FHWA developed the Model Inventory of Roadway Elements (MIRE) to provide a recommended model of what a comprehensive roadway and traffic data inventory should be for effective safety management. A critical step toward acceptance and implementation of MIRE is the conversion of MIRE, which is now a listing of variables, into a Management Information System (MIS). This report provides an assessment of State highway agencies’ roadway inventory data collection practices, identifying gaps in current practices and providing recommendations for filling those gaps in order to support the MIRE MIS effort.

This guide reviews data inventories of State Departments of Transportation (DOTs), potential supplemental data sources, technologies for collection of roadway inventory data, and compatibility of collection technologies with MIRE roadway elements. Reviewed data collection inventories that collect MIRE elements include: Highway Safety Information Systems (HSIS) State databases, non-HSIS State databases, a National Cooperative Highway Research Program (NCHRP) safety data collection survey, and Highway Performance Monitoring System (HPMS) data inventory. Potential supplemental data sources reviewed include: pavement management systems, sign management systems, and other asset inventories.