NEW DIMENSIONS IN INFRASTRUCTURE EVALUATION - THE CASE OF NONTECHNICAL ISSUES IN INTELLIGENT VEHICLE-HIGHWAY SYSTEMS

Traditional infrastructure evaluation focuSes primarily on technical c riteria, such as the completion of a designated, interconnected system of facilities or a particular project's capacity to reduce costs born e by suppliers or end users. In the contemporary policymaking environm ent, however, non-technical criteria are often of great importance in determining the success or failure of a particular infrastructure ente rprise. Institutional considerations, for example, can often delay the implementation of a project or undermine its effectiveness. This pape r examines the importance of non-technical criteria in infrastructure evaluation through a case study of the implementation of a major highw ay investment program in advanced communication and control technologi es, known as intelligent vehicle -highway systems (IVHS). The case stu dy focuses on the role of institutional issues as well as environmenta l issues, in the implementation of IVHS in the U.S. surface transporta tion system. The case emphasizes, first, the significance of instituti onal and environmental issues, and second, mechanisms for evaluating t hese issues in the context of a major infrastructure investment progra m.