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5C h a p t e r 1 Background This report presents the findings of research completed for the second Strategic Highway Research Program (SHRP 2) Capacity Project C09, Incorporating Greenhouse Gas Emis- sions into the Collaborative Decision-Making Process. The collaborative decision-making process developed by Capacity Project C01 served as the major conceptual decision-making framework for this research, including the identification of key decision points that comprise such decision making. The collaborative decision-making process is now called Trans- portation for Communities: Advancing Projects Through Partnerships (TCAPP). The research identifies where and how greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and energy consumption fit into this conceptual framework. In addition to describing the technical approaches and data needs that accompany GHG emissions and energy analyses, this report presents case studies that illustrate how state transportation agencies, transit agencies, and metropolitan planning organizations (MPOs) have incorporated such factors into transportation planning. Motivation and Objectives Most climate scientists agree that humans are accelerating a change in Earthâs climate through the emission of GHGs. In response, governments and organizations in the United States at local, state, and regional levels have been enacting policies aimed at reducing energy consumption and GHG emissions. These policies typically include an overall emissions reduc- tion target for a city, a state, or an agency. To meet reduction targets, some agencies and organizations have developed plans and strategies that are often broken down by emissions sources. Transportation, particularly surface transportation, is one of the most significant sources of GHG emissions: about 29% of all U.S. GHG emissions, and growing at a faster rate than most other sectors. Thus far, the most common transportation-related response to reduce GHG emissions and promote energy security through reduced energy consumption has focused on four core strate- gies: reduce vehicle miles traveled (VMT), reduce carbon inten- sity of fuels, improve vehicle efficiency, and improve overall operational efficiency of the surface transportation system. Ultimately, several of these strategies will require federal policy changes, namely advancements in vehicle technology and fur- ther regulation of fuel sources. However, transportation agen- cies at the state and local levels have more control over reducing VMT and improving the operational efficiency of the surface transportation system since they own, operate, and regulate much of the nationâs transportation system. Consequently, these agencies will be heavily involved in efforts to mitigate GHG emissions from surface transportation sources. Successful strategies and plans will result from incorporating GHG emis- sions into their transportation planning and decision making. This research had three major objectives: ⢠Developing strategies for incorporating GHG emissions at key points in transportation planning and decision making using an analysis framework as a point of departure; ⢠Identifying relevant information and materials that exist for GHG emissions analysis and areas in which more infor- mation is needed; and ⢠Preparing materials and methods that guide GHG emissions and energy analyses, including the Practitioners Guide. Intended audience This research will be useful for those involved in transportation planning and decision making who wish to consider GHG emissions in a systematic and thoughtful manner. Thus, the primary audience includes transportation agencies, especially state transportation agencies and MPOs that lead and manage the decision-making processes found in TCAPP. The informa- tion produced by this research will be incorporated into the Introduction
6web-based TCAPP to enable users to identify where GHG emissions should be considered and the tools and data neces- sary to undertake meaningful GHG emissions analysis. The information is presented so that both agency managers and analysts can find useful information for the types of decisions they are likely to face. Given that GHG emissions analysis is a process that could include a variety of interests, this research could be useful to many organizations and stakeholders that participate in vari- ous decision-making processes. For example, environmental resource agencies, advocacy groups, elected officials, and the business community might be very interested in the results of GHG emissions analysis from a variety of perspectives. Such interest could include both the specifics of how many tons of GHG emissions might be emitted for particular strategies and the cost-effectiveness of different strategies to mitigate this impact. This research project has produced a range of information on GHG emissions analysis that will be useful in different analysis contexts. In particular, this information serves as a ⢠Background for understanding GHG emissions and their relationship to energy and fuel consumption, as well as other factors; ⢠Summary of the current state-of-practice in GHG emis- sions and energy analysis, including case studies illustrating examples of where GHG emissions analysis has occurred for both systems planning and highway and transit projects; ⢠Framework for conducting GHG emissions analysis; ⢠Description of the analysis tools and data requirements that exist for conducting GHG analyses; and ⢠Overview of the cost-effectiveness of the different types of strategies that can be considered to mitigate GHG emissions. Some of the material produced here in general terms to illus- trate the overall approach to GHG emissions analysis is pro- vided in more detail in the Practitioners Guide, which presents much more detail on the technical characteristics of GHG emis- sions analysis, including available models, data requirements, and linkage to decisions and elements of the transportation planning process. approach and Organization This research examined current efforts to conduct GHG emissions analysis and the key steps for conducting such analyses in a credible and substantive way. The research began with an examination of the background conditions and transportation strategies over which state and local govern- ments have some influence that might result in reduced GHG emissions and energy use. This examination depended largely on a targeted literature search of such efforts. The research team next examined the collaborative decision-making frame- work developed as part of Capacity Project C01, and how GHG emissions analysis could play a role in informing planning and decision-making processes. This effort identified where GHG emissions could be considered in each key decision point within a particular decision-making process (e.g., in the iden- tification of evaluation criteria for long-range planning), as well as how the consideration of GHG emissions in one deci- sion step feeds into other decisions throughout the process and potentially into other decision-making processes. For example, the identification of GHG emissions reduction criteria for corridor planning should be consistent with similar criteria identified for the long-range planning process. How GHG emissions are considered in planning and deci- sion making will clearly depend on the scale at which a par- ticular planning effort is undertaken (e.g., statewide versus corridor-level planning) and the institutional structure within which such planning occurs. The research identified key partici- pants of GHG emissions analysis efforts and what role each can play. The scale of analysis also has an important influence on the cost-effectiveness of different strategies for reducing GHG emissions, which was examined through a detailed assessment of the different types of strategies that might be considered for different contexts. The most important research task was developing a tech- nical analysis framework that described the key steps that an analyst would need to take to conduct a GHG emissions analysis. The framework is organized as a set of questions that guide the analyst to appropriate analysis tools and useful data sources. In addition, the framework leads the user to other sources of information that might be appropriate for a particular scale of analysis. The framework is presented in the accompanying Practitioners Guide, which serves as a stand-alone technical document for conducting GHG emis- sions analysis and as a tool for achieving reductions within a specific planning context. The draft material in the Practitioners Guide was presented at one-day workshops in Colorado, Massachusetts, Minne- sota, and Washington State. Over 150 individuals representing state transportation agencies, MPOs, transit agencies, natural resource agencies, and advocacy groups attended these work- shops. Suggestions and recommendations from workshop participants were incorporated into the final version of the Practitioners Guide. The Practitioners Guide and its appendix supplement the information presented in this final report on GHG emissions and their relationships to transportation planning and decision making. The final research task was to develop an approach for incorporating the results of this proj- ect into TCAPP. To a large extent, the structure and format of this final report and the Practitioners Guide were designed to provide for easy transition to TCAPP.
7The remainder of this report is organized in the following manner: ⢠Chapter 2 provides background research on GHG emissions and energy consumption. This background is important for understanding how the transportation sector fits into an overall policy or program for reducing GHG emissions; ⢠Chapter 3 presents up-to-date information on the types of transportation-related strategies that can be considered as part of a GHG emissions reduction program. In particular, this chapter illustrates the cost-effectiveness of different strategies; ⢠Chapter 4 describes a technical framework that can be used for considering GHG emissions in different transportation planning and decision-making contexts. The framework is organized around questions that guide analysts to the tools and data that are necessary to conduct a GHG analysis; ⢠Chapter 5 provides case studies that illustrate GHG analy- ses that have been undertaken for highway and transit projects; and ⢠Chapter 6 presents gaps in knowledge and understanding associated with GHG analysis that were found during the course of this research. These gaps are presented as areas of future research. The research team made sure that the questions (based on the types of decisions that must be made) that guide an analyst to the tools, methods, and data for GHG analysis will be relevant in the future while serving today as a foundation for credible and transparent GHG analysis.
