By Jeanne Aamodt

Pending development of performance criteria and implementation thresholds, the Federal Highway Administration has approved Mn/DOT’s request to pursue a performance-based design to replace the interchange at Hwy 169 and Interstate 494 in Eden Prairie.

“Mn/DOT is pleased that FHWA has approved the design approach we recommended for the interchange,” said Khani Sahebjam, deputy commissioner and chief engineer. “The decision takes us a step further in establishing Context Sensitive Solutions/Flexible Design to approach transportation challenges in Minnesota, while providing an opportunity to partner and be a leader at a national level in developing performance criteria for similar, nontraditional projects across the United States.”

While the decision does not mean that the project has been funded and will be scheduled, it does mean that the possibility of getting the project programmed in the near future is much better, according to Sahebjam.

In September, Mn/DOT submitted the interchange project as part of its application for Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery grant program funds to cover $135 million of the $200 million project. Although the project was submitted with a traditional design option, the agency led with the performance-based approach.

Mn/DOT’s performance-based design rebuilds the interchange with six ramps instead of eight. Plans also call for a phased approach instead of constructing all eight ramps at once, which is the current federal policy for interstate highways.

“The performance-based design removes stoplights, reduces congestion and improves safety,” said John Griffith, Metro District west area manager. “It meets more than 90 percent of the needs while saving approximately $30 million to $40 million in construction costs that Mn/DOT could use on other projects in the area.”

Mn/DOT will monitor the performance of the interchange and if performance targets are not met, the department is committed to adding the two remaining movements if those two movements are determined to be the source of the performance problems, Griffith said.

For more information and a short video presentation on the performance-based Hwy 169/I-494 interchange, visit http://www.dot.state.mn.us/metro/projects/169/. 

By Chris Krueger

A cross-functional Mn/DOT team continues to work closely with a consumer advisory group of people with disabilities to implement an American with Disabilities Act transition plan that ensures existing transportation facilities, practices and right of way are accessible to everyone.

Mn/DOT has made many strides to make the current transportation system accessible to persons with disabilities. However, evolving national guidelines and creating trust with the community have made implementing change challenging.

“It was clear from the start of this initiative that the consumer groups had limited trust with Mn/DOT,” said Nick Thompson, Office of Policy, Analysis, Research and Innovation director and ADA transition plan project manager. “It was critical to put together a broad cross section of Mn/DOT staff to work with the consumer group to clarify expectations, review best practices, listen and act.”

Initially, the team focused on some internal processes, including adopting Public Right of Way Accessibility Guidelines as Mn/DOT’s design guidelines and rewriting a chapter of the road design manual to reflect PROWAG.

The team also worked with the consumer group to prioritize stimulus-funded ADA investments. Through that process, the group gained an understanding of how to prioritize projects devoted specifically to accessibility. So far, the group has identified replacing diagonal curb ramps with designs that lead into the crosswalk and installing audible pedestrian signals as top investment priorities.

In the past, Mn/DOT and many local public works departments have installed curb ramps at intersections that are cut at a diagonal rather than a 90 degree angle. The diagonal cut saves construction costs, but creates safety hazards for pedestrians with disabilities who are forced to enter the intersection in order to cross the street. Roundabouts, one-way circular road intersections where traffic is slowed down, are also difficult to maneuver for people with disabilities. 

“Some of the changes we need to make may lie in engineering,” Thompson said. “Others may be in training or education—many will be interconnected.”

A public comment form will be available on Mn/DOT’s Web site beginning Nov. 20. The public will have 30 days to provide comment.

“We all benefit from accessibility,” said Kristie Billiar, ADA implementation coordinator. “We are all one incident away from navigating the built environment.”

By Laurie Gustafson

Project management may look different throughout the country, but Mn/DOT is tapping the best ideas from national and federal transportation agencies to make improvements.

The Office of Project Scope and Cost Management recently hosted a peer review that involved practitioners from the Arizona, Washington, Utah, Virginia and Pennsylvania departments of transportation. Representatives from the Federal Highway Administration, University of Minnesota Center for Transportation Studies and the transportation consulting firm CH2M Hill also participated.

“The peer review was designed to benchmark our success and the success of what others in the industry are doing,” said Mike Barnes, Engineering Services Division director. “Our project management is very visible to the public and this process will help as we move toward strengthening public trust.”

For four days in October, about 150 Mn/DOT employees were interviewed and participated in the review. Participants focused their discussion on four areas—project phases, functional areas, program management and initiatives and support. Peer reviewers listened to Mn/DOT staff talk about project management, but they also shared best practices from their own organizations.

“I feel honored to be here because much of what I know about project management I learned when working on a Mississippi River bridge project in St. Louis,” said George Jones, mega projects manager for the FHWA. “Although each state develops project management plans differently, the foundation for quality project management remains the same.”

In preparation for the interviews, the Office of Project Scope and Cost Management surveyed project managers, functional groups and management staff in mid-September to gather information about their processes and thoughts for improvement in project management within Mn/DOT.  

“Project managers often become firefighters dealing with issues late in the process when they become a high risk,” said Mike Ginnaty, Project Scope and Cost Management director. “Good project management plans help project managers to be fire preventers and help ensure that we are managing the scope, schedule and budget of a project in addition to mitigating risks and managing commitments that we’ve made to our stakeholders.”

Recommendations and observations from the peer review will help identify opportunities for improvement and focus on creating, implementing, supporting and sustaining a stronger project management culture within Mn/DOT. A report based on the results of the project management peer review will be complete by the end of the year. In the meantime, the peer reviewers are summarizing their observations and identifying best practices and issues.

“We heard a lot of great information in the interviews,” said Jean Wallace, Project Scoping Section director. “Everyone was very open and honest about identifying both best practices and challenges.”

By Bob Filipczak

The 2009 Toward Zero Deaths Conference in Duluth was punctuated by record attendance, a celebration of life-saving legislation and promising trends in preventing traffic fatalities and serious injuries.

In spite of this year’s economic downturn, the conference attracted a record 623 attendees to Duluth’s Entertainment Convention Center on Oct. 28-29.

The opening session celebrated the accomplishments of TZD through music, balloons, a video and an inspirational speaker.

The celebration was sparked by the passage of a number of safety laws, including the primary seat belt law, and the declining number of fatal crashes on Minnesota roadways—fatalities for 2009 are trending lower than the historic low in 2008.

"This year’s conference celebrated the fact that there were 30 percent fewer people dying in traffic crashes on Minnesota roadways in 2008 than five years ago,” said Sue Groth, Office of Traffic, Safety and Technology director and TZD Conference co-chair. “Many traffic safety partners have worked together toward the common goal of zero deaths. In particular, Mn/DOT has placed a higher emphasis on proactive safety measures such as rumble strips and cable median barriers.

“We have also directed safety money toward local roads, where about half our fatalities occur. These efforts are contributing to our success,” Groth said.  

Jim Hedlund, a representative from Highway Safety North, served as the keynote speaker of the Oct. 28 lunch session and spoke about changing the traffic safety culture in Minnesota and across the nation. Hedlund also listed some of the issues around traffic safety while discussing ways to change attitudes about our relationships with our own vehicles.

One of the concurrent sessions featured a panel discussion titled “Political Dimensions of Traffic Safety.” Rep. Melissa Hortman of Distirct 47B, Col. Mark Dunaski of the Minnesota State Patrol and John Adams from the University of Minnesota led a discussion about which driving behaviors can be controlled by laws and which cannot.

The 2010 TZD conference will be held in St. Paul, at which time TZD hopes to be trending toward its goal of fewer than 400 traffic fatalities for 2010.

Mn/DOT will begin upgrading to Microsoft Office 2007 and transitioning from GroupWise to Outlook 2007 on Nov. 16. The conversion will run through the end of November.

All employees in District 3 and the Employee and Corporate Services division, and part of the Policy, Safety & Strategic Initiatives division will be the first to transition. A complete schedule of migration dates will be available soon at http://ihub/itweb/oo7upgrade/index.html.

Employees who haven’t already done so, can review available training options and start completing tasks on the pre-migration checklist. The pre-migration checklist details the tasks employees can complete before their computer is upgraded to make sure they don’t lose important files or data.

A post-migration checklist is also available for employees who need help setting up their computer following the upgrade.

Employees with questions about the upgrade can attend a videoconference Nov. 16 from noon to 1 p.m. Instructor-led demos via Adobe Connect are also being held every business day through Nov. 20. For more details, visit http://ihub/itweb/oo7upgrade/instructor_led_training.html.

Formerly known as the Commissioner’s Staff, the Stewardship Council is made up of the commissioner, deputy commissioner/chief engineer and six division directors. In addition, the chief financial officer, audit director, chief counsel, ombudsman and directors of the offices of Communications and Government Affairs will serve as advisors to the council.

“The council will provide leadership for the department as we respond to the critical issues facing us and will play a key role in shaping Mn/DOT’s future,” said Sahebjam, who also chairs the council.  

He said that the council will be responsible for setting direction for successful implementation of the department’s recently adopted strategic vision and regularly will review Mn/DOT’s Strategic Initiatives Work Plan to ensure accountability for continued advancement of the department’s initiatives.

The council will meet the fourth Tuesday of each month, 8:30 a.m. to noon, beginning Nov. 24.