Include Explicit Data Quality Standards, Acceptance Criteria, and City Validation Processes in Vendor Contracts for Digital Right-of-Way Management Systems.
Stage 1 of a Project in Philadelphia Developed and Tested a Prototype Right-of-Way Data Specification, Among Other Technologies.
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States
City of Philadelphia Digital Right-of-Way and Mobility Improvement Project
Summary Information
Traditional regulation and management of the right-of-way (ROW) via physical signage and text has become insufficient for many cities as demand for the curb has increased. Philadelphia’s Digital Right-of-Way and Mobility Improvement Project, which took place from September 2023 through December 2025, was an effort to make ROW regulations and use digitally accessible. Funded by the USDOT SMART program, the project’s objectives were to (i) develop and test a user-centered system for digital ROW management, (ii) develop a new specification to digitize the ROW (i.e., Right-of-Way Data Specification (ROWDS)), and (iii) inform future policy development to digitize ROW management. Stage 1 of the project was a 112-block area in the Center City neighborhood of downtown Philadelphia. The project was organized around four technical workstreams: data topology and process mapping, smart ROW software, digital signage, and next-gen transit signal priority (Next-Gen TSP).
Stage 1 resulted in the following lessons learned.
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Include explicit data quality standards, acceptance criteria, and City validation processes in vendor contracts. Quality control should not be left solely to a vendor; active agency involvement is needed throughout.
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Invest in dedicated staffing to support system deployment. Testing new technologies while maintaining legacy workflows and public-facing functions can become very challenging.
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Require a commitment to open standards at the beginning of a project. Data in proprietary formats may require later conversions and custom integrations.
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Establish a clear roadmap for integrating ROW data with legacy systems and anticipate an iterative specification development process. Plan to accommodate data re-processing.
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Start procurement and contracting early for TSP deployments. Allow sufficient lead time for RFP development, vendor selection, contracting, and potential equipment/contractor delays.
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Engage security and signal engineering staff early. Build in time for internal security reviews and provide adequate planning for programming newer traffic controllers for TSP.
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Plan for controller availability and qualified contractors. Account for equipment lead times and limited contractor capacity when scheduling TSP corridor upgrades.
