What dig-once projects can teach us about better infrastructure planning

The best infrastructure projects aren't measured only by what gets built; they're measured by how much they affect the people who live, work and travel through a community. When construction is unavoidable, the goal should be to minimize impact.

"What you have to think about to do anything in a dig-once approach or Complete Corridors approach is taking a step back and looking at what's best for the taxpayer or the resident, the customer. How can we do this in a way that's more efficient, that is less disruptive and impacts people and businesses in a less disruptive way?"

What appears to be a simple roadway is actually a complex web of ownership, utilities and infrastructure systems. Before agencies can coordinate projects, they first need to understand how many others may be involved.

"We really did have an intersection with one direction owned by the state DOT, one direction owned by the county, one direction owned by the municipality, one direction owned by the township... there could be a dozen organizations at any given intersection that you're dealing with."

Individually, roadway, utility and broadband projects each have value. But together, they can create even more value by reducing duplication, shortening timelines and minimizing neighborhood disruption in the long run. Combining or aligning projects adds complexity up front, but that investment pays off once the projects are completed.

"You might spend a little more time on that preliminary early-stage work... but you save a ton of time, a ton of money and a lot of trouble."

Most project managers hear "scope creep" and immediately think more time, more money and more risk. Dig-once planning challenges that mindset. If a corridor will already be under construction, there may never be a better time to address aging infrastructure, utility upgrades and other community improvements.

"Scope creep is often looked at as a bad thing. But if we're going to do it, let's do it one time. Let's do it right."

Many people assume infrastructure projects are expensive because the materials are expensive, but the greatest costs most often come from excavation, labor, traffic control and the disruptions caused in the surrounding community. That's why coordinated construction can create substantial savings when it comes to hiring the people who get these jobs done.

"What you're paying for is for people to go out there, set up traffic control, stop traffic for days, weeks, months and then dig holes and install all of this. So all of the costs when you're doing a horizontal infrastructure project like this are labor and installation. It's the manpower part of it. It's not your materials.”