Guide for the Preservation of Highway Tunnel Systems (2015)

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46 This guide offers a method for comparing and prioritizing tunnel preservation actions. Agencies have the option of following the prioritization plan produced by this method or modifying the plan based on other factors. The challenge of finding adequate funding to fulfill all agency needs has led agencies to accomplish the identified preservation actions over a period of time, in con- cert with their 5-, 6-, or 10-year capital plans. The capital plans may be developed based on an anticipated budget (top down) or by planning preservation actions to be completed each year (bottom up). Alternatively, some agencies may elect to implement preservation actions based on risk instead of implementing a capital plan. If an agency has tunnel elements that are considered high risk, the agency may need to reprioritize its original capital plans by submitting updates at appropriate times in its business process. In addition, events may occur at the tunnel that would necessitate a re-prioritization of preservation actions to address the changed condition. Preservation actions are often implemented with limited funds and agency staff. The fol- lowing sections discuss issues concerning funding and staffing for tunnel preservation action implementation as well as how funding and staffing needs can be calculated using the metric provided in Chapter 5. 7.1 Funding Scenarios Traditionally, funding for the overall transportation infrastructure comes from various taxes, fees, and bonds, as described in the following and shown in Figure 7-1: • Federal fuel tax: The federal fuel tax is an excise tax on gasoline and diesel fuel sold throughout the country. • State fuel tax: Each state has its own fuel taxes. Some states base the tax on a percentage of the sales price, while others tie it to inflation or the Consumer Price Index.(19) • Sales tax: According to the Tax Foundation, seven states (CA, CT, GA, IL, IN, MI, NY) collect sales tax on gasoline purchases.(20) • Tolls: Tolls are collected by different organizations. Some special roadways (e.g., turnpikes), bridges, and tunnels are tolled for revenue. It should be noted that the Massachusetts Department of Transportation has a funding stream dedicated solely to tunnels; tolls collected at Boston tunnels are set aside specifically for the operation and maintenance of tunnels. • Bonds: Some state and local governments issue bonds to finance transportation needs, where the government agency sells bonds to investors and then repays the borrowed money, plus interest, over a predetermined amount of time. Often, bonds are used to finance large construction projects. • General fund: Some states appropriate money from the general fund to fund the transportation infrastructure. Income taxes, sales taxes, property taxes, and other fees all contribute to state general funds. C H A P T E R 7 Implementation of Preservation Actions

Implementation of Preservation Actions 47 • Miscellaneous fees: Miscellaneous fees include funds from vehicle registration fees, driver’s license renewal fees, and other sources.(19) To adequately maintain its tunnels in good condition, the tunnel agency must identify the preservation actions needed and must obtain the funding to accomplish these actions. The capital planning process is achieved through either a top-down or a bottom-up funding approach, or a combination of both, as described in Sections 7.1.1 and 7.1.2. 7.1.1 Top-Down Funding As shown in Figure 7-1, transportation infrastructure is funded through gas tax revenues at the federal and state levels, tolls, bonds, sales taxes, the general fund, and miscellaneous fees (licenses, registrations, etc.). From the total funds anticipated for each year, the state government creates a transportation budget with a portion of that budget allocated for operation and main- tenance of the agency’s tunnels. For toll agencies, funding for tunnels may come entirely from tolls or a combination of tolls, bonds, and (sometimes) federal dollars. Most highway tunnel owners in the United States are departments of transportation or authorities who own considerably more assets than just tunnels. Bridges, highways, and facilities require a significant portion of the annual revenue to maintain them in a safe, reliable condition; tunnel improvements often compete for this revenue. Funding must be allocated by upper man- agement to the various transportation needs; it is critical that a proportionate amount of funds be allocated to tunnels to maintain them as part of the overall transportation system. In a top-down approach, the budget for tunnel preservation is established based on a formula percentage of the overall transportation funding. Once this budget has been set, the agency evaluates the priorities and selects the improvements to be implemented for that year. The example for Agency X is shown in Table 7-1. Agency X has determined it has a budget for tunnel improvements in Year 1 of $7 million, Year 2 of $10 million, and Year 3 of $13 million. Based on the initial user-defined prioritization, the leak repair, CO system repair, and ventilation upgrade will fit within the budget cap for Year 1, totaling $6.3 million. However, with the remain- ing funds the agency elects to include a few low-cost improvements as well. It adjusts its user Figure 7-1. Highway tunnel preservation funding sources.

48 Guide for the Preservation of Highway Tunnel Systems priority accordingly. In Year 2, if it stays with the original prioritization, it can accomplish the removal of the ceiling within the available budget, and it can also include a few minor upgrades with the remaining funding. Similarly, for Year 3, LED lights and flood gates will be installed, in addition to a minor upgrade. As observed in this example, using the top-down method allows low-cost options to achieve higher priority in order to fully utilize available funding. 7.1.2 Bottom-Up Funding In order for transportation agencies to fully understand their needs in development of their capital plans, a bottom-up approach to defining the needs is important. For the entire trans- portation system, this could include how many vehicles to replace, how much salt is required to purchase for cold weather climates, how much resurfacing is required to meet International Roughness Index (IRI) goals for pavement smoothness, and how many bridges are planned for rehabilitation or replacement due to condition. For those owners with tunnels, it would include an assessment of element and system conditions or anticipated preservation actions from planned code upgrades and the monies needed for these elements/systems to be preserved for future years. For identified tunnel preservation actions, initial costs and LCC analyses should be performed, and then the improvements should be prioritized following the asset management method pre- sented in this guide. The prioritized action plan can be incorporated into the agency’s capital plans, and the associated costs will help set the agency’s projected capital expenditures for several years. Based on the example shown in Table 7-1, the capital budget needed for Year 1 is $6,316,200, the budget required for Year 2 is $9,064,000, and for Year 3 it is $12,794,454. These estimates include escalation but will need to be increased to account for other project costs, such as agency costs, that have not been included. Figure 7-2 presents a flowchart detailing how top-down funding and bottom-up needs deter- minations come together in this funding process. Ideally, the available funding would be sufficient to implement all needed preservation actions, but that is rarely, if ever, the case. Agencies must continually face constrained funding environments. Preservation Action Tunnel # Initial Cost ($) Agency Oversight Cost ($) Total Cost ($) User- Defined Priority Cumulative Annual Cost ($) Year Implemented Repair active leak in ceiling 4 10,000 1,000 11,000 1 11,000 1 CO system – repair to operating condition 2 32,000 3,200 35,200 2 46,200 1 Ventilation upgrade to meet NFPA 502 1 5,700,000 570,000 6,270,000 3 6,316,200 1 Remove existing concrete tunnel ceiling 6 8,000,000 800,000 8,800,000 4 9,064,000 2 Install new LED lights 1 3,400,000 340,000 3,740,000 5 3,967,766 3 Install flood gates 6 8,000,000 320,000 8,320,000 6 12,794,454 3 Table 7-1. Top-down funding.

Implementation of Preservation Actions 49 7.1.3 Communicating the Need In order to minimize the gap between funding and needs, the funding gap must be com- municated, first within the agency and then to various government officials, to formulate and implement strategies for both maintenance and asset preservation. Furthermore, the need must be communicated in such a way that each party understands the issue. The metric presented in this guide provides agencies the supporting backup needed to communicate the impact of fund- ing on agency goals and desired performance. When a comprehensive communication program is required, the agency should consider using NCHRP Report 742: Communicating the Value of Preservation: A Playbook(21) as a guide to establishing such a program. The playbook is written as a guide that agency staff can use in formulating an effective strategy for communicating the importance of highway maintenance and preservation, applying criteria and methods for evalu- ating the effectiveness of a communication strategy, and adjusting a strategy, if necessary, to ensure its effectiveness. Applying the methods and examples presented in the playbook can Funds Are Appropriated to Agency That Manages Tunnels Agency Upper Management Needs Are Prioritized and Preservation Actions Are Scheduled in Agency Capital Plans Tunnel Management Needs and Funding Meet Annual Transportation Funds Are Budgeted Legislators and Governor Transportation Funds Generated from Fuel Taxes, Tolls, and other Sources Portion of Total Funds Allocated to Tunnels List of Needs Developed Condition Assessments, Inspections, and Code Requirements Tunnel Staff and/or Consultants Figure 7-2. Highway tunnel preservation funding flowchart.

50 Guide for the Preservation of Highway Tunnel Systems help an agency’s stakeholders, including the general public, elected officials, and senior agency managers, to understand the scope, scale, and urgency of their highway system’s preservation and maintenance needs. The metric included in this guide also facilitates communication by capturing and presenting costs for preservation actions tied to specific performance goals. Each preservation action earns a score for level of service, cost-effectiveness, and risk-based urgency. By sorting the results of the analysis, it is possible to report the funding needed for projects that will improve safety, reduce environmental impacts, or mitigate high-risk events. As an example, Agency X would like to report the anticipated costs for improvements that would significantly affect safety. Significant safety improvements would have received a 4 or 5 for the LOS rating. Table 5-4 shows that all of the listed improvements were assigned a 4 or 5 for safety, and therefore all of the costs shown in Table 7-2 improve safety. If the environmental improvements were desired, Table 5-4 shows that only one preservation action significantly affected the environment—the addition of LED lighting. Therefore, the cost of the LED lighting improvement would be communicated as the funding needed for environmental improvements. The data provided in these tables can be easily sorted in many ways to explain the funding needed to make a specific impact. Another example to determine the funding needed to achieve a particular performance goal uses the condition state that is included in the RBU evaluation. If the agency performance measure is to maintain a condition state of CS2 or higher for its tunnels, the data can be sorted to identify all preservation actions that apply to CS3 or CS4. The funding required to improve these assets would be the total project costs associated with those preservation actions. Additional, similar evaluations can be made to determine funding needed to meet other performance goals but may require the addition of fields to identify which preservation actions affect the specific performance goals. 7.2 Staffing Tunnel owners maintain a certain level of effort to support agency requirements and their tunnel preservation programs. The tunnel preservation program includes preventive maintenance activities and rehabilitation (see Figure 7-3). Preventive maintenance is further categorized as cyclical (non-condition-based) and condition-based activities, as discussed in Chapter 4. 7.2.1 Staffing for Tunnel Operation, Maintenance, and Preservation Organizationally, many tunnel owners include their tunnel programs as a subset of their over- all bridge program and use the same personnel to perform maintenance and operational needs for both types of structures. Therefore, these agencies will not have dedicated tunnel personnel for maintenance but must share them between the various assets. Some tunnel owners have dedicated staff for maintenance specifically for tunnels, whether on a state-wide, regional, or tunnel-specific basis. These staffing levels are driven by maintenance needs. Staffing levels may be adjusted from time to time due to the agency’s overall commitment to achieve a specific staff level. In general, staffing levels usually remain constant from year to year, unless a reduction is enforced for that year or major improvements warrant the addition of staff for the duration of the work. Most agencies, with or without a dedicated tunnel staff, perform some sort of tunnel main- tenance in-house. Much of the time, it is basic preventive and cyclical preventive maintenance. When maintenance actions become more complex or when personnel become limited, mainte- nance is normally outsourced. When maintenance operations require tunnel closures, owners often augment in-house staff with outside contractors to expedite as much work as possible during

Us e r - D e f i n e d P r i o r i t y P r e s e r v a t i o n A c t i o n T u n n e l # C a p i t a l C o s t ( $ ) % L a b o r ( 0 t o 1 0 0 ) L a b o r C o s t ( $ ) % A g e n c y L a b o r ( 0 t o 1 0 0 ) A g e n c y L a b o r C o s t ( $ ) A g e n c y O v e r s i g h t C o s t ( $ ) T o t a l A g e n c y L a b o r C o s t ( $ ) T o t a l L a b o r C o s t w i t h A g e n c y O v e r s i g h t ( $ ) M a t e r i a l s C o s t ( $ ) S u b t o t a l C o s t ( $ ) F u n d i n g Y e a r ( 1 + ) E s c a l a t i o n ( $ ) T o t a l C o s t ( $ ) 1 Repair active leak in ceiling 4 10,000 50 5,000 0 0 1,000 1,000 6,000 5,000 11,000 1 0 11,000 2 CO system – repair to operating condition 2 32,000 80 25,600 0 0 3,200 3,200 28,800 6,400 35,200 1 0 35,200 3 Ventilation upgrade to meet NFPA 502 1 5,700,000 20 1,140,000 0 0 570,000 570,000 1,710,000 4,560,000 6,270,000 1 0 6,270,000 4 Remove existing concrete tunnel ceiling 6 8,000,000 65 5,200,000 0 0 800,000 800,000 6,000,000 2,800,000 8,800,000 2 264,000 9,064,000 5 Install new LED lights 1 3,400,000 30 1,020,000 0 0 340,000 340,000 1,360,000 2,380,000 3,740,000 3 227,766 3,967,766 6 Install flood gates 6 8,000,000 50 4,000,000 100 4,000,000 320,000 4,320,000 4,320,000 4,000,000 8,320,000 3 506,688 8,826,688 Table 7-2. Cost aggregation.

52 Guide for the Preservation of Highway Tunnel Systems the closure period. Some agencies, like the District of Columbia Department of Transportation, outsource all maintenance to contractors using performance-based contracts. Whether the maintenance work is performed in-house or is outsourced, tunnel owners should recognize the functions that must be performed by personnel. The next section reviews some of the most common staff functions. 7.2.2 Tunnel Staff Functional Duties Tunnel owners should consider an organizational structure with some or all of the follow- ing personnel to meet the planning, operational, maintenance, and preservation needs of their tunnel(s). These personnel are identified in the 2015 FHWA TOMIE Manual as: • Tunnel manager, • Tunnel supervisor, • Tunnel operators, • Tunnel foreman, • Tunnel mechanical specialist, • Tunnel electrical specialist, • Tunnel electronics/ITS specialist, • Tunnel fire protection specialist, • Tunnel safety/security specialist, and • Tunnel laborer. In addition, the program manager is defined by the NTIS. The functional duties of the key personnel to maintain an owner’s tunnels can be described as follows: • Program manager: The program manager is the individual in charge of tunnels, including the inspection program, and is responsible for tunnel inspection, reporting, and inventory. The program manager provides overall leadership and guidance to inspection team leaders. This individual, for certain agencies, may have other responsibilities, but is assigned as the program manager for that agency’s tunnels. • Tunnel manager: This person manages the tunnel facility and is generally responsible for establishing an effective operating program for the tunnel that includes complying with Figure 7-3. Highway tunnel maintenance and operations.

Implementation of Preservation Actions 53 applicable laws, regulations, and policies; managing budgets, payments, funding, and financ- ing; maintaining tunnel facility records; approving contracts and major purchases; and hiring, organizing, and training of the tunnel facility personnel. • Tunnel supervisor: This individual is in charge of the overall day-to-day operation and main- tenance activities conducted at the tunnel facility; this person generates work assignments; issues work orders; schedules repairs and maintenance; orders spare parts and miscellaneous equipment; manages traffic and lane closures; responds to incidents, events, and accidents; maintains performance levels of the tunnel; approves the work of contractors and consultants; and communicates problems to the tunnel manager and facility engineer. • Tunnel operators: These individuals monitor conditions related to traffic within the tunnel, including traffic flow rate, congestion, and accidents; the height of approaching trucks; variable message displays and output from control signals; concentrations of particulates, air flow, and fan performance; electric supply and power consumption; lighting intensity; weather conditions; and water accumulation and pump operation. These individuals also engage functional systems and coordinate emergency response to incidents within the tunnel. • Tunnel forepersons: Forepersons lead a small team of discipline-specific specialists and general laborers; the foreperson is generally the senior technical specialist for the group and serves as a resource to the tunnel facility in a specialized area of practice; this person is qualified through a combination of formalized education, on-the-job training, and years of relevant experience. Forepersons are typically responsible for such tasks as coordinating the duties of subordinate staff in their group, enforcing quality programs, checking the work performed, closing-out work orders, inventorying spare parts, and generating supply reorder lists. • Tunnel mechanical specialists: The mechanical specialist generally performs tasks that are related to mechanical technology; typically this person has completed a certified program of formalized education and on-the-job training in mechanical technology. The specialist performs routine maintenance such as oil changes, filter changes, cleaning of blades, and replacing belts. This specialist works with different types of mechanical equipment, including ventilation fans, pumps, ducting, and air-conditioning units. The mechanical specialist should also be able to diagnose routine mechanical problems and fully implement the designated quality measures for mechanical repairs. • Tunnel electrical specialists: The electrical specialist generally performs tasks that are related to electrical technology; typically this person has completed a certified program of formalized education and on-the-job training in electrical technology. The specialist works on electri- cal control, power distribution, and electronic drive systems and performs functions such as changing batteries, operating motors, running generators, replacing or repairing lighting fixtures and ballasts, and checking various fire detection and suppression equipment, carbon monoxide detectors, CCTV cameras, and so forth as appropriate for the tunnel facility. The electrical specialist should also be able to diagnose routine electrical problems and fully imple- ment the designated quality measures for electrical repairs. • Tunnel electronics specialists: The electronics specialist generally performs tasks that are related to electronics technology; typically this person has completed a certified program of formalized education and on-the-job training in electronics. The specialist works with low- voltage power and communication equipment and supports equipment and systems such as power switchgears and panel boards with amp meters; power meters and frequency meters; environmental control systems; programmable logic controllers and monitoring systems; fire alarm systems; heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning (HVAC) control systems; lane control signals; variable message boards; and CCTV systems. The electronics specialist should also be able to diagnose routine problems and fully implement the designated quality measures for the repair of electronic components. • Safety officers: Safety officers coordinate emergency response with local fire departments, medical transport units, police, and so forth. These officers generally have experience as

54 Guide for the Preservation of Highway Tunnel Systems emergency dispatchers, firefighters, or paramedics. Safety officers participate in disaster recovery planning and the development of response strategies for various tunnel-specific haz- ards. Safety officers generally have some level of firefighting and rescue equipment on site. The safety officers conduct drills and training for emergency preparedness. These officers also serve as liaisons between the tunnel facility and emergency response units such as firefighters, ambulances, medical evacuation (medivac) units, and hospitals. • Security officers: Security officers respond to emergency situations, support emergency operations, patrol the facility, implement weather advisories, escort hazardous vehicles, inspect cargo, and so forth. Security officers participate in the development of response strategies for various tunnel-specific threat scenarios. These officers generally have experience in a police or tactical unit with specialized training in tunnel security. Security officers generally have patrol vehicles and towing equipment on site. These officers serve as liaisons between various police departments and the tunnel facility. • Tunnel laborers: Laborers serve as versatile workers that perform an important multitude of tasks such as cleaning drains, washing structures, cutting grass, painting, unloading sup- plies, stocking parts, general housekeeping, and installing light bulbs. Laborers also support discipline-specific specialists (mechanical, electrical, electronic) by moving heavy objects, cleaning equipment, tightening bolts, and so forth. Laborers facilitate tunnel operations by directing traffic, placing barricades, clearing debris, shoveling snow, removing disabled vehicles, and so forth. 7.2.3 Tunnel Staffing for Emergency Events Emergency events, such as vehicular accidents damaging the tunnel structure, fire events causing structural and system damage, and failure of tunnel systems, may necessitate tunnel closure. Tunnel owners will most likely have in-house staff on site, or at a regional location, that can respond immediately to the event and call first responders, as needed. The tunnel agency may engage outside consultants or specialty contractors to evaluate conditions, assess damage, and render recommendations for reopening the tunnel. 7.2.4 Estimating Staffing Needs The number of assigned staff will vary by tunnel owner, by how many tunnels the owner has, and by regional organizations when multiple tunnels are geographically spread throughout a state. Staffing is also dependent on whether the agency prefers and has the resources to perform maintenance and operations in-house or contracts the work to an outside company. An agency that performs much of the maintenance work in-house needs highly skilled staff, which requires advanced training, especially for systems that are electronic. The number of staff can be estimated using the data collected to this point, but the costs need to be further aggregated to determine the labor that the agency will expend. Table 7-2 shows how the agency labor costs can be determined. Initially, the cost of project labor versus project materials is estimated. In the absence of more detailed cost information, labor cost can be approximated as a percent of the overall capital cost. At this point, agency oversight costs must be considered. If the agency is self-performing much of the work, the oversight costs may be minimal (e.g., 5% or less of the total project cost or, as a minimum, of the estimated labor costs). If the work is contracted out, an additional 10% would be more appropriate for agency over- sight. For a rough estimation of agency labor cost, in the absence of a more detailed calculation, the AAMT should estimate what percent of the total labor cost will be agency labor versus labor of contracted personnel. The estimated percent is then multiplied by the project labor cost to obtain an estimation of agency labor cost. The number of staff needed to complete the preservation

Implementation of Preservation Actions 55 action can be computed by dividing the agency labor cost by an average hourly rate considering the staff that would be associated with that work. Agency staffing is provided in Table 7-3. In the examples in Table 7-2, most of the work requires specialized contractors, so the agency will contract out for each of the tasks, with the exception of the flood gate installation. The agency intends to complete this work itself, and therefore the hours to complete are estimated using an average staff rate. If the preservation action is to be implemented in the current year, enter 1 in the funding year column to negate escalation. Once the total staff hours are known for each preservation action, the total number of staff to complete the work can be calculated. The calculation for the number of staff shown in Table 7-3 assumes a 1-year duration for each of the preservation actions. 7.2.5 Computerized Maintenance Management Systems (CMMSs) Some tunnel owners use CMMSs to create, track, and complete work orders for tunnel main- tenance. These software systems often provide means to track the time required to complete maintenance procedures, and this information can be helpful in estimating staffing needs for an agency. CMMSs not only provide projected hourly timelines for performing maintenance functions but also create a searchable history of maintenance events and recorded notes by staff. U se r- D ef in ed P ri or ity Pr es er va tio n A ct io n Tu nn el # To ta l A ge nc y La bo r C os t ( $) A ge nc y A ve ra ge L ab or R at e ($/ hr ) A ge nc y M an -H ou rs C um ul at iv e A nn ua l A ge nc y M an -H ou rs # Fu ll- Ti m e S ta ff R eq ui re d C um ul at iv e # F ul l-T im e S ta ff R eq ui re d Y ea r Im pl em en te d 1 Repair active leak in ceiling 4 1,000 100 10 10 0.01 0.01 1 2 CO system – repair to operating condition 2 3,200 100 32 42 0.02 0.02 1 3 Ventilation upgrade to meet NFPA 502 1 570,000 100 5,700 5,742 2.7 2.8 1 4 Remove existing concrete tunnel ceiling 6 800,000 100 8,000 8,000 3.8 3.8 2 5 Install new LED lights 1 340,000 100 3,400 3,400 1.6 1.6 3 6 Install flood gates 6 4,320,000 100 43,200 46,600 20.8 22.4 3 Table 7-3. Agency staffing.