Transportation Sector Case Studies
These resources include case studies of adaptation in the transportation sector, developed by the Georgetown Climate Center as part of a cooperative agreement with the Federal Highway Administration. The case studies include examples of how adaptation has been incorporated into decisionmaking at all stages of the transportation lifecycle: assessing vulnerability, planning, design, and operations and maintenance.
Resources are automatically presented by rating, but can also be sorted by date and title. Apply additional filters to narrow the list by climate impact, region, transportation mode or stage of decision-making, state, or jurisdictional focus.
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Resource
December 2011
The City of Santa Cruz Climate Adaptation Plan identifies the infrastructure and resources most vulnerable to climate change impacts, including critical transportation infrastructure. The plan also presents climate adaptation action items ranked by priority based on risk to the community; the replacement of Santa Cruz’s Highway 1/Highway 9 Bridge was identified as a “very high priority” action item to address upstream flooding.
Related Organizations: City of Santa Cruz, California
Resource Category: Planning
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April 2012
The Oregon Department of Transportation’s (ODOT) Climate Change Adaptation Strategy Report is intended to provide a preliminary assessment of likely climate change impacts on ODOT assets and operations and adaptation strategies. ODOT is responsible for more than 19,000 lane miles of state highway, 2,700 bridges, thousands of culverts, and other critical infrastructure. All of this infrastructure is potentially vulnerable to the impacts of climate change, such as increased incidence of landslides, flooding, coastal erosion, and wildfires.
Related Organizations: Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT)
Resource Category: Planning
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Resource
December 2010
The “2060 Florida Transportation Plan” provides transportation planning guidance for the state, and includes emergency preparedness and resilience planning in its long-range objectives. The Plan, developed by the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT), sets high-level transportation objectives for the state, and offers implementation strategies to meet those objectives.
Related Organizations: Florida Department of Transportation
Resource Category: Planning
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September 13, 2010
This case study details efforts in Keene, New Hampshire to assess the vulnerability of transportation assets to future climate impacts and to recommend adaptive responses in city land-use and transportation plans. Keene’s 2007 Adaptation Action Plan identified transportation infrastructure vulnerable to climate impacts and suggested strategies to improve its resiliency. In 2010, Keene incorporated recommendations from the Adaptation Plan into the city’s Comprehensive Master Plan, which provides the general template for future zoning and land-use regulations in the City, including decisions about the city road system.
Related Organizations: City of Keene, New Hampshire
Resource Category: Planning
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June 11, 2013
“A Stronger, More Resilient New York” is an adaptation plan (Plan) for New York City (NYC), which contains actionable recommendations both for rebuilding the communities impacted by Hurricane Sandy and increasing the resilience of infrastructure and buildings citywide. Chapter 10 of the plan is dedicated to transportation impacts, strategies, initiatives, and policy recommendations. This chapter details the impacts that occurred to the transportation system as a result of Hurricane Sandy, impacts that can be anticipated in the future as a result of climate change, and strategies for increasing the resilience of NYC’s transportation system.
Related Organizations: New York City Panel on Climate Change (NPCC) , New York City (NYC) Special Initiative of Rebuilding and Resiliency, City of New York, New York
Resource Category: Planning
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Resource
March 2013
The City of Waveland, Mississippi developed its Local Hazard Mitigation Plan (LHMP) in 2013 to update its 2007 plan, document the city’s hazard mitigation planning process, and identify relevant vulnerabilities and strategies to increase resiliency. The 2013 LHMP added climate change as a new hazard not previously addressed, as well as several other climate-related hazards such as coastal erosion, drought, extreme heat, and flooding. The LHMP assesses Waveland’s vulnerability to the hazards identified, as well as its hazard mitigation capabilities, and identifies evacuation planning as a high priority action item in light of the vulnerabilities identified.
Related Organizations: City of Waveland, Mississippi
Resource Category: Planning
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2013
The Transportation Research Board (TRB) of the National Academies National Cooperative Highway Research Program (NCHRP) developed Report 753: A Pre-Event Recovery Planning Guide for Transportation, which provides an overview of steps involved in planning and preparing for the recovery of critical transportation infrastructure after a catastrophic event such as a severe storm or wildfire. The Guide was developed to assist transportation owners, operators and planners with pre-event recovery planning.
Related Organizations: Transportation Research Board (TRB) of the National Academies , The National Academies
Resource Category: Planning
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Resource
March 2010
The Pennsylvania Climate Adaptation Planning Report presents climate adaptation recommendations and strategies developed by stakeholder working groups from key sectors, including the infrastructure sector with a focus on transportation. The Infrastructure working group identified the key focus areas, vulnerabilities and risks to infrastructure assets; and prioritized actions (high, medium or low) based upon specific criteria including cost, timeliness of implementation, political support, data availability, planning, risk level, co-benefits, and risks to public health and safety.
Related Organizations: Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection
Resource Category: Planning
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2009
Greenworks Philadelphia is a comprehensive six-year plan (“Plan”) that sets goals for “greening” the City of Philadelphia – increasing the city’s energy efficiency, reducing greenhouse gas emissions, improving the environmental quality of the city, and adapting to the dangers posed by climate change. This case study focuses only on the transportation-related recommendations included in the Plan – increasing the percentage of city assets in a “state of good repair” and using green infrastructure strategies to improve stormwater management and reduce flood impacts to transportation infrastructure.
Related Organizations: City of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection, Philadelphia Water Department, Columbia University
Resource Category: Planning
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Resource
December 2009
Chapter X of the 2009 California Climate Adaptation Strategy (CAS) summarizes projected climate change impacts to transportation and energy infrastructure in the state, and recommends adaptation strategies to address those impacts. California’s extensive infrastructure system will likely be subject to climate change-related impacts from higher temperatures, shifting precipitation patterns, sea-level rise, and extreme weather events. To adapt to these impacts, the CAS recommends four adaptation strategies for transportation infrastructure: develop a climate vulnerability assessment; incorporate climate change into existing investment decisions; develop design standards to minimize risks; and incorporate climate change considerations into disaster preparedness planning.
Related Organizations: California Department of Transportation (Caltrans), California Natural Resources Agency
Resource Category: Planning
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