Candice Y. Wallace

An Empirical Examination of the Statutory Characteristics and Effects of Highway and Transportation Commissions on DOT Capital Management Capacity

A majority of the states have created, by statute, some type of external body (such as a board or commissions) to oversee their departments of transportation (DOTs). The focus of this research is on two types of commissions: highway-only commissions and multimodal transportation commissions. We review the authorizing statutes that establish these boards and commissions to identify their statutorily defined membership characteristics and roles. We then empirically estimate the possible contribution of commissionsstatutory characteristics to a measure of DOT capital and infrastructure management capacity taken from the Government Performance Project. The findings suggest that commissions are designed to promote the general interest in the efficient allocation of transportation resources. They also suggest that large commissions may improve management capacity by fostering more open discussion. There were no significant differences between highway-only and multimodal transportation commissions.

Enhancing Kentucky's Transportation Funding Capacity: A Review of Six Innovative Financing Options

Kentucky faces several challenges in meeting the funding needs for its transportation infrastructure. The state currently relies on a revenue stream based on road user taxes and fees. However, the structure of these taxes and fees are such that revenues have not kept up with the growth in the number of licensed drivers and motor vehicle travel. In addition, inflationary pressures, coupled with the Road Funds low growth rate, have diminished the purchasing power of Road Fund revenues. It is increasingly clear that Kentucky will not be fiscally capable of meeting its transportation investment needs if steps are not taken to address current revenue trends. Traditional financing mechanisms have not proven adequate to meet the states current transportation needs. Knowing the options available to enhance current revenues can assist policymakers in making critical policy decisions needed to ensure continuing adequacy of funds to meet the demands of the states transportation system. Because of the myriad of transportation funding options available to states, knowledge of the options and an understanding of how these options can be used for efficient transportation financing is a complex undertaking. This study was designed to provide such desired information. This report identifies and investigates six innovative finance options that could potentially be used to mitigate Kentuckys funding challenges. These innovative finance options are reviewed and an explanation of each option, discussion of advantages and disadvantages, estimate of potential revenue that could be generated, and review of implementation needs are discussed. The six innovative finance options summarized in this report are: (a) adjust the indexing formula for the motor fuel tax; (b) eliminate tax expenditures to increase Road Fund revenue; (c) impose usage tax on motor vehicle repair parts and labor; (d) establish a supplemental vehicle enforcement fee to create a Motor Vehicle Safety Enhancement Fund; (e) use tax increment financing for local transportation projects; and (f) utilize tolling to construct, maintain and operate new roads and bridges.

Privatizing Transportation through Public-Private Partnerships: Definitions, Models, and Issues

There has been greater emphasis in recent times on using public-private partnerships (PPPs or P3s) to provide and deliver transportation infrastructure and services. These public-private partnerships differ from contracting out, being applicable to a broader range of projects and requiring different contract management and accountability. In the transportation arena the focus on public-private partnerships has resulted from both the need for greater reliance on private capital to fund critical infrastructure and services and the need to tap private sector expertise to ensure delivery of high quality infrastructure and services on time and on budget. This report serves as a primer on public-private partnerships for the delivery of transportation infrastructure and services. It provides an overview of the concept of public-private partnerships, presenting a broad definition of the privatization approach, comparing it to contracting out, and discussing a theoretical framework for understanding why, when and how partnerships are appropriate as a privatization strategy. The report also reviews six public-private partnership models – design bid build, private contract fee services, design build, design build operate maintain or build operate transfer, design build finance operate, and build own operate – identified by the Federal Highway Administration as available for use by transportation agencies considering privatizing transportation projects. Adopting a public-private partnership involves two important decisions – (1) the decision to privatize via a public-private partnership; and (2) the decision on which partnership model to adopt – which are also addressed. This report also discusses key issues and factors necessary for successful transportation public-private partnerships and provides a glossary of terms as a reference for understanding the terminology and language of privatization and public-private partnerships.

Meeting Kentucky's Transportation Needs and Priorities: Citizens' Perceptions and Recommendations

This study was designed to (1) consider the role of public input in the transportation planning process; (2) obtain citizen perceptions of system needs and develop priorities in the state of Kentucky; and (3) use that experience (and the experiences of other states) to provide recommendations for ways to enhance the role of public input in Kentuckys transportation planning. Telephone survey of Kentucky adults and focus groups of community leaders were utilized to gauge the publics attitudes and perceptions regarding Kentuckys transportation needs, issues and priorities, and system satisfaction. The findings from the survey and the focus groups were compared to arrive at a better understanding of the publics opinion of the states transportation system. The findings of this study also lend themselves to recommendations for improving transportation planning in Kentucky. Specifically, they suggest (1) a decentralized project selection process that begins with public input at the district level, followed by (2) statewide public hearings to obtain public input regarding statewide needs and priorities. From a long-term planning perspective, a telephone survey similar to that administered in this study could be undertaken every two years (and supplemented by focus groups as needed), as a way to systematically gather information regarding the publics perceptions and recommendations.

A Four-Step Process to Assess the Fiscal Performance and Sufficiency of State Road Funds

Aging transportation infrastructure and diminishing financial resources are challenging the management of state transportation systems. Policy makers and administrators are seeking fiscal performance measurement tools to better monitor and manage infrastructure. This article discusses and applies a four-step process to examine past revenue and expenditure trends to determine transportation expenditure sufficiency for state road funds, using the Kentucky Road Fund as a template. A comprehensive approach to this issue is utilized by demonstrating several possible measures of sufficiency and then presenting some future scenarios. Expenditures across various facets of the transportation system are then analyzed with a number of performance metrics as well as construction cost measures to estimate sufficiency. Finally, short-term forecasts of several revenue scenarios are presented to provide context for possible future funding levels under the current revenue regime. The Kentucky case study provides a template to analyze state road funds and potentially draw conclusions as to the continued solvency and state of transportation infrastructure. As policy makers better understand the sufficiency of road fund resources to meet transportation priorities, they will better understand the costs of meeting future transportation needs and the opportunity costs of diverting transportation resources to other policy priorities.

Assessment of Kentucky's Road Fund

Kentuckys Road Fund serves as the primary source of funds for the states roadway system. Motor fuels taxes and motor vehicle usage taxes are the two main components of Road Fund revenues. In recent years, there has been concern about the ability of the Road Fund, as currently constituted, to provide sufficient revenue to meet the funding needs for Kentuckys transportation system. This could impact the ability of the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet to maintain Kentuckys transportation system at current service levels. The reliance on traditional funding methods is presenting challenges and will likely continue to do so. In view of these challenges, the effects of relying on such funding mechanisms in the future must be examined to determine the level of revenues that will be available and whether those revenues can maintain the current level of services provided by the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet.

Local Evaluation for the Cumberland Gap Tunnel Regional ITS Deployment

This report is the local evaluation of an Intelligent Transportation System deployment for the Cumberland Gap Tunnel and U.S. 25E corridor in Tennessee and Kentucky. This report examines the planning for the deployment and the systems and components used to achieve the goals of the deployment. The goals and expectations of the ITS deployment were to provide updated travel information to drivers in the vicinity of the Cumberland Gap Tunnel and along the U.S. 25E corridor; to improve the integration of the tunnel systems; to improve incident detection, verification, and response times along the U.S. 25E corridor; and to develop, use, and maintain a Regional ITS Architecture. A Regional ITS Architecture, a Strategic Plan, and an ITS Integration Plan were developed and used as the basis to upgrade and expand existing systems, to deploy regional signage, and to enhance communication. The report includes discussions of institutional involvement and the use of a project champion, along with lessons learned from the deployment.

Evaluation of the Eastern Kentucky Rural Highway Information Project 511 Tourism Service

The purpose of this study is to provide an evaluation of the Eastern Kentucky Rural Highway Information Project, involving the establishment of a 511 Premium Tourism Service Package. Kentucky is only the second state to offer tourism related services through its 511 Travel System, placing the state in a position to offer insights gained from the project to other states considering the implementation of similar program. Lessons learned from Kentucky’s experience with launching and managing a multi-county tourism information system will be invaluable. To that end, this study (1) reviewed the activities undertaken during launch and early operations of the Southern and Eastern Kentucky 511 Tourism Service, and (2) conducted a survey of users in an effort to gauge public use and receptiveness to this service. This report offers lessons learned during the start-up phase of the project pertaining to (1) institutional issues, (2) technical issues, and (3) public-private partnership issues. In addition, a survey was administered to 600 users of the 511 Tourism Service, in an effort to gauge current public sentiment about the service as well as discover additional features users would like the service to offer in the future.

Today's DOT and the Quest for More Accountable Organizational Structures

This study investigates the impact of Department of Transportation (DOT) organizational structures on effective transportation planning and performance. A review of the 50 state DOT authorizing statutes and DOT organizational charts found minimal differences in organizational structures among the states. However, 37 states have quasi-independent commissions (sometimes called boards, or councils). A statistical analysis showed that the commission states have higher Government Performance Project (GPP) scores than the non-commission states. The analysis suggested that effective commissions avoid having members represent geographical regions and political parties and avoid giving the commission the power to select the director of the DOT. In addition the states with effective DOTs staff their commissions with citizens, not politicians, and give the commission oversight authority, a policy formation role and a clear mission. In the second phase of the study, five case studies of high performing commission states were conducted to obtain best practices. The high performing states were found to institutionalize practices and rules to improve performance and accountability. These structured practices and rules were designed to do the following: (1) reduce political involvement in project selection; (2) hold statewide, regional and local meetings to increase transparency and trust; (3) empower their district offices to make decisions regarding system maintenance and preservation; (4) establish formal waste reduction techniques and processes; (5) allocate road fund resources on a consistent and objective basis; and (6) ensure sufficient funds are available to complete projects on time and on budget.

Transportation System Vulnerability and Resilience to Extreme Weather Events and Other Natural Hazards Report for Pilot Project - KYTC District 1

This researchs objective is to assist the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet (KYTC) in its efforts to develop strategies to address natural hazard vulnerabilities and improve the resiliency of Kentuckys transportation infrastructure. Recent federal legislation calls for state transportation agencies to develop a risk-based asset management plan for National Highway System (NHS) assets that includes consideration of natural hazards. Similarly, the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) calls for state transportation agencies to identify potential vulnerabilities associated with extreme weather events and climate change, and to incorporate these findings into transportation planning, design, and maintenance practices. This report consists of two parts: (1) An overview of vulnerability assessments and natural hazards for KYTC. This is intended to inform and guide transportation system vulnerability assessments for Kentucky. (2) Pilot vulnerability assessment for the NHS in KYTC District 1. The District 1 pilot adopts a framework for conducting the assessment for particular locations. Lessons learned from the District 1 pilot project will direct future assessments in the remaining KYTC districts.