Innovation of the Month:
Integrating
NEPA and Permitting
Integrating National Environmental
Policy Act (NEPA) and permitting allows the various environmental reviews
and permitting procedures required for Federal-Aid Highway Program projects to
be performed at the same time rather than sequentially.
The resulting synchronization can
help transportation agencies shorten project delivery time, increase efficiency,
save resources, and produce better environmental outcomes:
- Integrating
NEPA and permitting processes reduces the time and complexity of project
development while ensuring projects receive appropriate coordinated review.
- Synchronization
improves the efficiency and effectiveness of the project development,
mitigation, and decision-making process.
- A
synchronized review process reduces duplicative efforts, leading to time and
cost savings.
Integration of NEPA and permitting processes is not just for use on large projects. This flexible, scalable approach can also be applied at the program level, to small projects, or to parts of large projects.
View an Innovation Spotlight video on integrating NEPA
and permitting.
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Colorado Uses Analysis to
Quantify Safety Performance
Before proceeding with a project to remove a 2-mile bottleneck on I-225
by restriping the road, the Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) wanted
to know how the project would affect the I-225 and downstream I-25 corridors. The
Every Day Counts (EDC) data-driven
safety analysis (DDSA) team
worked with CDOT on a predictive analysis using the Interactive
Highway Safety Design Model
(IHSDM), software analysis tools that support DDSA, to quantify the potential
change in safety performance. For information on using IHSDM for DDSA, contact Jerry Roche of the FHWA Office of Safety or John McFadden of the FHWA Resource Center.
South Carolina Explores Community
Connections
The South Carolina Department
of Transportation (SCDOT) is pursuing the EDC community
connections initiative by
considering new ways to accomplish transportation improvements. FHWA staff delivered
a workshop on performance-based
practical design that challenged
participants to think beyond cost-based choices on projects and use performance
data to make informed decisions in balance with community needs. The workshop
showcased results of implementing practical design to improve safety and
operations on Arizona State
Route 264, Kansas State
Route K-177, and Minnesota
Highway 10. Contact Robert Mooney of the FHWA Office of Infrastructure to bring a workshop to your State.
Road
Diets Increase Business in Retail Shops
Business owners cite road diets as a reason for
increased business in their retail shops, according to a New Jersey video that highlights the effect of roadway
reconfiguration on commercial growth. The video is one of the technical
assistance materials FHWA provided to Bike Walk RVA, a Virginia
program that supports bike- and pedestrian-friendly infrastructure, to introduce
potential road diet projects to Richmond residents and business owners. Other
resources on how road diets can improve an area’s economic vitality and
livability include Road Diet Economic Impacts, Debunking Road Diet Myths, and
Road Diet Case Studies. For
technical assistance on bringing road diets to your area, contact Becky
Crowe of the FHWA Office of Safety.
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