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    <title>Transport Research International Documentation (TRID)</title>
    <link>https://trid.trb.org/</link>
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    <language>en-us</language>
    <copyright>Copyright © 2026. National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.</copyright>
    <docs>http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss</docs>
    <managingEditor>tris-trb@nas.edu (Bill McLeod)</managingEditor>
    <webMaster>tris-trb@nas.edu (Bill McLeod)</webMaster>
    <image>
      <title>Transport Research International Documentation (TRID)</title>
      <url>https://trid.trb.org/Images/PageHeader-wTitle.jpg</url>
      <link>https://trid.trb.org/</link>
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    <item>
      <title>Incorporating Cost-Based Estimating Techniques into Bid-Based Estimating</title>
      <link>https://trid.trb.org/View/2709242</link>
      <description><![CDATA[Accurate and defensible cost estimates are critical for state departments of transportation (DOTs) to program funds, award contracts, and deliver projects on time. Most agencies rely on historical bid-based estimating, which is efficient but often fails to meet federal accuracy benchmarks. Contractors, by contrast, use cost-based estimating (CBE), building unit prices from labor, equipment, materials, and productivity. CBE is generally more accurate and defensible, especially during volatile markets or for unique items. Yet only a few state DOTs rely primarily on CBE, as compared with bid-based and hybrid approaches.

State DOTs require practical, low-burden methods to integrate CBE into bid-based workflows. Research is needed to (1) identify transferable CBE techniques that improve estimate reliability; (2) develop guidelines, decision trees, and templates for hybrid estimating; (3) define a minimum viable data specification for labor, equipment, and productivity inputs; and (4) validate guidelines developed and deliver an implementation playbook with training modules. 

The objective of this research is to provide guidance, resources, and tools based on CBE techniques that can be readily incorporated into a state DOT’s existing bid-based estimating process to produce more reliable and defensible engineer’s estimates. The desired outcome is a practical hybrid estimating framework that strengthens accuracy without requiring the full resource commitment of traditional CBE. ]]></description>
      <pubDate>Wed, 03 Jun 2026 11:18:30 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://trid.trb.org/View/2709242</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>A Reservations-Based Railway Network Operations Management System</title>
      <link>https://trid.trb.org/View/2691557</link>
      <description><![CDATA[A shipment scheduling and operational control method is developed and tested, to help railroads become more competitive for high revenue, service sensitive freight. A bid-price based, profit maximizing revenue management approach is proposed to allow a rail carrier to develop achievable and market sensitive quotations of delivery time for new shipments calling in. Bid prices are derived using a subgradient step size algorithm; a modified shortest path procedure is used to solve the decomposed subproblems. Once the service quotation has been developed, a deterministic, cost minimizing, multicommodity network flow model, including train capacity and integral flow constraints is solved to manage shipments moving on the railroad in real time. This model dynamically reroutes shipments to take advantage of all available train capacity in the network, while still meeting the committed delivery times on priority shipments. A customized dual ascent procedure, using a tabu search approach as an anti-cycling mechanism, adapts the previous solution any time new information is received. Both procedures have been integrated into a rolling horizon simulation model. Simulation results indicate up to a 10 point improvement in railway operating ratio may be achievable through implementation of this shipment management strategy.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Mon, 04 May 2026 11:05:26 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://trid.trb.org/View/2691557</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Bid Inflation for Highway and Bridge Projects: Challenges &amp; Solutions</title>
      <link>https://trid.trb.org/View/2666686</link>
      <description><![CDATA[Construction input prices have increased dramatically both nationwide and in Maine. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Producer Price Index, the cost of construction materials has increased nearly 50% nationally over the past four years. Our analysis suggests that input prices in Maine largely match the trends observed nationwide. While the data suggest that Maine highway and bridge construction wages levels closely match those seen in New Hampshire and Vermont, we have evidence to suggest that Maine firms are paying more on a per unit basis for liquid asphalt and gravel—two key inputs to road paving work—than its neighbors. To better understand the cost inflation that Maine is seeing in highway and bridge construction, and to determine the extent to which other states are seeing similar levels of inflation, we compile publicly available data on commodity prices and construction employment to analyze trends in input prices. For national data, we rely on commodity price indexes provided by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), which are frequently used by industry experts such as the Associated General Contractors of America (AGC) to track relevant input trends (Simonson, 2022). For wage and employment data, we rely both on prevailing wage data under the Davis- Bacon Acts of 1931 and government (state and federal) estimates of labor market statistics in relevant industries. Both sources have been used in previous academic research to inform estimates of future highway construction costs (Wilmont & Cheng, 2003). Additionally, we analyze Maine Department of Transportation (MaineDOT) and Maine Turnpike Authority (MTA) bid data from 2015 to 2022 and construct a statistical model informed by relevant academic literature to better understand how market conditions and project characteristics affect bid behavior. Finally, we report results of a survey of relevant industry firms to identify their main sources of uncertainty and constraints, as well as to elicit their general market outlook and attitude towards working with the MaineDOT.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Thu, 19 Feb 2026 17:04:03 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://trid.trb.org/View/2666686</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>The Automated Technical Bid Evaluation in UPPWD using Prahari Software Zones</title>
      <link>https://trid.trb.org/View/2601656</link>
      <description><![CDATA[Engineering projects play a vital role in the government's infrastructure development plan, and their success largely depends on selecting a reliable and competent public tendering system that ensures that the government's vision is translated efficiently on the ground. However, the traditional bid evaluation process has faced criticism for discretionary decisions and inconsistent interpretations. While e-Tender portals have streamlined bid submissions, the evaluation process still poses challenges. Addressing this, the Uttar Pradesh Public Works Department (UP PWD) introduced the 'Prahari' software, offering an  automated bid evaluation solution.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Tue, 18 Nov 2025 09:29:12 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://trid.trb.org/View/2601656</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Best-Value Procurement in Transportation: Lessons Learned from Bid Protest Challenges</title>
      <link>https://trid.trb.org/View/2553140</link>
      <description><![CDATA[The best value (BV) procurement method, which incorporates nonprice factors in addition to price, has gained traction in the transportation sector, particularly for complex projects. However, effectively and objectively analyzing nonprice aspects in BV selection to mitigate bid protests and ensure fairness remains a crucial challenge. Thus, the objective of this research is to identify BV procurement issues that have led to formal bid protests and provide recommendations for alleviating such protests in future projects. The methodology employed consists of a comprehensive literature review on BV implementation in the transportation industry, an analysis of enabling BV legislation at the federal, state, and municipal levels. This was followed by thorough content analysis of bid protests retrieved from the Government Accountability Office (GAO) online database. In reliance on an analysis of twelve bid protests that resulted from the use of BV selection, it was determined that protests occurred in cases involving: (1) proper, open, and consistent communication; (2) overall unfairness, such as an unfair advantage being given to one proposer over the others; (3) concerns over the agency evaluation process; (4) improper use of evaluation criteria or weightings, which favors one proposer over another; and (5) improper composition and conduct of the selection/evaluation committee (e.g., organizational conflict). Based on these findings, the research provides informed recommendations on how agencies can proactively address and mitigate similar challenges that may arise during the procurement selection phase. By shedding light on notable bid protest cases, this research underscores critical issues that can emerge with BV selection and offers valuable insights into effective strategies for agencies to tackle these challenges, promoting transparency and fairness in procurement processes.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Mon, 23 Jun 2025 16:00:37 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://trid.trb.org/View/2553140</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>A major change at the last minute for a major tunnel project? Surely not!</title>
      <link>https://trid.trb.org/View/2563101</link>
      <description><![CDATA[Sydney's historic third harbour crossing reached a major milestone in late 2022 when the NSW Government awarded a contract for the design and construction of Stage Two of the mega project to ACCIONA. The Western Harbour Tunnel project will provide an alternative road crossing of Sydney Harbour to those currently provided by the Sydney Harbour Bridge and the Sydney Harbour Tunnel. The contract award came at the end of a successful competitive tender process with the second and final stage of the Western Harbour Tunnel (WHT) to include the construction and commissioning of: 1. Underground connections to Stage One at Birchgrove; 2..Tunnelling between Birchgrove and Warringah Freeway; 3. Complete tunnel fit-out. The project had been in development since 2015 and the Environmental Impact Statement for the project was prepared, assessed and the project's planning approval received in January 2021 on the basis the harbour crossing would be achieved with an immersed tube tunnel - the same approach used to build the original Harbour Tunnel in the early 1990s. The outcome of the competitive tender process in 2022 resulted in Transport for NSW determining that the use of tunnel boring machines (TBMs) provided the best overall solution to complete the tunnelling beneath Sydney Harbour. As a result, a pair of the largest TBMs to operate in the Southern Hemisphere will each tunnel approximately 1.5km from Birchgrove to Waverton including under the Sydney Harbour seabed. This paper will provide a detailed overview of how, during the procurement phase to select the industry design and construct delivery partner, alternative options for the delivery of the project were developed, proposed, considered and ultimately selected for the critical harbour crossing section of the project.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Tue, 10 Jun 2025 14:50:52 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://trid.trb.org/View/2563101</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Case study of Sydney Metro's tunnel procurement approach through early contractor involvement and collaboration to capture lessons learnt and achieve beneficial operational and customer outcomes</title>
      <link>https://trid.trb.org/View/2563096</link>
      <description><![CDATA[One of the fundamental decisions to make when procuring large infrastructure projects is that of the most appropriate Form of Contract. Sydney Metro has adopted an innovative approach to procure four complex mega tunnelling contracts on Sydney Metro West and Western Sydney Airport lines using Early Contractor Involvement (ECI) and a collaborative traditional competitive tendering process. For the tunnel procurement process to be effective, a strong collaborative and open-minded environment needs to be in place. This paper describes the process and how Sydney Metro’s values were used to enable the procurement of its more recent tunnelling projects. The emphasis being on innovation, integrity, and collaboration to maximise the beneficial outcomes of the design solutions arising from the tunnel procurement. Lessons learnt from each ECI engagement were used to inform and improve subsequent engagements. Throughout the process, a major focus was on providing consistency of the specification across all four contracts whilst allowing flexibility for contractor preferences and innovations. Although the ECI process enabled numerous incremental changes to be incorporated into the specifications, it also enabled several major changes to the design that yielded substantial improvements to the operational railway and positive customer outcomes. The paper describes some of the complexities associated with incorporating these contractor-initiated design changes into the tender proposal and the substantial amount of multi-disciplinary review by the technical and whilst allowing flexibility for contractor preferences and innovations. Although the ECI process enabled numerous incremental changes to be incorporated into the specifications, it also enabled several major changes to the design that yielded substantial improvements to the operational railway and positive customer outcomes. The paper describes some of the complexities associated with incorporating these contractor-initiated design changes into the tender proposal and the substantial amount of multi-disciplinary review by the technical and commercial teams.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Tue, 10 Jun 2025 14:50:49 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://trid.trb.org/View/2563096</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Root Causes and Mitigation Measures for Bid Protest in Alternative Contracting Methods</title>
      <link>https://trid.trb.org/View/2558394</link>
      <description><![CDATA[State departments of transportation (DOTs) and other transportation agencies use alternative contracting methods (ACMs) instead of the traditional design-bid-build method to improve project delivery for a range of transportation construction projects. ACMs include, but are not limited to, design-build (DB), progressive design-build (PDB), construction manager at risk/construction manager general contractor (CMAR/CMGC), and indefinite delivery/indefinite quantity (ID/IQ). 

Well-planned procurement processes are critical for state DOTs and other transportation agencies. There are many bases for protests from unsuccessful proposers. These protests may necessitate canceling the procurement and reprocuring the project, resulting in additional costs and delays. Research is needed to identify potential situations that may give rise to procurement protests for projects using ACMs so that agencies can take appropriate measures to reduce risk and ensure that the procurement process proceeds as planned. 

OBJECTIVE: The objective of this project is to develop a guide for identifying the root causes of procurement protests in ACMs, reducing the risk of protests, and addressing these protests. ]]></description>
      <pubDate>Wed, 28 May 2025 10:18:54 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://trid.trb.org/View/2558394</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>A Novel Electric Vehicle Aggregator Bidding Method in Electricity Markets Considering the Coupling of Cross-Day Charging Flexibility</title>
      <link>https://trid.trb.org/View/2512026</link>
      <description><![CDATA[This article presents a novel method for electric vehicle aggregators (EVAs) to engage in day-ahead and real-time electricity markets, overcoming the issue of cross-day energy gaps of EVAs. Traditional day-ahead bidding processes are usually treated as independent, one-time actions, and fail to consider the continuity of the cross-day energy status of the electric vehicle (EV) fleet. To tackle this problem, the endpoint energy and power boundary (EEPB) model is introduced, which is achieved by decomposing each EV charging event into multiple events based on the split points. Then, a two-layer method to determine the optimal split points, i.e., split times and split energy levels, which minimizes the flexibility loss of the EVA, is proposed. In addition, a novel cross-day bidding method for EVAs, which aligns with the day-by-day bidding process, is proposed. This method utilizes EEPB based on historical EV charging records, restores flexibility on an operating day, and implements a risk-averse cross-day bidding strategy. These proposed methods are tested on about 700000 real-world residential EV charging records in North China between 2021 and 2022, demonstrating their effectiveness in addressing cross-day energy gaps, reducing charging flexibility losses, and achieving a balance between cost and risk for EVAs.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Fri, 23 May 2025 15:34:43 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://trid.trb.org/View/2512026</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Highway Procurement During the Great Recession and Stimulus</title>
      <link>https://trid.trb.org/View/2481641</link>
      <description><![CDATA[The authors study highway procurement in Texas during the Great Recession and stimulus period, finding increased competition with more bidders and lower bids. The authors argue that the recession reduced opportunity costs, in part due to a slump in private-sector construction. The authors evaluate costs and efficiency by developing methods to estimate an empirical auction model tailored for public bidding and demonstrate that contracts became more efficient and less costly. A counterfactual analysis confirms that infrastructure procurement during recessions not only stimulates the economy but also enables the government to complete necessary projects at lower costs.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Wed, 08 Jan 2025 09:40:19 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://trid.trb.org/View/2481641</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>A Highway Construction Bid Price Index</title>
      <link>https://trid.trb.org/View/2470602</link>
      <description><![CDATA[The purchasing power of a dollar made available to the state for highway construction varies from time to time for any number of reasons. In order that those responsible for long range construction planning may have at their disposal a means of measuring this varying purchasing power at any time and projecting it to any future point in time, a cost index of highway construction has been prepared. This index equates the present cost of highway construction to the cost during the index base period or, in more simple terms, indicates the amount of construction one dollar would have purchased if spent during the base period rather than at the present or some past or future year. In addition to this means of measuring purchasing power, a properly designed index may be of use in estimating individual projects. Knowing the present value of the index and the anticipated trend, the designer should be able to compute the index for the project estimate and arrive at a logical conclusion regarding the validity of the estimate. This two fold purpose governed the design of the index.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Mon, 09 Dec 2024 11:40:07 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://trid.trb.org/View/2470602</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Automatic Tools for Quick and Accurate Construction Cost Estimation for Retaining Walls</title>
      <link>https://trid.trb.org/View/2422993</link>
      <description><![CDATA[Managing construction costs and budgets remains a top priority of the Tennessee Department of Transportation (TDOT) in allocating resources provided by taxpayers. Estimating project costs accurately is critical to ensuring that projects are delivered in the fiscal year they were planned. This project developed a Retaining Wall Probable Bid Price Estimating Tool to provide accurate estimates of construction costs for diverse retaining wall types quickly. Also, the Cast-in-Place (CIP) Wall Low-Cost Design Tool was developed to optimize the design of economical reinforced concrete cantilever retaining walls. The Retaining Wall Probable Bid Price Estimating Tool was tested with data from the S.R. 115 (US-129, Alcoa) project in Knox County, Tennessee. The Retaining Wall Probable Bid Price Estimating Tool result was 6.3% higher than the actual bid price, within ±10% of the target value. The CIP Wall Low-Cost Design Tool was applied to one of four retaining walls on the I-24 exit ramp at Bell Road in Davidson County, TN. The results of the low-cost design tool, per linear foot of the wall, reduced the cost by 26% compared to the original design. In summary, the primary project deliverables were the Retaining Wall Probable Bid Price Estimating Tool to quickly provide accurate estimates of the construction costs of various retaining walls and a companion user manual. The CIP Wall Low-Cost Design Tool and a companion user's manual were secondary deliverables.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Fri, 06 Sep 2024 09:27:04 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://trid.trb.org/View/2422993</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Mitigating Risk-Driven Project Costs in Contractor Bids</title>
      <link>https://trid.trb.org/View/2417071</link>
      <description><![CDATA[Contractors submit higher bids on projects they perceive as carrying levels of risk above what they are accustomed to. Typically, contractors submit higher bid prices on projects that present unfamiliar or unknown circumstances or which include non-standard bid items. Higher-than-expected bids increase project delivery costs. This in turn can reduce the number of projects the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet (KYTC) is able to complete. To mitigate bid-related risks, the Cabinet needs information on project types and bid items that result in higher contractor bids. This information can help KYTC understand what factors influence risk perceptions among contractors. More complete knowledge of issues that generate negative risks is critical for mitigating risks shouldered by contractors, accelerating project completion, and delivering projects.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Mon, 12 Aug 2024 13:26:33 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://trid.trb.org/View/2417071</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Real-time Decentralized Framework for Technology-Enabled Intermodal Freight Transport</title>
      <link>https://trid.trb.org/View/2399865</link>
      <description><![CDATA[This study addresses the less than truckload pickup and delivery problem where carriers collaborate in a decentralized and dynamic manner. It is assumed that carriers do not have any collaboration agreement with one another; however, they collaborate indirectly due to the need to outsource jobs and/or the opportunity to bid for jobs to increase profit. In the context of this study, trucks operate independently and make decisions on outsourcing and insourcing of jobs on their own. To address this problem, an approach based on a multi-round combinatorial auction (CA) is proposed. The novelty of the proposed approach is that in each round of the auction, trucks can bid for multiple bundles in contrast to the commonly used approach of a single bundle. The multiple bundles consist of the most profitable bundle that is determined by each truck and all or some subsets of this bundle. For the proposed multi-round CA approach, two integer programming models are developed: (1) for trucks to select the bundle of jobs to bid in real-time, and (2) for the central clearinghouse to select the winning trucks. Numerical experiments are conducted using an actual transportation network with up to 50 hypothetical jobs to be completed by five carriers. The results indicate that the proposed auction method provides a higher profit in all instances tested.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Thu, 11 Jul 2024 17:04:18 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://trid.trb.org/View/2399865</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>A Machine Learning and Statistical Analysis Framework for Enhanced Engineer's Estimate Accuracy in Highway Infrastructure Projects, Phase I</title>
      <link>https://trid.trb.org/View/2398009</link>
      <description><![CDATA[State Transportation Agencies (STAs) rely on accurate engineer's estimates for budget allocation and contractor bid evaluation in highway projects. However, recent assessments reveal significant inaccuracies, with up to 25% deviations between engineers' estimates and awarded bids in the Wyoming Department of Transportation (WYDOT) in 2019. These deviations also resonate with similar findings published by other STAs. Challenges persist due to poor data quality and variations in estimating methods. This study aims to evaluate WYDOT's engineer's estimates' accuracy against historical bid data and assess consequences on project performance. Methodologically, a literature review and questionnaire survey will inform quantitative analysis of survey data and statistical analysis of bid tabulation data. By enhancing engineer's estimate accuracy, this research seeks to minimize budget deviations, improve project performance, and promote efficiency and transparency in transportation project planning and execution.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Wed, 26 Jun 2024 12:25:55 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://trid.trb.org/View/2398009</guid>
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