MAP-21 addresses several of our past recommendations—by articulating  national goals and adopting a performance-based approach to funding  surface transportation projects. FHWA Recently Completed the Rulemaking Stage, Establishing a National Approach to Transportation Performance Management

FHWA has recently completed the first of the three-stage TPM  implementation process—rulemaking, setting and tracking performance  targets, and evaluating performance—issuing all six interrelated rules that  establish both the performance measures focused on the national  transportation goals and the overarching performance-management  framework (see fig.1). The agency issued the first of the six rules in  March 2016. In January 2017, the last two rules were issued and became  effective in May 2017, with part of one rule delayed indefinitely. The 17 performance measures focus on key indicators of (1) safety, (2)  pavement and bridge condition, and (3) performance of the surface  transportation system (reliability, congestion, freight movement, and air  quality). DOT Has Taken Steps to Guide the Transition to TPM but Does Not Have a Comprehensive Implementation Plan

To guide the transition to national transportation performance  management, FHWA has engaged in extensive outreach with states and  MPOs throughout the initial, rulemaking stage of TPM implementation  and continues to develop a range of tools, trainings, and workshops to  help prepare states and MPOs for key activities related to the second  stage—setting and tracking performance targets. However,  the agency has: not clearly defined its overarching goals for the transition, not developed an implementation plan showing how the various  efforts underway relate to each other and when they will be  completed, nor  clearly communicated its approach to states and MPOs. DOT Has Not Developed a Comprehensive Plan to Guide Implementation Efforts

The new performance-based approach to transportation is a  transformational shift, impacting billions of dollars in federal transportation  funds, including almost $40 billion in FHWA grant funding to states and  holding states and grantees accountable for results, many for the first  time. For example, the agency has not identified  strategic implementation goals describing what the transformation is  intended to accomplish and how the various efforts the agency has  underway will help accomplish those goals. However, FHWA has not identified specific processes or  essential activities that will be used to achieve these results. An implementation plan could  also help the agency make the best use of the performance information  states will begin reporting to improve transportation decision-making,  communicate a national performance story, and assess the impacts of  federal funding. With the issuance of the interrelated final  rules and of states’ beginning the target-setting process, there is an  opportunity for FHWA at this critical junction to articulate an overarching  approach to TPM, including specific steps the agency plans to take to  operationalize the transformation, time frames for key activities and  efforts, and specific actions the agency will take to help states and other  grantees address anticipated challenges. Publicly communicate this plan and approach to build a shared  understanding of the goals and purpose of the transformation with its  grantees. DOT also provided technical comments, which we  incorporated as appropriate. We are sending copies of this report to the Secretary of Transportation  and the Administrator of the Federal Highway Administration. These rules  were created in response to the Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act (MAP-21), which  required the Secretary of Transportation to establish measures states could use to assess their  performance in the 12 areas listed in this table. Part of the System  Performance final rule pertaining to the greenhouse gas measure was delayed indefinitely.
Why GAO Did This Study

Since 2008, GAO has highlighted the need to demonstrate the outcomes of the billions of dollars the Department of Transportation (DOT) provides to states and other grantees for surface transportation programs. MAP-21 included provisions for DOT and its grantees to move toward a performance-based approach, transforming federal surface transportation programs by holding states and other grantees accountable for results, in many cases for the first time.
GAO was asked to review DOT's implementation of TPM. This report focuses on FHWA, which administers the largest grant program of the three DOT agencies involved, and (1) examines the progress made in developing rules to establish a national performance-based approach and (2) evaluates how FHWA is guiding the transition to TPM, among other objectives. GAO reviewed proposed and final rules and information on rulemaking activities and interviewed FHWA officials, national transportation organizations, and a non-generalizable sample of 10 state departments of transportation, among others. States were selected based on factors such as geographic distribution, population, and urban and rural characteristics.

What GAO Found

The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) recently issued the last of six interrelated rules to implement a new performance-based approach to federal surface transportation grant programs. Three of the six rules establish 17 total performance measures in the areas of safety, pavement and bridge conditions, and performance of the surface transportation system (congestion, freight movement, reliability, and air quality). Rulemaking was the first of three stages to implement the transportation performance management (TPM) approach, which was required by the Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act (MAP-21) in 2012 (see fig.). The agency issued the first of the six rules in March 2016. In January 2017, the last two final rules were issued and became effective in May 2017, with part of one rule related to greenhouse gas emissions delayed indefinitely.
FHWA is developing tools and training to help implement TPM but has not yet developed a comprehensive plan to guide implementation. The agency has begun to help states and regional metropolitan planning organizations (MPO) prepare to set targets and begin tracking performance as part of the second implementation stage. However, the agency has not clearly articulated strategic goals for the TPM transition, developed an implementation plan showing how the various efforts under way relate to each other and when they will be completed, or clearly communicated the approach to states and MPOs. For example, the agency has not identified strategic goals describing what each stage of the transformation is intended to accomplish and how the various efforts under way will help accomplish those goals. While FHWA has stated in its rulemaking that it wants to “communicate a national performance story,” it has not identified specific processes or activities that will be essential to achieving these results. Developing, communicating, and reinforcing the goals of a transformation, as well as specific activities and timelines for achieving those goals, are among the key practices that GAO has identified for major organizational transformations. An implementation plan could help the agency better articulate the goals of the transformation, make the best use of the performance information states will begin reporting, and help assess the effects of federal funding to improve investment decision-making.

What GAO Recommends

FHWA should develop a TPM implementation plan that includes goals and specific actions and timelines, and publicly communicate that plan. DOT concurred with the recommendation. The agency also provided technical comments, which were incorporated as appropriate.