March 7, 2024
Innovation of the Month: Rethinking DBE for Design-Build
The USDOT disadvantaged business enterprise (DBE) program seeks to provide opportunities for small, disadvantaged firms to compete for work on federal aid projects sponsored by State DOTs or other recipients of federal transportation funding. However, as States or other project sponsors increase their use of design-build (DB) for project delivery, they must also rethink the way that they can best include DBEs to ensure they receive equitable opportunity for federal funding. Rethinking DBE for Design Build provides project sponsors with an innovative DBE goal commitment strategy that best aligns the program requirements with the conditions of DB contracting. The strategy promoted by this innovation is an open-ended performance plan (OEPP) which is a list of anticipated work items that hold the best potential for DBE subcontracts. When contract details are known, the contractor makes every effort to secure subcontracts with named DBEs.
The New York State Department of Transportation (NYSDOT) has sponsored many DB contracts and recognized early on that the traditional Design - Bid - Build commitment approach to attaining the DBE goal didn't align with the conditions of a DB project. NYSDOT has since modified its DB "Instructions to Proposers" to include a table (referred to by NYSDOT as LDB Table 2) in which proposers must identify future work categories that hold opportunities for DBEs, the specific types of work, detailed descriptions, and the anticipated dollar amounts. Proposers must also complete a schedule of DBE utilization (SDU) which complements the table by breaking down the project timeline into three-month intervals. Proposers enter in the SDU table when the anticipated work for the DBEs will occur; NYSDOT monitors this schedule to assure the contractor is making a good faith effort to achieve the goal with actual DBE subcontracts.
As the project is designed and constructed, the NYSDOT anticipates and expects changes to the original table and the SDU forms. NYSDOT oversight staff meet regularly with the prime contractor to discuss and approve any changes and to assure the firm is making ongoing good faith efforts to attain the goal.
NYSDOT has used this process on over 50 DB projects and expects more projects in the future. Feedback from DBEs, contractors, and other stakeholders has been positive. All believe the OEPP has contributed to a more successful project that benefits all involved.
Stay up-to-date on this innovation by registering for Rethinking DBE e-bulletins. To learn more about Rethinking DBE for Design Build, please contact Christine Thorkildsen or Eric Ross, FHWA Office of Civil Rights.
New Resource Highlights Proven Safety Countermeasures Applications on Rural Roads
The Focus on Reducing Rural Roadway Departures (FoRRRwD) EDC initiative encouraged systemic application of Proven Safety Countermeasures (PSCs), that help keep vehicles in their travel lanes, reduce the potential for crashes, and decrease the severity of crashes that do occur.
Despite the progress made by States to implement FoRRRwD, over 83,000 people died on rural roadways between 2017 and 2021, and 56 percent of roadway departure fatalities occurred in rural areas over that same time period. To that end, FHWA recently published Proven Safety Countermeasures in Rural Communities (FHWA-SA-24-005), a helpful resource for communities looking to save lives by focusing on roadway departures, intersections, pedestrians, bicyclists, or speed management. This compendium includes an overview of each countermeasure, considerations for rural applications, crash reduction effectiveness, and case studies. This document also features a useful reference table that allows practitioners to quickly evaluate the PSC based on other factors, like relative cost, and typical service life. For more information, contact Phillip.Bobitz@dot.gov, FHWA Office of Safety.
Shailen Bhatt, FHWA Administrator, to kick off Digital As-Builts virtual event on March 20, 2024
Join FHWA Administrator Shailen Bhatt as he gives the opening keynote address at Fast Forward Your Digital Roadmap on Wednesday, March 20, 2024.
UAS view of mock incident scene. (Credit: MoDOT)
Administrator Bhatt is honored to launch this 2-day virtual event that will provide a deep dive into the impacts and use of digital project delivery and digital as-builts (DABs).
This two-day national event is the capstone event for the Every Day Counts 6 initiative. Join us as we gather public and private sector subject matter experts, entrepreneurs, and solution providers in a collaborative virtual event. Be part of the innovation, energy and connectivity between DABs and the larger digitalization efforts that the DOTs are leading.
To learn more about Next-Gen TIM please contact Paul Jodoin, James Austrich, or Joseph Tebo, FHWA Office of Operations.
Register today and mark your calendar for his inspiring opening remarks.
Applications Open for AID Demonstration Grants
Let’s Innovate! The Accelerated Innovation Deployment (AID) Demonstration program provides incentive funds to eligible entities to accelerate the implementation and adoption of innovation in highway transportation. The 2024 AID Demonstration solicitation for FY 2024 is open and the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) plans to award up to $12.5 million in grants. Visit the AID Demonstration projects webpage to learn about the 127 grants and more than $95.7 million dollars that FHWA has awarded since the program’s launch in 2014.
AID Demonstration funds are distributed through a competitive discretionary grant process. The required Notice of Intent must be submitted to Grants.gov on or before April 16, 2024, with an application deadline of May 28, 2024. Details on this funding opportunity are available on the AID Demonstration webpage and on Grants.gov (funding opportunity number 693JJ324NF-AIDDP).
Discover Home-Grown Innovations from Around the Country
Are you interested in homegrown innovations being used by your peers in other parts of the country? The National STIC Network Showcase provides a summary of STIC Showcase entries from the EDC-7 Virtual Summit.
Learn about the Michigan Department of Transportation's Urban Freeway Slope Restoration project, which tested and tracked soil improvement strategies and plant types for several years. This project led to a process for planting on slopes that provides an environmentally advantageous, cost-effective, and lower-maintenance recommendation.
Celebrate the ingenuity of your peers and read about these innovations – developed and deployed in-house at transportation agencies nationwide.
Stay Up to Date on the EDC Innovations That Interest You Most
EDC teams are always on the move! If you blink, you could miss out on important webinars, case studies, tools, videos, and more. To never miss information for the EDC innovations that interest you most, visit the subscription page and select the topics you'd like to receive updates on directly from the teams that coordinate them.
Recent bulletins:
Hydraulic Modeling 2/29/24
Innovation in Project Delivery 2/27/24
Sustainable Pavements 2/27/24
Road Weather Management 2/23/24
Strategic Workforce Development 2/23/24
Upcoming Events
Fast Forward Your Digital RoadMap
March 20, 2024, 12:00-4:00pm ET
March 21, 2024, 1:00-5:00 ET Register
About EDC
Every Day Counts, a State-based initiative of the Federal Highway Administration's Office of Innovation and Workforce Solutions, works with State, local, and privatesector partners to encourage the adoption of proven and underutilized technologies to deliver transportation projects more efficiently, enhance safety forall users, support a sustainable and resilient infrastructure, and incorporate equity inproject planning and delivery.
EDC News is a weekly publication highlighting successful EDC innovation deployments across the country.
EDC News is published weekly by the FHWA Center for Accelerating Innovation.
Disclaimer:The U.S. Government does not endorse products or manufacturers. Trademarks or manufacturers' names appear in this document only because they are considered essential to the objective of the document. They are included for informational purposes only and are not intended to reflect a preference, approval, or endorsement of any one product or entity.
Except for the statutes and regulations cited, the contents of this document do not have the force and effect of law and are not meant to bind the States or the public in any way. This document is intended only to provide information regarding existing requirements under the law or agency policies.
Recommended Citation:
U.S Department of Transportation, Federal Highway Administration
EDC News; March 7, 2024
Washington, DC
