Make the most of your highway investment and select improvement projects that provide the greatest and most cost-effective benefits with the new 4.0 version of the Federal Highway Administration’s (FHWA) Highway Economic Requirements System-State Version (HERS-ST) software.
HERS-ST offers users expanded capabilities for evaluating the relationship between highway investment and system condition, performance and user-cost levels. The software simulates future highway condition and performance levels and identifies deficiencies using engineering principles. The program then simulates the selection of improvements for implementation, relying on economic criteria and benefit-cost analysis. The analysis considers travel time, safety, vehicle-operating costs, emissions and highway agency costs, among other factors.
Questions that HERS-ST can help answer include:
- What level of program capital expenditure is economically justified?
- What user cost level will result from a given stream of investment?
- What investment level is required to achieve a certain level of performance? and
- What are the benefits and costs associated with scheduled projects?
New features in HERS-ST 4.0 include the ability to consider local cost factors. Users can now input cost factors on a section-by-section basis. This feature will allow a state such as Florida, for example, to perform an analysis for the entire state, taking into account that the cost of construction is more expensive in Miami than in Tallahassee, even though they are both urban areas.
The new version also has an Intermediate Year feature, which allows a user to plan for the construction of a new highway facility midway through its defined planning cycle. For example, a state such as Indiana can see the effects of constructing I-69 between Indianapolis and Evansville in 2017.
Also featured in the new software is an updated graphical user interface. With the more flexible interface, users can choose exactly what data output they want to see, as well as turn off output that is not needed. This can both simplify the results for the user and potentially decrease the run time for the software, depending on which output is specified.
Version 4.0 was introduced at FHWA’s National HERS-ST Technical Conference, held May 23-25, 2006, in San Antonio, Texas. The conference featured a hands-on workshop on how to use the software.
HERS-ST Version 4.0 can be downloaded from the HERS-ST website at www.fhwa.dot.gov/infrastructure/asstmgmt/hersindex.htm.
The site includes an overview of the software and a user’s guide. Also featured is a case study highlighting Oregon’s experiences with the software. The Oregon Department of Transportation first started using the HERS-ST prototype in 1998 and now uses the current model across the state to evaluate roadway capacity, estimate travel times and manage congestion.
From individuals just getting started with HERS-ST to experienced practitioners, the HERS-ST User’s Group offers information and support. Members of the group include representatives from state transportation departments, academia, contractors, counties, cities, FHWA and international users. To join the User’s Group, visit www.fhwa.dot.gov/infrastructure/asstmgmt/hstuser.cfm.
