In response to the top transportation trends in Minnesota; and opportunities and challenges facing its transportation system; MnDOT has developed this five-year Research Program Strategic Plan (2017 - 2022) to take stock of its research portfolio; refine its research strategy to support its overall vision and mission; and communicate the value of its research to a variety of stakeholders and audiences. The Plan was developed using extensive stakeholder engagement; a review of the guidance and best practices for transportation research programs; a Strengths; Weaknesses; Opportunities; and Threats (SWOT) analysis of MnDOT's approach to research; and in-depth analysis of MnDOT's approach to topic prioritization; funding; project and performance tracking; and partner relationships. These efforts were documented in detail in three working papers; and the main findings and recommendations that emerged are discussed in this Plan. This Research Program Strategic Plan makes six strategic recommendations on how MnDOT can improve both its research activities and research implementation. The Plan is a conceptual and agenda-setting guide; the strategies must be translated into internal actions and changes over the next five years by MnDOT to extract value from this strategic planning process.
