Florida Department of

TRANSPORTATION

Office of Policy Planning

Abbreviations in this issue:

HPPR - high-performance passenger rail

1. Highway Projects: Some Federal and State Practices to Expedite Completion Show Promise - This report describes the process and factors that could affect highway project time frames, examines state DOTs’ views on the benefits and challenges of the provisions to expedite highway projects established in SAFETEA-LU, and describes additional initiatives that state DOTs and FHWA have implemented to expedite the completion of highway projects.
2. Opportunity Cost of Inaction: High-Speed Rail and High Performance Passenger Rail Service - This report addresses the initial investment and on-going cost of operation and maintenance of HPPR in four of the Federal Railroad Administration sanctioned HPPR regional networks – Northeast, Chicago Hub, California, and Northwest – over a 40 year period.
3. Travel Demand: Trade and Freight Transportation - This report updates one of Florida's transportation trends and conditions reports on the travel demand of trade and freight.
4. Infrastructure Banks and Surface Transportation - This report analyzes an illustrative federal infrastructure bank by focusing on surface transportation projects.
5. Where the Jobs Are: Employer Access to Labor by Transit - This brief measures how well fixed route transit connects jobs to metropolitan labor pools. It explores what shares of jobs are located near transit networks; determines how much labor is within reach of those same job locations; and discusses the implications for public policy ranging from transportation investment criteria, to land use and tax reform, and finally to information upgrades.