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Gray Notebook for the quarter ending June 30, 2001 Measures, Markers and Mileposts June 30, 2001
18
Measures, Markers
and Mileposts
The Gray Notebook for the quarter ending June 30, 2001
WSDOTs quarterly report to the
Washington State Transportation Commission
on transportation programs and department management
Douglas B. MacDonald
Secretary of Transportation
This periodic report is prepared by WSDOT staff to track a variety of performance and accountability
measures for routine review by the Transportation Commission and others. The content and format of this
report is expected to develop as time passes. Information is reported on a preliminary basis as appropriate
and available for internal management use and is subject to correction and clarification.
MP
2
Washington State
Department of Transportation Measures, Markers and Mileposts June 30, 2001
19
Measures, Markers and Mileposts
The Gray Notebook for the quarter ending June 30, 2001
Table of Contents
Worker Safety
Highway Maintenance Workers .............. 1
Highway Engineer Workers ..................... 1
Ferry Vessel Workers ............................... 1
Highway Construction Program Delivery
Highway Construction Projects
1999-2001 Biennium Results ..................... 2
State-Supported
Amtrak Cascades Service
......................... 3
Commute Trip Reduction
........................... 6
Highway Traffic Congestion
...................... 8
What gets measured, gets managed.
This periodic report is prepared by WSDOT staff to track a variety of performance and accountability
measures for routine review by the Transportation Commission and others. The content and format of this
report is expected to develop as time passes. Information is reported on a preliminary basis as appropriate
and available for internal management use and is subject to correction and clarification.
Measures, Markers and Mileposts June 30, 2001
Contents
Pavement Conditions on the
State Highway System
.............................. 12
Highlights of Program Activities
May 2000 ............................................... 15
June 2000 ............................................... 15
Special Features
Lane Miles Added to
State Highway System ........................... 16
Truck Drivers Provide Feedback
on Pass Travel Conditions
and Anti-Icer Use ................................... 16
Comics Section
Our Quarterly Cartoon .............................. 17 Measures, Markers and Mileposts June 30, 2001
1
Worker Safety
WSDOT Ferry Vessel Workers
Recordable Injuries per 100 Workers per Year
WSDOT Highway Maintenance Workers
Recordable Injuries per 100 Workers per Year
WSDOT Highway Engineer Workers
Recordable Injuries per 100 Workers per Year
There is a significant decrease in recordable injuries for the first
two quarters of 2001 compared to 2000. The mid-year 2000
accumulative rate was 15.5; the mid-year 2001 accumulative rate
is 9.7. Backs continue to be the most often injured part of the body for
maintenance workers, accounting for 19% of the injuries. Vehicles are the source of 12% of injuries for 2001. Three cases
involved workers being
struck by vehicle; the majority involved
falling from or stepping off a vehicle.
21% of the injuries and illnesses resulted from not wearing
personal protection equipment or insufficient footwear.
The 2001 accumulative rate to date is slightly higher than the
2000 annual rate but remains well below benchmarks of state
highway departments. A search for a better benchmark is being
conducted. Sprains (47%) were the most frequent type of injury for
engineer workers. Backs (26%), ears (20%) and legs (20%) were the most injured
parts of body.
20% of the injuries and illnesses resulted in not wearing
personal protection equipment or insufficient footwear. Sprains and strains remains the leading type of injury for WSF
vessel workers. In the 2nd quarter they accounted for 32% of the
injuries. This is down from 2000 and 1st quarter of 2001.
The
back and extremities are the most common part of the body
injured.
Backs accounted for 68% of the injuries in the first
quarter; down slightly in the second quarter.
The percent of
back injuries is higher for WSF vessel workers
than the percent for highway maintenance workers. Sewage spills caused by ruptured hoses and disconnected
couplings accounted for 19% of the injuries. This required post
exposure medical treatment immunoglobulin shots.
Reading the Charts
Recordable injuries and illnesses is a standard measure that
includes all work related deaths and work-related illnesses and
injuries which result in loss of consciousness, restriction of work or
motion, transfer to another job, or require medical treatment
beyond first aid.
The selected national average benchmarks are adapted from
National Safety Council computations made after-the-fact for each
year (most recently 1999) from data published by the U.S. Bureau
of Labor Statistics.
The maintenance and engineering charts benchmark against a
classification for State Highway departments.
The ferry vessel worker chart benchmarks against a classification
for Water Transportation, Ferries.
One worker equals 2,000 hours per year.
25
20
15
10
5
0
Year
2000
State Hwy
Depts. 8.12
1st Qtr
2001
2nd Qtr
2001
Year
1999
Year
1998
25
20
15
10
5
0
Year
2000
State Hwy
Depts. 8.12
1st Qtr
2001
2nd Qtr
2001
Year
1999
Year
1998
Water Trans.
Ferries 6.6
25
20
15
10
5
0
Year
2000
1st Qtr
2001
2nd Qtr
2001
Year
1999
Year
1998
Whats to come:
More information on injury trends and safety programs.
More information on accident costs and how they can best be
reduced and managed. Measures, Markers and Mileposts June 30, 2001
2
Highway Construction Program Delivery
Statistics on Actual vs. Plan in Advertising Highway
Construction Projects for 1999-2001 Biennium,
Quarter 8 Ending June 30, 2001
This graph shows WSDOTs progress in meeting scheduled highway construction project bid advertise-
ment dates for the quarter ending June 30, 2001. This updates the graph shown last quarter (Quarter 8 of
the 1999-2001 biennium).
While the results show some improvement from Quarter 7 to Quarter 8, it is clear that this performance
measure needs to be used with great
care. Further analysis prompted by the
Quarter 7 Gray Notebook has suggested
that recurring issues causing project
slippage include:
Projecting insufficient time for
design work.
Delayed scoping and preliminary
engineering of projects allowing
insufficient time for coordination
with stakeholders in permitting
approval and design coordination
(for example, even safety
projects of relatively modest scope
require review of conceptual
solutions with environmental and
local government partners; signifi-
cant delays can be encountered in
establishing requisite mitigation
for concerns expressed late in the
preliminary engineering process).
Some projects have also been
delayed because roadway preservation measurement cycles and supporting data collection have
not supported schedules to get projects to advertisement.
These issues are receiving closer attention from program management and engineering staff as a result
of the Gray Notebook measurement process.
New Program Delivery Measures to Come: The Rest of the Story
Tracking projects to advertisement is a good management tool but it does not communicate the
impact
of the missed advertisement dates. To better understand this impact, the following questions
need to be answered:
Did the delayed advertisement result in a lost construction season?
Did the delayed advertisement also cause a delay in the projected open to traffic date?
Program Management is in the process of developing additional measures to be used to report this
information in the next biennium. In addition, we are also seeking to present these measures in greater
detail to look at specific subprograms (mobility, safety, roadway and bridge preservation, etc.).
The delivery gap at the end of Quarter 8 was 47 net projects. This reflected 83
projects deferred and 36 projects advanced. This can be compared to the delivery
gap at the end of Quarter 7 which was 61 net projects with 95 projects deferred
and 34 projects advanced. The catch-up from Quarter 7 to Quarter 8, while
small, is encouraging.
100
200
300
400
500
600
Qtr 1
Qtr 2
Qtr 3
Qtr 4
Qtr 5
Qtr 6
Qtr 7
Qtr 8
Actual
Planned
Planned Measures, Markers and Mileposts June 30, 2001
3
50,000
40,000
30,000
20,000
10,000
0
Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun
Jul Aug Sep Cct Nov Dec
2001
2000
Monthly Ridership: 2001 vs. 2000
Washington State-Supported Amtrak Cascades Service
WSDOT supports the development of Amtrak
Cascades intercity passenger rail service. This
service provides travelers with an option to auto-
mobile transportation on the Interstate 5 corridor.
WSDOTs goal is to increase ridership, reduce
travel times, and increase the number of trains
operating between Seattle and Portland and
Seattle and Vancouver, BC. These goals will be
realized through the completion of a sequence of
capital projects along the Pacific Northwest Rail
Corridor, the purchase of new train equipment,
and aggressive marketing.
The following performance in