Performance indicators for the road sector
Seeing the trend for public accountability of road administrations and noting the many reform efforts undertaken in transport sectors around the world, the OECD established a Scientific Expert Group on Performance Indicators for the Road Sector in 1996 to provide its member countries a framework for assessing road administrations' performance. The results of the Expert Group's work is presented in this paper.Fifteen indispensable, forty primary, and thirty-five secondary indicators are proposed to portray the road sector from different perspectives. They are designed to be changed in response to human needs and technological development and supplemented by country specific indicators. In keeping with this approach and in support of one of the maxims of the Expert Group that 'useful performance indicators are those which are used', an application in the form of a Field Test is now in progress by an OECD task force.The Performance Indicators proposed are grounded in a mental model adopted by the Expert Group. This model is management by results model, and is useful as a theoretical tool in the many highly fluid contexts in which restructuring is moving forward. In the model, the products and services are judged by standards or criteria; outcomes – derivatives of products and services through user interface – are judged relative to objectives and user satisfaction. The achievement of objectives, however, is not proposed as the only or even primary basis of evaluation. The situation is more abstract and complex. Therefore, the various uses of Performance Indicators – including the opportunities to assist road administrations in becoming learning organizations – are given much emphasis in the paper. The views and conclusions in the paper are those of the author and should not be attributed to the World Bank or its affiliated organizations.
Resources Versus Results: Comparative Performance of State Highway Systems, 1984–1990
This article compares the relative performance of the U.S. and the 50 state highway systems against resources available, over the period 1984–1990. Data are collected on 13 measures of revenues, expenditures, pavement condition, congestion, bridge condition, and accidents. Statistics are normalized to control the effects of size and inflation. Each state's performance is then graded according to whether the state is making progress, holding steady, or losing ground relative to the national trends. Findings show that the U.S. highway system is in good condition and is continuing to improve: even statistics on congestion are now beginning to show improvement. Against this general improvement six states have been able to maintain or improve their highway systems with considerably less resources per mile than other states. These states are New Mexico, South Dakota, Wyoming, Mississippi, South Carolina, and Arkansas. Each of these stales seems to have a combination of geography, traffic, economic structure, and fiscal capability that results in particularly cost-effective highway systems. The findings suggest that simplistic explanations of performance based on location, urban/rural distinctions, weather, climate, or taxes are inadequate; more research is needed to explain the causes of these differences.
A performance assessment model for automated guideway transit systems
A computer model has been developed for the purpose of assessing the performance characteristics of Automated Guideway Transit (AGT) systems. The model is structured to provide an effective, low-cost tool for establishing the supply side characteristics of AGT systems for a variety of network configurations and demand models. Features of the model include the automatic generation of service routes and assignment of route operating frequencies and the capability to display results as well as verify user supplied network data through the use of computer generated graphics. Model outputs consist of system operational statistics, passenger service measures, system capital and operating costs, and energy utilization estimates. Applications of the model have included examinations of AGT system design requirements and cost/performance comparisons of AGT and conventional transit modes. The model has proved to be particularly useful for conducting parametric studies necessary to gain an understanding of system performance-operating policy interactions. A detailed description of the model is presented in the paper along with examples of model outputs and a discussion of computer resources required in using the model.