A multi-jurisdictional emergency response crew in the Phoenix metropolitan area provides services to six cities with a benefit-cost ratio of 6.4:1.

This report provides examples of tangible benefits gained through regional transportation operations collaboration as well as a self-assessment guide to help agencies identify tangible benefits gained through their own partnerships. Across the various regional coalitions, a common theme was clear: Joining together to share resources resulted in saved employee time and agency money. Utilizing the expertise of partner agencies sometimes removed the need to hire external consultants, while other times, combining operations reduced overhead and produced cost savings when purchasing equipment. Additionally, standardized performance measures for regional projects allow benefits of projects to be more readily communicated with elected officials and the public. Examples of tangible benefits from each regional collaboration can be found in Appendix A of the source document.

Findings

Some examples of benefits from regional transportation operations collaborations include:

A multi-jurisdictional emergency response crew in the Phoenix metropolitan area provides services to six cities with a benefit-cost ratio of 6.4:1 by increasing responder safety and reducing the number of patrol officers necessary at each crash scene.
By having a statewide CCTV license, AZTech and other participating partners saved nearly $1.2 million per year.
The joint traffic management strategies at Phoenix International Raceway special events reduced the total time to clear the parking lot after a NASCAR Winston Cup Race from 5.5 hours in 1998 to 2.5 hours in 2005 despite automobile volumes tripling over the same period.
Sharing of real-time information, such as video feeds, allows agencies to reduce incident response times by providing better locations of incidents to first responders and dispatching appropriate equipment.
The creation of joint performance measures allow the regional partners to make the case for their continued funding as the region group has the capacity to provide reports of the benefits accrued by their joint projects.
Developing collaborative ITS plans ensures that agencies are not duplicating efforts and install compatible systems.
Cross-agency coordination increases customer satisfaction through combined cross-jurisdictional traveler information and coordinated signal phasing.
Applying for funding as a regional coalition benefits all agencies involved due to increased strength of the application, as well as decreased time and money spent on preparing the application for each individual agency.
When negotiating with vendors to provide services or solve problems, the unified voice of a regional coalition improved response times and received more cost efficient results from the vendors.