What is the role of public participation in developing transportation policies, programs, and projects?

Public participation is vital to provide a good and comprehensive transportation planning. Without significant public participation, there is a risk of making poor decisions, or decisions that have unintended negative consequences that only burden the public rather than benefiting them.

With public participation, it is possible to make a lasting contribution to an area's quality of life. Public participation is more than an agency requirement and more than a means of fulfilling a statutory obligation. Meaningful public participation is core and essential to good decision-making.

The fundamental objective of public involvement programs is to ensure that the concerns and issues of everyone with a stake in transportation decisions are identified and addressed in the development of the policies, programs, and projects being proposed in their communities.

Who is the public?

The public that I am talking about are those who reside, has an interest in, or does business in a given area which will potentially affected by transportation decisions. All this includes both individuals and organized groups (NGOs, community neighborhood group and etc…). It is also vital to provide opportunities for the participation of all private and public providers of transportation services. Finally, those who traditionally were underserved by existing transportation systems, such as low-income or minority households and the elderly, should be encouraged to participate in the transportation decision making process.

Federal, state, and local authorities with an interest in transportation issues play a particularly important role in the development of transportation projects. Many of those government agencies have a statutory responsibility to review environmental documents or issue permits for transportation projects.

What are the indicators of an effective public participation process?

A well-informed public can contribute meaningful input to transportation decisions through a wide array of involvement opportunities at all stages of decision making. Useful elements in planning for effective public involvement are:

• Clearly defined purpose and objectives for initiating a public discussion on transportation issues;

• Specific identification of the involved public and other stakeholder groups with respect to the plans and programs under development;

• Identification of techniques (ICT) for engaging the public in the process;

• Notification procedures or communication that effectively target between the traffic planners and affected groups;

• Methods and measures for evaluating the effectiveness of the public involvement program;

• Education and assistance techniques, which result in an accurate and full public understanding of transportation issues; and

• Solicitation of feedback from the public and stakeholders on the effectiveness of the public involvement process.