Lecture 11 - Overview Of INVEST
Sustainable Transportation Curriculum for Universities
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LECTURE 11: Overview of INVEST
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INVEST — Infrastructure Voluntary Evaluation Sustainability Tool
INVEST is a web-based self-evaluation tool
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INVEST — Infrastructure Voluntary Evaluation Sustainability Tool (continued)
- It includes voluntary sustainability best practices called criteria
- It covers the full life cycle of transportation — system planning, project planning, design, construction, and operations and maintenance
- Developed by the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA)
https://www.sustainablehighways.org/
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Why Measure Sustainability?
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Track and assess progress
INVEST provides a snapshot in time of sustainability efforts -
Encourage broad participation of stakeholders
INVEST helps communicate goals and progress to all involved -
Evaluate sustainability of trade-offs
INVEST includes criteria that help evaluate multiple options -
Meet or anticipate new requirements
INVEST helps users understand new technologies and best practices -
Find and address programmatic barriers
INVEST helps find hindrances in policies, standards, and specifications -
Communicate benefits and goals
INVEST helps influence public opinion and raise awareness
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How Is Sustainability Measured?
Sustainability is measured by assessing performance of social, environmental, and economic principles. While a balanced treatment of all three is an ideal goal, it is not always achievable.
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How Is Sustainability Measured?
- One method of measurement is to compare a program or project to existing best practices
- Many organizations develop their own measurement tools and best practices
- Balancing triple bottom line goals may be accomplished over a group of projects or the entire program
- INVEST provides the opportunity to consider sustainability along with other performance measures without mandating values or choices
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INVEST Has Modules to Evaluate the Sustainability of Transportation Projects throughout the Project Life Cycle
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The goal of INVEST is to make transportation more sustainable than common practice dictates today
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Is sustainable transportation possible considering material resource requirements and impacts to human and natural environments from development and vehicle usage?
- Transportation provides immense social and economic benefits
- Transportation is a necessary part of our society's infrastructure
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Achieving Sustainability Goals
- Implementing sustainable practices can benefit agencies as well as road users
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Example — safety criterion
- Agency benefits — reduced costs for emergency response, property damage, and legal liability
- Road user benefits — savings in crash property damage, travel delays, and productivity
Advance better business practices
Integrate sustainability into project and programs
Improve education and understanding of sustainability
Facilitate communication and outreach
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Monitor Performance and Benchmark
- May be used to evaluate past performance, current performance, and goals for future performance
- May be used on a regular basis to benchmark year-over-year achievements
- Helps establish a high standard of achievement across all projects and identify improvements
- Helps identify potential solutions early in design and ensures they are carried forward through construction
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Benefits
Improve sustainability of specific transportation projects
- Users may take a prospective or a retrospective approach
- Helps agencies identify areas of improvement or excellence
Keep projects on track to meet sustainability goals
- INVEST is effective in tracking projects in development
- Helps establish a sustainability schedule with milestones
Provide contractors with incentives for implementing sustainability
- INVEST may be embedded in contract documents and design-build
- INVEST may be used to demonstrate sustainability in procurement requests and contracts mechanisms
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LECTURE 11: Overview of INVEST
