The Role of Planning in a 21st Century State Department of Transportation—Supporting Strategic Decisionmaking (2015)

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1 Today the secretary of any state department of transportation (DOT) faces a daunting task. Money to maintain the infrastructure it owns is insufficient; public and political leaders want to construct new projects to reduce congestion and provide better access to rural areas; governors are promising more jobs and economic vitality and they are expecting their DOTs to step up and support that agenda; cities and counties want more control over how their mobility and accessibility needs are met; and advocates concerned about an extensive list of non-transportation issues—everything from energy dependency to childhood obesity to climate change to land conservation—want the DOT’s investments to support non- transportation goals and outcomes. In addition to the pressures that nearly all DOTs have in common, each one faces an added number of issues and challenges that are unique to that state. Externally, DOT leaders are under pressure from diverse public and private sources for the transportation system to “do more”—create jobs, provide transportation options, support each community’s unique quality of life, and enhance the environment. DOT leaders are beleaguered by groups and individuals whose primary message is “the DOT doesn’t get it.” These groups are pushing to shift both decision-making authority and funding to other agencies—local government, metropolitan planning organizations, and the private sector. Many DOTs today are finding themselves in “reactive” mode, and they are unable to drive the state’s transportation strategy and goals effectively. The mission of the DOT in the 21st century, however, has evolved. The Interstate is built, transportation revenue is less stable and less predictable, the public has little desire for new S u m m a r y The Role of Planning in a 21st Century State Department of Transportation—Supporting Strategic Decisionmaking 21st Century Planning—What Is Different Today? • Public expectations are different • The missions of the DOTs are changing • DOTs are expanding their partnerships and adopting a customer-focused per- spective • DOTs are moving toward performance-based planning • Demand is growing for outcomes and accountability • Collaboration and communication have become more important • The programs, projects, and plans needed from planners are changing

2 The role of Planning in a 21st Century State Department of Transportation—Supporting Strategic Decisionmaking roads if paying for them means new taxes, and demographics and travel patterns are shifting. The priority for most DOTs today is maintaining and operating the system—a more tactical than strategic view of the agency’s purpose. Due in part to uncertainty in the funding stream, as well as more frequent changes to the laws and regulations that govern how transportation infrastructure is planned and built, asset management, system reliability, and resiliency are the transportation issues that engage DOT leaders today. The Value of Planning DOT chief executive officers (CEOs) and executive leaders can use all the help they can get. In many DOTs, the planning team is an underutilized resource that could help meet these challenges. Planning provides a state DOT with the skills to define a consensus-based, collaborative, long-term vision for transportation reflecting the perspectives of both internal and external stakeholders. Transportation planning in the 21st century is not a wholesale change from the past, but the focus of transportation has broadened significantly. As a result, changes in strategic direction, planning processes, communications, and data may be needed to take the DOT to the next level. The planning office can support DOT executive leadership in moving toward the 21st century vision. During the Interstate era of the 20th century, the planning department was central to the DOT’s core mission—essentially, building new roads. In this era, planners were critical for projecting transportation needs, recommending capital solutions, and identifying revenue shortfalls to address these solutions. State legislatures and Congress used this information to debate and approve federal and state funding to complete the Interstate system and build complementary state highway systems. With their long-term, strategic view, planners were at the table with the state’s leaders, the secretary, the governor, and the legislature—advising them on policy and implementation strategies. While many DOT offices and functions are focused on meeting short-term needs, the planning office by definition is fundamentally responsible for thinking about the future. As futurists, planners can help CEOs and executive leaders think about the trends and emerging issues that will shape the agency over the long term. Continued investment in future-oriented planning skills will be more important than ever to help DOT leadership prepare the agency to adapt quickly in the face of continued change in demographics, economics, financing, and technology. The planning office can also help DOT leadership with building the relationships and partnerships that will be needed to move forward with a broader multidisciplinary and customer-focused mission. Relationships with the public, advocacy groups, and state and local government will be important for forging connections and building support for the DOT mission, especially as it evolves to support broader societal Why Is Planning Important to the DOT? • Planning provides a future-oriented focus to support CEO strategic decision- making, addressing benefits, trade-offs, and outcomes for future scenarios • Planning offices establish partnerships and are relationship-builders, facilitating consensus around integrated visions • Planning communicates with internal and external stakeholders on how transportation fits within the context of other agency and societal goals

Summary 3 goals. Finally, planners can support DOT leadership by providing the complex data analysis and performance measurement that is increasingly important to inform decisionmaking and to demonstrate DOT accountability to the public and elected officials. Timely, accurate data are needed to account for the use of public dollars and to help CEOs make sound decisions. As the DOT mission and strategic focus shifts and evolves, planners may find that their responsibilities are no longer aligned with the core agency issues of today; planners often do not have the information or authority they need to address most of the challenges their agency faces. Many DOT staff and even planners themselves define the role of planning narrowly: producing the federally mandated state long-range transportation plans (LRTPs) and the state transportation improvement programs (STIPs). Where the DOT’s revenue is highly constrained, these plans are no longer driving most of the major investment decisions. Although their responsibilities may have changed over time, planners should continue to have an important role to play in supporting strategic decisionmaking. While DOT leaders are dealing with more tactical responsibilities and overseeing the day-to-day operation of the department, they need planners who can stay ahead of the emerging issues, consider the “what if?” scenarios, lead thoughtful evaluations of strategic trade-offs, and communicate the importance of the DOT to the state’s economy and quality of life. Relationships with partners and stakeholders are increasingly important to a DOT’s success, and the agency should be leveraging and strengthening the long-term relationships that the planners already have to help the DOT to identify how transportation can realistically support broader state, community, and societal goals. In some cases, the planning office may be well prepared to support the CEO in moving the DOT into the 21st century, but in others, investment in training will be needed to enable planners to keep pace with changing demand for planning products. With any change, a clear management plan is needed. New structures, processes, and relationships may be needed. CEOs can approach this by considering what 21st century planning means for their state. Developing this vision will help them define the steps needed to move the planning office forward in supporting this vision. A “21st Century Planning Readiness Assessment and Roadmap” is included in NCHRP Report 798 to help the planning director, in conjunction with the CEO and the executive leadership team, assess the strengths and gaps of the DOT planning office as it works to support the 21st century DOT. NCHRP Report 798 also includes information about what is different about 21st century planning and provides suggestions on how to close the gap between current planning practice and the new requirements. Although changes can occur incrementally and may take time, it is important to recognize that the world in which DOTs are operating is dynamic, and the planning function will need to change in order to support the agency’s ever-evolving mission. Academia’s Role University planning programs have an important role to play in preparing the next generation of planners to be effective practitioners in the 21st century. The training provided in academic planning programs will shape the skills and competencies of plan- ners that will lead our transportation agencies in the future. Although the mission of many state DOTs has changed and continues to evolve, many planning programs have been successful in keeping up with the pace of change. Many DOTs have become more multimodal, visionary, and customer-focused in response to changing demographics, emerging technology, and a new political and economic landscape. With these changes comes a need for creative, multidisciplinary planners who can help support the state’s ever-evolving transportation mission.

4 The role of Planning in a 21st Century State Department of Transportation—Supporting Strategic Decisionmaking In many ways, academic planning programs have kept pace with the evolving nature of the planning field, and they have also been at the forefront of championing these changes. The planning programs of today are multimodal and innovative, encouraging future planners to understand that transportation affects the quality of life of every community and encouraging innovative and creative outreach to tap into the core vision and values that reflect that quality of life. Planning programs teach many of the skills and techniques needed for a robust public involvement process, including consensus building and con- flict resolution. These skills are especially important today in light of changing avenues of communication, such as social media and other new technological advances. Research conducted for NCHRP Report 798 validated many of the core skills and com- petencies that underlie existing planning curricula. Planning programs can help enhance skills in communication, consensus building, and strategic thinking to prepare students to be 21st century state DOT planners. DOTs need planners who can build strong relation- ships both internally and externally, working to facilitate consensus among stakeholders for a common goal. They need planners who can help figure out how to “do more” with the transportation system, supporting social and environmental goals beyond traditional transportation missions, and advancing the system’s reliability and resiliency. Planning programs can also help prepare planners with the new skills expected to be needed in the 21st century. DOTs will need planners that have an external awareness and holistic perspective on topics and factors traditionally considered outside of the transportation field (such as public health). With the increasing pace of technology and public expectations for fast results, planners will also need strong decision-making skills. They will need to define problems quickly and produce results much faster than in the past. Perhaps most importantly, planners should be trained as fast-paced futurists who can anticipate changes and adapt quickly to them. Academic leaders in the planning field can continue to have a profound effect on the direction of planners for decades to come. About NCHRP Report 798—How Planning and the Role of Planners Should Evolve in the 21st Century NCHRP Report 798 describes how a DOT CEO and senior leadership can consider changes needed to support a 21st century vision of the DOT and how the planning office can best support this vision. It will also help academia ensure that it continues to lead in preparing the next generation of practitioners. The report will help planners understand how to support the changing work of the DOT, including what changes should be made to meet the new challenges of today. NCHRP Report 798 is not a general “how to” for conducting plan- ning at the state DOT level. Rather, it describes why and how planning should adjust in the 21st century. As already described, at the national, state, regional and local level, changes in finance, the political environment, the economy, technology, and demographics and soci- ety are impacting the landscape in which planners are working. Planners are key players in shaping and determining the success of the DOT’s adaptation to these changes. The focus of the guidance is framed by the evaluation of 12 fundamental strategic decisions that effective 21st century planners will need to support. These decisions range from relatively technical to very broad and conceptual, which further emphasizes the need for planners to The 21st Century Planner Should Be • Multimodal • Multidisciplinary • Creative • Consensus oriented • Technologically savvy • Skilled in data collection and analysis • Skilled in communication

Summary 5 be broad and visionary thinkers. Many of the decisions will be familiar to planners, but the changing role of DOTs will require changes in what planning and planners do. Other strategies are new and have been developed in response to the challenges and drivers that DOTs are facing. DOTs will already have made some of the changes described, but they may not be ready to make others. The strategic decisions provide useful guidance to agencies through- out the spectrum of transition to a more 21st century-oriented approach. The strategic decision portion of NCHRP Report 798 was written to enable readers to focus on those strategies and changes that will be most relevant to the individual agency. Each strategic decision begins with a concise description of “What Is Different?” from the traditional planning process or approach. For each decision, NCHRP Report 798 addresses (1) the changes that will affect how the decision is made; (2) key issues, components, or steps involved in the decision; (3) processes that should be changed, improved, or added to allow for effective decisionmaking; (4) data, tools, and analyses that will be needed to formulate an approach to the decision; (5) relationships needed and stakeholders that should be involved to ensure effectiveness and alignment across departments and agencies; and (6) the key challenges 21st century planners will likely encounter in supporting the decision. The 12 strategic decisions are the following: • Aligning DOT and Statewide Goals, Priorities, and Performance • Agency Visioning and Goal Setting • Identifying Performance Outcomes • Defining State, Regional, and Local Roles • Internally Integrated Planning • Externally Integrated Planning • Revenue and Financial Planning • Investment Strategy Resource Allocation • Linking Performance Measures to Outcomes • Program-Level Resource Allocation • Aligning Project-Level Decisionmaking • Feedback—Monitoring and Reporting Agency Performance It is clear that there will be no “one size fits all” approach to planning in the 21st century. A few key characteristics, however, will be critical to meeting today’s challenges. Effective 21st century planners should encourage state DOTs to think broadly in considering a variety of societal goals, think critically in addressing challenges and turning data into meaningful information, and forge effective collaboration with other agencies, entities, communities, and stakeholders to address challenges that the DOT cannot solve alone.