Performance Management

Program purpose

A key feature of MAP-21 is the establishment of a performance- and outcome-based program. The objective of this performance- and outcome-based program is for States to invest resources in projects that collectively will make progress toward the achievement of the national goals.

Statutory citation(s): MAP-21 §§1106, 1112-1113, 1201-1203; 23 USC 119, 134-135, 148-150

National policy in support of performance management

“Performance management will transform the Federal-aid highway program and provide a means to the most efficient investment of Federal transportation funds by refocusing on national transportation goals, increasing the accountability and transparency of the Federal-aid highway program, and improving project decision-making through ”[§1203; 23 USC 150(a)]

National performance goals

Establishes national performance goals for the Federal-aid highway program in seven areas:

[§1203; 23 USC 150(b)]

Goal area	National goal
Safety	To achieve a significant reduction in traffic fatalities and serious injuries on all public roads
Infrastructure condition	To maintain the highway infrastructure asset system in a state of good repair
Congestion reduction	To achieve a significant reduction in congestion on the National Highway System
System reliability	To improve the efficiency of the surface transportation system
Freight movement and economic vitality	To improve the national freight network, strengthen the ability of rural communities to access national and international trade markets, and support regional economic development
Environmental sustainability	To enhance the performance of the transportation system while protecting and enhancing the natural environment
Reduced project delivery delays	To reduce project costs, promote jobs and the economy, and expedite the movement of people and goods by accelerating project completion through eliminating delays in the project development and delivery process, including reducing regulatory burdens and improving agencies’ work practices

Performance measures

Requires the Secretary, in consultation with States, metropolitan planning organizations (MPOs), and other stakeholders, to establish performance measures in the areas listed below. Provides for DOT to establish such measures within 18 months of enactment, and prohibits DOT from establishing additional performance measures. [§1203; 23 USC 150(c)]

• Pavement condition on the Interstate System and on remainder of the National Highway System (NHS)
• Performance of the Interstate System and the remainder of the NHS
• Bridge condition on the NHS
• Fatalities and serious injuries—both number and rate per vehicle mile traveled--on all public roads
• Traffic congestion
• On-road mobile source emissions
• Freight movement on the Interstate System

Performance targets

• Setting of State targets. Within one year of the DOT final rule on performance measures, requires States to set performance targets in support of those measures. States may set different performance targets for urbanized and rural areas. [§1203; 23 USC 150(d)]

To ensure consistency each State must, to the maximum extent practicable –

• coordinate with an MPO when setting performance targets for the area represented by that MPO; and
• coordinate with public transportation providers when setting performance targets in an urbanized area not represented by an MPO. [§1202; 23 USC 135(d)(2)(B)]

• Setting of MPO targets. Within 180 days of States or providers of public transportation setting performance targets, requires MPOs to set performance targets in relation to the performance measures (where applicable). To ensure consistency, each MPO must, to the maximum extent practicable, coordinate with the relevant State and public transportation providers when setting performance targets. [§1201; 23 USC 134(h)(2)].

• Plans requiring targets. Requires the following plans to include State targets (and/or MPO targets, as appropriate):
• Metropolitan transportation plans. [§1201; 23 USC 134(i)(2)(B)]
• Metropolitan Transportation Improvement Program (TIP). [§1201; 23 USC 134(j)(2)(D)]
• Statewide Transportation Improvement Program (STIP). [§1202; 23 USC 135(g)(4)]
• State asset management plans under the National Highway Performance Program (NHPP). [§1106; 23 USC 119(e)]
• State performance plans under the Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality Improvement program. [§1113(b)(6); 23 USC 149(l)]

Additionally, State and MPO targets should be included in Statewide transportation plans. [§1202; 23 USC 135(f)(7)]

• Reporting on progress. Requires States to report on the condition and performance of the NHS; the effectiveness of the investment strategy document in the State asset management plan for the NHS; progress toward achieving performance targets; and the ways in which the State is addressing congestion at freight bottlenecks. [§1203; 23 USC 150(e)]

Thresholds for bridge and pavement condition

• Establishment of thresholds. Requires DOT to establish, as part of its rulemaking on performance measures, minimum thresholds for Interstate pavement condition. [§1203; 23 USC 150(c)(3)]

Requires each State to maintain minimum thresholds for Interstate pavement condition (the level set by DOT in its rulemaking) and NHS bridges (no more than 10% of total NHS bridge deck area may be on structurally deficient bridges). [§1106; 23 USC 119(f)]

• Failure to meet thresholds. Requires a State that fails to meet or maintain these thresholds over a statutorily-designated time period to reserve a specified portion of its NHPP funding for Interstate pavement and NHS bridge projects. In some cases also requires the State to transfer a specified portion of its Surface Transportation Program (STP) funding to NHPP. (See NHPP fact sheet for detail) [§1106; 23 USC 119(f)]

Trends in safety performance

Imposes additional requirements on a State in relation to specified measures of highway safety: [§1112; 23 USC 148(g)]

• Rural road safety. If the fatality rate on rural roads in a State increases over the most recent two year period, the State must dedicate a specified amount of funds under the Highway Safety Improvement Program for high risk rural road safety projects.

• Older driver and pedestrian safety. If the traffic fatalities and serious injuries per capita for drivers and pedestrians over the age of 65 in a State increase over the most recent two year period, the State must detail in its next Strategic Highway Safety Plan how it intends to address increases in those rates.

Other accountability measures

• Target achievement under NHPP. Requires a State that fails to achieve (or to make significant progress toward achieving) its performance targets for the NHS for two consecutive reports to describe in its next performance report to DOT (under amended 23 USC 150(e)) the actions it will take to achieve its targets. [§1106; 23 USC 119(e)(7)]

• Target achievement under HSIP. Requires a State that fails to achieve (or to make significant progress toward achieving) its HSIP performance targets within two years of the targets’ establishment to –
• dedicate a specified portion of its obligation authority to HSIP projects until the Secretary determines that the State has made significant progress toward or met the targets; and
• annually submit to the Secretary an implementation plan that includes certain specified components related to highway safety until the Secretary determines that the State has made significant progress toward or met the targets. [§1112; 23 USC 148(i)]

• Certification of planning process for Transportation Management Areas (TMAs). Continues to require the Secretary to certify at least once every four years whether the metropolitan planning process of an MPO serving a TMA meets the requirements, including the requirements of 23 USC 134 and other applicable Federal law. One of these requirements is to include a performance-based approach in the metropolitan transportation planning process (see 23 USC 134(h)(2)). Absent this certification, DOT may withhold up to 20% of the funds attributable to the metropolitan planning area. [§1201; 23 USC 134(k)(5)]