Peer Review Program At A Glance

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January 2013

Program Overview

TMIP works collaboratively with the transportation modeling community to improve information sharing and support the best available tools, data and methods. TMIP's Peer Review Program provides an agency the opportunity to elicit recommendations for addressing its current modeling challenges and those expected to arise due to growth and/or transportation policy changes. Peer reviews are customized to meet the specific needs of the host agency, but generally consist of the following elements:

• A one- to two-day meeting with four or five travel modeling experts, host agency planning staff, and other stakeholders;
• Documentation of the agency's model for panelists to review before the meeting;
• Questions or issues for peer panelists to address in their recommendations;
• A final report on the peer review meeting;
• Development of an action plan by the host agency to respond to peer recommendations;
• Implementation of recommendations; and evaluation of progress.

Planning Ahead

While a peer review offers significant benefits, there are some responsibilities the host agency must assume. A clear understanding of the peer review program and process is critical before an agency should elect to apply for and subsequently host a peer review. The agency should at a minimum consider a number of self-assessment questions to determine whether a review is appropriate.

The TMIP Peer Review Process Guide provides a roadmap for host agencies that are considering whether to convene a TMIP sponsored peer review. The process guide is designed to help agencies:

• Understand what a peer review is;
• Decide if a peer review is appropriate for their agency;
• Understand how to plan and conduct a successful peer review; and
• Understand how to develop an action plan for implementing the peer panelists' recommendations.

The TMIP Peer Review Process Guide is available at:

http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/planning/tmip/resources/peer_review_program/process_guide/

What to Expect From The Peer Review

Agency Testimonials

"I would highly recommend involvement in the program. Small agencies with limited technical capabilities are likely to greatly benefit from the program." – Jeff Gilbert, Cache County MPO

"It is recommended that any large agency/MPO with a complex region take advantage of this program. The larger MPOs with complex and diverse transportation region will benefit most from this program." – Sangeeta Bhowmick, NYMTC

Expert Review Panels

Expert peer review panel members volunteer their time. The panel members are critical to the success of the Peer Review Program and provide practitioners with a unique opportunity to shape the advancement of modeling practices, while participating in a valuable peer networking and knowledge sharing experience. Interested in volunteering? Please contact us.

Program Assessment

TMIP periodically performs an in-depth assessment and evaluation of the Peer Review Program to identify the common trends, themes and challenges faced by state departments of transportation (DOTs) and metropolitan planning organizations (MPOs) in the development, application and improvement of their travel modeling tools and procedures. The most recent assessment was conducted in December 2011 and yielded the following key findings:

• Most of the technical questions are centered on modeling guidelines, data collection/preparation and observed best practices.
• Most of the panel short-term recommendations are centered on increasing the detail of existing travel modeling tools and procedures (e.g.geographic, market segmentation, time of day, land use types, mode choice sets, more spatial and temporal disaggregation, etc.)
• Including freight and commercial models, transitioning to activity-based travel demand models, and developing dynamic traffic assignment(DTA) and land use models frequently appear as long-term panel recommendations.

Participating Agencies to Date

Thirty-eight (38) peer reviews at thirty-two (32) different agencies have been convened since the Peer Review Program was inaugurated in 2003. Hyperlinks in the list jump to individual agency peer review reports. Peer review final reports.

AMATS Anchorage Metro Area Transp. Solutions

ADOT Arizona Dept. of Transp.

AMBAG Associated Monterey Bay Area Gov'ts

ARC Atlanta Regional Commission

BMC Baltimore Metropolitan Council

BRC Bi-State Regional Commission

CMPO Cache MPO

CAMPO Capitol Area MPO

CHCNGA-TPO Chattanooga-Hamilton County/North Georgia TPO

CCMPO Chittenden County MPO

COMPASS Community Planning Association

DRCOG Denver Regional Council of Gov'ts

DVRPC Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission

DMPO Dixie MPO

ECIA East Central Intergovernmental Association

EWGCG East-West Gateway Council of Gov'ts

GDOT Georgia Department of Transp.

IaDOT Iowa Dept. of Transp.

MATA Memphis Area Transit Authority

MAPA Metropolitan Area Planning Agency

MTC Metropolitan Transp. Commission

NYMTC New York Metropolitan Transp. Council

NCDOT North Carolina Dept. of Transp.

NJTPA North Jersey Transp. Planning Authority

OKI Ohio Kentucky Indiana Regional Council of Gov'ts

PPACG Pikes Peak Area Council of Gov'ts

SACOG Sacramento Area Council of Gov'ts

SFCTA San Francisco County Transp. Authority

SCAG Southern California Association of Gov'ts

SEMCOG Southeast Michigan Council of Gov'ts

SANDAG San Diego Association of Gov'ts

TRPC Thurston Regional Planning Council