Implementing Transportation Knowledge Networks (2009)

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3Background Transportation practitioners have an unprecedented level of direct access to a vast pool of information, including standards, statistics, research reports, journal articles, guidebooks, and Web pages. Documents can be obtained in seconds from the comfort of one’s office with a few clicks of the mouse. However, despite the explosion of available information on the Internet, substantial gaps exist in our ability to efficiently and reliably find what we need for the task at hand. Part of the problem is related to the sheer volume of information and the challenge of “sepa- rating the wheat from the chaff.” Despite the existence of good Internet search tools, discovering and accessing needed infor- mation takes too long, and the process is “hit or miss.” On the supply side, many useful documents are never made broadly available or are not available on the portion of the World Wide Web that is indexed by search engines. Others are available for a time but never incorporated into a stable, per- sistent repository. As a result of these gaps, we waste valuable time and miss opportunities to learn from the mistakes and successes of others, to take the straightest line between two points, and to begin where others have left off rather than repeating what has already been done. Given the current economic picture and demographic trends, effectively capturing and sharing knowledge is more important than ever. A 2003 study (1) found that 50 percent of the state transportation agency workforce will be eligible to retire within the next 10 years. Shrinking revenues are forcing many agencies to cut budgets and reduce staff. As transporta- tion agencies face retirement of their most experienced person- nel, sharing information across the transportation community and improving ways for less experienced staff to find the infor- mation they need to be efficient and effective is becoming increasingly important. Funding for transportation libraries at the national, state, and regional levels has been shrinking. At the same time, the needs and expectations of information consumers have been changing as a result of the expanded availability of Internet access, rapid improvements in search technology, and an increasingly diverse and differentiated set of information products (RSS feeds, videos, digests, data sets). The trans- portation research community has long recognized the need for a paradigm shift in the way information is defined, cre- ated, captured, synthesized, and delivered. This paradigm shift must involve new products and services, new technol- ogy, and new organizational arrangements and partnerships. Work sponsored by AASHTO and TRB over the past several years has provided some understanding of needs and expecta- tions of transportation information consumers. It has also pro- vided a vision for how to meet these needs efficiently by pooling resources and tapping into available technology. TRB Special Report 284 (2) provides a blueprint for how transportation information is to be efficiently and effectively collected, pre- served, and disseminated to researchers, policy makers, and practitioners. The blueprint presents a vision of a group of independent TKNs with membership from state DOTs, uni- versities, local and regional transportation agencies, private sec- tor transportation providers, associations, and the engineering/ consulting community. These TKNs are regionally based, with one representing federal agencies. Each TKN works in a coor- dinated and cooperative fashion to meet the needs of its user community, sharing resources in order to stretch limited dol- lars and avoid unnecessary duplication of effort. TRB Special Report 284 envisioned a national coordinating structure located within the U.S.DOT Research and Innovative Technology Administration (RITA) that would build on the current functions of the National Transportation Library (NTL). The TKN National Coordinating Body (TKN-NCB) would pro- vide leadership (policy, guidance, coordination), national infrastructure for information sharing (technology, stan- dards), and support the regional TKNs with seed grants and other assistance. SR 284 recommended an independent advi- sory body to provide policy direction and oversight to the National Coordinating Body. C H A P T E R 1 Introduction

The beginnings of this vision are already in place. At the national level, the NTL hosts the Transportation Research Infor- mation Services (TRIS) online and underwrites the TLCat union catalog by providing memberships and seed funding for cata- loging. TLCat allows for access to the holdings of 42 transporta- tion libraries, including those of 16 state DOTs. The Midwest Transportation Knowledge Network (MTKN) was started in 2001 as a pilot program of the NTL. MTKN is currently an inde- pendent nonprofit organization with membership from nine state DOTs, three universities, and three private companies. Eastern and western regional TKNs (the ETKN and WTKN) were formed in 2007 and now collectively have 34 members. The Transportation Library Connectivity Pooled Fund Study (TPF-5[105]), initiated in 2005 by Wisconsin DOT, involves 19 state DOTs, one transit agency (Los Angeles MTA), and two University Transportation Centers (Midwest Regional Univer- sity Transportation Center and the University of Minnesota Center for Transportation Studies). This pooled fund study is providing member agencies with technical assistance (for cata- loging materials into WorldCat/TLCat) and a network for shar- ing best practices and resources. It is also conducting marketing and outreach to expand participation and to communicate the value of transportation libraries. In March 2008, the AASHTO Research Advisory Committee (RAC) established a Task Force on Transportation Knowledge Networks. This task force is supporting formation of TKNs, enhancing information exchange in the transportation com- munity, and serving as an advocate for continued improvement to knowledge-sharing tools and practices. Its goal is to “sup- port the rapid and efficient exchange of information resources through development of strategies and the innovative use of technology.” Full implementation of the recommendations of TRB Spe- cial Report 284 will require that the following challenges be addressed: • Articulate and communicate value to key decision makers who do not have the “transportation information infra- structure” on their radar screens, let alone on their lists of priorities; • Determine appropriate models of governance and alloca- tion of funds; • Meet needs of a diverse community: academia and practi- tioners; federal/state/local/private; multiple modes; • Forge cooperative relationships across institutions with dis- tinct agendas and priorities and across institutions that, in some cases, compete with one another for funds or contracts; • Develop collaborative approaches involving institutions that are in very different stages of readiness for collabora- tion with respect to awareness of the need for and benefits of collaboration, level of understanding of the information resources they hold that might be shared, level of cata- loging in place, and nature of existing services to the user community; • Achieve a balance between contributors to the TKNs and users of the TKNs; and • Motivate those institutions that have well-established and well-funded information management programs to participate. Despite these challenges, many opportunities exist that demonstrate value, provided the initiative has the right level of organization, funding, and marketing. The Pooled Fund Study, the MTKN, and the more recent ETKN and WTKN initiatives provide excellent examples of what can be achieved with relatively modest levels of seed money. They demonstrate that grass roots support for knowledge networks is already present. The existing willingness of organizations to pool resources indicates that additional investments to further TKN development will be highly leveraged. Incremental investments in building upon the existing transportation information infrastructure at the national level (TRIS online, TLCat, TRT)—with an appropriate level of effort to ensure awareness and understanding—can also produce a significant “bang for the buck.” Further collaboration and agreements across agencies with respect to tagging and metadata (use of controlled vocabular- ies) to allow for easier access to both documents and data is another potential big win that could result from TKNs. Research Objectives While some steps can be taken within existing resources, ele- ments of the strategy to implement TKNs require a stable source of funding and a national coordination mechanism for identifying, collecting, and preserving information. The authors of TRB Special Report 284 acknowledged that current funding for RITA and NTL is limited, and new funds will need to be identified in the future to support an enhanced effort. However, much can be done before then to continue to build momentum for this effort and to begin to put the necessary pieces into place. The objective of NCHRP 20-75 was to develop a business plan for implementing TKNs and to conduct outreach that complements the efforts already begun by the NTL, MTKN, ETKN, WTKN, AASHTO RAC TKN Task Force, and the Pooled Fund Study to build awareness of and support for the TKN concept. The function of the business plan is to articu- late the value of making a sustained commitment to investing in the transportation information infrastructure, define implementation steps, and identify resource requirements and sources. The outreach component of this project was undertaken to ensure that the business plan for TKNs reflects stakeholder 4

needs and that this plan has the full support of the organiza- tions and individuals who will be instrumental in its success- ful implementation. Overview of Research Approach This research was undertaken in two phases. Phase I consisted of the following five tasks: • Task 1—Transportation Community Outreach. Elicit input from a variety of stakeholders to shape the content of the business plan. • Task 2—Draft Business Plan. Prepare a business plan for TKNs that describes the business case, defines prod- ucts and services, and presents an implementation blue- print. • Task 3—Products and Strategies Concepts. Define con- cepts for products and strategies for improved information access. • Task 4—Outreach Plan. Develop a plan for dissemination of information about the business plan and for obtaining feedback on next steps. • Task 5—Interim Report. Prepare a report summarizing the Phase I work. Phase II consisted of the following five tasks: • Task 6—Products and Strategies. Develop materials illus- trating the products and strategy concepts defined in Task 3, suitable for use in the outreach task. • Task 7—Conduct Outreach. Conduct workshops to build understanding of and support for the business plan. • Task 8—Outreach Report and Recommendations. Sum- marize the results of the outreach effort and make recom- mendations for further activities to continue the process. • Task 9—Final Report. Draft a final report summarizing the entire project. • Task 10—Presentations. Present the results of the project at two national meetings. Report Organization This report is the deliverable for Task 9; it documents the activities and findings of the research effort. • Chapter 2 summarizes the initial outreach effort. • Chapter 3 presents the products and strategies concepts. • Chapter 4 summarizes the business plan. • Chapter 5 documents the outreach activities and their findings. • Chapter 6 is an implementation plan for moving forward with the business plan. It includes some immediate next steps that can be taken to continue outreach as well as steps that should be taken when and if funding for full or partial implementation becomes available. • Appendix A is the business plan. • Appendices B and C provide detailed results from the online survey conducted for this project. • Appendices D and E provide the results of additional sur- veys, focus groups, and stakeholder meetings. 5