Seventy-four leaders in transportation systems management and operations ( TSM&O) convened on December 10-12, 2008, in Washington, D.C., to identify ways to advance regional transportation operations and improve regional transportation system performance. Goals of the conference were to:

• Formulate new and innovative approaches to regional operations;
• Identify the opportunities, challenges, and benefits of regional approaches to regional operations; and
• Formulate a research and programmatic agenda for advancing regional operations.

The participants represented jurisdictions from across the United States and Ontario, Canada. The RTSMO ponsored by the Transportation Research Board ( TRB) Regional Transportation Systems Management and Operations (RTSMO) Committee and the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) in cooperation with the National Traffic Incident Management Coalition (NTIMC).

Panel participants considered three aspects of regional operations:

• The first aspect was referred to as “Answering the ‘Who? What? and How?’ of Regional Operations” and encompassed organizing and planning for regional operations.
• The second aspect focused on implementing regional operations strategies, known as “Making Regional Operations a Reality.”
• The last aspect considered measuring regional operations performance, titled “Monitoring Performance to Gauge Success.”