Equity in Transportation Asset Management: A Proposed Framework

Abstract

Transportation asset management has historically overlooked equity considerations. However, recently, there has been a significant increase in concerns about this issue, leading to a range of research and practices aimed at achieving more equitable outcomes. Yet, addressing equity is challenging and time-consuming, given its complexity and multifaceted nature. Several factors can significantly impact the outcome of an analysis, including the definition of equity, the evaluation and quantification of its impacts, and the community classification. As a result, there can be a wide range of interpretations of what constitutes equity. Therefore, there is no single correct or incorrect approach for equity evaluation, and different perspectives, impacts, and analysis methods could be considered for this purpose. This study reviews previous research on how transportation agencies are integrating equity into transportation asset management, particularly pavement management systems. The primary objective is to investigate important equity factors for pavement management and propose a prototype framework that integrates economic, environmental, and social equity considerations into the decision-making process for pavement maintenance, rehabilitation, and reconstruction projects. The proposed framework consists of two main steps: (1) defining objectives based on the three equity dimensions, and (2) analyzing key factors for identifying underserved areas through a case study approach. The case study analyzed pavement condition and sociodemographic data for California’s Bay Area. Statistical analysis and a machine learning method revealed that areas with higher poverty rates and worse air quality tend to have poorer pavement conditions, highlighting the need to consider these factors when defining underserved areas in Bay Area and promoting equity in pavement management decision-making. The proposed framework incorporates an optimization problem to simultaneously minimize disparities in pavement conditions between underserved and other areas, reduce greenhouse gas emissions from construction and traffic disruptions, and maximize overall network pavement condition subject to budget constraints. By incorporating all three equity aspects into a quantitative decision-support framework with specific objectives, this study proposes a novel approach for transportation agencies to promote sustainable and equitable asset management practices.