Organizing for TSMO
Case Study 7: Integrating the Capability Maturity Model into Agency Processes

Chapter 2 - Best Practice Examples

California Department of Transportation (Caltrans), North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT), Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT), and Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) participated in the second Strategic Highway Research Program (SHRP2) capability maturity model (CMM) workshops and used the results to guide them in implementing transportation systems management and operations (TSMO) in their agencies. The following section highlights how each agency has improved TSMO in their organization.

California Department of Transportation (Caltrans)

Caltrans supports the diverse transportation needs of the entire State of California through 12 regional districts. Caltrans manages over 50,000 miles of highway and freeway lanes, provides rail services, and permits more than 400 public-use airports and special-use hospital heliports for the State.

Caltrans used the CMM assessment as a tool to benchmark their TSMO capabilities while identifying areas of strength and opportunities for improvement. In 2013, Caltrans developed a strategic implementation plan based on an initial statewide CMM assessment with the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA). The strategic implementation plan included hosting TSMO regional operations forums (ROF) with CMM assessments for each district in the State. The results from the ROFs/CMM assessments were evaluated during a re-assessment in 2017.

CMM assessments completed by Caltrans were unique in that CMM was directly applied to specific corridors in the State. For decades, the agency has had well-established traffic operations, so some management and operations strategies, such as Integrated Corridor Management (ICM), were already deployed and implemented. In 2012, Caltrans began developing their Connected Corridors Program to help achieve a new multi-modal, multi-agency ICM vision. The purpose of this program is to identify opportunities to improve the operational performance of the corridor network with travel demand strategies-reviewing how freeways, arterials, transit, and parking systems work together. The agency had been enhancing ICM concepts before TSMO practices emerged; however, when FHWA provided TSMO guidance, Caltrans realized there was an opportunity to provide a solid TSMO foundation for stakeholders to collaborate and identify enhanced ICM activities. Caltrans developed their TSMO plan with guidance from FHWA and began evaluating how they could merge their existing ICM activities with TSMO concepts. Caltrans held ROFs focused on specific corridors and, through multiagency collaboration, began developing a Connected Corridors Plan. In the forums, Caltrans' districts and other local partners joined together for three days of TSMO education and to complete corridor-specific CMM assessments. Following the assessments, action items and implementation plans were developed to strengthen the TSMO capabilities for each corridor. The agency felt the CMM assessment would be a critical tool in advancing their ICM program because TSMO concepts and activities provide the necessary processes and funding mechanisms to enhance mobility strategies.

Each district developed TSMO strategic plans for their regions. After these plans were completed, Caltrans followed up with each district to determine whether action items identified from corridor-specific CMMs had been completed or incorporated into the region's TSMO strategic plans. Districts provided feedback identifying challenges and successes they experienced during TSMO implementation.

Caltrans used CMM assessment concepts and applied them to strategy-specific assessments, leveraging projects and funding as a means to make the business case for TSMO in the State. Caltrans felt the ICM program would have greater success using TSMO strategies. Caltrans plans to use CMM dimensions and maturity assessments to show progress to statewide senior leadership.

A key component to Caltrans' success is the support district leadership provided in their respective districts. Their unique approach to integrating CMM into existing strategies alongside district-level support enables Caltrans to realize the importance of TSMO and to increase the maturity of State-supported mobility strategies.

North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT)

NCDOT has several divisions of transportation including highways, ferry systems, aviation, public transit, and more. They are responsible for maintaining over 80,000 miles of highways and more than 13,500 bridges. NCDOT divides highway responsibilities across the State into 14 regions-referred to as highway divisions-that receive support from various sections and units within the Division of Highways.³

After completing the CMM assessment, NCDOT identified several areas where they could improve TSMO in their organization. The agency took a unique approach to integrating CMM dimensions in their existing processes, looking first at the strategic and tactical elements of TSMO program planning. During development of the strategic plan, the agency held several breakout sessions to discuss the following seven key functional areas:

• Freeway Management (Traffic Incident Management/Tactical).
• Freeway Management (Operations/Strategic).
• Arterial Management.
• Traveler Information.
• Asset Management.
• Data Performance.
• Return on Investment.

When determining functional areas to highlight in their strategic plan, consolidating transportation data into one output enabled the agency to see the larger picture. NCDOT collaborated with relevant stakeholders on each respective functional area. In breakout sessions, NCDOT did not focus explicitly on CMM dimensions, but rather collected input from local partners to determine how each region was doing in these functional areas using questions similar to those asked during CMM evaluations. From feedback received in the collaborative sessions, NCDOT was able to infer how each functional area was maturing in CMM dimensions. Figure 2 shows the capability maturity for each of NCDOT's functional areas.

The next step in the agency's TSMO program development was to focus on programmatic TSMO elements, such as staffing and performance measures, to enhance and support functional areas. In the future, NCDOT plans to complete additional CMM assessments for each of their functional areas. This approach to using the CMM assessment will enable agencies to direct their resources to one task at a time, focusing on specific mobility and safety solutions desired by each individual region.

The following is a sample of best practices that have assisted NCDOT in managing their TSMO program:

• Using a tactical approach to TSMO programming.
• Increasing collaboration with the regional MPO, resulting in the highest amount of coagency communications in decades.
• Organizational restructuring to place operations in the same group as planning and design.
• Including all disciplines in planning meetings.
• Discussing specific challenges and tactical solutions with other regions.
• Using multi-state collaboration on managed motorways.
• Seizing all opportunities to advocate for TSMO and mobility strategies.
• Consolidating available traffic data into one output to assist with identification of applicable TSMO strategies.

For these and other activities, NCDOT expressed that frequent and efficient communication across disciplines was critical to success and growth.

Each dimension of the CMM assessment identifies specific needs for a TSMO program as a whole. Performing a CMM assessment for specific TSMO strategies is a unique approach to utilizing CMM evaluation tools and enables the agency to develop a mature TSMO program one piece at a time. Bringing specific TSMO services and strategies to maturity is one way to maturing the entire program.

Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT)

TxDOT is a largely decentralized organization. The headquarters, located in Austin, TX, is home to several divisions of TxDOT, including Traffic Safety, Bridge, Design, and more. TxDOT is divided into 25 districts that oversee construction and maintenance of 197,000 miles in the State's highway system.

Because of TxDOT's decentralized structure and the varying mobility needs across the State, their TSMO planning initiative is currently split into two efforts: a statewide strategic plan and district-level program plans. To begin development of the statewide strategic plan, TxDOT performed several CMM workshops around the State in 2016 in which metropolitan, urban, and rural TxDOT districts as well as other local partners were invited to participate. These invitations facilitated a powerful opportunity for establishing relationships. Communicating that all agencies were welcome to join prompted attendance from an assortment of partners such as towing companies, planning organizations, and first responders who provided a wide range of feedback. Once data from initial workshops had been compiled, a second round of workshops were held to confirm assumptions and ensure all perspectives were properly documented and considered. The CMM assessment baseline identified in these workshops, as shown in Figure 3, set the framework of the statewide strategic plan.

The statewide strategic plan discusses CMM dimensions and TxDOT's current level of maturity in each dimension. It also identifies high-level activities that the State, regional, and local entities should perform to improve TSMO capabilities in each dimension.

The second element of TxDOT's TSMO planning initiative is development of district-level program plans for each of TxDOT's 25 districts. The needs of each TxDOT district vary based on geography, population, location of interstate corridors, weather, and more. Shortly after development of the statewide strategic plan, TxDOT began working with its Austin District to initiate the first district-level program plan. Similar to the statewide effort, the Austin District performed a CMM assessment to identify opportunities for growth in TSMO activities, solely for their district. Again, TxDOT used CMM dimensions to set the framework for the Austin District's program plan. District-level plans identify specific needs and action items for each district. For example, in the organization and workforce dimension of the Austin district plan, recommendations were made for specific intelligent transportation systems maintenance needs. This recommendation may or may not be carried over to other district program plans based on the existing needs of each district. As all other TxDOT districts begin developing their own program plans, each district will first complete a CMM assessment to set the baseline for their region.

TxDOT TSMO plans are considered living documents to be continually updated as TSMO maturity changes in the State. The agency plans to continue using the CMM assessment to track progress and identify additional opportunities for improvement.

TxDOT's approach to CMM integration is using the assessment as a framework for TSMO planning. They noted support from executive level staff and educational outreach as critical elements to facilitating the TSMO cultural shift in the organization. A key component of TxDOT's TSMO planning initiative is building upon and optimizing existing activities to include TSMO. TxDOT's TSMO champions work diligently to identify opportunities where findings from the CMM assessment can be further integrated into agency policy and processes.

Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT)

WSDOT supports the changing transportation needs of the State of Washington through six regional districts. WSDOT operates and maintains more than 18,600 miles of highway lanes, nearly 3,300 bridge structures, and runs a ferry system that moves 24.2 million passengers and 10 million vehicles per year.

WSDOT completed their first CMM assessment in 2014 and identified the need to improve workforce development. Their second CMM assessment was held in 2017. During the second assessment, WSDOT was tougher in scoring their maturity levels than on their original evaluation because they had a better understanding of general TSMO strategies and processes. WSDOT felt that they had much more room to improve than originally identified. A key action item developed from the 2017 assessment was to work on improving TSMO business processes in agency divisions and disciplines. From this, they identified the need to develop a TSMO strategic plan. In the strategic plan, they define critical processes such as planning, budgeting, and funding mechanisms to strengthen their TSMO capabilities. The agency used these processes to tie TSMO strategies to projects.

WSDOT also used the CMM assessment to identify action items for improving the TSMO culture in the agency. They began implementing several tasks such as providing TSMO education to multi-discipline employees and advocating for TSMO through an educational website that provides the "when-where-why" to use TSMO and how to deploy TSMO strategies.

WSDOT attributes the growth of their TSMO program to action items developed from the CMM assessment, such as engaging staff, establishing TSMO planning processes, and tying TSMO strategies to projects. During development, they found that by improving their TSMO culture, they made headway on business processes development; as they developed TSMO business processes, the TSMO culture improved. WSDOT noted that tasks such as identifying a TSMO champion who advocates for TSMO in the agency was critical to initiating and utilizing the CMM assessment. They also noted that taking advantage of programs like SHRP2 is a great way to move TSMO forward because the program provides resources that an agency may not already have. As SHRP2 is nearing an end, WSDOT is now working on processes to sustainably support TSMO in the future.

WSDOT is one of many agencies to complete more than one CMM assessment for their TSMO program. These assessments enabled the agency to develop action items for further improvements, with the second round of action items building on the first. Integrating CMM assessments into an agency's TSMO program development helps identify needs and supports continued growth with each assessment becoming a new baseline for the agency's TSMO maturity.