Background Information

In contrast to business providing shareholder value through a monetary exchange of products and services to individual clients or customers for their individual consumption, the public sector operates from a monetary public entrustment to provide goods and services for collective consumption.  This public investment obligates the public sector to understand the values and aspirations of the served community and be efficient and effective in managing their resources and create public value.

In 1995, Mark Moore developed a public value strategic triangle[1]:

• Legitimacy and Support (e.g., law, regulation, policy, resource allocation, community attitude)
• Operational Capacity (e.g., legal authority, people, funding, knowledge/skills, culture, partnership)
• Public Value (e.g., trust, legitimacy, service quality, equity, accessibility).

The term “public value” describes the value of contribution to served communities and broader society.  In other words, transportation services provide benefit to the direct recipients (i.e., users of the system) and adds value to the public sphere.  It represents agency-public consensus of principles and benefits and pertains to both the content of service and how it is delivered.  When instituted as an organizing principle, public value creation guides administrative policy and management decisions with an aim to increase the value of societal and community benefit.  Transportation administration and managers define and solve problems from a value perspective when deploying public assets.  Evaluating management decisions through a public value lens promotes a deeper understanding and action to achieve traditional outcomes and value-based performance expectations. 

A 2023 World Road Association (PIARC) technical reported titled Measuring Customer Experience and Public Value Creation for Transport Administrators is an important work focused on understanding how transportation administrations are measuring efficiency and effectiveness of customer experience and public valuation creation with greater emphasis on the customer experience component.   There remains an essential need to further develop a framework for the creation and measurement of the public value that considers and emphasizes societal contribution in decision-making.    The PIARC research was constrained to the evaluation of existing work by transport administrations and agencies.  There are non-transportation public sectors with mature frameworks for creating and measuring public value for which transportation administrations can learn from, adapt and adopt as best practice.

[1] Moore, Michael. Creating Public Value, Strategic Management in Government. Harvard University Press, 1995.

Literature Search Summary

• Administration of Highway and Transportation Agencies. Role and Value of Transportation for U.S. Industries and Sectors, NCHRP 20-24(089) RIP  https://rip.trb.org/view/1339727
• Martin Mayer. Structuring Public-Private Partnerships for public value: Analysis of Two Transportation Infrastructure Case Studies, Public Works Management & Policy, 2022 https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Martin-Mayer-9/publication/358185392_Structuring_Public-Private_Partnerships_for_Public_Value_Analysis_of_Two_Transportation_Infrastructure_Case_Studies/links/62f8823ec6f6732999cbdaca/Structuring-Public-Private-Partnerships-for-Public-Value-Analysis-of-Two-Transportation-Infrastructure-Case-Studies.pdf?origin=publication_detail
• Mulgan, Breckon, Tarrega, Bakhski, Davies, Khan and Finnis. Public Value: How can it be measured, managed and grown? Nesta, 2019 https://media.nesta.org.uk/documents/Public_Value_WEB.pdf
• Moore, Michael. Creating Public Value, Strategic Management in Government. Harvard University Press, 1995.
• Customer Experience and Public Value Creation Technical Report (2023R06EN), PIARC, 2023. https://www.piarc.org/en/order-library/40773-en-Customer%20Experience%20and%20Public%20Value%20Creation%20%E2%80%93%20Technical%20Report
• Faulkner, Nicholas and Kaufman, Stefan. Avoiding Theoretical Stagnation: A System Review and Framework for Measuring Public Value, Australian Journal of Public Administration, 2017.

Objectives

To further understand, create and measure the public value of transportation services and contributions to community and societal goals, there are two proposed objectives for this research project.

1. Identify non-transportation public agencies that have demonstrated proficiency in capturing and measuring public value data and are using it for policy decision-making.
2. Using both transportation agencies identified in previous research (reference Sections 4 and 5) as well as non-transportation public agencies identified in Objective 1, review, synthesize, and document public value creation programs, frameworks and noteworthy practices in the following areas that are scalable and can be applied at transportation public agencies. The areas represent the dimensions of public value as describe in Faulkner’s and Kaufman’s research on Avoiding Theoretical Stagnation: A Systematic Review and Framework for Measuring Public Value.[1]

• • Outcome achievement--The extent to which the public body is improving publicly valued outcomes across a wide variety of areas. This can include social, economic, environmental and cultural outcomes.
  • Trust and legitimacy--The extent to which the organization and its activities are trusted and perceived to be legitimate by the public and key stakeholders.
  • Service delivery quality--The extent to which services are delivered in a high‐quality manner that is considerate of users’ needs. These will be maximized when service users are satisfied, and when they perceive the services to be accessible, convenient and responsive to their needs.
  • Efficiency--The extent to which the organization is achieving maximal public value benefit with minimal resources. (It is expected to be high when the benefits provided by an organization are perceived to outweigh the costs, when unnecessary bureaucracy is avoided, and when an organization is perceived to offer value for money.)

[1] Nicholas Faulkner and Stefan Kaufman. Avoiding Theoretical Stagnation: A System Review and Framework for Measuring Public Value, Australian Journal of Public Administration, 2017.

Keywords/Terms

Link to 2021-2026 AASHTO Strategic Plan

This project is aligned with the AASHTO Mission to connect America with the transportation system of today and tomorrow. The project supports AASHTO Strategic Plan goals including safe mobility and access for everyone, and national transportation policy leadership and strategies such as establishing framework and tools to enable impactful policy decisions.

Urgency and Potential Benefits

Without a comprehensive understanding of community needs and priorities, transportation agencies face significant risk in meeting community goals and expected levels of service. These risks could lead to ineffective decisions, inefficient use of funds, and erosion of public confidence. Transitioning to integrated thinking and promoting a holistic view at program delivery and “public value” strategies supports public value creation, contribution to community goals and societal benefit, and accountability to the public trust.

Implementation Considerations

The research would be beneficial to transportation administrations and professionals at any level of government as well as transportation organization partners and stakeholders who all have a vested interest in creating public value and measuring value contribution toward community and societal goals.

Author(s)

Others Supporting Problem Statement

Potential Panel Members

Person Submitting Statement

Notes