STATE OF THE PRACTICE: WHITE PAPER ON PUBLIC INVOLVEMENT

This white paper, authored by members of the Transportation Research Board Committee on Public Involvement, provides an overview of developments in the evolution of the process of 2-way communication between citizens and government by which transportation agencies and other officials give notice and information to the public and use public input as a factor in decision making. In the past decade, a radical transformation has occurred in the way transportation decisions are made. A new decision model has emerged and continues to be refined. The model assumes that public input into the assessment of transportation needs and solutions is a key factor in most transportation decision making. This paradigm shift, and several factors that have contributed to it, are discussed including the Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act of 1991.