Through its own work, FHWA shows how to incorporate sustainability into transportation activities to deliver environmental, economic, and social benefits now and in the future.

Transportation projects and systems serve many different and sometimes competing objectives, including safety, mobility, environmental protection, livability, and asset management. A sustainable highway system seeks to meet all of these needs plus economic targets for cost-effectiveness throughout a highway’s life cycle. For the Federal Highway Administration, sustainability means making balanced and efficient choices to uphold environmental, economic, and social values--the triple bottom line of sustainability--to provide the best benefits to the natural and human environments. In times of diminishing public and natural resources, using sustainable approaches in transportation will enable FHWA and its partners to continue to enhance the quality of life and serve present transportation needs without compromising the needs of future generations.

Transportation accounted for 70 percent of U.S. petroleum consumption in 2010 and nearly a third of the Nation’s greenhouse gas emissions. Light-duty vehicles and heavy trucks are the greatest petroleum users in the transportation sector. Transportation systems also impact the Nation’s economy and society. Highway congestion, for example, causes many commuters to spend long hours stuck in traffic and raises the costs of delivering goods and services. Congestion costs the U.S. economy an estimated $121 billion each year in wasted time and fuel, which amounts to an average of about $800 per commuter.

Incorporating sustainable practices into FHWA’s work helps to promote energy and natural resource conservation, decreases greenhouse gas emissions, reduces pollution and contamination, enhances the workplace by minimizing exposure to hazardous materials and chemicals, and strengthens national interests by encouraging energy independence. It also helps improve accessibility and safety, advance efficiency, increase mobility, reduce project costs, accelerate project delivery, preserve and extend the life of infrastructure, enhance relationships with stakeholders, and make communities more livable.

To highlight how FHWA has incorporated sustainability into a wide variety of programs, projects, policies, processes, and partnerships, in June 2014 FHWA released Advancing a Sustainable Highway System: Highlights of FHWA Sustainability Activities (FHWA-HEP-14-021). Developed with input from an FHWA working group on sustainability, the report showcases several of the agency’s longstanding, well-established programs. It also highlights opportunities for new growth and advancement to achieve sustainability goals.

Efforts featured in the report range from projects to mitigate climate change, to initiatives that promote sustainable pavements and improve safety, to developing tools to better assess the benefits and costs of transportation investments. The report serves as a resource to the public, transportation stakeholders, and FHWA staff, to help them learn about and understand what the agency is doing to address and advance sustainability.

“We felt that it was important to document the broad range of activities that support different aspects of sustainability, not only as a form of outreach and communication with external stakeholders, but also as a team-building and educational process for our staff,” says Mike Culp, team leader of the Sustainable Transport and Climate Change Team at FHWA. “By documenting these activities, we helped define sustainability as it actually takes place in the real world--not just in broad terms.”

Sustainable Highways

Sustainability means satisfying basic social and economic needs, both present and future, by promoting the responsible use of natural resources, while maintaining or improving the environment on which life depends. FHWA is committed to working hand in hand with stakeholders nationwide to demonstrate the benefits of sustainability and stewardship through practices such as expedited program delivery, accelerated transportation decisionmaking, and improved environmental streamlining.

For years, FHWA has supported research, development, and implementation efforts at the forefront of the sustainability movement. In FHWA’s Office of Natural Environment, a Sustainable Highways Initiative supports programs and activities conducted across the agency to facilitate balanced decisionmaking that advances sustainability. Three such efforts include the Infrastructure Voluntary Evaluation Sustainability Tool (INVEST), the Sustainability Working Group, and the Sustainable Pavements Program.

Infrastructure Voluntary Evaluation Sustainability Tool. Launched in October 2012, INVEST is a practical, Web-based collection of best practices to help organizations such as State departments of transportation, metropolitan planning organizations (MPOs), councils of government, and public works departments integrate sustainability into their programs and projects. INVEST provides criteria and practices that DOTs and their consultants and partners can use to evaluate and aid the integration of sustainability into their system planning, project development, and operations and maintenance. FHWA is currently partnering with transportation agencies to implement INVEST, develop case studies based on lessons learned, and gather feedback on ways to enhance and improve the tool for future use.

Sustainability Working Group. FHWA formed a working group in 2010 to lead, coordinate, promote, and communicate the agency’s sustainability activities in a centralized and integrated manner. The Sustainability Working Group represents nearly all of the agency’s major program areas, as well as headquarters, division offices, the Resource Center, and the Office of Federal Lands Highway. The group was actively involved in the development of INVEST and will continue to serve as a resource for advice and guidance on internal sustainability activities, to recommend and assist with outreach efforts, and to provide input on current and future research activities.

Sustainable Pavements Program. The design, construction, and maintenance of highway pavements can affect the quality and supply of water resources, stormwater flows, air quality, and heat absorption, among other environmental impacts. To better address potentially adverse environmental effects and employ more sustainable materials and techniques, the FHWA Office of Infrastructure created the Sustainable Pavements Program in 2010. This program aims to increase awareness of the sustainability of asphalt, concrete, granular materials, and other materials used in pavement systems, including new and emerging materials; and to increase the use of sustainable technologies and practices.

Taking Action

In 2012, the Sustainability Working Group identified and shared sustainability priorities among FHWA offices to better leverage activities across the agency. In spring 2013, the group identified the following eight action areas that are likely to affect sustainability goals and benefits in the near term.

Safety. In 2010, economic impacts and lost quality of life from motor vehicle crashes in the United States cost an estimated $870.8 billion. Reducing fatal and serious injuries upholds the social and economic tenets of sustainability by reducing loss of life and injury, and the impacts associated with personal and public property damage. The FHWA Office of Safety works with Federal, State, and local partners and other transportation stakeholders to improve safety performance. In 2013, FHWA released a strategic plan to provide a common vision for research, policy, and implementation to address roadway departures, which account for more than half of highway fatalities in the United States.

To improve intersection safety, the agency released the second edition of Signalized Intersections Informational Guide (FHWA-SA-13-027) in 2013, documenting methods for evaluating the safety and operations of signalized intersections and tools to remedy deficiencies. The agency also issued a guidance memorandum in 2012 to advance nine countermeasures known to improve safety, such as roundabouts and “road diets” (roadway reconfiguration). Converting a two-way stop to a roundabout has been shown to reduce the number of overall crashes by as much as 44 percent and the number of severe injury and fatal crashes by as much as 82 percent.

Freight and Goods Movement. Planning the movement of freight supports economic prosperity through improved efficiency, reduced fuel consumption, and fewer adverse effects on communities. FHWA is conducting pilot projects in California, Florida, and Texas for the Freight Advanced Traveler Information System (FRATIS), which brings realtime messages on incidents, congestion, and travel time to the freight industry. The agency also is carrying out a study to examine each State’s capability to assess commercial motor vehicle volume, provide truck parking and rest facilities, and develop metrics to measure the adequacy of truck parking facilities.

Similarly, FHWA is partnering with the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration on the Smart Roadside Initiative, a project to enhance the collection of information on commercial vehicles, such as truck weights, by gathering data using roadside technologies while trucks are traveling at highway speeds. Because the vehicles do not need to slow down, the initiative reduces the emissions and safety risks associated with stop-and-go truck traffic.

Linking Asset Management and Planning. Asset management is a strategic and systematic process of operating, maintaining, and improving physical assets. Linking asset management and planning advances environmental and economic sustainability by improving investment decisions, extending the life of assets, and reducing the demand for raw materials.

The enactment of the Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act by Congress stipulated that each State DOT develop a risk-based transportation asset management plan. To help States understand what such plans should include, FHWA created a Generic Work Plan for Developing a Transportation Asset Management Plan in 2013. Using this document as a starting point, FHWA has worked with DOTs in Louisiana, Minnesota, and New York to develop asset management plans specific to those States. In Minnesota, for example, the DOT will use the plan to establish asset condition performance measures and targets, develop investment strategies, and inform established capital and operations planning efforts.

State, Regional, and Local Perspectives Advancing a Sustainable Highway System also highlights exemplary sustainability activities at the State, regional, and local levels. Here are a few examples. Sustainable Pavements Western Federal Lands Pavement Recycling FHWA’s Western Federal Lands Highway Division has participated in pavement recycling efforts since the 1980s, using cold in-place recycling, full-depth reclamation, cement-treated base, and foamed asphalt for many of its projects. In an example on its Lakeside–Nelson Road Project in Helena National Forest, MT, the division used foamed asphalt. In another example on the Wise River–Polaris Road Project just south of Wise River, MT, Western Federal Lands used cold in-place recycling. Road Weather Management Iowa Salt Usage Dashboard Spreading salt on road surfaces is one of the primary means of removing and preventing accumulation of snow and ice. However, salt runoff can damage roadside ecosystems, pose risks to human health, and cause infrastructure to deteriorate. The Iowa DOT developed a management dashboard featuring actual salt usage during maintenance operations compared to estimated usage amounts, based on road weather conditions. Managers monitor this dashboard to make sure current usage is reasonable given the weather and within Iowa DOT’s standard guidelines for application rates. This tool was implemented in August 2011 before the start of the winter season and has already resulted in tighter control of salt usage. Infrastructure Resiliency Capital Area Metropolitan Planning Organization (CAMPO) Climate Resilience Pilot FHWA selected CAMPO, the MPO in Austin, TX, for one of the agency’s 2013–2014 climate resilience pilots. CAMPO used FHWA’s framework to conduct a vulnerability assessment of climate-related impacts--including temperatures and extreme heat, extreme precipitation and flooding, drought, and wildfire--on transportation infrastructure in its region. At the conclusion of the study, CAMPO conducted a regional symposium to share the report’s findings.

In addition, in 2013, FHWA produced the Performance-Based Programming Guidebook (FHWA-HEP-13-041) to help transportation professionals understand the key elements of a performance-based planning and programming process. The guidebook also provides examples of best practices to help support implementation. FHWA also released A Performance-Based Approach to Addressing Greenhouse Gas Emissions through Transportation Planning (FHWA-HEP-14-020) in 2013 to help agencies identify potential greenhouse gas performance measures and analysis practices to support a public vision of sustainable transportation and climate policy.

Access and Affordability. Improving access to transportation and its affordability benefits the social and economic aspects of sustainability by improving employment opportunities, enhancing interaction with the community, and incorporating social equity principles inherent in civil rights. In addition, access improvements that increase the modal choices available to the public advance environmental sustainability by offering alternatives to motorized travel, such as walking and bicycling.

“FHWA’s commitment to sustainability includes ensuring not only that transportation systems are safe, convenient, healthy, renewable, and efficient, but also that they operate fairly and are accessible to persons of all abilities,” explains Candace Groudine, a senior policy and regulatory specialist with FHWA’s Office of Civil Rights. “As planners, environmental specialists, and civil rights specialists, we all need to realize that anybody, at any time, can have a temporary or permanent disability that can affect their ability to function in society.”

FHWA supports sustainable practices by providing targeted technical assistance and training to help its division offices and State DOTs implement the 1990 Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). The agency works to ensure that pedestrians with disabilities have opportunities to use the transportation system in an accessible and safe manner. Key accomplishments include the establishment of an ADA transition plan performance metric for the U.S. Department of Transportation and for the FHWA 2014 Strategic Implementation Plan. An ADA transition plan describes in detail the steps a public entity believes are necessary to make its facilities, programs, activities, and services accessible to persons with disabilities, and the schedule it has set to make the improvements.

Incorporating accessibility considerations into all aspects of project development and delivery will help ensure compliance with standards and minimize implementation costs over time. The Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT), for example, improves or installs accessibility features as part of every project in its 5-year work plan. After 20 years of this comprehensive approach, FDOT finds its facilities are fully transitioned, requiring only minimal maintenance and upgrades to keep up with changing accessibility standards.

Infrastructure Resiliency. Resiliency means the ability to plan for, recover from, and adapt more successfully to adverse events. Planning for resilient transportation infrastructure supports sustainability by reducing expenditures on replacement, improving the safety and security of users of the multimodal transportation system, and providing energy savings from long-lasting investments.

Creating a more resilient transportation system is a priority for FHWA, especially due to the need for adapting to climate change and extreme weather events. FHWA recently completed a 2013–2014 pilot program for resilience projects, for which researchers studied climate change impacts in the central gulf coast region, and developed technical guidance on incorporating extreme event considerations into highway planning and design in coastal environments. FHWA sponsored 24 climate resilience pilots with State DOTs and MPOs, and 4 cooperative projects with multiple stakeholders around the country.

For one such project, FHWA and the USDOT Center for Climate Change and Environmental Forecasting partnered with the U.S. Geological Survey and Texas Tech University to conduct the Gulf Coast Study. The study examined the risks and impacts of climate change on coastal ports and road, air, rail, and public transit systems in the central gulf coast. Researchers estimated that if the sea level in the region were to rise 4 feet (1.2 meters), 27 percent of its major highways, 9 percent of its rail lines, and 72 percent of its ports would be inundated. (See “Bracing for Hard Times Ahead” in the November/December 2014 issue of Public Roads.)

For Phase 2 of the study, USDOT developed methods for evaluating vulnerability and adaptation measures that could be used by other transportation agencies and pilot tested them on the transportation system in Mobile, AL. The project resulted in a detailed assessment of the vulnerability of Mobile’s transportation system, as well as approaches for using climate data in transportation vulnerability assessments, methods for evaluating vulnerability and adaptation options, and tools and resources that will assist other transportation agencies in conducting similar work.

Economic and Life-Cycle Cost Analyses. Economic analysis in the context of sustainability and transportation examines how to make the best use of constrained resources over time. Benefit-cost analysis measures returns on investment. Traditional benefit-cost analysis for transportation includes benefits for travelers (reducing delays and vehicle operating costs, improving safety) and benefits for the environment (improvements in air quality, noise reduction, and land preservation) along with capital, operations, preservation, and maintenance costs. Life-cycle cost analysis is an evaluation technique that supports informed investment decisions by considering both near- and long-term activities required to maintain highway assets above some minimum performance level.

FHWA provides various resources that transportation professionals can use to conduct economic and life-cycle cost analyses. The agency’s BCA.net tool, for example, is a free Web-based software application that performs benefit-cost analysis at the project level. The tool enables decisionmakers to consider a broad range of design, timing, and strategic alternatives based on an array of benefit-cost measures. The BCA.net tool is available at https://fhwaapps.fhwa.dot.gov/bcap/BaseLogin/LoginReg.aspx; the software is free for public use upon user registration.

Another software tool, the National Bridge Investment Analysis Software enables agencies to evaluate bridge investments at a network or system level. The tool uses performance data every State currently collects on bridges to calculate performance trends, financial needs for maintaining specified performance levels, and the outcomes of various funding scenarios. For more information about this software, visit www.fhwa.dot.gov/policy/2013cpr/appendixb.htm.

In addition, to support the application of life-cycle cost analysis for pavement design, FHWA offers RealCost, a free Microsoft^® Excel^®-based software that facilitates the consideration of initial and future costs and road user impacts in making investment decisions. Many DOTs use RealCost to conduct life-cycle cost analysis. The Colorado DOT, for example, has used RealCost since the late 1990s to analyze pavement construction and rehabilitation, and to evaluate its transportation asset investment decisions. The agency has demonstrated that the use of life-cycle cost analysis can be cost effective. For more information about RealCost, visit www.fhwa.dot.gov/infrastructure/asstmgmt/lccasoft.cfm.

Sustainable Pavements. FHWA is committed to advancing sustainability through the design, construction, preservation, and rehabilitation of highway pavements. This includes work conducted through the Sustainable Pavements Program, which supports the use of recycled materials and the reuse of industrial byproducts in highway applications by developing technology, building partnerships, and providing training.

“Increasing knowledge of sustainable materials and pavements can ultimately help to lower costs, improve durability, and enhance our surroundings,” says Gina Ahlstrom, a senior pavement engineer in the Office of Asset Management, Pavements, and Construction at FHWA. “It is important to incorporate sustainability in all of the design aspects of a transportation project.”

For example, FHWA has advanced the use of warm-mix asphalt to lower the temperatures at which the material is mixed and placed on the road. Applying warm-mix asphalt reduces energy consumption by an average of 20 percent, provides good material workability, lowers emissions from burning fossil fuels, and limits fumes and odors at plants and paving sites.

To quantify the environmental impacts associated with pavements and transportation infrastructure, FHWA developed the Infrastructure Carbon Estimator, a spreadsheet tool that estimates the life-cycle energy and greenhouse gas emissions from the construction and maintenance of transportation facilities. Practitioners can use the tool to help demonstrate the benefits of green strategies in reducing infrastructure carbon emissions. The estimator is available at www.fhwa.dot.gov/environment/climate_change/mitigation/publications_and_tools/carbon_estimator.

Road Weather Management. FHWA seeks to better understand the impacts of weather on roadways and promote strategies to mitigate those impacts through its Road Weather Management Program. Implementing an effective program supports all the tenets of sustainability by improving safety, increasing mobility, reducing delays, and minimizing impacts on the human and natural environments.

FHWA recently released Planning for Systems Management and Operations as Part of Climate Change Adaptation (FHWA-HOP-13-030), a white paper that summarizes potential climate change effects on the management and operations of the transportation system. The paper also highlights possible issues, challenges, and approaches for State DOTs and local operating agencies to consider under shifting climate-related conditions.

In addition, FHWA has worked to develop best practices for road weather management and define program performance measurements, publishing Best Practices for Road Weather Management (FHWA-HOP-12-046) in 2012 and Road Weather Management Program Performance Measurement: 2012 Update (FHWA-JPO-13-87) in 2013.

The Best Practices report includes 27 case studies of systems in 22 States that improve roadway operations under inclement weather conditions. For example, in 2008 the Alabama DOT upgraded a low-visibility warning system near Mobile that has improved safety by reducing average traffic speeds and minimizing crash risk in foggy conditions.

Looking Ahead

Measures to improve the sustainability of the transportation system have the potential to reap a multitude of environmental, economic, and social benefits. FHWA’s efforts to advance sustainability are helping to improve public health, increase transportation options, increase accessibility, reduce traffic congestion and emissions, reduce energy usage and costs, improve the quality of life for communities, reduce spending on infrastructure replacement, and improve economic prosperity.

FHWA will continue to advance sustainability through its Sustainable Highways Initiative, INVEST, and the practices of its program and division offices. FHWA also will continue to engage the Sustainability Working Group to further sustainability goals and plans for the agency, recommend and assist with outreach efforts, and provide input on research activities.

The agency plans to provide periodic updates to the sustainability report and will host a webinar series to go into more detail about each of the sustainability action areas. The series will be geared toward FHWA staff, State DOTs, MPOs, and other partners and stakeholders.

“We hope that the sustainability report will better inform readers about the breadth and depth of FHWA sustainability activities, and spur greater application and implementation of sustainability practices at all levels of government,” says FHWA’s Culp. “We also hope it encourages greater collaboration and communication within the agency and with leaders in the field to continue to advance a more sustainable highway system.”

Alexandra Oster is a community planner with the Organizational Performance Division at the Volpe National Transportation Systems Center in Cambridge, MA. She has a B.A. in the environment from the University of Michigan and an M.A. in urban planning from the University of California, Los Angeles.

For more information, visit www.sustainablehighways.dot.gov, or contact Connie Hill at 804–775–3378 or connie.hill@dot.gov, or Alexandra Oster at 617–494–3539 or alexandra.oster@dot.gov. Advancing a Sustainable Highway System: Highlights of FHWA Sustainability Activities is available at www.sustainable highways.dot.gov/FHWA_Sustain ability_Activities_June2014.aspx.