The Role of Well Designed Transportation Projects Enhancing Communities: Public Participation Processes, Public - Private Outcomes

Project summary:

As a component of the interdisciplinary research study titled "The Role of Well-Designed Transportation Projects Enhancing Communities," this research examined the nature and effects of participation in the planning and design of transportation projects. For the purposes of this research, participation was defined broadly to include involvement by the general public, as well as private and non-governmental stakeholders such as designers. While there is general agreement about the importance of participation in transportation planning, there is little consistency in its application or its effects. Further, there is only limited understanding of participation in design processes and the effects of public and private inputs into design outcomes. This research developed a common base of information to guide the development of planning and design processes for transportation projects, clarifying what is required for effective participation and documenting the implications of stakeholder involvement in design and other areas. Clarification of the criteria for and effects of participation had the added benefit of providing a consistent set of constructs which may be used to evaluate processes and outcomes of planning and design activities. Cross-consultation with the other research teams and practitioners provided context for this exercise and pointed the work toward a distillation of best practices.