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2024 N A T I O N A L C O O P E R A T I V E H I G H W A Y R E S E A R C H P R O G R A M NCHRP RESEARCH REPORT 1099 Business Intelligence Techniques for Transportation Agency Decision-Making Vaishali Shah Benjamin Pecheux AEM Corporation Herndon, VA Pat Noyes Pat Noyes & Associates Boulder, CO Emanuel Robinson Westat Rockville, MD Subscriber Categories Administration and Management ⢠Data and Information Technology Research sponsored by the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Of cials in cooperation with the Federal Highway Administration
NATIONAL COOPERATIVE HIGHWAY RESEARCH PROGRAM Systematic, well-designed, and implementable research is the most effective way to solve many problems facing state departments of transportation (DOTs) administrators and engineers. Often, highway problems are of local or regional interest and can best be studied by state DOTs individually or in cooperation with their state universities and others. However, the accelerating growth of highway transporta- tion results in increasingly complex problems of wide interest to high- way authorities. These problems are best studied through a coordinated program of cooperative research. Recognizing this need, the leadership of the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) in 1962 ini- tiated an objective national highway research program using modern scientific techniquesâthe National Cooperative Highway Research Program (NCHRP). NCHRP is supported on a continuing basis by funds from participating member states of AASHTO and receives the full cooperation and support of the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), United States Department of Transportation, under Agree- ment No. 693JJ31950003. The Transportation Research Board (TRB) of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine was requested by AASHTO to administer the research program because of TRBâs recognized objectivity and understanding of modern research practices. TRB is uniquely suited for this purpose for many reasons: TRB maintains an extensive com- mittee structure from which authorities on any highway transportation subject may be drawn; TRB possesses avenues of communications and cooperation with federal, state, and local governmental agencies, univer- sities, and industry; TRBâs relationship to the National Academies is an insurance of objectivity; and TRB maintains a full-time staff of special- ists in highway transportation matters to bring the findings of research directly to those in a position to use them. The program is developed on the basis of research needs iden- tified by chief administrators and other staff of the highway and transportation departments, by committees of AASHTO, and by the FHWA. Topics of the highest merit are selected by the AASHTO Special Committee on Research and Innovation (R&I), and each year R&Iâs recommendations are proposed to the AASHTO Board of Direc- tors and the National Academies. Research projects to address these topics are defined by NCHRP, and qualified research agencies are selected from submitted proposals. Administration and surveillance of research contracts are the responsibilities of the National Academies and TRB. The needs for highway research are many, and NCHRP can make significant contributions to solving highway transportation problems of mutual concern to many responsible groups. The program, however, is intended to complement, rather than to substitute for or duplicate, other highway research programs. Published research reports of the NATIONAL COOPERATIVE HIGHWAY RESEARCH PROGRAM are available from Transportation Research Board Business Office 500 Fifth Street, NW Washington, DC 20001 and can be ordered through the Internet by going to https://www.mytrb.org/MyTRB/Store/default.aspx Printed in the United States of America NCHRP RESEARCH REPORT 1099 Project 03-128 ISSN 2572-3766 (Print) ISSN 2572-3774 (Online) ISBN 978-0-309-70979-8 Library of Congress Control Number 2024937396 © 2024 by the National Academy of Sciences. National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine and the graphical logo are trade- marks of the National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved. COPYRIGHT INFORMATION Authors herein are responsible for the authenticity of their materials and for obtaining written permissions from publishers or persons who own the copyright to any previously published or copyrighted material used herein. Cooperative Research Programs (CRP) grants permission to reproduce material in this publication for classroom and not-for-profit purposes. Permission is given with the understanding that none of the material will be used to imply TRB, AASHTO, APTA, FAA, FHWA, FTA, GHSA, or NHTSA endorsement of a particular product, method, or practice. It is expected that those reproducing the material in this document for educational and not-for-profit uses will give appropriate acknowledgment of the source of any reprinted or reproduced material. For other uses of the material, request permission from CRP. NOTICE The research report was reviewed by the technical panel and accepted for publication according to procedures established and overseen by the Transportation Research Board and approved by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. The opinions and conclusions expressed or implied in this report are those of the researchers who performed the research and are not necessarily those of the Transportation Research Board; the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine; the FHWA; or the program sponsors. The Transportation Research Board does not develop, issue, or publish standards or spec- ifications. The Transportation Research Board manages applied research projects which provide the scientific foundation that may be used by Transportation Research Board sponsors, industry associations, or other organizations as the basis for revised practices, procedures, or specifications. The Transportation Research Board; the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine; and the sponsors of the National Cooperative Highway Research Program do not endorse products or manufacturers. Trade or manufacturersâ names or logos appear herein solely because they are considered essential to the object of the report.
e National Academy of Sciences was established in 1863 by an Act of Congress, signed by President Lincoln, as a private, non- governmental institution to advise the nation on issues related to science and technology. Members are elected by their peers for outstanding contributions to research. Dr. Marcia McNutt is president. e National Academy of Engineering was established in 1964 under the charter of the National Academy of Sciences to bring the practices of engineering to advising the nation. Members are elected by their peers for extraordinary contributions to engineering. Dr. John L. Anderson is president. e National Academy of Medicine (formerly the Institute of Medicine) was established in 1970 under the charter of the National Academy of Sciences to advise the nation on medical and health issues. Members are elected by their peers for distinguished contributions to medicine and health. Dr. Victor J. Dzau is president. e three Academies work together as the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine to provide independent, objective analysis and advice to the nation and conduct other activities to solve complex problems and inform public policy decisions. e National Academies also encourage education and research, recognize outstanding contributions to knowledge, and increase public understanding in matters of science, engineering, and medicine. Learn more about the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine at www.nationalacademies.org. e Transportation Research Board is one of seven major program divisions of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. e mission of the Transportation Research Board is to mobilize expertise, experience, and knowledge to anticipate and solve complex transportation-related challenges. e Boardâs varied activities annually engage about 8,500 engineers, scientists, and other transportation researchers and practitioners from the public and private sectors and academia, all of whom contribute their expertise in the public interest. e program is supported by state transportation departments, federal agencies including the component administrations of the U.S. Department of Transportation, and other organizations and individuals interested in the development of transportation. Learn more about the Transportation Research Board at www.TRB.org.
C O O P E R A T I V E R E S E A R C H P R O G R A M S CRP STAFF FOR NCHRP RESEARCH REPORT 1099 Waseem Dekelbab, Deputy Director, Cooperative Research Programs, and Manager, National Cooperative Highway Research Program Christopher T. McKenney, Senior Program Officer Sheila A. Moore, Program Associate Natalie Barnes, Director of Publications Heather DiAngelis, Associate Director of Publications Janet M. McNaughton, Senior Editor NCHRP PROJECT 03-128 PANEL Field of TrafficâArea of Operations and Control John H. Daly, Alpha Infrastructure Management Group, Flint, MI (Chair) Mandy Chu, California Department of Transportation, Sacramento, CA Soumya S. Dey, Sam Schwartz, Washington, DC Matthew S. Haubrich, Iowa Department of Transportation, Ames, IA Brad Freeze, Nashville Department of Transportation, Goodlettsville, TN Katie McCann, Virginia Department of Transportation, Richmond, VA Phillip W. Stevens, CHA Consulting, Inc., Lithia, FL Daniel Tran, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS Robert M. Winick, Motion Maps, LLC, Rockville, MD John M. Corbin, FHWA Liaison Richard A. Cunard, TRB Liaison
NCHRP Research Report 1099: Business Intelligence Techniques for Transportation Agency Decision-Making presents a state-of-the-art guide cataloging new techniques to extract action- able information from traditional and new data sources to enhance decision-making pro- cesses. The development of this guide was based on identifying emerging business intelligence practices, technologies, and data analytics applications in the private sector that are potentially most applicable to state departments of transportation (DOTs) through focus groups, case studies, and workshops. This report will be of immediate interest to data management and systems engineers at state DOTs. Strategic approaches to the management and operation of transportation systems blend knowledge of agency goals, asset conditions, traffic and safety performance, and finance and budget constraints. This knowledge is based on data, and many agencies are implementing consolidated data governance practices to improve data quality, maximize the value of the data to the agency, and better manage data collection and analysis resources. The private sector also takes a strategic approach to management, one aspect of which is business intelligence that comprises the strategies and technologies used by enterprises for the data analysis of business information. Business intelligence technologies provide historical, current, and predictive views of business operations; common functions include reporting, online analytical processing, analytics, data mining, process mining, complex event process- ing, business performance management, benchmarking, text mining, predictive analytics, and prescriptive analytics. Despite differences in how the private sector and transportation agencies operate (e.g., competition vs. collaboration, level of transparency in decision-making), it may be the case that various business intelligence practices and methods could be effectively incorporated by transportation agencies to improve activities such as trade-off analysis and enterprise resource planning. Of particular interest are techniques that would identify cultural, economic, and other trends and âblack swan eventsâ that will affect the transportation system. Incorporation of these techniques could lead to more-strategic management of the transportation system and its operations to better address overall agency goals and objectives. Under NCHRP Project 03-128, âBusiness Intelligence Techniques for Transportation Agency Decision Making,â AEM Corporation was asked to catalog new techniques to extract actionable information from traditional and new data sources that transportation agencies can employ to enhance their decision-making processes. The research team (1) conducted a critical review of current and emerging business intelligence best practices, technologies, and data analytics applications in the private sector and identified those that are potentially most applicable to transportation agencies in nature, extent, and objectives; (2) identified F O R E W O R D By Christopher T. McKenney Staff Officer Transportation Research Board
common transportation agency decision-making processes and capabilities in domains such as operational management, infrastructure management, investment management, and orga- nizational and corporate management; (3) illustrated potential types of innovative data and information sources applicable to transportation agency and program management deci- sions; and (4) developed a guide cataloging business intelligence techniques and new data and information sources and ways to incorporate these techniques into an agencyâs practices. In addition to the present report, which documents the entire research effort, two deliver- ables are available on the National Academies Press website (nap.nationalacademies.org) by searching for NCHRP Research Report 1099: Business Intelligence Techniques for Transporta- tion Agency Decision-Making and looking under âResourcesâ: ⢠PowerPoint presentation, âBusiness Intelligence Techniques for Transportation Agency Decision Making: Report Briefingâ and ⢠Business Intelligence Techniques for Transportation Agency Decision Making: Implementa- tion Plan and Research Recommendations.
1 Summary 6 Chapter 1 Introduction 6 1.1 Background 8 1.2 Report Organization and Intended Audience 10 Chapter 2 Business Intelligence Tools and Techniques 10 2.1 Evolution of BI Tools 12 2.2 Common BI Techniques: From Traditional Statistics to New Opportunities 29 2.3 Really Understanding Your Data: Looking Beyond a KPI or Number 31 Chapter 3 Data Catalog and Management 31 3.1 Traditional Transportation Enterprise Data 34 3.2 New Transportation Data and New Uses of Traditional Data 46 3.3 Data Management 59 3.4 Proactive Analytics for Data Management 59 3.5 Data Lake and Warehouse Costs 61 3.6 Velocity of Obsolescence 63 3.7 Overcoming Obsolescence and Its Costs 65 Chapter 4 Leadership, Governance, and Change for Successful BI Use 65 4.1 The Role of Leadership in Successful BI Adoption 70 4.2 The Role of Governance in Successful BI Adoption 74 4.3 Change Management for Successful BI 77 Chapter 5 From Paper-Based to Democratized BI: Adoption Maturity 78 5.1 BI Implementation Levels and Characteristics 85 5.2 Agile Development for BI: What Works, What Does Not 89 5.3 Decision-Making Bias and BI Systems 95 Chapter 6 Strategies for Introducing BI 95 6.1 Good Practices for Success for a Bottom-Up BI Adoption 101 6.2 Good Practices for Success for a Top-Down BI Adoption 103 6.3 Practices to Avoid Common Pitfalls in BI Adoption 103 6.4 Case Studies Illustrating Top-Down and Bottom-Up Approaches to BI Adoption 109 Chapter 7 Conclusion 111 Acronyms 113 References and Bibliography C O N T E N T S