MOBILITY STRATEGIC GOAL

Advance accessible, efficient, intermodal transportation for the movement of people and goods

STRATEGIC OUTCOMES

• Improved infrastructure in all modes.
• Reduced congestion in all modes.
• Increased reliability throughout the system.
• Increased access for all Americans.

PERFORMANCE MEASURES

• Percentage of travel on the National Highway System (NHS) meeting pavement performance standards for “good” rated ride.
• Percent of total annual urban-area travel occurring in congested conditions.
• Average percent change in transit boardings per transit market (150 largest transit agencies).
• Percent bus fleets compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).
• Percent of key rail stations compliant with the ADA.
• Number of employment sites (in thousands) that are made accessible by Job Access and Reverse Commute transportation services.
• Percent of all flights arriving within 15 minutes of schedule at the 35 Operational Evolution Plan airports due to National Airspace System (NAS)-related delays.

Improving the condition and performance of pavement and bridges is critical to the structural integrity and cost effectiveness of the transportation system. The condition of the National Highway System (NHS) also impacts traffic congestion, the wear-and-tear on vehicles, the comfort of travelers, and fuel consumption.

2007 Results - The target was not met. The estimated percentage of travel on the NHS exhibiting good ride conditions was 55 percent, a one percent improvement over 2006. The two percent improvement - from 52 percent in 2005 to 54 percent in 2006 - could not be sustained in 2007, as the prior year increase was due primarily to substantial improvements in a few states while remaining states were only able to maintain existing conditions. The targets for 2008 to 2013 were lowered this year to better reflect expected future conditions given existing funding levels and the risings costs of materials nationwide which limit the number of projects underway.

FY 2008 Performance Forecast - The target of 56 percent of travel on the NHS network in good ride condition will be met in FY 2008 if construction material costs stabilize.

Minneapolis Bridge Collapse

As the States work to maintain an aging infrastructure, FHWA stands ready to assist them as necessary. FHWA plays a vital role, especially when tragedy occurs. In response to the tragic collapse of the I-35W Bridge in Minneapolis, MN, FHWA Division office staff was on the site within 30 minutes of the report that the bridge collapsed. The next day, FHWA headquarters staff was at the site to assist State DOT personnel. FHWA is assisting the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) as they conduct a thorough investigation, which includes a structural analysis of the bridge. FHWA released $50 million of Emergency Relief (ER) program funds for clean-up and recovery work including clearing debris and rerouting traffic, and for design work on a new bridge. That amount is in addition to the $5 million in ER program funds released to Minnesota to initiate recovery operations.

In response to the tragedy, FHWA issued two technical advisories: One strongly encouraging States to re-inspect all steel deck truss bridges and follow-up on any critical finds, and another advising States to ensure that the construction equipment loads and stockpiled raw materials placed on a structure do not overload its members.

FHWA understands that the NTSB findings along with a program audit by the DOT Office of Inspector General may result in additional recommended improvements to the Bridge program, and as a result, FHWA will stand ready to implement changes to funding or program direction as necessary.

Innovations and New Technologies

FHWA has developed several initiatives to address highway congestion. One of the newest is Highways for LIFE (HfL). The purpose of the HfL program is “to advance longer lasting highway infrastructure using innovations to accomplish the fast construction of efficient and safe highways and bridges” (thus spelling out “LIFE”). The purpose of the Highways for LIFE pilot program is to accelerate the adoption of innovations and new technologies, thereby improving safety and highway quality, while reducing congestion caused by construction. The HfL program is intended to bring about this cultural change in a few years rather than decades. The program is focused on using incentives for construction projects to demonstrate what is possible; fostering technology partnerships to help the highway construction industry realize the benefits of proven but under-utilized technologies; encouraging technology transfer, communication, and stakeholder involvement to build and equip the workforce and educate the public. As of June 2007, FHWA had approved funding or waivers for matching funds for innovative HfL proposals from nine states.

Since innovations can take more than a decade to deploy widely, FHWA is attempting to accelerate the deployment process for three innovations-Road Safety Audits (RSA), Prefabricated Bridge Elements and Systems (PBES), and Making Work Zones Work Better-that are collectively referred to as vanguard technologies.

Twenty States now have some form of involvement in implementing an RSA, either by conducting a pilot RSA or participating in FHWA-sponsored training. RSAs are a comprehensive and effective tool for improving the safety performance of a road while it is still in the planning or design stage, or for identifying and mitigating safety concerns on existing roads and intersections. There are many benefits to RSAs, among them: designs that reduce the number and severity of crashes and the possibility of reducing costs by identifying safety issues and correcting them before projects are built.

Prefabricated bridge elements can be manufactured either onsite or offsite under controlled conditions and brought to the construction location, ready for installation. Using prefabricated elements and systems minimizes construction-related traffic disruptions, increases work zone safety by reducing the number and exposure time of workers operating near moving traffic, reduces environmental impacts by minimizing the site access footprint, and improves the constructability of bridge designs by controlling manufacturing environments. Innovative concepts including use of high performance materials can mitigate the frequent need for maintenance and resulting traffic impacts.

Data from selected State department of transportation Web sites shows that 20 percent of the National Highway System is under construction in the summer and about seven percent during the winter months. It is estimated that over 6,400 work zones are in effect during the summer months, with a corresponding drop in capacity of over 6,100 lane-miles of freeway. Making Work Zones Work Better is a collection of more than one hundred innovations that are to be used as appropriate for the particular application. To advance practice, the FHWA developed a Work Zone Traffic Analysis Primer and Guidance, set up a work zone peer to peer program to exchange information, and created focused workshops based on the particular needs of a State.

Traffic congestion on our Nation's highways now affects more trips, involves more hours of the day, and includes more of the transportation system than ever before. Congestion varies significantly day to day because demand and capacity are constantly changing at any given location. Overall, 67 percent of the peak-period travel nationwide is congested, compared to 32 percent in 1982. Travelers in 85 urban areas spent 3.7 billion hours stuck in traffic in 2003, more than a five-fold increase when compared to 1982.

2007 Results - Congested travel in urban areas was below the target level with a projection of 31.8 percent for urban-area travel occurring in congested conditions. The results from 2004 to 2006 suggest that the overall rate of growth nationwide in traffic congestion appears to be slowing. However, traffic congestion is still a significant problem, particularly in urban areas.

FY 2008 Performance Forecast - DOT anticipates congestion levels nationwide should remain below the performance limit of 32.3 percent in FY 2008.

A major component of the National Strategy to Reduce Congestion is the Urban Partnership Agreement (UPA), through which the Department works with certain metropolitan areas or “Urban Partners” in order to demonstrate strategies with proven effectiveness in reducing traffic congestion. Under a UPA, the Department and its Urban Partners agree to pursue four strategies with a combined track record of effectiveness in reducing traffic congestion, collectively referred to as the “Four Ts:”

• Tolling: Implementing a broad congestion pricing or variable toll demonstration;
• Transit: Creating or expanding express bus services or bus rapid transit (BRT), which will benefit from the free flow traffic conditions generated by congestion pricing or variable tolling;
• Telecommuting: Securing agreements from major area employers to establish or expand telecommuting and flex scheduling programs; and,
• Technology & operations: Utilizing cutting edge technological and operational approaches to improve system performance.

Five metropolitan areas were selected as the first Urban Partners: Miami, Minneapolis, New York City, San Francisco, and Seattle. FHWA embarked on a comprehensive agenda to capture lessons learned from this group and facilitate peer exchange in order to ensure the eventual widespread deployment of congestion pricing applications.

With FHWA support, a traffic signal operations self-assessment was undertaken to encourage agencies to look at how traffic signal systems are being managed within their jurisdictions. The results of the self-assessments provided input to inform the 2007 National Traffic Signal Report Card, part of a nationwide effort to bring more attention to the need for additional investment in traffic signal operations. In collaboration with the private sector, FHWA delivered Adaptive Control Software (ACS)-Lite, which is designed to monitor and evaluate traffic operations and refine signal timing consistent with current traffic conditions in real time. ACS-Lite passed its real-world tests and was aggressively promoted.

To promote better system operation and management practices, FHWA established a Localized Bottleneck Reduction program to encourage the use of operational and low-cost construction strategies that will improve mobility at bottleneck locations. FHWA undertook a major effort to identify international and domestic examples of innovative strategies. In particular, all FHWA Division Offices worked with their State counterparts to identify good practice quick fixes to alleviate bottleneck congestion. These strategies were published in Traffic Bottlenecks: a Primer - Focus on Low-Cost Operational Improvements, which is intended to serve as a forum for peer exchange and will be regularly updated as additional information becomes available.

Transit is one of the safest ways of traveling, relieves road congestion, and reduces air pollution. Federal investments in transit, combined with State and private sector funds, make public transportation possible for millions of Americans every day. Transit saves time, provides mobility, and reduces congestion.

According to a recent analysis, Americans wasted 4.2 billion hours and 2.9 billion gallons of fuel sitting in traffic jams. Traffic congestion now costs motorists in our Nation's top urban areas about $78 billion a year in wasted time and fuel. Transit saved $10.2 billion in congestion costs attributable to wasted fuel and time.

Many of the 37 million Americans who live below the poverty line rely on transit as their only means of transportation for work and non-work trips. As former welfare recipients move from welfare to jobs, transit offers the critical link that makes employment possible and the American workforce stronger.

Accessible public transportation is also important to the 24 million Americans with disabilities who can use public transportation, and the growing number of senior citizens who can no longer drive.

2007 Results - DOT met the performance target. A combination of factors contributed to the increase in ridership in 2007 including programs such as Commuter Choice, guaranteed ride home, partnerships between the transit agencies and employers and universities to provide transit passes, simplified fare structures, improved and expanded service, and more effective marketing of transit. The purchase of new transit vehicles by many transit properties has increased the amenities and rider comfort which also attracts riders. In addition to these active efforts to increase transit ridership, external factors such as the increase in the cost of gasoline and higher levels of employment have had a positive impact. The public benefits in many ways from improved transit service; through energy conservation, reduced congestion, environmental improvements, and economic stimulus.

FY 2008 Performance Forecast - DOT expects to meet the transit ridership target for FY 2008.

To support this goal, FTA continued to invest in the Nation's transit infrastructure to ensure transit is as safe, efficient and cost-effective as possible, thus attracting new riders. FTA also implemented several new initiatives to promote ridership and recognized transit agencies that developed innovative and successful programs to increase ridership. Some of the FTA ridership accomplishments include the following:

• In March 2007, FTA formally recognized 12 transit agencies that experienced the highest growth in ridership as a result of implementing changes in their fare structures, operations, marketing, partnerships, or service coverage. The award winners are as follows:

• In FY 2007, United We Ride human service transportation initiative made strides to improve transportation delivery systems for older adults, persons with disabilities, families with low-incomes, disadvantaged youth, and other populations most dependent upon public and human service transportation systems to meet their mobility needs. United We Ride and the DOT Intelligent Transportation System technologies program launched a national demonstration program to untangle the confusing web of transportation services for customers by using technology to create a single point of customer access to transportation services no matter what the trip, who provides the ride or who funds the services. Nine sites were selected to develop operational plans to implement simplified customer access systems.

Accessible public transportation is vital to maintaining independence and mobility for people with disabilities and linking them to employment, health care and their community. Access to public transportation is essential for people who are making the transition from welfare to work, or are low-income and must rely on transit to get to work.

2007 Results - DOT met the bus target for compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).

The bus fleet continues to become more accessible as older vehicles are replaced with those that are lift-equipped or have low floors to accommodate wheel chairs. The overall rate of increase in bus accessibility has slowed somewhat since many of the buses replaced were already lift-equipped. While all new buses are lift equipped or have low floors, it will be difficult to reach 100 percent compliance because many transit operators retain buses for more than twenty years.

FY 2008 Performance Forecast - DOT expects to meet the bus fleet accessibility target for FY 2008.

2007 Results - The preliminary estimate indicates DOT will just miss meeting the 2007 target.

There are 687 key rail stations nationwide; only 53 of them remain inaccessible to people with disabilities. Over half of these are under FTA-approved time extensions up to 2020, as allowed by regulation, where extraordinarily expensive structural changes or replacement of existing facilities is needed. Many of these operators are discovering that the scope of work that is needed to comply with the ADA exceeds their original projections. As a result, more time will be required to complete the necessary modifications.

FTA is developing an action plan for moving forward on this goal. As a next step, FTA intends to pursue a status report with each of the eight remaining operators. This will provide a better picture of realistic goals for future years. It will be an opportunity for grantees to address hurdles in achieving these objectives. Over half of the remaining stations are in Cleveland or New York City. By focusing on these two cities, we will make substantial progress.

FY 2008 Performance Forecast - DOT will not meet its current 2008 target, which is 94 percent. DOT plans to adjust its targets for achieving full key station accessibility in FY 2008 and beyond to reflect the realities outlined above.

JOB ACCESS AND REVERSE COMMUTE SERVICES (JARC)

In areas of the country that receive JARC funds, the program successfully meets the transportation needs of low-income individuals seeking reliable transportation to employment and related support services.

Transit agencies have used JARC funds for a wide variety of services, ranging from expansion of fixed route bus systems, and demand responsive services, to providing customer information. In each community that received a grant, JARC transportation services have reached new employment sites, making thousands of entry-level jobs and employers accessible for the program's target populations. New stops supported by JARC funds have also increased access to critical employment support sites, particularly childcare and job training facilities.

2007 Results - DOT met the Job Access and Reverse Commute (JARC) target for the number of employment sites that are made accessible by JARC transportation services.

The administration of FTA's JARC program was changed from a separate nationally-administered competitive program into a State-administered formula program as enacted in SAFETEA-LU. This change provided each State with the opportunity to consider and prioritize their mobility needs when planning transit. In response to this change, FTA evaluated the performance measure “Number of employment sites (000s) that are made accessible by Job Access and Reverse Commute transportation services”. As a result of this exercise, FTA identified a more precise performance measure “Jobs made accessible by JARC services.” Baseline information on the new measure is currently being collected and tested and will be reported in the FY 2008 PAR.

The JARC program has consistently exceeded its annual goal to reach 50,000 job sites. The new JARC performance measure will provide a more precise and effective measure of the number of employers and jobs made accessible by the JARC program. JARC program performance continues to demonstrate the effectiveness of the program in meeting the transportation needs of low-income individuals seeking reliable transportation to employment and related support services. In the most recent analyses of grantee data, it is estimated that JARC funded services provided access to approximately 95,400 employment sites and provided 14.1 million one-way trips. Riders have reported that JARC services played an important role in their lives by making jobs accessible. An overwhelming majority (93 percent) of passengers surveyed in 2002 indicated that JARC services were either “very important” (81 percent) or “important” (12 percent) to them. Two-thirds (66 percent) of the respondents indicated that they would not have been able to access their destination without the JARC service. JARC services are used most frequently to travel to and from a work site (approximately 62.5 percent of all trips.) Nearly one out of every three JARC respondents did not work prior to making use of the services. The program has also met its goal of improving collaboration between grantees and stakeholders.

FTA is developing an action plan for moving forward on this goal. As a next step, FTA intends to pursue a status report with each of the eight remaining operators. This will provide a better picture of realistic goals for future years. It will be an opportunity for grantees to address hurdles in achieving these objectives. Over half of the remaining stations are in Cleveland or New York City. By focusing on these two cities, we will make substantial progress.

FY 2008 Performance Forecast - It is anticipated that DOT will meet the FY 2008 target.

The demand on our National Airspace System (NAS) has never been greater. The number of aircraft has grown, as has the diversity in the performance and type of aircraft operating, such as regional jets. With the increasing growth of low-cost carriers, the challenge to increase capacity in the NAS intensifies. Along with increased traffic, adverse weather conditions were a major contributing factor to the increase in airport delays this year.

The complexity of the future operating environment - with evolving fleet mixes, new aircraft, technology, and environmental constraints - must be approached in partnership with our customers. The preparation for these changes is already well under way. The Federal government's vision for meeting this challenge is called the Next Generation Air Transportation System (NextGen). The concept of NextGen is a wide ranging transformation of the entire national air transportation system to meet future demands and avoid gridlock in the sky and at our airports.

2007 Results - DOT did not achieve its FY 2007 NAS On-Time Arrival performance target.

FAA fell short of the FY 2007 target of 87.40 percent, achieving an on-time rate of only 86.32 percent. Adverse weather conditions played a significant part in airport delays; in fact, weather-related delays caused by wind, low ceilings, and low visibility increased from 2006 to 2007. Over 30 percent of operations at Boston, Newark and Chicago were conducted during moderate to severe weather conditions. Traffic management initiatives, such as ground delay programs and airspace flow programs were used to combat thunderstorms.

To help achieve this target in the future, FAA continues to evaluate new tools and technologies to improve arrival times. These include greater collaboration with stakeholders, evaluation of separation standards, implementation of improved weather information tools, and airspace redesign where beneficial. Airspace redesign is one of the key components in optimizing U.S. airspace and allowing for increased capacity. Efficient airspace operations will require redesigning routes and changing the size and shape of the airspace. This increased flexibility will help address volume, congestion, and weather in en-route airspace.

FTA is developing an action plan for moving forward on this goal. As a next step, FTA intends to pursue a status report with each of the eight remaining operators. This will provide a better picture of realistic goals for future years. It will be an opportunity for grantees to address hurdles in achieving these objectives. Over half of the remaining stations are in Cleveland or New York City. By focusing on these two cities, we will make substantial progress.

FY 2008 Performance Forecast - The FAA anticipates meeting the FY 2008 On-Time Target of 88.0 percent.

While our aviation system is safer than ever, there is little question that its capacity is rapidly reaching critical mass. Eighteen of our Nation's biggest airports have regained their highest pre-9/11 commercial passenger traffic levels. The capacity of our airports, our runways, and our skies are stretched thin. By 2015, the system is expected to carry one billion passengers per year and international passenger traffic is expected to grow by 70 percent. We project that by 2014, without any changes to the system, we will see delays 62 percent higher than they are today. The FAA is taking steps right now to prevent these future delays and is making significant strides.

Average Daily Capacity

Growth in air travel has generally been accomplished by increasing the number of flights. Measuring the growth of airport capacity indicates the limit at which increased service can be accommodated without affecting delay.

FAA works with local governments and airspace users to provide increased capacity in the U.S. airspace system that will reduce congestion and meet projected demand. The agency met and passed the FY 2007 target to achieve an average daily airport capacity for the 35 Operational Evolution Plan (OEP) airports of 101,562 arrivals and departures per day.

Activities and accomplishments towards achieving these goals include:

• Airspace Redesign - To help reduce delays and create more efficient routings, significant changes were made to crowded en-route and terminal airspace. Redesign efforts continued in the New York/New Jersey/Philadelphia, Chicago, and Houston airspace; all three of these projects are multi-phased efforts. The first phase of the Chicago airspace project was implemented in March 2007, and major interim milestones for the other two efforts were completed in 2007. Additionally, airspace reviews for Alaska and southern Nevada began in 2007. These efforts promise to improve safety and efficiency, reduce delays, and accommodate the changing fleet of aircraft and their usage patterns and capabilities.

• Area Navigation (RNAV) Routes, Standard Instrument Departures (SIDs) and Standard Terminal Arrivals (STARs) - Area navigation (RNAV) consists of routes and procedures that allow aircraft to fly point-to-point operations that are not restricted by the location of radar. This permits the aircraft to fly optimum routes with little controller intervention. Two tools that accommodate air growth and improve efficiency are RNAV standard instrument departures (SID) and Standard Terminal Arrivals (STARS). RNAV SID and STARS provide instrument flight procedures for departing and arriving aircraft transitioning to and from the terminal to the en-route structure, using advanced navigation technology. Using RNAV reduces pilot and controller workload and enhances the efficient and safe use of navigable airspace within the terminal airspace environment. In the en-route structure we are developing high and low altitude RNAV routes. In FY 2007, we published 60 RNAV SID and STARS and 12 RNAV routes. RNAV is saving operators millions of dollars per year in fuel costs due to more efficient routes. We are beginning to realize capacity benefits as well. At Dallas/Fort Worth Airport RNAV allows up to 20 additional departures per hour. At Atlanta Hartsfield Airport, RNAV allows an additional 10 departures per hour.

• Integrated Terminal Weather System (ITWS) - ITWS is technology that helps make air traffic flow more efficient in periods of adverse weather. As an air traffic management tool, ITWS provides air traffic managers, controllers, and airlines highly accurate, easily understood and immediately usable graphical weather information and hazard alerts on a single, integrated color display. By providing traffic managers with this accurate, immediately usable weather information, ITWS helps increase safety and capacity, improve efficiency, and reduce weather delays for airlines and the traveling public. In FY 2007, ITWS was commissioned at New York City airports and at Memphis with a terminal convective weather forecast (TCWF) capability enhancement. TCWF increases weather forecast information from 20 to 60 minutes.

• New Runways - We opened runway 14/32 at Boston-Logan International Airport in November 2006, which has shown delay reduction benefits in its first several months of operation. A runway at Los Angeles International Airport was closed for relocation last year and re-opened in April 2007. With the opening of the end around taxiway at Atlanta in April 2007, about 612 runway crossings per day were eliminated at the busiest airport in the U.S.-significantly improving safety and efficiency.

Future Airport Capacity Task (FACT) Report Update - FACT is an assessment of the future capacity of the Nation's airports and metropolitan areas. This study shows that by 2025, 14 airports and eight metropolitan areas will require additional capacity, even if currently planned improvements are built at airports throughout the system. The FACT 2 study recommends capacity in the form of supplemental airports. Specifically Atlanta, Chicago, Las Vegas, and San Diego were identified as cities needing additional capacity in the form of supplemental airports.