Schedule effectiveness of alternative contracting strategies for transportation infrastructure improvement projects

Incentive/Disincentive (I/D) and Cost-plus-Time (A+B) are the two most widely used alternative contracting strategies to implement public transportation infrastructure projects in the United States. However, little is known about their impact on project schedule performance. As a result, state highway agencies often struggle to select effective contracting strategies and estimate the budgets accurately for transportation projects. A quantitative analysis drawing on 1,372 public transportation projects in California was conducted to address this shortcoming by determining the schedule effectiveness of alternative contracting strategies. The analysis showed that I/D contracting strategy was effective in shortening overall construction duration, however, A+B contracting strategy led to severe schedule delays, worse than conventionally contracted projects. The findings of this study will assist decision-makers, particularly state highway agencies, make better-informed decisions when they are planning and selecting the most effective alternative contracting strategies for transportation improvement projects.