Efficiencies within UDOT often generate cost savings for the public and the Department through better utilization of resources and innovative technologies. At the end of each year, UDOT prepares an efficiencies report which summarizes key efficiency initiatives from the year. The annual report fulfills a requirement for UDOT to describe the efficiencies and significant accomplishments achieved during the past year to the State Legislature. UDOT Senior Leaders use the report in presentations during legislative committee meetings.
Following are the key efficiency initiatives summarized in the FY 2014 report:
- SUCCESS Framework Initiative
- Statewide Access Management Program
- Preconstruction Project Scoping
- Ports of Entry Truck Processing
- Snow and Ice Control
- Procurement System
- Heavy Duty Truck Maintenance
- Report Auto Generator for Roadway “As-Builts”
- Uinta Basin Rail
- Outdoor Advertising Control Map
- Automated Queue Warning Detection System
- Cement-Treated Asphalt Base
- Citizen Reporter Program
- Real-Time Winter Road Weather Index Performance Measurement
- Variable Speed Limit in Parley’s Canyon
- Snow Fencing Efficiencies
One example from the 2014 report is the SUCCESS Framework Initiative, a set of management principles from the Governor’s Office of Management and Budget, designed to boost the quality and efficiency of government services, with the goal of improving government operations and services by 25% by the end of 2016. One of the six major systems that UDOT is focusing on for the SUCCESS Framework is the Statewide Access Management Program. With a lot of hard work and collaboration, the Access Management Team reduced the time and labor cost required for processing access permit applications. As a result, the per-permit processing cost was lowered from $1,709 to $1,532 ($177 per permit), providing approximately $42,000 in annual cost savings to UDOT.
Another example from 2014 is the Citizen Reporter Program, which enlists trained volunteers to report on road weather conditions along specific roadway segments across Utah. This citizen crowd-sourcing contributes to the quantity, quality and timeliness of traveler information, especially in rural areas. As a result, UDOT saves approximately $250,000 annually from the reduced need for road weather instrumentation, and from efficiencies in storm forecasting.
The UDOT Research Division coordinates each year with UDOT Senior Leaders and the Communications Office to collect and compile write-ups on the past year’s key efficiency initiatives. We appreciate all of the UDOT Regions and Groups that submitted FY 2014 efficiencies topics and write-ups on the key items. This process will start again in August for FY 2015.
The 2014 and earlier annual reports are available online at www.udot.utah.gov/go/efficiencies.
This post was originally published in the UDOT Research Newsletter.