W W W . T R A N S P O R T A T I O N . O R G

Resilient and Sustainable Transportation Systems

Technical Service Program

July 31, 2017

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Presentation Agenda

• Resilient and Sustainable Transportation Systems (RSTS) Steering Committee

Membership

Work Plan and Strategic Plan

• RSTS Technical Services Program

Available Resources

Work underway

• AASHTO National Resilience Peer Exchange

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• Membership – regional representation and a cross-section of AASHTO committees, focusing on issues related to building a resilient transportation system

• Strategically coordinates national efforts, identifies best practices, and works to fill research gaps to promote resilient transportation systems across the country

• Oversight – developed and implemented annual work plans

• Strategic Plan – developed and adopted Strategic Plan in May 2017

RSTS Steering Committee

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RSTS Work Plan• Task 1: Conduct of Committee Business – Support the work of the RSTS Steering

Committee, development of a strategic plan, and ongoing collaboration between RSTS and AASHTO Committees, partners, and stakeholders.

• Task 2: Communications and Awareness within RSTS Membership – Support communications efforts within the RSTS membership through newsletters and “breaking” news alerts.

• Task 3: External Communications and Awareness – Increase external awareness of the TSP through the merging of the RSTS webpage into the AASHTO Center for Environmental Excellence, website analytics to determine traffic levels and usage and identify enhancements to be made.

• Task 4: Research – Support RSTS in identifying new research ideas for submission to the Transportation and Environmental Research Ideas (TERI) database – housed on the Center’s webpage – in order to expand the list of research ideas focused on extreme weather, climate, and energy conservation.

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RSTS Steering Committee Strategic Plan

• Adopted at AASHTO Spring Meeting, May 2017

• Designed to support AASHTO’s Strategic Plan goals

• Three strategic management guidance documents:

1. Committee Purpose and Membership,

2. Committee Charter and

3. Committee Work Plan for the Current AASHTO Strategic Plan.

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RSTS Steering Committee Strategic Plan

1. Assess and recommend national-level policies (laws, regulations and guidance) that affect the ability of state DOTs to better plan for and execute transportation system resiliency within their agencies. Support the Board of Directors in influencing the development of federal policy, programs, regulations, and guidance on resiliency.

2. Support and encourage State DOT efforts and national policies toward sustainable transportation system practices and investments that strengthen the economy, preserve the environment and enhance communities.

3. Research, document and disseminate information about national and international trends, innovation, industry practices and advances in the field of transportation resilience and sustainability.

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RSTS Steering Committee Strategic Plan

4. Connect State DOTs to resources, including models, tools, analysis techniques, methodologies and professional development to implement a multimodal, multidisciplinary approach to transportation system resilience and sustainability.

5. Champion and advocate the principles and applications of weather related resiliency within AASHTO forums, councils and committees; and with other partner organizations

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RSTS Technical Services Program• Designed to help state DOTs understand the potential effects

of extreme weather events and the range of strategies and options to plan for and respond to these events.

• Provides information, tools and technical assistance related to extreme weather events, energy efficiency, energy security, infrastructure adaptation, alternative fuel vehicles and other relevant topics.

• Web-based resources on the CEE website:

• Extreme Weather Briefs on Coastal Flooding, Drought, Dust Storms, Wildfires, Heat Waves

• State-by-State Interactive Map

• Quarterly Briefing Newsletter

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Resiliency as a Core Priority –Completed Case Studies

• North CarolinaHurricane Matthew

• Oklahoma 2013 Moore Tornadoes

• Vermont Super Storm Irene

• California2017 Coastal Landslides

• Colorado Flooding and Rock Falls

• Georgia 2014 Atlanta Ice Storm

• Louisiana 500 and 1,000 year flooding

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Interview Questions

• How have DOTs responded to recent extreme weather events?

• What are the lessons learned from these events?

• How have they altered planning, policy, or design practices to prepare for these events?

• How do we generate knowledge sharing amongst DOTs and increase DOT resiliency?

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Interview Findings

Paul’s Slide Clean-up

California, 2017

EMERGENCY

RESPONSE

Charlotte Hurricane

Irene Response

North Carolina, 2011

PLANNING

AND DESIGN

Clearing Taxiways at

Atlanta Airport

Georgia, 2014

POLICY AND

REGULATION

Photo credits (from left to right): Charlotte Fire Department, Caltrans, John Murphy;

https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/legalcode

Three key categories of findings:

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• How to measure risks to assets and build that risk into project prioritization

• Resiliency should be incorporated into everything just as with safety

• Reprioritize funding and concentrate on updated modeling to better understand risks

• Risk-based asset management plan using a risk and resiliency analysis to rank the most exposed assets

Interview Findings

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Interview Findings• Asset replacement not in-kind; the new

design should be more resilient to events than the previous

• Resiliency as a core principle: consider how highways and facilities could become more durable and withstand overtopping

• Memorandums of agreement should be set up with nearby states to facilitate needed assistance

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Interview Findings

• “Business as usual” is no longer applicablefor DOT processes in critical areas

• Infrastructure needs to be designed withresiliency and future climate in mind

• Close relationships with other stakeholders is vital to defining risks and delivery effective emergency response

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Key Findings

• Risk needs to be considered more effectively and this perspective needs to be communicated to the public

• Support from executive level staff is needed to incorporate resiliency into DOT practices

• Focusing resources on research and pilot projects is important to understand how to respond to events

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National Resiliency Peer Exchange• CEE National Peer

Exchange for key DOT stakeholders in Fall 2017

• Day-and-a-half conference will host experienced and interested state-level professionals to discuss strategies for building more resilient DOTs

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Next Up – Resiliency and State DOTs

Resiliency for state DOTs will be well-

defined by 2018:

• AASHTO efforts (Final Report and 2017

Peer Exchange)

• FHWA TEACR conclusion

• NCHRP – White Papers, CEO Outreach,

2018 Resiliency Summit

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Questions?

Melissa SavageDirector, Center for Environmental Excellence 202-624-3638msavage@aashto.org

http://www.environment.transportation.org

Thank You!