scholarly journals Pitfalls and Potholes: Examining the Impacts of Covid-19 on the North Carolina Department of Transportation

2020 ◽  
Vol 26 (1) ◽  
pp. 13-18
Author(s):  
Christopher McGee ◽  
Martin Mayer
Keyword(s):  
North Carolina ◽  
Local Level ◽  
The State ◽  
Public Works ◽  
Policy Implications ◽  
Fiscal Year ◽  
Department Of Transportation ◽  
North Carolina Department ◽  
The North ◽  
State And Local

Covid-19 has had devasting impacts across society and government worldwide in a span of a few short months. The disruption has been nothing short of catastrophic to the public and private sectors across the country and the responses have run the gamut. This commentary discusses the unique impacts of the global pandemic on public works and transportation at the state and local level through the lens of intergovernmental agreements and public private partnerships in the state of North Carolina. The North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT) has realized budget deficits the previous two fiscal years with a significant projected deficit for the current fiscal year; however, NCDOT was not blind to a future of instability. Policy implications are clear: changes must be considered that reduce the likelihood of significant budget shortfalls and reasonable measures taken to provide practicable levels of service throughout public works.

Analysis of North Carolina Guidelines and Criteria for Establishing School Walk Zones

2003 ◽  
Vol 1828 (1) ◽  
pp. 47-55
Author(s):  
Jeff Tsai ◽  
Tori Rhoulac ◽  
Andrew J. Henry ◽  
William L. Hall
Keyword(s):  
North Carolina ◽  
Traffic Congestion ◽  
Public Works ◽  
School Officials ◽  
Crash Data ◽  
North Carolina Department ◽  
The North ◽  
Pedestrian Crashes ◽  
Pedestrian Transportation ◽  
Public Costs

The North Carolina Department of Transportation’s Division of Bicycle and Pedestrian Transportation sponsored research to examine the potential for developing school walk zone guidelines for the state. State law establishes a zone within a 1.5-mi radius of a school in which school bus transportation is not provided, “unless road or other conditions shall make it inadvisable to do so.” Quantifiable guidelines are needed to clearly define the exception conditions to this law and to guide school officials in establishing and evaluating walking and biking corridors within this zone. To examine the opportunities, issues, and risks associated with school walk zones, the project team conducted a survey of North Carolina school transportation directors, focus groups with parents, students, and school and local government officials, and a spatial analysis of school-related pedestrian crashes. Results and conclusions led to several recommendations. They include clarifying and defining key terms, such as “walk zone” and “no-transport zone”; developing quantifiable guidelines to help school officials identify preferred walking corridors; and establishing local partnerships with representatives from public works, schools, departments of transportation, police, and community organizations. Also, pedestrian and bicycle safety and access issues should be included in the local school siting process, and pedestrian and bicycle training should be increased in elementary and middle schools. Other recommendations are to change the crash data collection process to better identify school commute crashes and to conduct further research on school walk zones and no-transport zones, to better understand their impact on modal split, school campus traffic congestion, school commute safety, and public costs.

North Carolina’s Experience in Development of Pavement Performance Prediction and Modeling

1997 ◽  
Vol 1592 (1) ◽  
pp. 80-88 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paul K. Chan ◽  
Mary C. Oppermann ◽  
Shie-Shin Wu
Keyword(s):  
North Carolina ◽  
Performance Prediction ◽  
Pavement Performance ◽  
Department Of Transportation ◽  
Pavement Condition ◽  
North Carolina Department ◽  
Condition Rating ◽  
The North ◽  
Initial Idea ◽  
Pavement Performance Prediction

Development efforts in pavement performance prediction by the North Carolina Department of Transportation are described. Research into other states’ approaches was also conducted. The initial idea was to use family curves. However, because of a lack of data in key areas, it was decided to use an individual section’s pavement condition rating (PCR) data for performance prediction. The process of selection and justification of a functional form for curve fitting is detailed. An adaptive scheme to accommodate a realistic PCR history containing cycles of decline and improvement in the ratings is detailed. Abnormal sections that did not fit the models developed for individual sections were identified. These were either ( a) section with too few datum points for modeling or ( b) sections in which the last few ratings leveled out, resulting in a prediction of an unreasonably long life span. The development of family curves and their application in the processing of abnormal sections are also discussed. The developed models were then evaluated by comparing the predicted rating with the actual rating.

Effects of Flexible Notice-to-Proceed Provisions on the Performance of Transportation Infrastructure Projects

2022 ◽  
pp. 036119812110657
Author(s):  
Meng Yaw ◽  
Hyungseok David Jeong ◽  
Kunhee Choi
Keyword(s):  
North Carolina ◽  
Time Window ◽  
Project Performance ◽  
Transportation Infrastructure ◽  
Department Of Transportation ◽  
North Carolina Department ◽  
The North ◽  
Quantitative Studies ◽  
Infrastructure Project ◽  
Transportation Agencies

When alternative contracting techniques are considered, one innovative approach for assuring the performance of a transportation infrastructure project is offering contractors flexibility about when they start the project. Although such flexible notice-to-proceed (NTP) provisions are becoming more common, quantitative studies examining their impact on project performance are nonexistent. This study investigates the likely effects of flexible NTP provisions on competitive bidding, bid prices, and contract time. A dataset gathered from the North Carolina Department of Transportation, United States, was carefully stratified by type and size of project to allow for unbiased analysis. The results from the hypothesis testing revealed that projects with flexible NTP provisions were more competitive in relation to bidding. The results also indicated a positive correlation between the length of flexible time window and award growth. This study is the first of its kind and will help state transportation agencies make better-informed decisions by providing a point of reference when adopting NTP provisions for alternative contracting projects.

Evaluation of Effectiveness of School Zone Flashers in North Carolina

2008 ◽  
Vol 2074 (1) ◽  
pp. 21-28 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carrie L. Simpson
Keyword(s):  
North Carolina ◽  
Compliance Rate ◽  
Speed Limit ◽  
Department Of Transportation ◽  
North Carolina Department ◽  
The North ◽  
School Time ◽  
Measures Of Effectiveness ◽  
Sample Set ◽  
School Zones

The North Carolina Department of Transportation has been placing flashing beacons on school zone signs where warranted in an attempt to provide more awareness of the school zone speed limit and at the request of schools. The purpose of this project was to evaluate the effectiveness of placing flashing beacons on school zone speed limit signs and to determine if speed compliance was improved in school zones. A sample set of 15 treatment school zones with flashers and 15 comparison school zones without flashers was selected for analysis throughout North Carolina. Sites were selected to include a mix of geometric features and geographic elements. Flashers had been installed at each of the sites for at least 3 years. The school-time speed limits at all sites ranged between 25 and 45 mph. Speed data were collected at all sites during the reduced-speed school zone hours of operation (school time) and outside the reduced-speed school zone hours of operation (nonschool time). Several different measures of effectiveness were calculated to compare the characteristics of the speed distributions, including the percentage of vehicles exceeding the speed limit, average speed, 85th percentile speed, and pace speed. Results showed no practical difference in vehicle speeds between the flasher and nonflasher locations during school-time hours. Although vehicle speeds did decrease from nonschool-time hours to school-time hours at both flasher and nonflasher sites, the speed reductions were not enough to bring drivers into compliance with the school-time speed limit. Both locations with and without flashers had an extremely low compliance rate with the school-time speed limit.

Context-Sensitive Solutions

2005 ◽  
Vol 1904 (1) ◽  
pp. 66-74
Author(s):  
Teresa Townsend ◽  
Leigh Lane ◽  
James Martin
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
North Carolina ◽  
Course Development ◽  
Critical Element ◽  
Department Of Transportation ◽  
Course Content ◽  
Context Sensitive ◽  
North Carolina Department ◽  
The North ◽  
Insight Into

Context-sensitive solutions (CSS) is a comprehensive approach to transportation decision making that embraces the philosophy that transportation programs and projects should address the transportation need, be an asset to the community, and be compatible with the human and natural environment. The CSS movement is rooted in years of controversy stemming from the dissatisfaction of concerned citizens, environmentalists, historic preservationists, multimodal advocates, and others in the transportation decision-making process. In 2002 the North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT) signed an Environmental Stewardship Policy that proclaimed, “Our goal is to provide a safe and well-maintained transportation system that meets the needs of customers and supports the development of sustainable, vibrant communities.” NCDOT viewed the CSS approach as a critical element in institutionalizing its stewardship policy and developed the CSS course to encompass the goals of the stewardship policy. To date, more than 1,000 transportation professionals in North Carolina have been trained in CSS. This paper provides insight into the course development process, including course content, participants’ experiences, and recommendations for agencies interested in developing an effective CSS course.

scholarly journals Qualitative perspectives of the North Carolina healthy food small retailer program among customers in participating stores located in food deserts

2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Lindsey Haynes-Maslow ◽  
Stephanie B. Jilcott Pitts ◽  
Kathryn A. Boys ◽  
Jared T. McGuirt ◽  
Sheila Fleischhacker ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
North Carolina ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Rural Areas ◽  
Food Access ◽  
Qualitative Interviews ◽  
Food Deserts ◽  
State Legislature ◽  
Healthy Food ◽  
The State ◽  
The North

Abstract Background The North Carolina Healthy Food Small Retailer Program (NC HFSRP) was established through a policy passed by the state legislature to provide funding for small food retailers located in food deserts with the goal of increasing access to and sales of healthy foods and beverages among local residents. The purpose of this study was to qualitatively examine perceptions of the NC HFSRP among store customers. Methods Qualitative interviews were conducted with 29 customers from five NC HFSRP stores in food deserts across eastern NC. Interview questions were related to shoppers’ food and beverage purchases at NC HFSRP stores, whether they had noticed any in-store efforts to promote healthier foods and beverages, their suggestions for promoting healthier foods and beverages, their familiarity with and support of the NC HFSRP, and how their shopping and consumption habits had changed since implementation of the NC HFSRP. A codebook was developed based on deductive (from the interview guide questions) and inductive (emerged from the data) codes and operational definitions. Verbatim transcripts were double-coded and a thematic analysis was conducted based on code frequency, and depth of participant responses for each code. Results Although very few participants were aware of the NC HFSRP legislation, they recognized changes within the store. Customers noted that the provision of healthier foods and beverages in the store had encouraged them to make healthier purchase and consumption choices. When a description of the NC HFSRP was provided to them, all participants were supportive of the state-funded program. Participants discussed program benefits including improving food access in low-income and/or rural areas and making healthy choices easier for youth and for those most at risk of diet-related chronic diseases. Conclusions Findings can inform future healthy corner store initiatives in terms of framing a rationale for funding or policies by focusing on increased food access among vulnerable populations.

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