Customer focus in highway transportation asset management

To improve the delivery of high-quality transportation systems, efforts are being made to identify and manage the assets of transportation facilities. Highway transportation asset management (HTAM) is a systematic way for transportation agencies and experts to identify the assets of a highway facility and what indicates value. Transportation experts have identified these assets as ranging from the physical infrastructure to the impact of transportation on society. For an agency's services and policies to be successful in terms of meeting the needs of the customer, the goals and objectives of the stakeholders must be established. The purpose and mission for the transportation agency is in direct relationship to its customers; thus, to be most effective, HTAM systems must be customer-focused.; In this research, an initial definition of customer focus in HTAM for a rural highway corridor in central Illinois was developed. The Delphi Method was used for discovery with three groups of highway transportation customers: transportation decision-makers, businesses, and the general public. What was truly encouraging was the discovery of how close the three focus groups are in many areas. Although there are differences, the common ground to commence customer focus is substantial.; Customer asset value was determined through the Contingent Value Methodology (CVM), which provides a structured analysis of values and tradeoffs. These values were validated and measured as a result of the CVM's incorporation within the Delphi rounds. This is a significant finding for the innovative research methodology pioneered in this study, which merged the CVM with the Delphi Method.; Outcome performance measures were validated, which brought forth notable result. Of particular consequence is that not only did the groups identify that they believed they received a good value for the tax dollar spent. Information gained in this study is a major development in the field of HTAM and provides specific guidance for effective customer focus strategies.