U.S. Department of Transportation
Federal Highway Administration
1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE
Washington, DC 20590
202-366-4000
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The purpose of a self assessment tool is to provide a formal process for Federal, State and local transportation safety professionals to collaboratively assess the HSIP and identify opportunities for improvement. The self assessment process:
There are currently two FHWA HSIP-related self assessment tools available to transportation safety professionals. These tools include the HSIP Quality Assessment and the Program Delivery Improvement Tool.
The HSIP Quality Assessment includes ten primary questions related to the HSIP. In the past, the HSIP Quality Assessment was conducted annually by FHWA through input from Division Safety Engineers. The questions are related to SHSP stakeholders; SHSP priorities driving the HSIP; Highway Safety Plan and Commercial Vehicle Safety Plan expenditures; crash data; HSIP effectiveness; HSIP evaluation process; and HSIP obligation rates. In some instances, additional “sub-questions” are included to clarify the status of the various HSIP elements. The 2010 HSIP Quality Assessment questions are included in the Appendix for reference.
The responses to each primary question are structured such that, in general, “E” is the “best” scenario or ideal status for each element. However, this philosophy may not be applicable to each State. For example, question six would indicate that it is best to use fatality and serious injury crash data to identify HSIP projects. This may or may not be appropriate for the small or rural States that fortunately do not experience a large number of motor-vehicle related fatalities.
The HSIP Quality Assessment was first conducted in 2007 to establish a benchmark to measure progress in implementing the HSIP as part of the FHWA Strategic Implementation Plan. For four years, the HSIP Quality Assessment was used to assist FHWA in measuring the effectiveness of the HSIP at the national level and is still used to shape the future direction of the program, including the development of products to support HSIP implementation efforts. While the HSIP Quality Assessment is no longer being conducted nationally, it is still a valuable tool for individual agencies to assess their HSIP.
At the State level, the HSIP Quality Assessment can be used in a similar manner. Agencies may conduct the HSIP Quality Assessment to determine the current status of the various elements of the HSIP as compared to what is desirable. Based on this “high level” assessment, it may be evident that additional investigation into a particular area or element of the program is warranted. In addition, the results of the HSIP Quality Assessment can be used as a benchmark and to track progress towards improving the effectiveness of the HSIP over the long term.
The purpose of the Program Delivery Improvement Tool (PDIT) is to assist agencies seeking ways to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the delivery of the Federal-aid highway program in the face of increasing challenges. The PDIT provides a consistent approach for identifying opportunities to improve program delivery and successful practices that can be shared among the transportation community.
The PDIT has been developed by FHWA, State practitioners, and program specialists. PDIT includes a listing of processes, procedures, and actions that, if implemented, should result in high performing programs. PDIT will assist agencies in identifying strategies and initiatives to improve program delivery; facilitates discussion between Federal and State partners; and may identify successful practices that can be shared at the national level.
The tool provides a common inventory of activities within the ten major program areas of the project development process, one of which is safety. The PDIT safety activity statements are included in the Appendix. [The PDIT paperless tool is available upon request.] These activity statements can be used to guide an assessment of the HSIP. Each activity statement can be reviewed to determine the current status of each activity, identify strengths and weaknesses, successful practices, and potential risks. Specific details are outlined below.
It is envisioned that the utilization of PDIT will be a joint effort between the SDOT, FHWA Division office, and other safety partners as appropriate. While the users of PDIT can determine how to best use the tool to meet their needs, the intended process is outlined below.
Step 1: The partners in each State should review each activity statement and determine if the process, procedure, or action is being implemented, in progress, no action taken to date, or not applicable to their program.
Step 2: The object of the tool is not to have full implementation of each activity, but to evaluate the importance of the activity in your State (as determined in Step 1). Each activity deemed important to your State could be assigned a high, medium, or low priority.
Step 3: For future reference, it may be beneficial to record any key points discussed regarding the current status and future of each activity.
Step 4: Identify and record current strengths and weaknesses regarding implementation of this activity. [Note: This information can be helpful as a reference when conducting a risk assessment.]
Step 5: Strengths can be noted as successful practices that can be shared at the national level, while weaknesses may be identified as a potential risk to be considered during risk assessment.
The PDIT results could be considered in combination with other information such as program reviews, risk assessment, or performance measures to develop strategic plans, stewardship agreements, or allocate resources.
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