01515311

Component

Life-Cycle Assessment is a framework for evaluating products, processes, services, activities, and the complex systems in which they reside, from cradle-to-grave. When Life-Cycle Assessment is applied to transportation infrastructure, the analysis can evaluate the vehicle manufacturing, fuel production, and infrastructure construction phases not accounted for in a typical environmental analysis. Because a Life-Cycle Assessment can produce additional information about an alternative or set of alternatives, some transportation agencies are interested in pursuing such an analysis in their transportation decision-making. This paper provides guidance for agencies seeking to conduct a Life-Cycle Assessment of various transportation infrastructure options to aid in decision-making. The authors organize frameworks and methods by existing processes and decision points in order to ease the integration of Life-Cycle Assessment methods into the current transit planning and operations environment. Guidance to transit agencies wishing to perform Life-Cycle Assessment of new capital projects is presented, with consideration of policy and data trade-offs that an agency will likely encounter when conducting a Life-Cycle Assessment. Possible energy and emissions implications for land use are discussed. The authors found that many agencies lack data to perform a precise Life-Cycle Assessment at any one stage of the capital planning and delivery process, and that existing planning processes preclude detailed assessment and substantive decision-making in the same stage. The paper concludes with recommendations for California and the U.S. Federal Transit Administration to facilitate local Life-Cycle Assessment, such as producing information on life-cycle energy and emissions impacts for transit vehicles and projects.

This paper was sponsored by TRB committee ADC10 Environmental Analysis in Transportation.

01503729

14-1287

English

16p

2014

Transportation Research Board 93rd Annual Meeting

Digital/other

Figures; References; Tables

Decision making; Greenhouse gases; Infrastructure; Land use planning; Life cycle analysis; Public transit

U.S. Federal Transit Administration

California

Environment; Planning and Forecasting; Public Transportation; I15: Environment; I20: Design and Planning of Transport Infrastructure

Transportation Research Board Annual Meeting 2014 Paper #14-1287

TRIS, TRB, ATRI

Jan 27 2014 2:30PM