Where Have We Been, How Do We Get
to the Next Level, and Making Asset
Management A Reality
Tom Maze, Howard R. Green Co.
Omar Smadi, CTRE
Dave Plazak, CTRE
Presentation Outline

What has been accomplished to date
– What,
– When and who,
– Why

Challenges and conclusions
Where are we with respect to widespread deployment
Commonality of use of TAM
Routine Application
Training and Dissemination
Maturation
Evaluations
Development of Tools
Development of the Science
Early Applications and Pilots
Outreach and Awareness
Conceptualization
What?

What is transportation asset
management (TAM)??
– TAM is a discipline
– TAM is a philosophy
– TAM is a group of concepts/principles
– TAM is an approach
– TAM is a process
– TAM is a methodology
TAM Definition

AASHTO/FHWA
“Asset management is a systematic process of
maintaining, upgrading, and operating physical
assets cost-effectively. It combines Engineering
principles with sound business practices and
economic theory, and it provides tools to facilitate a
more organized, logical approach to decisionmaking. Thus, asset management provides a
framework for handling both short- and long-range
planning.’
TAM Definitions
Commonwealth of Victoria, Australia
“Asset management is the process of guiding the acquisition, use
and disposal of assets to make the most of their service delivery
potential and manage the relate risks and costs over their entire
life.”

– Steps
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Needs analysis (demand analysis)
Economic appraisal (valuation)
Integrate with planning process
Budgeting (over entire life-cycle)
Pricing
Economic evaluation of acquisition and disposal options
Recording, valuation and reporting (condition/performance appraisal)
Management in use (maintenance management)
What is the Current Backdrop for
Asset Management

Use of TAM represents a more systematic
management approach
 “The public are all investors in the state and
federal transportation corporation.”
– We need to demonstrate that they (the public) are
getting a good return on their investment. Mary
Peters, FHWA Administrator

These suggest that transportation agencies
must operate more like a competitive
business.
Examples of Pressure to Improve Return
on Investment and Accountability

Streamline environmental review
 Greater emphasis on public involvement and
stakeholder participation
 More emphasis on performance measurement
 Extensive privatization of the facility delivery process
 Alternatives to traditional design-bid-build project
delivery
–
–
–
–
Design-Build
Design-Build-Operate-Transfer
Warrantees
Etc.
Who and when
Australia, New Zealand, and Canada
started in the early to mid 1990s
 AASHTO/FHWA Executive Level
National Workshops on TAM

– 1996 Washington DC
– 1997 Troy, NY at RPI
– 1999 Scottsdale, AZ
– 2001 Madison, WI at U of Wisc.
AASHTO

1997 Created Asset Management Task Force
 1999 Adopted Strategic Plan
 Cooperated with NCHRP to:
– Initiated an NCHRP Project to Develop Guide, in
1999
– Initiated an NCHRP Project to Document DOT
Compliance with GASB 34 in 2001
– Initiated an NCHRP Project on Analytic Tools in
2001
– Anticipated NCHRP Project on Performance
Measure in 2002

2002 Established this Joint Workshop
FHWA

1998 Established Office of Asset Management
– Established as a result of a strategic planning process
– Mission
• Provide leadership and expertise for TAM
• Develop a strategic framework for asset management for
roads, tunnels and bridges
• Provide technical guidance and assistance
• Partner with AASHTO, NCHRP and other governmental groups


1999 Asset Management Primmer
Initiative focuses
– System Management and Monitoring Team
– Construction and System Preservation Team
– Evaluation and Economic Investment Team

Local Technical Assistance Program (LTAP)
TRB

2000 Established Asset Management Task
Force
– Coordinate and bring together asset management
related activities into the TAM framework
– Provide other Committees Guidance on TAM

2001 started to identify
– What we know now
– What we need to know
– NCHRP synthesis requests
TRB Continue

2002 annual meeting
– Decision to apply for committee status
– Divided into subcommittees
•
•
•
•
Goals, Objectives, Planning and Programming
Data Management and Analysis
Implementation
Internal Alignment and External
Communication
University programs

UTC
– University of Wisconsin
• Midwest Regional University Transportation Center
– Iowa State University
• Midwest Transportation Consortium

Other University Initiatives
–
–
–
–
–
University Transportation Center, UIC
Institute for Civil Infrastructure Systems NYU
George Mason University
Infrastructure Systems Engineering, U of Mn
Many others
States

Michigan – HB 5396
– Requires asset management approach for all transportation
assets
– State Transportation Commission will provide oversight
– Establish 11 Person Asset Management Council
– Common condition assessment and data collect
– Establish an asset management strategy and common
definitions
• Start with federal-aid system
– Requires a joint multi-year road and bridge program
– Annual monitoring and reporting to legislature
– Funded from Michigan Transportation Fund
Iowa

Iowa Statewide System
– 1993 develop interjurisdictional steering
committee
– Started with 23,000 mile federal aid system
• Statewide GIS database
• Purchase of statewide PMS software license
– Combined PMS data, crash record, five year plan,
NBI, and traffic counts
– 2001 initiated state-bridge management program
– 2002 about 31,000 miles under management
Other notables
New York DOT
 Montana DOT
 Colorado DOT
 Florida DOT
 South Carolina DOT
 Maine DOT

Others Organizations Involved in
TAM

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
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



GASB – Statement 34
ASCE
APWA
ACPA
ARTBA
OECD
PIARC
Etc.
About AASHTO Strategic Plan

Goal 1: Develop Partnerships
– 4 strategies

Goal 2: Develop An Understanding
– 7 strategies

Goal 3: Promote Tools and Research
– 8 strategies

Goal 4: Inform Members States on Use
– 2 strategies

Goal 5: Assist Member States
– 4 strategies
About the NCHRP First
Generation Guide

Phase I
– Task 1: Synthesis of Asset Management Practice
– Task 2: Development of an Asset Management
Framework
– Task 3: Prioritize a Research Program

Phase II
– First generation Asset Management Guide

Pilot NHI Workshop on the Guide
– Held last month in Lansing, Michigan
TAM Research Priorities

National Research and Technology
Partnership
– Research Categories
• Information Management
– 3 issue areas
– $5 million per year over 10 years ($50 million)
• Decision Support Tool
– 5 issue areas
– $5 million over 5 years
• Implementation
– 2 issue areas
– $1 million over 3 years
• Education
– 3 issue areas
– $2 million per year over 10 years ($20 million)
• Total expenditure $76 million
Priorities Continued

Research Priorities From NCHRP Study
– Policy and Institutional
• 11 projects
• $2.3 million
– Information, Analytical Tools and Technology
• 12 projects
• $13.1 million
– Planning, Program Development and Delivery
• 5 projects
• $1.2 million
– Training and Information Sharing
• 6 projects
• $4.5 million
– Academic Programs and Materials
• 2 focus areas
• $6 million
– Total estimated expenditure $27.5 million
Priorities continued

TRB Task Force
– Subcommittee on Data Management and Analysis
• Synthesis on state of the practice of data integration
• Develop issues for 5th National TAM Conference
– Subcommittee on Internal Alignment and External
Communications
• Synthesis
– Communicating the value of preservation to nontransportation professionals
• Research topic
– Addressing institutional barriers to TAM
Priorities continued

TRB task force
– Implementation subcommittee
• Research Issues
– Integrating TAM decision-making across agency
offices
– TAM approach to multi-modal investments
– Use of TAM for strategic/legislative decision making
– Creative use of the private sector to more effectively
and efficiently manage resources
Why???

Benefits of TAM implementation
– Most evidence of benefits is subjective
Conclusions
Lots of who, what and when and weak
on why
 Where are we with respect to state-ofthe-art development

– Individual asset management systems are
mature
– TAM is in outreach/awareness and early
application phase
Conclusions/Recommendations
from MRUTC
Duplication of research efforts and need
for collaboration
 Conservation and community focus
 Interdisciplinary focus
 Community leadership

Questions

Questions – assuming that we agree that we
should press-on?
– How do we motivate organizations to implement
TAM?
– How do we link the TAM agenda to a more
practical process?
– What parts of the research, development, training,
and education agenda should be accomplished by
what groups?
– How do we finance the agenda?