Transportation officials and policymakers have access to lots of data to help plan and implement transportation services. But how do they best use the data to measure performance and improve transportation systems? Transportation performance management (TPM) is a strategic approach that uses system information to make investment and policy decisions to achieve performancegoals.

The National Highway Institute (NHI) offers TPM training based on the latest technologies, best practices, and industry advancements. NHI offers instructor-led training sessions in all 50 States to help transportation professionals reach their professional development goals. Check out NHI’s TPM courses below, and visit the online course catalog to see more training options and formats across NHI’s 18 program areas.

Performance Management Courses

Transportation Performance Management Overview for the MAP-21 and FAST Acts (course number 138004). This 1-day training presents an overview of the TPM provisions of the Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century (MAP-21) and Fixing America’s Surface Transportation (FAST) Acts. It describes the responsibilities of agencies in delivering these requirements, highlights the importance of data in meeting the performance management provisions, and captures proven, noteworthy practices to help agencies get started. This course enables participants to interact with and learn from peers through open discussion.

Transportation Performance Management for Safety (course number 138006). This 2-day course explains the safety performance measures and noteworthy practices for States to adopt to comply with requirements of the MAP-21 and FAST Acts. It provides participants with an understanding of the data needed to meet the safety TPM requirements and recommends an evidence-based and data-driven methodology for setting safety targets. The course helps improve States’ ability to coordinate target setting between the State departments of transportation and the State Highway Safety Office, as well as between the State DOT and the State’s metropolitan planning organizations (MPOs). The course reviews crash data trends through hands-on exercises and establishing safety targets based on planned safety programs, external factors, and countermeasure deployment. Throughout the course, participants also practice evaluating resource allocation and safety program performance to inform future target-setting efforts.

Performance-based Planning and Programming (course number 138007). Another 2-day training, this course aims to familiarize transportation agencies with key elements of a framework for performance-based planning and programming, how the framework supports TPM, and how these framework elements relate to the requirements for transportation planning and transportation system performance. NHI recommends this course for transportation professionals at State DOTs, MPOs, regional planning organizations, transit agencies, and USDOT who are responsible for developing and implementing performance-based plans and programs, and for those who are responsible for integrating and linking related requirements. Participants should have knowledge of the planning process and the collaboration needed for it.

The Role of Data in Transportation Performance Management (course number 138011). In this 2-day training, participants learn how to manage, analyze, integrate, and use data from diverse sources to meet agency and performance goals. Participants also learn how to improve their data programs to support specific targets and use data to meet the TPM requirements of 23 CFR 490: National Performance Management Measures and the related MAP-21 and FAST Acts.

Steps to Effective Target Setting for Transportation Performance Management (course number 138012). MAP-21 requires State DOTs, MPOs, and public transit providers to set performance targets for USDOT’s established national performance measures. This 2-day training explains the elements of target setting for TPM and focuses on how to set reasonable, attainable goals.

For more information, visit www.nhi.fhwa.dot.gov. To register for a session or to sign up to receive alerts when sessions are scheduled, visit the individual course description page.

Judy Francis is a contracted marketing analyst for NHI.