ARTBA Chair & Utah DOT Executive Director Talk Project Delivery During U.S. DOT Webinar

What happened: The U.S Department of Transportation’s (U.S. DOT) new Project Delivery Center of Excellence webinar Aug. 3 featured insights from ARTBA Chair Paula Hammond (WSP USA) and Utah Department of Transportation (UDOT) Executive Director Carlos Braceras. The topic: how to innovate for project delivery.

Why it matters: With historic federal investment working through new transportation projects nationwide, the Project Delivery Center of Excellence at the U.S. DOT Volpe Center is a resource to help federal infrastructure fund recipients deliver projects “more efficiently and effectively” from concept to completion. The Biden administration announced the Center as part of its October 2022 Action Plan for Accelerating Infrastructure, outlining steps for keeping projects “on time, on task and on budget.”

Among the insights offered by Hammond and Braceras, a member of ARTBA’s Transportation Officials Division:

• When launching projects, state transportation officials should know the issues contractors face, and refrain from competing for talent. “The transportation system is badly in need of investment,” said Hammond. “The fact that we are all working together, the better.”
• With record investments spawned by 2021’s Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), Braceras said, “transportation is in a great place. It’s a good time to step back and ask if there’s a better way to do things.” Among his recommendations for state officials: learn how contractors design for risk. “It’s a complex piece of work,” he said. “It requires the owner to have a level of sophistication we don’t normally have.”
• Hammond called for states and contractors to form “project delivery partnerships,” so that both can establish a clear understanding of the risks to either on any one project. “Having that conversation early will save arguments down the line.”

What’s next: The Center will convene a group of stakeholders to identify root causes of change orders, report back on best practices to minimize their use, and disseminate best practices with project sponsors. It will lead this study in partnership with ARTBA and other industry groups. For further insight, contact ARTBA’s Rich Juliano.