Report examines FHWA’s tracking of infrastructure improvements

Washington – The Federal Highway Administration needs to improve how it tracks safety outcomes from state-level highway infrastructure improvements, according to an audit report (.pdf file) from the Department of Transportation Office of Inspector General.

Each state can administer infrastructure safety improvements, such as guardrails or rumble strips, through FHWA’s Highway Safety Improvement Program. FHWA does a sufficient job of providing implementation guidance and technical support to states, the report said, but data on the costs and safety outcomes of an improvement are not reported consistently. OIG recommends FHWA provide further guidance to states on how to report using an updated online reporting tool, and should begin annually compiling data on the state project outcomes nationwide to track the success of the overall program.

In a March 22 memo, FHWA Administrator Victor M. Mendez said the agency concurs with OIG’s recommendations and described how the agency already has begun implementing them.