New report discusses how transportation officials can support health equity

Smart Growth America recently released a new report, The State of Transportation and Health Equity, a field scan looking at the intersection of transportation and health equity in the U.S. today. The report summarizes lessons based on interviews with 92 experts working across disciplines at the local, state, and federal levels across the country. It identifies the biggest challenges to health equity facing our transportation system and strategies to address them. SGA will be hosting a webinar about the report on Thursday, January 23, at 2:30 p.m. EST.

State DOT officials discuss how to prioritize repair

Transportation for America and Taxpayers for Common Sense has released Repair Priorities 2019, a new report analyzing pavement conditions, state spending trends, and unmet repair needs nationwide. The report indicates that pavement conditions are getting worse, contributing to a growing gap nationally between current investments in repair and unmet needs. At the same time, some states continue to invest in expanding roads, further increasing that backlog. The authors also hosted a webinar to roll out the report. Speakers included staff from DOTs that are prioritizing repair with available funding despite the challenges. Those challenges often include significant political pressure to direct funds toward new capacity projects instead of repair projects that cause backups and inconvenience to drivers.

Lessons from nine states bringing ‘practical solutions’ from policy to practice

Smart Growth America recently concluded two years of technical assistance with nine state DOTs. The projects focused on “Accelerating Practical Solutions,” and addressed practices that hold back DOTs from consistently building lower-cost and context-sensitive projects. SGA has developed seven white papers based on key changes DOTs are making.

How WSDOT will be picking the right transportation investments for economic vitality

Smart Growth America and SSTI recently helped the Washington State Department of Transportation take a groundbreaking step to align its transportation investments with statewide policy goals. WSDOT is seeking to bring the state’s transportation policy goals directly into its decision making at every level, from statewide planning down to roadway design. The new framework will help WSDOT determine which transportation problems are most critical and which potential investments will move the state toward its vision for the future.

SSTI and SGA update “The Innovative DOT”

SSTI and Smart Growth America continue working with state DOTs and tracking innovative strategies for meeting 21st century transportation needs. These strategies are outlined in a newly updated edition of The Innovative DOT: A Handbook of Policy and Practice, released this week. The 2014 edition builds upon its predecessor with additional content, case studies, and fresh new ideas from a growing number of states.

The Best Complete Streets Policies of 2012 (Smart Growth America, 2013)

Communities across the country are making roads safer and more accessible for everyone who uses them, and more communities are using these strategies now than ever before. This guide from Smart Grown America, released today, examines all the Complete Streets policies passed in the last year and highlights some of the best. The analysis also revealed that the Complete Streets movement grew in 2012, continuing a national trend since 2005.

Removing Barriers to Smarter Transportation Investments (Smart Growth America, 2012)

A technical assistance report from Smart Growth America aims to increase the Tennessee DOT’s efficiency and ensure the greatest possible return on transportation investments. As a result, TDOT has compiled a series of recommendations designed to pin down areas for improvement, prioritize projects, and streamline processes.

SSTI and SGA release “The Innovative DOT”

Revenues are falling and budgets are shrinking. Yet state Departments of Transportation have ambitious goals. SSTI has partnered with Smart Growth America to develop “The Innovative DOT: A Handbook of Policy and Practice” as a resource for state transportation officials and other stakeholders. The handbook provides 31 recommendations for transportation officials who are positioning their agencies for success in the new economy.

Smart Growth America helps Tennessee with familiar problem: Many projects and limited funds

A technical assistance report from Smart Growth America revealed that Tennessee DOT has a problem: nine times more projects in its work plan than it has funding. They needed an analysis of which projects were a priority and how some needs might be addressed by less expensive solutions.