Integration of Roadway Safety Data from State and Local Sources (2018)

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4 This chapter introduces background information and highlights the importance of collab- orative data collection and integration efforts between state and local agencies. The survey and interview processes and organization of the report are also described. Background The Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act (MAP-21, P.L. 112–141; see also http://www.dot.gov/map21) strongly supports the view that quality data provide the founda- tion for making important decisions regarding the design, operation, and safety of roadways. MAP-21 emphasizes the importance of safety data for all public roads and requires that states must have safety data systems with the ability to perform safety problem identification and countermeasure analysis. In this context, safety data are defined as roadway, traffic, and crash data. MAP-21 includes requirements for the collection of roadway data based on the Model Inventory of Roadway Elements (MIRE) and use of a linear referencing system (LRS). MAP-21 required the Secretary of the U.S. DOT to establish a subset of MIRE that would be useful for the inventory of roadway safety and ensure that states adopt and use the subset to improve data collection [23 U.S.C. 148(f)(2)]. FHWA established a subset of MIRE as part of the Highway Safety Improvement Program (HSIP) Final Rule changes to 23 CFR Part 924, effective April 14, 2016. This subset, which is referred to as the “fundamental data elements” (FDEs), focuses on roadway segment, roadway intersection, and roadway ramp data elements. The Fixing America’s Surface Transportation (FAST) Act (P.L. 114–94; see also https://www. transportation.gov/fastact) continued the emphasis on high-quality safety data to support sound transportation decision making. Furthermore, the FHWA Office of Safety recognizes the importance of quality data as the foundation for making informed decisions regarding the design, operation, and safety of roadways (FHWA 2016a). To satisfy the requirement to collect data on all public roadways, many state transportation agencies are engaging local agencies in an effort to obtain data that are available at the local level and to avoid duplication of data collection activities. Facilitating access to and integration of data from a multitude of information systems maintained by external sources is a challenge for transportation agencies around the nation. Synthesis Objective The objective of this synthesis is to document the state practices by which state DOTs are collaborating with local agencies to integrate and maintain roadway safety data. Historically, a great deal of effort has been placed on collecting crash data; therefore, the present project C H A P T E R 1 Introduction

Introduction 5 focuses on the collection and integration of MIRE FDEs from state agencies and other sources. The project gathered information on the state of the practice from agencies involved in finding new or innovative ways to address the integration of roadway safety data from states and other sources. Local and state agencies that have a track record of collaborating to successfully integrate and maintain data are identified and their programs outlined. The information gathered includes, but is not limited to, • State DOT efforts toward better integration of state and local (non-state-owned) roadway data; • Issues that states experience with local (non-state-owned) roadway data integration; • Benefits of state roadway data integration within the DOT, along with benefits of integrating local (non-state-owned) roadway data within the existing state DOT system; • Successfully implemented integration solutions and the associated commonalities among them; • Cost of integration solutions and funding sources; • Entities responsible for collection of roadway safety data for local (non-state-owned) roads (i.e., state, local road owner, tribe, or other organization); • Tools and methods used to facilitate roadway data integration as well as gaps that exist in tools used to facilitate roadway data integration; and, • Challenges and lessons learned from roadway data integration. As stated in Title 23 U.S.C. Section 148 (c)(2) of the FAST Act, in order to support the strategic and performance-based goals in the Strategic Highway Safety Plan (SHSP) and the HSIP, states shall have a safety data system in place that includes: (1) types of roadways, (2) types of data, (3) geolocation of safety data to a common highway base map, (4) analysis and evaluation capabilities, and (5) the subset of MIRE. Several reports have been completed on the importance of integrated, accurate, and timely data to address safety. To help other states, there is a need to synthesize these efforts and garnish examples of successful state and local agency partnership practices that are reported to be effective. This study provides state DOTs and other trans- portation agencies with useful information on successful practices that address the MIRE FDE requirement. Study Approach A multifaceted approach was taken to document the various efforts that have been made in recent years by some states in working with local public agencies to integrate roadway safety data from local and state sources. The approach to this study included: (1) a literature review, (2) a survey distributed to state DOT offices responsible for data integration [sent through the AASHTO Subcommittee on Data and the members of the AASHTO Standing Committee on Planning (SCOP)], and (3) a series of interviews with local public agencies (LPAs) and FHWA division personnel. On the basis of the state DOT survey responses and in-depth interviews with other public agencies, the noteworthy practices related to state and local agency partnering are summarized. Literature Review A comprehensive literature search of federal and state sources was conducted to provide background information on the programs and practices that relate to roadway data integra- tion. Several resources were accessed, including the Transport Research International Docu- mentation (TRID) database; Internet searches; FHWA and DOT internal reports; journal publications; conference proceedings; other published media, including newspaper and maga- zine articles; and resources provided through professional associations. Results of the litera- ture review are reflected throughout this synthesis but are concentrated primarily in Chapter 2.

6 Integration of Roadway Safety Data from State and Local Sources The results of various state DOT efforts found in published articles, conference papers, agency reports, and online sources related to data sharing, integration, and management are included in Appendix A. The information provided in Appendix A reflects the state of the practice at the time this report was written. Particular attention was paid to references suggested in the project scope and other related resources. Survey of State Transportation Agencies The survey consisted of 50 questions and was sent to contacts in all state DOTs and the District of Columbia through the AASHTO Subcommittee on Data and the members of the AASHTO Standing Committee on Planning to ensure each state was invited to contribute. The invitation encouraged the primary contact person from the AASHTO list to distribute portions of the survey for completion (if needed) to members in other areas of the organization, such as the local programs office, the state safety engineer or safety office, and the chief engineer. A total of 46 DOTs (45 states and the District of Columbia) responded, resulting in a state DOT survey response rate of 90%. The survey questions and results are included in Appendix B of this report. In-Depth Interviews Members of various FHWA offices (e.g., Office of Safety, Office of Tribal Transportation, and Office of Program Administration) were interviewed to gather information on the extent of MIRE FDE roadway safety data sharing between agencies. Interviews were also conducted with representatives from several LPAs and other agencies to gather more details on effective state and local agency partnerships related to data integration and maintenance. The agencies that were interviewed to serve as case examples were selected on the basis of the results of the survey and literature review. Several criteria were considered in the selection of the case examples to be interviewed about state and local coordinated noteworthy practices. As part of the survey, each state DOT was asked to provide the current status of its MIRE FDE collection on state and local (non-state-owned) roadways, including whether the DOT had a successful program in place to integrate roadway safety MIRE FDE information from both state and local sources and to rank the effectiveness of such a program. As a result, more than 40 representatives from several organizations who were involved to varying degrees with the data integration efforts contributed to this synthesis effort. Multiple representatives from the organizations shown in Appendix C were interviewed in person, over the phone, or by e-mail to gather their input on issues and prac- tices in their state related to integrating roadway safety data. Samples of documents obtained as examples of current practice are included in Appendix D. Figure 1 shows a map of the specific states whose practices were reviewed and the types and locations of interviewees. Organization of Report This report is organized into five chapters. The balance of this chapter presents the report’s background, objectives, and organization and defines key terms. The report’s structure is sum- marized below with brief explanations of the content of each chapter. Chapter 2 describes and highlights the literature review on state data collection programs and practices addressing data sharing and integration in the United States, as documented in published literature and online state and local resources. Chapter 3 presents the results of the detailed questions posed in the survey as reported by the DOTs in their survey responses. The survey results shed light on the state of the practice in many states on the data collection and integration efforts from state and local sources. An overview

Introduction 7 of the various noteworthy practices and partnerships that demonstrate effective and successful data integration is presented. Chapter 4 examines and reports on the findings of specific noteworthy practices on data integration that were collected through published literature, survey responses, and a series of detailed interviews with the individuals listed in Appendix C in each of the case example agencies selected for further review. The chapter is organized to provide more details on the identified noteworthy examples of state and local agency partnerships, the implementation and oversight of innovative and/or successful practices, challenges faced at the state and local levels, and the lessons learned on establishing successful partnerships. Chapter 5 presents the synthesis with a summary of findings, conclusions, knowledge gaps, and suggestions for further study and research. This information was obtained from the literature review, state DOT survey, and the in-depth interviews conducted with local and other agencies for further study. These chapters are followed by a list of acronyms, a glossary, the references and a bib- liography. The five appendices to this report are not printed herein but can be downloaded from the TRB website (trb.org) by searching for “NCHRP Synthesis 523.” These appendices are as follows: • Appendix A: Summary of Published State DOT Case Studies. Appendix A summarizes the literature review findings related to existing or planned state DOT efforts to integrate roadway safety data. • Appendix B: Survey Questions and Results. Appendix B includes the survey questions and the results for each question. Figure 1. Location of agencies that responded to the survey, were interviewed, or were selected as case example agencies.

8 Integration of Roadway Safety Data from State and Local Sources • Appendix C: List of Interviewees. Appendix C lists the agency or organization representatives who contributed to the development of this synthesis. • Appendix D: Sample Documents That Illustrate Practices Related to State and Local Road- way Data Integration. Appendix D presents sample documents that were offered by agencies and are relevant to the study. • Appendix E: Links to Resources Identified. Appendix E includes links to resources identified through the literature review or shared by the agencies interviewed.