Asset management

This research summary is part of the final deliverable for Report 2025-19, "Assessing the Deterioration of Pedestrian Assets," published in February 2025,

Pedestrian assets, particularly sidewalks, are highly susceptible to aging, adverse weather conditions, and suboptimal construction practices, often leading to rapid deterioration. This deterioration is often ignored due to the widespread misconception that pedestrian assets are low risk, resulting in many deteriorated sidewalks being left untreated or inadequately maintained. A comprehensive deterioration modeling framework that integrates advanced spatial and temporal data sources, advanced data analytics, and predictive modeling would enable infrastructure managers to predict the aging process of pedestrian assets and ultimately prioritize investments, plan maintenance schedules, and allocate budgets efficiently. This project developed assessment frameworks and deterioration models for pedestrian assets that support reliable and informed decision-making regarding funding needs and asset design and maintenance. Various data sources and modeling and analysis procedures were explored, and a pedestrian asset assessment methodology was developed and evaluated. The research demonstrated a scalable and cost-effective approach to assessing sidewalk conditions, providing actionable insights for proactive maintenance. The quantifiable benefits, including construction savings, improved life-cycle costs, reduced risk, and safety enhancements, position this methodology as a valuable tool for sustainable infrastructure management.

This flyer pertains to 2019RIC03, Gravel Road Management Spreadsheet Tool Supplemental Guidance.

This Technical Summary pertains to Report 2023-08, “Rural Community Transit Strategies: Building Upon, Expanding and Enhancing Existing Assets and Programs,” published March 2023.

This project involved the development of innovative sharing-economy strategies to address rural transit challenges in Greater Minnesota. Many transit services and transportation network companies (TNC’s) like Uber and Lyft do not provide services to commuters outside metro areas, forcing most residents in Greater Minnesota to own automobiles. Meanwhile, many communities have school bus systems and substantial vehicle capacity that remain parked and unused much of the day. This project uses a human-centered design approach to engage a community in Greater Minnesota with a population of less than 10,000 people to develop a pilot for rural community transit that could be a model for similar communities across the state. The research seeks to answer the question of whether a shared, mobility services approach to rural transit transportation in Greater Minnesota could meet people's needs at a lower cost, with more convenience, and with greater positive impacts on the local economy than current transit practices and services. Our research developed a menu of strategies that uses existing community assets to promote walking, biking, car sharing, bus sharing, and car and van pooling.

In partnership with MN2050, Wilder Research conducted an online survey for the Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT) that included engineers from 264 jurisdictions across the state of Minnesota, including cities, counties, and two state agencies; Metropolitan Council and MnDOT. The goals of this ‘State of the Infrastructure’ survey are: 1) to learn to what degree city, county, and state agencies are using asset management practices to manage the infrastructure assets in Minnesota, and 2) to build and share collective knowledge regarding the types, condition, and value of infrastructure assets in Minnesota. This data book includes data from the first survey, which was conducted in spring-summer 2015.

The goals of the ‘State of the Infrastructure’ survey are: 1) to learn to what degree city, county, and state agencies are using asset management practices in Minnesota, and 2) to share collective knowledge regarding the wide range of infrastructure types and condition of infrastructure assets in Minnesota. In partnership with MN2050 and the Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT), Wilder Research developed a web survey that asked about asset management practices.

This Technical Summary pertains to Report 2015-47, “Next Generation Bridge Management Tools and Inspection,” published December 2015.

This Implementation Summary pertains to Report 2016-26, “Development of a MnDOT Foundation Boring Mobile Application Gateway, GeoApp,” published August 2016.

This Technical Summary pertains to Report 2014-22, “Minnesota Department of Transportation Metro Barrier Extraction and LiDAR Project,” published June 2014.