184 favorites. It’s about providing benefits and improved system performance to help move people and goods.” Now, with a public GIS-powered dashboard, each project and project stakeholder have accountability. Anyone can see which projects have been selected for funding, why each project was selected, and furthermore, whether they are on schedule and on budget. Addressing Equity and Showing Transparency Projects are also monitored throughout their life cycle to ensure they are meeting goals. Of the approximately 400 applications submitted each year, fewer than half are selected for funding. Those chosen are expected to complete their projects within six years; the first six-year cycle wrapped up in 2022. Managing each project during this cycle has been easier, with the GIS-powered SMART SCALE approach ensuring continuity between project description, features, sketch, and estimate. Any stakeholder, including residents, can refer to the interactive map and dashboard to follow progress locally or across the state. SMART SCALE is also helping to address infrastructure equity. Analysis of who benefits from projects is built into the process; this wasn’t necessarily the case before SMART SCALE. Education and poverty levels are considered when scoring improvement projects. Accessibility, including access to public transit to connect people to jobs, is another key consideration for equitable mobility. Whether projects are implemented by localities or by VDOT, their progress is tracked on the same public dashboard and held to the same standards. This transparency encourages participants to explain their mistakes—why it happened and how it will be fixed or prevented in the future—and to resist The map shows SMART SCALE bridge and pavement projects. The numbers relate the priority level of each project.
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