**2. Moving ahead for Progress in the 21st century act (MAP-21)**

The Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act (MAP-21), signed into law In the United States in July of 2012 [2]. It requires each state Department of Transportation (DOT) to have a risk-based asset management plan in place by 2015 to preserve the condition of their assets and improve the performance of the National Highway System. MAP-21 amended the 23 U.S. Code § 119 - National Highway Performance Program to require State Departments of Transportation (DOTs) to develop risk-based Transportation Asset Management Plans (TAMPs).

#### **3. Transportation asset Management plans**

The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) produced several reports between 2012 and 2013 to detail the concepts and vision for risk-based transportation asset management plans [3–8]. FHWA adopted in 2017 a final TAMP rule that elaborates on the MAP-21 requirements. Both the statute and the FHWA rule identify the TAMP as a central part of the larger Federal performance management process [9]. The TAMP is one of a series of plans State DOTs are required to develop to achieve the Nation's transportation goals. State DOTs are tasked with the development of plans for highway safety, congestion and freight [9]. These plans will continue to influence and inform the larger transportation planning process and its products, Long-Range Statewide Transportation Plan (LRSTP), and Short-Term State Transportation Improvement Program (STIP). Looking at the current transportation funding environment, many transportation agencies lack the financial and human resources to achieve their targets. The agencies must make trade-offs, lower targets, and perhaps drop some important objectives. Trade-off decisions can become clearer when objectives and targets are viewed through the lens of which options reduce the top-priority risks, such as reduced risk to safety, asset performance, or future costs.

The objective of a risk based TAMP is not to avoid all risks. Rather, it is to acknowledge risks, assess and prioritize them, and allocate resources and actions based on the agency's risk tolerance and how the risks could affect the asset management objectives. Risk-based TAMPs acknowledge, identify, assess, and prioritize risks that affect performance. They should identify high-risk assets, such as structures prone to seismic waves, scour damage, frequent flooding and increasing storm frequency and severity [10]. Risk-based TAMPs help agencies make difficult

*Environmentally Influenced Risk and Sustainable Management of State Controlled... DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.98232*

trade-offs of scarce resources to address top-priority risks. By identifying risks, agencies can be more informed about managing their performance.

The FHWA finalized guidance documents for both Transportation Asset Management Plan Development Processes Certification and Recertification Guidance, and Transportation Asset Management Plan Consistency Determination Interim Guidance [11]. These documents were developed to provide implementation guidance on provisions of the MAP-21 and the Asset Management Final Rule, which requires a State department of transportation to develop and implement a risk-based asset management plan [11]. FHWA must certify that TAMP development processes established by a State DOT meet applicable requirements, and make an annual consistency determination, evaluating whether a State DOT has developed and implemented a State-approved TAMP that meets all applicable requirements [11].

#### **4. TAMP goals and targets**

TAMP managers and leads in transportation agencies are strong advocates who organize meetings, set schedules, and clearly articulate the group's objective. Their task focuses on identifying, analyzing, prioritizing, and describing how to manage risks to the agency's asset management objectives. It is always advantageous if the TAMP lead has no vested interest in the outcome of the exercise and can engage the entire group to think through the risk management process for all areas relating to the TAMP during the exercise. The type of data and information the group should compile include, but is not limited to: (a) asset management goals and targets; (b) the process for developing the goals and targets; (c) level of achievement of these goals and targets in the past; (d) level of matching with life-cycle planning; (e) checking if the goals and targets take into consideration the long-term effects and the desired State of Good Repair (SOGR); and (f) level of comfort of the staff about meeting these goals and targets [12].

#### **5. Financial forecasting and planning**

Transportation agencies perform financial forecasting to plan for future management of their infrastructure assets [13–15]. They examine: (a) types of revenues and bonds; (b) whether revenues are rising or falling; (c) duration and expiation of revenue sources; (d) new initiatives of expansion, safety or other agency high priorities that require funding and if they been considered in future projections; (e) fund availability for investing in assets; (f) level of confidence in the forecast; (g) past trend lines of asset conditions and the accompanying expenditures; and (h) whether the conditions trended positively or negatively, and how were those trends affected by programming decisions [16–19].

In addition, transportation agencies should gather information about major influences that will affect their TAMP and to examine if these agencies expect changes in population, traffic, contractor availability, climate, sea levels, or even revenues and appropriations, that could affect the TAMP. Moreover, the agencies consider the number of structurally deficient structures, aging assets, or deteriorated assets as these will significantly impact the financial planning. The financial planning's should incorporate sound key assumptions that are utilized in managing and forecasting bridges and pavements, as well as other asset investment needs [11–13]. Assumptions related to inflation rates, asset deterioration rates and

material performance are included, and the level of accuracy or confidence in the forecasting models should be documented [11–13].

Studies or forecasts for environmental risks that could affect asset performance or agency costs and the likelihood and anticipated severity of seismic activity or extreme weather events should be examined. In accordance with the FHWA's Special Federal-Aid Funding—Implementation of 23 CFR Part 667: Periodic Evaluation of Facilities Repeatedly Requiring Repair and Reconstruction Due to Emergency Events [20], agencies should examine if their inventories include assets from past events that need to be addressed because of environmental conditions such as excessive floods that have created ponding and expedited asset deterioration or fires that have destabilized slopes.

Transportation agencies implement methodologies to describe the process that is used to incorporate the results of the FHWA's 23 CFR Part 667 evaluation into risk management. Each agency should develop and implement an emergency event risk register and prioritize the risks and create risk scores. The development of a risk register assists with the risk management process. The likelihood of the development of environmentally impacted events should be taken into account when developing a risk register. The register could include should cover varying levels of risks ranging from very low to very high ones. Risk scores are essential for making solid decisions for the programming needed to better manage and maintain the agencies' assets.

The TRB NCHRP Synthesis Report on 556 [21]. The objective of this synthesis report was to document practices by state DOTs to identify locations where highway assets have been repeatedly damaged and to identify considerations for mitigating the risk of recurring damage in those areas. The synthesis report focuses on identifying decisions and practices that support use of the results to improve achievement of asset management or performance management objectives [21].

#### **6. Measuring success and continuous improvement**

FHWA produced a report for incorporating risk management into transportation asset management in 2017 that depicts a risk management process [9]. It exhibits an iterative monitoring and review process where transportation agencies monitor the risks and update the risk management documentation once these risks are identified, analyzed, and a mitigation plan is developed. The process is generally consistent with ISO Standard 31000, as well as FHWA's requirements for state DOTs to assess risks to the National Highway System (NHS) assets in developing a TAMP.

Successful integration of risk into asset management plans and processes revolves around several key elements and relying on a high-level (top-down) support because risk management works best when it supports executive decision making and developing a robust analysis that demonstrates the long-term consequences of investment scenarios. In addition, successful risk-based, asset management processes should address resiliency through an accurate prediction and mitigating of external environmental risks including storm events, seismic events, flooding, and other natural events and environmental impacts [20]. Few agencies started their risk efforts with sufficient talent and experience while others started their efforts by acquiring the human resources and receiving needed training. Transportation agencies should develop a plan for measuring their level of compliance and the resulting level of success meeting their goals and targets. Continuous improvement of risk management skills and processes is gaining more attention day after day [11, 12].

*Environmentally Influenced Risk and Sustainable Management of State Controlled... DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.98232*
