TEAMS delivers a fiscally sound asset management foundation.

• Author: Thorp, William
• Position: Best Practices

Every transportation agency must accurately forecast and prioritize capital expenditures and manage assets effectively to properly maintain and improve its infrastructure. Private industry has been implementing asset management programs for years. Public agencies are following suit, with transportation agencies typically at the forefront, as they are heavy in infrastructure assets that require ongoing maintenance. Toll agencies, in particular, have taken an early lead as organizations that, like profit-centered businesses, need to justify budgets based on revenues.

Florida's Turnpike Enterprise, a division of the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT), has become a leader in this arena. The Turnpike Enterprise generates its own revenue. It owns and operates the fourth-longest toll road system in the United States--460 miles of roadway more than 130 interchanges, eight service plazas, and five toll bridges--physical assets worth approximately $3.6 billion. The agency's asset management database, the Turnpike Enterprise Asset Management System (TEAMS), which was implemented in 2003, has enabled the Turnpike Enterprise to inventory the condition of its infrastructure and act in anticipation of future needs. The result is targeted and regular preventive maintenance that keeps this statewide system of toll roads in better condition at lower cost. Through TEAMS, Turnpike Enterprise staff can readily track asset conditions and identify, forecast, and prioritize capital expenditures required for periodic renewal and replacement throughout the network of toll roads.

One of the keys to developing TEAMS was a major reform of the Turnpike Enterprise by the state. In March 2002, the Florida Legislature passed a bill that made the Turnpike an enterprise agency The Turnpike Enterprise could now use a variety of private sector-style best business management practices ranging from financial management to human resources. New approaches to asset management were a critical component. TEAMS is a Web-based system that gives Turnpike Enterprise staff desktop access to a complete inventory of facilities and equipment--and the ability to apply uniform evaluation standards to determine each asset's condition and life expectancy Staff can use this information to prioritize project needs throughout the Turnpike Enterprise's extensive highway system.

The project stems from an major financial planning effort undertaken to estimate the Turnpike's infrastructure requirements over the next 20 years. TEAMS has delivered accurate...