Benefits and risks of APDM programmatic approaches to highway construction in the United States

Purpose There are limited studies that have explored a programmatic approach (systematic approach, agency-wide approach) to delivering and managing alternative project delivery methods (APDMs) in highway. This study aims to identify and document the benefits and risks of programmatic approaches to APDM for highway projects. Design/methodology/approach Data were collected from 50 targeted participants from state highway agencies. A survey of 50 highway agency experts in the USA and principal component analysis to analyze risks associated with APDMs were conducted. The purposive sampling based on participants' APDM experience was used for the survey. Statistical software (e.g. SPSS and R) was used for analyzing survey data. Findings The top five benefits of implementing APDM programmatic approaches include better risk management, schedule flexibility, innovation flexibility, earlier cost certainty, and effective change management. The top five risks of APDM programmatic approaches include utility issues, environmental permits and approvals, schedule and phasing issues, coordination with government agencies or other authorities having jurisdiction, and scope changes. Further, market conditions and staff experience risks showed statistically significant risk perception differences between experienced and less experienced agencies. Originality/value This study seems to be one of the first academic efforts in the USA to examine the benefits and risks of APDM programmatic approaches for highway construction, offering practical insights that enable agencies to identify key advantages and strategically allocate resources to manage risks associated with each approach.