Applying System-Level Performance Measures and Targets in the Detroit, Michigan, Metropolitan Planning Process

Abstract

The Southeast Michigan Council of Governments (SEMCOG) is the metropolitan planning organization for the Detroit, Michigan, region. SEMCOG is in the early stages of developing its 2035 regional transportation plan (RTP). As part of its planning process, SEMCOG is implementing a new approach for prioritizing transportation investments. The objectives of this effort are to ( a) build consensus on the region's transportation priorities and help ensure that the projects included in the RTP support these priorities, ( b) provide decision makers with the quantitative information needed to understand fully the consequences of their investment choices, and ( c) enable SEMCOG to develop an RTP that is realistic in terms of how much it will cost and how much it can achieve. SEMCOG's investment prioritization process consists of defining measures of effectiveness, analyzing the relationship between funding and performance in each of its goal areas, and presenting the results to decision makers in a manner that helps them reach a consensus on long-range funding and performance targets for the region. This paper describes each step in SEMCOG's prioritization process and presents the results of the analysis that was used to facilitate an initial round of target-setting discussions. It presents a comprehensive example of how an agency has incorporated performance measures and targets into their regional planning process.