Evaluation of a Mobile Rut Depth Device for the Pavement Management Program, HR-248, 1984

With inflation, there is no longer a completely adequate budget for highway construction and maintenance. Restricted budgets have generated development and implementation of pavement management programs. A need for management guidelines generated National Cooperative Highway Research Program Synthesis of Highway Practice 84, "Evaluation Criteria and Priority Setting for State Highway Programs". Traffic volumes and present conditions are two major factors in determining the priority of a proposed highway improvement. The Iowa DOT, Highway Division, Office of Materials has been conducting pavement condition inventory surveys on a three-year frequency since 1969 as input for pavement management. Development of substantial wheel rutting on paved roadways results in a potential hazard to highway safety. During periods of rain, these water-filled ruts may cause hydroplaning and loss of vehicle control. It is, therefore, imparitive that Iowa roadways be continually monitored for rut depths and further that this data be used in a pavement management program to determine priorities for rehabilitation or resurfacing.

European Corn Borer: Development and Management, 1989

Contains information on the European Corn Borer, an introduced species that came to North America during the early 1900's from central Europe. The insect damages corn plants, as well as peppers, beans, potatoes and other plants, by feeding on leaves, stalk tunneling and ear damage. This brochure gives summaries of management tactics. This is North central regional extension publication no. 327 sponsored by Iowa State University Extension.

Development of a GPS-Based Sign Inventory Tool for Iowa’s Statewide Management System, May 2011

This report is on state-of-the-art research efforts specific to infrastructure inventory/data collection with sign inventory as a case study. The development of an agency-wide sign inventory is based on feature inventory and location information. Specific to location, a quick and simple location acquisition tool is critical to tying assets to an accurate location-referencing system. This research effort provides a contrast between legacy referencing systems (route and milepost) and global positioning system- (GPS-) based techniques (latitude and longitude) integrated into a geographic information system (GIS) database. A summary comparison of field accuracies using a variety of consumer grade devices is also provided. This research, and the data collection tools developed, are critical in supporting the Iowa Department of Transportation (DOT) Statewide Sign Management System development effort. For the last two years, a Task Force has embarked on a comprehensive effort to develop a sign management system to improve sign quality, as well as to manage all aspects of signage, from request, ordering, fabricating, installing, maintaining, and ultimately removing, and to provide the ability to budget for these key assets on a statewide basis. This effort supported the development of a sign inventory tool and is the beginning of the development of a sign management system to support the Iowa DOT efforts in the consistent, cost effective, and objective decision making process when it comes to signs and their maintenance.

2013 Iowa DOT Engineering Intern Development and Management Program, 13-464, 2013

The Institute for Transportation (InTrans) at Iowa State University (ISU) developed an internship mentoring program in collaboration with the Iowa Department of Transportation (DOT) to provide additional mentorship to both student interns and Iowa DOT intern managers. For the summer 2013 Iowa DOT Engineering Intern Development and Management Program, this report summarizes the following: * Mentoring activities conducted by ISU; * Results of the different intern program success assessments that were conducted; * Experiences, lessons learned, and recommendations; * Program benefits that were realized.

Development of Concepts for Pavement Management, MLR-79-04, 1979

Sufficient evidence was not discovered in this brief search to alter the general opinion that the Serviceability (Present Serviceability Index-PSI) - Performance Concepts developed by the AASHO Road Test provides the optimum engineering basis for pavement management. Use of these concepts in Iowa has the additional advantage in that we have a reasonable quantity of historical data over a period of time on the change in pavement condition as measured by PSI's. Some additional benefits would be the ability to better assess our needs with respect to those being recommended to Congress by AASHTO Committees. These concepts have been the basis used for developing policies on dimensions and weight of vehicles and highway needs which the AASHTO Transport Committees have recommended to the United States House Committee on Ways and Means. The first recommendation based on these concepts was made in the mid 1960's. Iowa's participation in the evaluation for this recommendation was under the direction of our present Director of Transportation, Mr. Raymond Kassel. PSI Indexes had to be derived from subjective surface ratings at that time. The most recent recommendation to Congress was made in November of 1977. Based on the rationale expressed above, a pilot study of the major part of the rural interstate system was conducted. The Objective of the study was to measure pavement performance through the use of the Present Serviceability Index (PSI) - Pavement Performance concepts as developed by the AASHO Road Test and to explore the usefulness of this type of data as a pavement management tool. Projects in the vicinity of the major urban centers were not included in this study due to the extra time that would be required to isolate accurate traffic data in these areas. Projects consisting of asphalt surface courses on crushed stone base sections were not included.

Development of the Des Moines Access Management Plan, 2004

According to Iowa crash records, almost 10% of all crashes in Iowa occur at commercial driveways. Most of these crashes occur on arterials within municipalities. In recent years, nearly a quarter of these crashes have occurred in the Des Moines metropolitan area. This makes the Des Moines metropolitan area a prime candidate for improved access management. Case study research in Iowa has shown that access management is an extremely effective highway safety tool—well-managed routes are, on average, 40% safer than poorly managed routes. The Des Moines metropolitan area has many miles of four-lane, undivided arterials constructed when less was known about the importance of managing access to adjacent land development. This project involved a cooperative effort of the Des Moines Area Metropolitan Planning Organization (Des Moines Area MPO) and the Center for Transportation Research and Education (CTRE) at Iowa State University to develop a comprehensive access management study and program for the Des Moines metropolitan area. The goal of the study is to use the knowledge developed to make improvements that will reduce access-related crashes. It is also anticipated that this project will help local officials make better decisions about access management so that future safety and operational problems can be avoided.

Draft Project Management Update to the Iowa DOT Project Development Manual, 2016

This work supported drafting project management guidance for the Iowa Department of Transportation (DOT). The goal is to incorporate a greater focus on project management in their project development process. A technical advisory committee (TAC) was assembled to accomplish this effort. The TAC took into consideration the current status of project management with the Iowa DOT, their experience during the demonstration workshop held in Iowa as part of the implementation assistance they received, the project management peer exchange hosted by the Iowa DOT, and additional examples of project management that were presented. With this basis, the TAC participated in a number of discussions to develop draft guidance for the foundation of a Project Management Office (PMO) within the Iowa DOT. The final report describes the process that was used in establishing this guidance. The report details the decisions and decision process that the TAC employed in this endeavor and provides additional thoughts and insight into the draft guidance. Appendix A includes the draft guidance in the form of PMO function details and detailed lists of project management roles and responsibilities. Appendix B includes a starter list of project management resources for the PMO.

Strategic Plan Iowa Workforce Development October, 2004

For the 2004 strategic planning process at Iowa Workforce Development, Director Richard Running asked for as much input from all staff as possible. As a result, planning staff designed an extensive process to gather input over about a three month period during the late spring and summer: • A Guide to Staff Involvement was drafted and distributed to staff in offices throughout the state. This guide provided a brief explanation of the planning process and quoted extensively from the Vilsack/Pederson Leadership Agenda and the 2003 IWD strategic plan to illustrate each step and to show examples of alignment. The guide also provided suggestions for staff in various locations and work units to conduct their own planning sessions. The structure was designed to solicit feedback regarding elements (vision, mission, guiding principles, goals and strategies) of the existing 2003 plan. Particular attention was devoted to securing non-management staff’s perspective during the internal and external assessment exercises. • Several local offices did conduct their own structured input sessions following the suggested guidelines and sent the results to planning staff in the central administrative offices. • Other work units in many locations opted to ask planning staff to facilitate planning sessions for them. The results of these sessions were also gathered by planning staff. In all, dozens of input sessions were held and hundreds of IWD staff participated directly in the process. Because all the sessions followed similar guidelines, it was relatively easy to combine all of the input received and spot common themes that surfaced from the many sessions. A composite of all the flip chart notes was compiled into one large document (for those who like lots of detail) and another document summarized the key themes that emerged. This information was used in a day-long planning retreat on August 20. Management staff members from throughout the department were invited and each work unit and sub-state region also brought a non-management staff person as well. This group reviewed the themes from the earlier sessions and then addressed each element of the 2003 plan, proposing refinements for almost all sections. Subsequently, senior management reviewed the results of the retreat and made the final decisions for the new 2004 plan. This thorough approach, with its special emphasis on input from line staff, did result in some significant changes to IWD’s plan. Local office staff, for example, consistently expressed the need to step up our marketing efforts, especially with employers. Another need that was expressed clearly and often was the need to beef up staff training efforts, much of the capacity for which had been lost in budget and staff reductions a few years ago. Neither of these issues is new, but the degree of concern expressed by IWD staff has caused us to elevate their importance in this year’s plan.

Annual Report of Highway Division Highway Research and Development in Iowa for the Fiscal Year ending June 30, 2005

The Highway Division of the Iowa Department of Transportation engages in research and development for two reasons: first, to find workable solutions to the many problems that require more than ordinary, routine investigation; second, to identify and implement improved engineering and management practices. This report, entitled Highway Division Highway Research and Development in Iowa, is submitted in compliance with Sections 310.36 and 312.3A, Code of Iowa, which direct the submission of a report of the Secondary Road Research Fund and the Street Research Fund respectively. It is a report of the status of research and development projects, which were in progress on June 30, 2005; it is also a report on projects completed during the fiscal year beginning July 1, 2004, and ending June 30, 2005. Detailed information on each of the research and development projects mentioned in this report is available in the Research and Technology Bureau in the Highway Division of the Iowa Department of Transportation.

Annual report of the Iowa Highway Research Board Research and Development Activities FY 2006

The Highway Division of the Iowa Department of Transportation engages in research and development for two reasons: first, to find workable solutions to the many problems that require more than ordinary, routine investigation; and second, to identify and implement improved engineering and management practices. This report is submitted in compliance with Sections 310.36 and 312.3A, Code of Iowa, which direct the submission of a report of the Secondary Road Research Fund and the Street Research Fund, respectively. It is a report of the status of research and development projects, which were in progress on June 30, 2006; it is also a report on projects completed during the fiscal year beginning July 1, 2005, and ending June 30, 2006.

Report of Highway Research Board Research and Development Activities FY2007

The Highway Division of the Iowa Department of Transportation (Iowa DOT) engages in research and development for two reasons: first, to find workable solutions to the many problems that require more than ordinary, routine investigation; second, to identify and implement improved engineering and management practices. This report, entitled “Iowa Highway Research Board Research and Development Activities FY2007” is submitted in compliance with Sections 310.36 and 312.3A, Code of Iowa, which direct the submission of a report of the Secondary Road Research Fund and the Street Research Fund respectively. It is a report of the status of research and development projects, which were in progress on June 30, 2007; it is also a report on projects completed during the fiscal year beginning July 1, 2006, and ending June 30, 2007. Detailed information on each of the research and development projects mentioned in this report is available in the Research and Technology Bureau in the Highway Division of the Iowa Department of Transportation.