constructing projects in urban corridors? (Check 3.) a. Statutory restrictions on the process b. Too little time to complete acquisitions c. Inadequate funding d. Property owner expectations for compensation e. Legal processes f. Relocation of residential property owners g. Relocation of commercial property owners h. Staffing shortages i. Real estate market conditions j. Inability to hire outside staff to augment agency resources k. Other—Please specify: l. Other—Please specify: m. Comments: 30. What is the average time to acquire a residential property that doesn’t require condemnation? a. Less than one month b. Two to three months c. Four to six months d. Six months to a year e. More than a year f. Comments: 31. What is the average time to acquire a residential property when condemnation is required? a. Less than one month b. Two to three months c. Four to six months d. Six months to a year e. More than a year f. Comments: 32. What percentage of residential properties required condemnation on your urban corridor projects? a. None b. Less than 5% c. 5–10% d. 10–25% e. 25–50% f. More than 50% g. Comments: 33. What is the average time to acquire a commercial property that doesn’t require condemnation? a. Less than one month b. Two to three months c. Four to six months d. Six months to a year e. More than a year f. Comments: 34. What is the average time to acquire a commercial property where condemnation is required? a. Less than one month b. Two to three months c. Four to six months d. Six months to a year e. More than a year f. Comments: 35. What percentage of commercial properties requires condemnation on your urban corridor projects? a. None b. Less than 5% c. 5–10% d. 10–25% e. 25–50% f. More than 50% g. Comments:

48 36. Which of the following strategies does your agency employ to deal with right-of-way issues relating to construction projects in urban corridors? (Check all that apply.) a. Add additional staff to accelerate the acquisition process b. Pay incentives to property owners that agree to sell early in the process c. Use private sector resources to fill critical roles and augment agency staff (e.g., appraisers, relocation specialists, etc.) d. Pay incentives to private sector companies performing acquisition services for your agency e. Advertise projects before all parcels have been acquired or right of entry secured f. Award projects before all parcels have been acquired or rights of entry secured g. Use of the construction contractor to acquire rights of entry after awarding the construction contract h. Use of the construction contractor to acquire property after awarding the construction contract i. Other—Please specify: j. Other—Please specify: k. Comments: 37. Of the options listed in Question 36, which do you find to be the most effective in dealing with the impacts of right-of- way acquisition on the urban corridor projects constructed by your agency? (Check 3.) a. Add additional staff to accelerate the acquisition process b. Pay incentives to property owners that agree to sell early in the process c. Use private sector resources to fill critical roles and augment agency staff (e.g., appraisers, relocation specialists, etc.) d. Pay incentives to private sector companies performing acquisition services for your agency e. Advertise projects before all parcels have been acquired or right of entry secured f. Award projects before all parcels have been acquired or rights of entry secured g. Use of the construction contractor to acquire rights of entry after awarding the construction contract h. Use of the construction contractor to acquire property after awarding the construction contract i. Other—Please specify: j. Other—Please specify: k. Comments: 38. Of the options listed in Question 37, which do you find to be the least effective in dealing with the impacts of right-of- way acquisition on the urban corridor projects constructed by your agency? (Check 3.) a. Add additional staff to accelerate the acquisition process b. Pay incentives to property owners that agree to sell early in the process c. Use private sector resources to fill critical roles and to augment agency staff (e.g., appraisers, relocation specialists, etc.) d. Pay incentives to private sector companies performing acquisition services for your agency e. Advertise projects before all parcels have been acquired or right of entry secured f. Award projects before all parcels have been acquired or rights of entry secured g. Use of the construction contractor to acquire rights of entry after awarding the construction contract h. Use of the construction contractor to acquire property after awarding the construction contract i. Other—Please specify: j. Other—Please specify: k. Comments: 39. Describe right-of-way acquisition techniques that your agency uses that make the process more effective which you believe would bring value to other agencies. Section 6—Stakeholder/Public Involvement For the purposes of this survey, stakeholder/public involvement is defined as those activities directed at specific groups of individuals or entities impacted by a project. For example, homeowners adjacent to the project and emergency medical services are included in this group. Activities associated with working with the media, press releases or other public relations work is not part of this section of the questionnaire. 40. Does your agency assign a project specific individual to its urban corridor projects for the purpose of managing stakeholder issues or public/community involvement activities? (Check one.) a. Never b. Sometimes c. Often d. Very often e. Always f. Comments:

49 41. Is this person an agency employee? (Check one.) a. Never b. Sometimes c. Often d. Very often e. Always f. Comments: 42. Is this person a private contractor? (Check one.) a. Never b. Sometimes c. Often d. Very often e. Always f. Comments: 43. Are individual projects “branded” (giving the project a unique identity, logo, name or reference) for communications or other purposes? (Check one.) a. Never b. Sometimes c. Often d. Very often e. Always f. Comments: 44. What activities does your agency use to involve and inform stakeholder groups on your urban corridor projects? (Check all that apply.) a. Town hall meetings b. Public notices in the newspaper c. Project specific website d. Project specific web information found on your agency’s general website e. Phone calls f. Flyers distributed to residences or building occupants g. Door to door visits by project personnel h. Other newspaper advertising or stories i. Mail distribution j. Radio coverage k. Television coverage l. Social media (Facebook, Twitter, etc.) m. Blog n. Other—Please specify: o. Other—Please specify: p. Comments: 45. Which activities does your agency find to be most effective for involving and informing stakeholder groups on your urban corridor projects? (Check 3.) a. Town hall meetings b. Public notices in the newspaper c. Project specific website d. Project specific web information found on your agency’s general website e. Phone calls f. Flyers distributed to residences or building occupants g. Door to door visits by project personnel h. Other newspaper advertising or stories i. Radio coverage j. Television coverage k. Social media (Facebook, Twitter, etc.) l. Blog m. Other—Please specify: n. Other—Please specify: o. Comments: 46. Has your agency targeted specific stakeholder groups such as businesses with mitigation efforts? a. Yes b. No c. Comment:

50 47. Please check those groups which your agency has targeted mitigation strategies/plans for dealing with their concerns: a. Businesses b. Residents c. Travelers d. Business deliveries e. Truckers f. Commuters g. Elected officials h. Recreationalists i. Sports fans j. Other—Please specify: k. Other—Please specify: l. Comments: 48. Of these groups which are most important to deal with? (Select 3.) a. Businesses b. Residents c. Travelers d. Business deliveries e. Truckers f. Commuters g. Elected officials h. Recreationalists i. Sports fans j. Other—Please specify: k. Other—Please specify: l. Comments: 49. What techniques is your agency using to effectively deal with stakeholder groups that you believe would be of value to other agencies? Section 7—Media Relations For the purpose of this survey media relations are those activities focused on communicating with the media (e.g., television, radio, newspaper, etc.). 50. Does your agency assign a project specific individual to its urban corridor projects for the purpose of managing media relations? (Check one.) a. Never b. Sometimes c. Often d. Very often e. Always f. Comments: 51. Is this person an agency employee? (Check one.) a. Never b. Sometimes c. Often d. Very often e. Always f. Comments: 52. Is this person a private contractor? (Check one.) a. Never b. Sometimes c. Often d. Very often e. Always f. Comments:

51 53. Which of the following best describes your agency’s view and relationship with the media? (Check one.) a. The media is suspect and we don’t interact with them any more than we have to b. The media isn’t looking for good news so they never write or say positive things about our agency or its projects c. The media has been neutral about our projects and largely ignore us d. The media has responded in a generally positive way to our efforts to work with them e. The media has been a strong partner in getting critical information to the public during construction f. Other—Please specify: g. Other—Please specify: h. Comments: 54. Which of the following strategies does your agency use to communicate information to stakeholder groups? (Check all that apply.) a. Free “tags” on radio announcements such as traffic reports b. Paid “tags” on radio announcements such as traffic reports c. We rely on the radio to cover our projects when they have time and interest d. We rely on television stations to cover our projects when they have time and interest e. We purchase commercial time with radio stations f. We purchase commercial time with television stations g. Editorial board meetings h. We rely on the relationships we have with key media people to access their audiences and get our word out i. Other—Please specify: j. Other—Please specify: k. Comment: 55. Which of the strategies listed in Question 54 are most effective for your agency in getting information to your stakeholders? (Check no more than three.) a. Free tags on radio announcements such as traffic reports b. Paid tags on radio announcements such as traffic reports c. We rely on the radio to cover our projects when they have time and interest d. We rely on television stations to cover our projects when they have time and interest e. We purchase commercial time on radio stations f. We purchase commercial time on television stations g. We rely on the relationships we have with key media people to access their audiences and get our word out h. Other—Please specify: i. Other—Please specify: j. Comment: 56. How did you know which ones to check in Question 55? (Check all that apply.) a. Surveys of stakeholders b. Experience c. Informal statistics we keep based on calls to the agency d. Feedback from the media e. Public feedback at meetings f. Neighborhood groups g. Focus groups h. Other—Please specify: i. Other—Please specify: j. Comment: 57. What techniques is your agency using to effectively deal with media relations that you believe would be of value to other agencies? Section 8—Intermodal Issues 58. How often are other modes (e.g., transit, bicycle, pedestrian) present in your congested urban corridor projects? (Check one.) a. Never b. Sometimes c. Often d. Very often e. Always f. Comment:

52 59. If other modes are present in your urban corridor projects what measures do you take to address their operations before construction? (Check all that apply.) a. Coordination with other modes during the planning process b. Coordination with the other modes during the engineering design process c. Permanent on-going meetings/committees with transit agencies d. Permanent on-going meetings/committees with bicycle and pedestrian groups e. Project specific meetings/committees with transit agencies f. Project specific meetings/committees with bicycle and pedestrian groups g. No meaningful coordination h. No coordination is necessary i. Our agency uses in-house staff who know about the other modes so no external coordination is necessary j. Other—Please specify: k. Other—Please specify: l. Comment: 60. Do you rely on the other modes to assist with throughput in the urban corridor during construction? a. Never b. Sometimes c. Often d. Very often e. Always f. Comment: 61. How effective are the other modes in diverting traffic from automobiles and relieving congestion pressure during construction of your urban corridors? (Check one.) a. Not effective at all b. Some effectiveness c. Moderate effectiveness d. Very effective e. Not applicable f. Comment: 62. What techniques is your agency using to effectively deal with other transportation modes that you believe would be of value to other agencies? Section 9—Traffic Management Issues 63. What strategies does your agency use to manage traffic during construction of projects in urban corridors? (Check all that apply.) a. Partial closures during the day b. Partial closures during the night c. Full closures during the day d. Full closures at night e. Aggressive detour routing f. Some detour routing g. Lane rental specifications h. Penalties for late opening of closures i. Milestones and/or construction phasing j. Contractor developed traffic control plan k. Agency developed traffic control plans l. Contractor provided traffic control m. Agency provided traffic control n. Use of in-place ITS resources o. Use of temporary ITS resources provided by the agency p. Use of temporary ITS resources provided by the contractor q. Other—Please specify: r. Other—Please specify: s. Comment: 64. What techniques is your agency using to effectively deal with traffic management that you believe would be of value to other agencies? (Text block) 65. Given that traffic control and management are a substantial cost element for urban projects, how has your agency endeavored to reduce these costs? (Text block)

53 66. Do you have a project that would be useful to share with other agencies that we could explore in greater detail as a case study? a. Yes b. No c. Not sure If you answered “yes” to Question 66, what project is it and who would be the contact person to get further information? 67. Does your agency have or use a traffic management center (TOC, TMC) to help deal with project and program travel demand management? a. Yes b. No c. Comment: 68. What has your agency done to comply with the Federal regional mobility requirements for coordination of program within urban areas? Thank you for taking the time to participate in this survey. Your input is greatly appreciated and will contribute in a meaningful way to the conclusions and recommendations for this report. SUBMIT