Meaningful Public Involvement in Transportation Decision-Making: A Comparative Analysis of State Policies and Practices

Details

• Creators:
  Pierce, Andrea L. ; Barnes, Philip ; Jackson, Calais S.
• Corporate Creators:
  University of Delaware. Biden School of Public Policy and Administration ; Morgan State University. Safety and Mobility Advancements Regional Transportation and Economics Research Center. University Transportation Center (UTC)
• Corporate Contributors:
  United States. Department of Transportation. University Transportation Centers (UTC) Program ; United States. Department of Transportation. Office of the Assistant Secretary for Research and Technology
• Subject/TRT Terms:
  • Public participation
  • Public opinion
  • Transportation planning
  • Policy analysis
  • Decision making
  • Implementation
  • Communication
  • State departments of transportation
  • comparative policy analysis
  • State Transportation Improvement Program (STIP)
• Publication/ Report Number:
  SM35
• Resource Type:
  Tech Report
• Geographical Coverage:
  United States ; Delaware ; Maryland ; Virginia ; West Virginia
• Edition:
  Final Report
• Corporate Publisher:
  Morgan State University.Safety and Mobility Advancement Regional Transportation and Economics Research Center (SMARTER) University Transportation Center (UTC)
• Abstract:
  One of the many responsibilities that State Departments of Transportation (DOTs) have is to offer public involvement opportunities during the planning, design, and delivery of transportation systems. Much has been written about specific public involvement practices, and critiques of their effectiveness are common. Less is known about the official public involvement policies that state DOTs are required to adopt and implement. This research conducts a document analysis of these policies and their implementation in the State Transportation Improvement Program (STIP) across four states in the mid-Atlantic region: Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, and West Virginia. The analysis finds that state policies and their implementation through the STIP process do offer elements of meaningful public involvement, such as the delivery of public meetings, hearings, and workshops. These strategies are often used in tandem with digital tools like websites and social media, which serve to inform residents and gather public input. The analysis also finds that states often fail to deliver more innovative public involvement strategies that enhance the public's agency and generate more useful information. The study's results have implications for state public managers in designing, offering, and communicating their public involvement policies and practices more effectively.
• Format:
  PDF
• Funding:
  69A3552348303
• Download URL:
  https://rosap.ntl.bts.gov/view/dot/93187/dot_93187_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 1.87 MB]
• Collection(s):
  University Transportation Centers
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:6fb568436912881997eecf18d89a4ae17312640467813960aacbffe7491b81ae9edc16296258c58f72149047c7f871d0ac7f88873776d0c2ce79f30b2f305d5a