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Framework for Collaborative Decision Making on Additions to Highway Capacity (2014)

Chapter: Chapter 6 - The Web Tool: Transportation for Communities Advancing Projects through Partnerships

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Suggested Citation:"Chapter 6 - The Web Tool: Transportation for Communities Advancing Projects through Partnerships ." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2014. Framework for Collaborative Decision Making on Additions to Highway Capacity. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/22851.
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Suggested Citation:"Chapter 6 - The Web Tool: Transportation for Communities Advancing Projects through Partnerships ." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2014. Framework for Collaborative Decision Making on Additions to Highway Capacity. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/22851.
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Suggested Citation:"Chapter 6 - The Web Tool: Transportation for Communities Advancing Projects through Partnerships ." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2014. Framework for Collaborative Decision Making on Additions to Highway Capacity. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/22851.
×
Page 41
Page 42
Suggested Citation:"Chapter 6 - The Web Tool: Transportation for Communities Advancing Projects through Partnerships ." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2014. Framework for Collaborative Decision Making on Additions to Highway Capacity. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/22851.
×
Page 42
Page 43
Suggested Citation:"Chapter 6 - The Web Tool: Transportation for Communities Advancing Projects through Partnerships ." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2014. Framework for Collaborative Decision Making on Additions to Highway Capacity. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/22851.
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Page 43

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39 Even with the Framework as an organizing structure, the quantity of detailed data is overwhelming in report format. Using a web-based format with supporting animation and linking capabilities as a delivery tool makes this information both accessible and engaging. Through this medium the complex relationships between the data and the key decision points become invisible to the user. Therefore, Transporta- tion for Communities—Advancing Projects through Partner- ships (TCAPP) was built as part of this project and a beta test version may be found at http://www.trb.org/Main/Blurbs/ 166046.aspx. (Note that since the writing of this report, TCAPP has been renamed PlanWorks.) TCAPP pairs the Framework with case studies and tools that enable it to be accessed, understood, and applied with relative ease. Within TCAPP, users are able to compare their current decision making with examples of successful collaboration elsewhere to identify where changes may be the most beneficial. The tool provides access to future research that will be incor- porated into the Framework and to an expanding case study database, and it also provides the opportunity to interact with other practitioners to share experiences and improvement ideas. As this community of interest continues to grow, the sup- porting information will also expand through practical exam- ples and innovative approaches that enhance the way of doing business. Having the right people at the table with the right information at the right time will confirm that true collabora- tion can result in better solutions to transportation challenges. Description of tCapp People enter TCAPP through the perspective they bring to transportation decision making today, be they managers, practitioners, or stakeholders. Although these viewpoints are not mutually exclusive, what is of primary importance to each is different. One aspect of the Framework is that it speaks to all audiences in their language and in recognition of what they care about. Before TCAPP is finalized, SHRP 2 pilot tests will exercise TCAPP and provide feedback on its elements, information, and presentation. It is available as a beta test site, so it is antic- ipated that other user comments will be received as well. Dur- ing this time, specific features of the web tool will change and adapt to the needs of the audience. Figure 6.1 represents the TCAPP home page (note that this is a 2010 version of the home page). Each tab at the top of the screen provides a way to enter TCAPP to obtain information needed to answer three primary questions: Why should I change? What should I change? How should I change to ensure I have a collaborative decision-making process? Why Should I Change? Two areas of the tool directly support the answer to why col- laboration is necessary. These are Decision Guide Basics and Practical Applications. Decision Guide Basics provides an introduction to the Framework. This area acquaints the first-time user with suf- ficient information to understand how the Framework is organized, what information it contains, and why different agencies might be interested in using it. This background information to support use of the Framework is available through the following points of access: • Understanding the Decision Guide. Provides the essential information necessary to use the Framework. This user’s guide acts as both an introduction to the new user and a resource for additional clarification as the experienced user moves into new layers of the Framework. • How does my agency fit? Allows the four decision-making partners to access the Framework through an understand- ing of where and how they are included in collaborative transportation decision making. This understanding is achieved by describing the interests of each partner in each C h a p t e r 6 The Web Tool: Transportation for Communities— Advancing Projects through Partnerships

40 approaches. This provides another answer to the question, Why should I change? The Applications of the Framework assist practitioners in linking planning and NEPA, project streamlining, and the integration of other planning processes. For users interested in these and other successful practice topics, the Framework provides detailed support. Entry into Practical Applications begins through the applica- tion topic areas. For each application, introductory information is provided to acquaint the user with the fundamental concept of the topic area and how the Framework can be used to approach the topic area. The key implementation issues for that topic are then listed along with a description of how the Frame- work can be used to address those barriers. Links to the relevant key decision points, case studies, and reference material avail- able on external sites are also provided for each application. In phase of decision making, as well as the roles they operate within at each key decision point. By observing the signifi- cant integration of their interests and involvement at the most basic level in the Framework, representatives of each partnering agency will be encouraged to explore further. • How do stakeholders collaborate? • Creation of the Decision Guide (supported by a Google website). Provides a history of the Framework with infor- mation on the SHRP 2 Capacity program, the C01 project and its conception, and an overview of how the project was conducted in order to design the Framework. The Practical Applications portal demonstrates that col- laboration supports the efficient and effective delivery of transportation improvements through several successful Figure 6.1. The web tool home page (2010 version).

41 description of the methods used to create the scales). These scales, called dynamics of collaboration scales, can be used at the initiation of the decision-making process or at any point in the process when collaboration is at risk. The five identified characteristics included in the dynamics of collaboration scales can potentially affect both the speed and quality of the decision-making process. The speed of a decision refers to the ability to reach a decision quickly, without revisit- ing issues or elevating decisions to a higher level of authority. A quality decision is one that all participants accept and agree to support through decisions made in other processes. The characteristics in the two scales represent relationship issues between team members or between decision-making partners and stakeholders. An additional challenge that prac- titioners face is barriers within the process itself. Common barriers and solutions were identified and categorized into five major topic areas: (1) process-related barriers, (2) analytical barriers, (3) public and agency involvement, (4) institutional barriers, and (5) barriers related to tools and technology. Using this information as a starting point, the consultant team engaged experts within ICF International on process theory to further develop the dynamics of collaboration scales and potential process barriers into a self-assessment tool. This tool has been integrated into the web tool and is identified as Col- laboration Assessment. The final categories included in Col- laboration Assessment are provided in Table 6.1. Collaboration Assessment has three major components: (1) criteria statements for self-evaluation, (2) summarized results of the evaluation, and (3) strategies for improvement. Each of these components relates to the process and relation- ship categories identified in Table 6.1. In addition, the tool offers an evaluation for both practitioners and stakeholders. • Criteria statements. For each category of assessment there are several statements that allow users to evaluate the existing process or team dynamics on a five-point scale: strongly dis- agree, disagree, neutral, strongly agree, agree, not applicable. A full list of criteria statements is provided in Appendix D. this way practitioners will be able to increase their understand- ing on a given topic from this location. What Should I Change? The Collaboration Assessment is designed to help those users who are not sure how to identify whether they have a barrier to collaboration in either their established decision-making process or their relationships within the decision-making team. The diagnosis is made through a questionnaire fol- lowed by an evaluation of the responses. The user may enter the assessment from the perspective of a manager, practitioner, or stakeholder and is guided to the questions and the respond- ing evaluation that are most relevant. Another window into the Framework is through the Case Studies portal. Case studies provide strong supporting exam- ples of changes made to decision-making processes in support of collaboration, so they offer another response to the question, What should I change? Case studies may be accessed by associ- ated state, by a topic area, or from the full list of case studies. The topic area listing identifies those case studies which provide a strong example of collaboration in relationship to specific top- ics of interest. Topics include stakeholder involvement, linking planning and NEPA, integrated planning, and many other familiar transportation interest areas. As additional research is integrated into the Framework, the case study database will become even more robust. Selected case studies that support collaboration will be added to the Framework database, and links to ones that are related to other SHRP 2 research topics will be available at this location. In the future it will be possible for users of the site to add their own examples of collaborative plans or projects to further enhance the database. An additional feature that is being considered for the web tool is the ability for professionals and stakeholders to engage in collaboration through the site in the Colleague Corner. The outreach efforts that initially introduce professionals to the web tool will feature a Transportation Collaboration Blog. This feature is expected to continue and possibly be enhanced to allow users to engage with each other within the tool itself. In this way, users will cross-train each other on specific aspects of the site, as well as share ongoing efforts to further collaboration. Collaboration Assessment Collaboration in transportation decision making can be highly dependent on relationships—both between partners and with stakeholders. For this reason, five characteristics of relationships were identified that practitioners can use to eval- uate the dynamics of these relationships. These five character- istics were incorporated into two scales: one for decision-making partners and one for stakeholders (see Appendix C for a Table 6.1. Categories in Collaboration Assessment Process Categories Relationship Categories Stakeholder Relationships Process steps Decision-making authority Understanding Institutional support Participant stability Communication Data and information Shared goals Commitment Tools and technology Role clarity Communication Sense of ownership

42 risk. Public involvement practitioners may find the Collabo- ration Assessment for Stakeholders useful in preparing citi- zen committees or active project participants to engage more fully. This tool can be used in many ways by individuals, agen- cies, or decision-making partners to identify ways to enhance collaboration in their existing process. How Should I Change? The key decision point represents the basic building block of the Framework. Each compartment of the web tool leads the user into increasingly specific information that culminates at the key decision. The information contained in each key deci- sion point in the Framework provides the answer most needed by transportation professionals: how to change the existing process to make it truly collaborative. To know what is missing or what is most effective requires a standard of comparison: a generalized successful practice that goes beyond examples and actually details the individual elements of collaboration. This information answers the questions, Who is at the table? What do they bring? What is available to support the decision that must be made? More directly, what do the decision makers want to know and how do practitioners provide this information to them? Figure 6.2 illustrates individual elements of the key decision. Each element provides the gold standard for a collaborative pro- cess. Users have the ability to compare the specifics of their pro- cess to this gold standard to see what needs to change to enhance collaboration or, in other words, conduct a gap analysis. In many cases, the existing process may contain everything identified at the key decision; however, a more extensive • Results summary. Each response provided in the survey is given a numerical score. The scores are tallied in each category to provide an evaluation of the relative strength of collabora- tion with respect to that topic. The results indicate a score of weak (1.0–2.99), average (3.0–4.99), or strong (5.0), as well as the points total for that category. • Strategies for improvement. At the end of each assessment, the user is provided with additional information related to the topic. This information is presented as Potential Risks, Things You Can Do, and How the Decision Guide Can Help. Each of these aspects is drawn from a general strategy docu- ment related to that category and based on existing relation- ship and process theory and practice. The user is also provided with access to supporting information through reference links embedded in the text and at the end of the document. An example strategy is provided in Appendix D. Uses of Collaboration Assessment The self-assessment offered by Collaboration Assessment can be used by any practitioner or stakeholder interested in improving the collaborative aspects of his or her involvement in transportation decision making. However, the web tool has many other uses and can be used collaboratively for greater benefit. For example, an excellent time to assess the collabo- ration potential or challenges that are present is at the begin- ning of a plan update or a new project. Project managers can conduct an assessment with all team members or ask team members to self-assess for a better understanding from the outset. Practitioners can use the self-assessment to alert man- agement to potential risks and offer options for reducing this Figure 6.2. Elements of a key decision.

43 Since the writing of this report, the results of the following projects have been integrated into TCAPP: • SHRP 2 Capacity Project C06: An Ecological Approach to Integrating Conservation and Highway Planning. • SHRP 2 Capacity Project C08: Linking Community Vision- ing and Highway Capacity Planning. • SHRP 2 Capacity Project C09: Incorporating Greenhouse Gas Emissions into the Collaborative Decision-Making Process. • SHRP 2 Capacity Project C12: Effect of Public–Private Partnerships and Nontraditional Procurement Processes on Highway Planning, Environmental Review, and Collab- orative Decision Making. • SHRP 2 Capacity Project C15: Integrating Freight Consid- erations into Collaborative Decision Making for Additions to Highway Capacity. • SHRP 2 Capacity Project C19: Expedited Planning and Environmental Review of Highway Projects. • SHRP 2 Reliability Project L05: Incorporating Reliability Performance Measures into the Transportation Planning and Programming Processes. Finally, laws, regulations, and practices will change over time. The implementation planning for TCAPP and its con- stituent products calls for a host, an oversight structure, update capability, and, perhaps, a way for users to add con- tent. The intent is for this Framework to be an always-current resource for the transportation industry over time. comparison may illustrate that an essential element of col- laboration is missing at one or more points. What the case studies have demonstrated is that it takes only one missing element to create a redo loop, a delay, a lawsuit. These are the barriers to effective and efficient project delivery. Beta test release of tCapp The beta test release of TCAPP was in January 2010. It included the features described in this report. In addition, it contained the case study content and links to relevant loca- tions in web-based applications developed within two other SHRP 2 projects: • SHRP 2 Capacity Project C02: Performance Measurement Framework for Highway Capacity Decision Making. • SHRP 2 Capacity Project C03: Interactions Between Trans- portation Capacity, Economic Systems, and Land Use. The first release of TCAPP was pilot tested by transporta- tion agencies in 2010–2011 and revised based on the results. Future expectations for tCapp Over the life of SHRP 2 the results of other relevant projects will be integrated into TCAPP. When completed, the web tool will address each of these topics in the context of the decision points at which they are relevant, related case studies, and applications of the Framework.

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TRB’s second Strategic Highway Research Program (SHRP 2) Report S2-C01-RR-1: Framework for Collaborative Decision Making on Additions to Highway Capacity describes a framework—including for long-range planning, corridor planning, project programming, environmental review, and environmental permitting—that supports collaborative business practices for reaching decisions on adding highway capacity when necessary.

The framework delivers case studies and supportive materials in a searchable, web-based, format called Transportation for Communities—Advancing Projects through Partnerships (TCAPP). TCAPP is organized around decision points in the planning, programming, environmental review, and permitting processes. TCAPP is now know as PlanWorks.

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