Local roadway agencies across the nation have major personnel diversity in terms of number, expertise and duties. Large agencies have dedicated staff that serves as project administration liaisons with State DOT personnel. As a result, these individuals are well versed in the requirements for successfully implementing transportation projects utilizing State and Federal sources of funding. Dedicating administrative resources and committing technical staff to acquire funding and implement projects can be difficult for local agencies to manage. 

To assist local agencies in completing safety projects, many State DOTs have allocated staff resources to coordinate with local agency staff to administer local safety projects.  States have created separate departments to administer funding and technical assistance to local agencies.  The departments create guidelines and procedures to guide local safety programs and encourage participation in the process. Many agencies have also instituted time-saving procedures to streamline the project development process.  This chapter describes some of the practices related to the administration of local safety programs in the scan States.

Local-Aid Divisions

The DOTs in all scan States have separate divisions that support the advancement of local safety projects. 
 

Local transportation agencies vary widely in size, funding, technical capabilities, and administrative resources. Application for transportation funds in many States often involves significant effort, which can be a burden for many local agencies. As a result, local agencies may be reluctant to apply for available funds. State DOTs have created local roadway divisions to develop application guidelines, review project applications, provide technical assistance to applicants, and provide overall administration of local roadway improvement programs. 

The DOTs in all scan States have a Local-aid division. While the structure and operation of the Local-aid divisions vary among scan States, the Local-aid division typically consists of a central office with support from district or regional offices. The central office is generally responsible for developing program applications and guidelines, as well as project selection, whereas the regional or district offices are involved in the day-to-day coordination with local agencies.  Specific safety-related technical assistance is provided by State liaisons or MPOs. The State liaisons can be either dedicated staff of the Local-aid division or representatives of the DOT's safety office. The Local-aid division may also manage projects on behalf of local agencies. The greatest benefit of the Local-aid divisions is that they establish a formal mechanism for local agencies to obtain State and Federal funding.

The strength of these divisions, the breadth and depth of technical assistance, and the resulting relationship-building between the State DOT and the local agencies are significant factors in the success of the local road safety programs in the scan States.

Application Administration

States have developed application procedures that provide clear guidance to local agencies seeking funds for safety projects. The scan States have developed preferred procedures for soliciting and reviewing applications seeking HSIP, High Risk Rural Roads Program (HRRRP), and State safety funding. State guidance includes project selection criteria practices and monitoring that encourage local agencies to complete the projects in a timely manner.  The following describes practices in project application guidelines and program procedures that have assisted local agencies in obtaining and using funds for safety projects. 

Application Committees

ALDOT established a HRRRP Committee to seek local stakeholder involvement and input during the project selection and prioritization process for the High Risk Rural Road Program (HRRRP). This committee includes representatives from ALDOT, counties, and the FHWA Alabama Division. The primary purpose of the committee is to establish a competitive methodology for project eligibility and selection as well as guidelines and procedures to obtain HRRRP funds.  Each year the eligibility requirements established by the committee are reevaluated to ensure that competitive funding supports projects designed to reduce crashes and maximize benefits on rural roadways. 

ALDOT dedicates 100 percent of its HRRRP funds to the local road system. County input in the application process and guidelines ensures county engineers buy-in. This has enhanced participation in the HRRRP.

Application Tools

Online application tools allow IDOT to identify mistakes or omissions for local agencies before significant time has elapsed.
 

The Illinois Department of Transportation has developed an online HSIP application tool, including a built-in benefit-to-cost (B/C) analysis function.  The IDOT application requires a variety of information and data requirements for local agencies to complete, including photos, crash data analysis, and B/C analysis through an electronic online form.  Once the application is completed, it is instantly available within the IDOT system for review.  An IDOT review team initially reviews B/C analysis information for completeness and relevance before reviewing the entire application.  Application issues can be identified and resolved quickly through the online process.

Staggered and Flexible Solicitation

Local agencies unfamiliar with the Federal-aid program requirements may not understand which funding mechanisms best fit their local roadway safety projects. In addition, where multiple sources of funding exist, submitting an application for each can be time consuming. The time consuming process can act as a deterrent to submitting an application, especially when local agencies are competing for small amounts of funding.

MDOT's standard call for HSIP projects is completed on an annual basis.  The annual requests for HSIP and HRRRP projects are staggered by several months to allow local agencies to respond to the more restrictive program (HRRRP) first.  All local safety projects not receiving HRRRP funding are automatically rolled into the HSIP selection process, giving those projects a second chance at funding.  This policy elevates the potential for each local project to receive funding.

Beginning in fiscal year (FY) 2010, MDOT now has the HSIP projects on a two year cycle (i.e., MDOT solicited FY 2011 projects in FY 2009) to give local agencies needed lead time to complete preliminary steps, such as topographical surveys, right-of-way (ROW) identification, conceptual design, and budgeting. The following summarizes the typical two-year program schedule:

• Application window: November 2008 – March 2009.
• Scoring:  March 2009 – July 2009.
• Selection:  July 2009 – August 2009.
• Authorization for Implementation: October 1, 2010.

The two-year cycle gives adequate time for local agencies to prepare their applications.  The cycle also provides a consistent and reliable schedule for local agencies.

Universal Applications

Limited time and resources limit the number of applications local agencies submit for safety project funding.  Mn/DOT permits local agencies to submit one application for consideration under all Federal and State safety funding sources.  Mn/DOT annually distributes funding solicitation notices to local agencies for eligible local roadway safety projects.  Once the final list of projects is approved, the projects are reviewed for eligibility with appropriate funding sources.  The single application reduces complexity for local applicants and minimizes the need to expend additional resources on multiple applications.

Joint Applications

Historically, low levels of cooperation between local agencies leads some safety projects to terminate at jurisdictional boundaries or go undeveloped altogether.  Mn/DOT encourages local agencies to combine efforts and submit joint applications through the Mn/DOT districts when possible.  The county engineers agree to manage different phases of the project delivery process for these joint applications.  For example, one county engineer might lead early efforts on coordinating and submitting an application for funding, while another county engineer would handle the later tasks of construction inspection, documentation, and contractor payments after a project has been funded and let for construction. 

This process helps Mn/DOT allocate funding to multiple agencies and encourage partnership amongst neighboring communities.  Mn/DOT's joint applications encourage consistent and region-wide responses to common safety issues, particularly when systemic safety improvements are implemented across jurisdictional boundaries. 

Prioritization

States with clear guidelines to prioritize projects generally receive well-prepared and targeted project applications.  MDOT specifies the following elements will be used to evaluate and prioritize local safety projects:

• Scope of work.
• Time of Return (TOR). (2)
• Ratio of estimated cost-per-annual benefit.
• Ties to the SHSP initiatives.

These criteria ensure that local roadway projects with the greatest crash-reduction benefits receive the highest priority.  Local agencies that consider these criteria in their applications stand the greatest chance for selection. 

Projects that address locations in Michigan's five percent report are also evaluated using the criteria.  MDOT finds that the the Time of Return analysis results are very good for safety project applications related to locations in the five percent report, which generally allows these projects to rise to the top in the overall scoring. 

(2) MDOT's Time of Return (TOR) analysis measures the anticipated cost effectiveness of a project by using historic crash data to calculate the amount of money saved each year from crashes mitigated by the proposed project.  Dividing the total project cost by the money saved each year in crash mitigation yields the number of years it will take to cover the costs of a project. The less time needed to recoup the investment, the more cost effective the project is considered. Projects that are cost effective will have a TOR that is less than 10 years long. (Genesee County 2035 LRTP, Safety Technical Report, http://www.co.genesee.mi.us/gcmpc-plan/LRTPWeb/TechReports/Safety.pdf)

Project Award Requirements

While improved application procedures can increase local agency participation, States should ensure safety funds are spent efficiently.  Workable safety programs require States to develop requirements that achieve the highest possible rate of project completion.

The IDOT process takes approximately two years from the solicitation to complete design and construction of individual safety projects.  IDOT generally attempts to select HSIP and HRRRP projects by the beginning of the State fiscal year and strives to complete local roadway safety projects in the same fiscal year that the project funding is awarded.  This requirement keeps the local agencies focused on applying for construction-ready projects and other projects that have received public support from local officials or stakeholders.  

Michigan currently caps its Federal funding allocation for local projects at $400,000 per project.
 

Like IDOT's policy, all MDOT local roadway projects must be completed in the same fiscal year that the project funding is awarded.  MDOT gives agencies a notice to prepare for the funding in advance of the award.  This allows ample time to prepare for the project so that the funding can be obligated as soon as possible after the award.  MDOT also establishes a cap for Federal funding allocated to each project, which ensures funding can be awarded to a large and diverse pool of local recipients and limits the potential for any one recipient to receive, but fail to use, a significant portion of the funding.

Streamlining the Federal-Aid Process

States are adopting processes and procedures to streamline their safety programs and expedite the process to encourage local road agencies to prepare and submit applications for safety funds.  The following describes practices used by the scan States to streamline the safety program process.

Force Accounts

The Federally required competitive bid process for construction projects is often burdensome and time consuming for local agencies, requiring up to two years before some projects are constructed. This represents a challenge, particularly for the small amounts of funding often associated with low-cost safety improvements.

The Alabama Department of Transportation permits local agencies to use force account(3) to enable delivery of small projects in order to save time on the overall process.  MDOT also permits local projects to be constructed using force accounts.  Federal agencies must document a finding of cost effectiveness and receive FHWA Division Office approval to use force account procedures.  States have found that force account enables expedited delivery of small projects, such as pavement markings, at considerably lower cost than if implemented via the competitive bid process.  

(3) As defined by Title 23 of the Code of Federal Regulations, "force account [is] the direct performance of highway construction work by a State transportation department, county…by use of labor, equipment, materials and supplies furnished by the agency and used under their direct control" [23 CFR 635 Subpart B, U.S. DOT FHWA. https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/legsregs/directives/cfr23toc.htm]  

Abbreviated Plan Review Process

The number of steps, level of information, and review time required to complete the Federal-aid application process can be discouraging.  Local agencies would prefer to complete the process as quickly as possible to implement much needed improvements, particularly low-cost measures that can reduce crashes immediately. 

Each Alabama county or municipality submits a prioritized list of up to three locations for HES-TYPE consideration. 
 

The process for handling Hazard Elimination Safety Type (HES-TYPE) projects within the ALDOT Central Office has been streamlined. First, HES-TYPE projects must meet minimum eligibility requirements. Then, only project work directly related to the safety problem can be included in the application. Proposed projects normally should not require any right-of-way acquisition or major utility relocations. The intent of the streamlined review process is to produce fast track projects that will take the least number of steps in the plan preparation stage.  

HES-TYPE projects are developed using a minimum number of plan sheets. The plan assembly for HES-TYPE projects should be held to a minimum, typically with 10 sheets or less consisting of a Title Sheet, Typical Section Sheet, Project Note Sheet, Summary of Quantities, Plan-Profile Sheet, Traffic Control Plan (TCP), and Cross Sections. The designer can utilize special and standard drawings to complete the design and plan preparation effort. This reduces the plan review process by allowing for minimal reviews and early authorization.

Project Programming

In order to receive HSIP funding for local roadway safety projects, the projects and their funding sources must be included in the Statewide Transportation Improvement Program (STIP).  The STIP includes all capital and non-capital projects funded under Title 23, United States Code - Highways, covers a period of not less than four years, and is updated at least every four years.  Highway safety improvement programs are often developed on an annual basis; therefore, it is sometimes difficult to know which projects will be advancing in four years.  Fortunately, States can group projects by function, work type and/or geographic area in one line item if a project is not of regional significance, or of appropriate scale to warrant individual identification.  For example, several low-cost safety enhancements could be grouped together and listed as various safety improvements for one county.

In order to provide sufficient flexibility with programming safety projects on an annual basis, Illinois uses a combination of line-item and project-by-project listing in the STIP.  For State and local safety projects not within the borders of an MPO, IDOT uses a STIP line item and amends the list of projects based on their annual status.  For safety projects within an MPO, the MPO is responsible for listing each project in their respective TIP.  Use of STIP line items (i.e., lump sum programming) allows for greater flexibility in programming projects on an annual basis and addressing data-driven needs to move projects forward.

Categorical Exclusions

Highway safety projects receiving Federal funding are required to complete environmental impact reviews. Local agencies planning to construct low-cost or systemic improvements, with little or no potential for environmental impacts, frequently cite these requirements as a deterrent to applying for funding. 

Federal legislation for implementing the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) defines a number of Categorical Exclusions (CE) exempting certain types of safety projects from extensive Federal environmental impact review (i.e., preparation of Environmental Impact Statements). Projects qualify as CEs if they meet various requirements demonstrating a likelihood of minimal infrastructure, environmental, or historical resources impacts.   For instance, the legislation exempts the construction of pedestrian/bicycle facilities, as well as the installation of signs, pavement markings and traffic signals (where no substantial land acquisition or traffic disruption will occur) , among others(4), from further NEPA review.  

New Jersey's Local Safety Program identifies several project selection criteria.  One of these criteria is the requirement that minimal or no environmental issues exist, which allows the project to obtain a CE classification.  A CE classification requires significantly less time and resources than environmental impact statements or environmental assessments, thereby resulting in expedited project delivery. 

Strategies designed to simplify or shorten the Federal-aid process have allowed local agencies to increase participation and complete more local safety projects.

(4) U.S. DOT FHWA Legislation & Regulations, 23 CFR 771; https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/hep/guidance/superseded/23cfr771.cfm#sec.771.117

Summary

Many State DOTs have dedicated personnel that provide oversight and assistance to local agencies in their respective States particularly with administration of Federal-aid Projects. Visible Local-aid divisions within the State DOT ensure relatively consistent coordination and collaboration between DOT personnel and local practitioners. The primary role of the Local-aid divisions is to provide guidance to local agencies to navigate the application process and implement projects. Specific technical assistance is often provided by subject matter experts. For example, WSDOT, Mn/DOT and ALDOT each have a Safety Engineer dedicated to local agency technical assistance. In the other scan States, the Safety office works closely with the Local-aid division on local agency safety activities. 

While the structure of the Local-aid divisions varies across the States, the benefits to local agencies are mirrored in all the scan States, as follows:

• Guidance (often hands-on) to navigate the State's application process and implement projects.
• Technical assistance to local agencies in identifying and prioritizing projects with the greatest safety benefits.
• Strong partnerships between agencies are established, which enhance their ability to achieve statewide crash reduction goals. 
• MDOT and ALDOT use force account procedures that allow local agencies to use internal resources to construct projects, which saves time and resources on the completion schedule.
• IDOT programs safety projects by consolidated line items in the STIP to allow flexibility in moving projects forward. 
• Categorical exclusions may be used to exempt local safety projects with minimal environmental impacts from Federal environmental review, which speeds the approval and completion schedule. 

Many of the scan States have instituted innovative practices to administer local safety programs and streamline the Federal-aid process to encourage greater local participation. Some examples include:

• ALDOT formed a committee with local agency representatives to develop methodology, and application guidelines for safety programs.
• IDOT developed an online HSIP application tool to reduce production times and provide quick feedback to applicants if their application is incomplete.
• MDOT instituted a two year cycle for application to ensure completion of projects in the same year funds are awarded.
• Mn/DOT requires one application for all safety funding sources.  

 
The scan States' Local-aid administration structures and practices may serve as models for other States to develop effective management of local safety programs.  Dedicated State DOT local- aid divisions and application guidelines facilitate greater local agency participation and more effective projects. These divisions understand the various funding mechanisms for local safety projects and provide instrumental support for local agencies to acquire and obligate funding.