North Florida TPO Modernizes Transportation Planning with SOVRA Plan-to-Program

The North Florida Transportation Planning Organization (North Florida TPO) modernized how it manages and shares Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) information using SOVRA Plan-to-Program.

At a glance 

Customer: North Florida Transportation Planning Organization


Challenge: Limited mapping and public access to TIP information, along with a time-consuming process for updating and maintaining data 


Solution: SOVRA Plan-to-Program 

Results: 

Greater control over data, easier public access to transportation project information, improved public involvement, and more efficient day-to-day planning workflows

Modernizing a Data-Heavy Transportation Planning Process

The North Florida Transportation Planning Organization (North Florida TPO) is a metropolitan planning organization serving four counties across Northeast Florida: Duval, Clay, Nassau, and St. Johns. With a seven-person staff supporting transportation planning across approximately 3,000 square miles and a population of roughly 1.7 million, the organization needed a more flexible way to manage and share information about its Transportation Improvement Program (TIP).

Before SOVRA Plan-to-Program, the TPO relied on a basic database that offered limited functionality. Staff could search and print TIP data, but there was no mapping capability and no easy way to make project information accessible to the public.
Updating information was also a challenge. The TPO sent data to an outside party and waited for updates to be processed. Staff also received database files from the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) that required manual corrections and reconciliation.

“We could wait one to two weeks before the person manually downloaded the information,” said Elizabeth De Jesus, Transportation Program Manager. “The fact that we can upload our own data immediately, that’s a game changer for us.”

Mapping was one of the biggest gaps in the existing process. The organization wanted a way to visualize projects geographically and make that information easier for staff, committees, and the public to explore.

Public accessibility was another priority. Previously, the TPO primarily shared its TIP through a large PDF document, making it difficult for residents and stakeholders to find information about individual projects.

North Florida TPO began exploring SOVRA Plan-to-Program through a paid trial in 2022 which gave the team an opportunity to work with the system before fully transitioning from its existing solution. When the organization needed to move away from its previous system, the TPO had already completed two TIP cycles in SOVRA Plan-to-Program and was confident in the platform and its data.

Putting More Control in Staff Hands

The TPO began implementing SOVRA Plan-to-Program in 2023, taking a deliberate approach to data validation and configuration.

The team worked closely with SOVRA to make sure its existing data aligned with the system and that information was transferring accurately. The implementation included regular meetings and focused testing to identify and resolve issues. The team also worked with SOVRA to configure reports to meet Florida’s requirements, including producing a PDF version of the TIP.

“We took a very deliberate process. Most of it was just verifying the data was transferring correctly, because accuracy was the most important thing.” said Clark Letter, Director, Planning and Analytics.

The implementation took approximately six months to reach the configuration North Florida TPO wanted. That careful approach helped the team build confidence in the data and the new system.

Once SOVRA Plan-to-Program was in place, North Florida TPO gained greater control over its transportation program data. Staff could update projects and maps themselves rather than wait for an outside party to make changes.

“The ability to go in and edit and not have to wait for others to make changes, whether it’s editing projects or adding projects or editing the maps or anything…was a big plus,” said Clark.

The ability to make updates directly also gave the team more flexibility to keep information current and respond to changes as they happened.

Making Transportation Information More Accessible

Mapping was one of the most important capabilities North Florida TPO wanted from a new solution. With SOVRA Plan-to-Program, staff can access project maps directly within the system rather than creating maps manually for presentations.

The organization also gained a public-facing way to share TIP information beyond a lengthy PDF.

Citizens, committee members, and other stakeholders can search for individual projects, explore projects on a map, and view details such as project funding and funding history.

“If I’m interested in US 17, I can just type that in and search and it’ll pull up all the projects related to that specific roadway. A lot easier for our public and committee members to find specific projects and then click on a specific project and get details of the project funding,” said Clark.

North Florida TPO has also begun organizing information into more digestible views, including lists by county and project type. The goal is to make it easier for people to find the transportation information most relevant to them.

As Clark put it, “Who wants to see a document that has 300 pages?”

Instead, residents can explore the information online and use the map to see projects planned in their own communities.

Giving the Public More Ways to Engage

SOVRA Plan-to-Program has also become part of North Florida TPO’s public involvement process.

During TIP development and amendments, the public can access individual projects and submit comments directly through the system. Staff can then track those comments and generate a record tied to the specific project to document and share with FDOT.

The mapping capabilities provide another way for residents to engage in transportation planning. Rather than reviewing an entire TIP document, someone can navigate the map and explore projects in a specific neighborhood or area.

North Florida TPO has also used the platform to rethink how it engages with stakeholders. Instead of relying heavily on in-person presentations in the region, the organization has incorporated virtual meetings and encouraged stakeholders to explore the information themselves.

The approach has received positive feedback from stakeholders across the organization, including engineers, planners, and board members. One stakeholder specifically told the TPO that they “loved the process” because the information felt more accessible.

A More Efficient Approach to Transportation Planning

For North Florida TPO, the impact of SOVRA Plan-to-Program extends beyond replacing an older system. The organization has changed how staff manage information, how stakeholders find transportation projects, and how the public participates in the planning process.

Greater control over data. Staff no longer rely on an outside party for routine changes. They can update projects, maps, and other information as needed, reducing the time spent waiting for updates and reconciling data.

More accessible information for the public. The TPO has moved beyond relying primarily on a large PDF to communicate its TIP. The public can now search for individual projects, view funding information, and explore transportation projects geographically.

The organization can also organize information into more digestible views, helping citizens find projects by county, project type, roadway, and other criteria.

More meaningful public involvement. Project-specific comments give the TPO a clearer record of public feedback and make it easier to connect comments with the projects.

The ability to explore projects through an interactive map also gives residents another way to understand how transportation investments may affect their communities.

More efficient day-to-day work. North Florida TPO does not currently use a formal quantitative measurement system to track efficiency gains from the platform. However, the team has seen improvements in its day-to-day workflow.

With greater confidence in the accuracy of its data and more control over updates, staff can spend less time pulling and checking information and more time on other planning work.

“It’s removing workload so we can concentrate our efforts on other activities,” said Clark.

Moving Forward with Confidence

For the TPO, the transition to SOVRA Plan-to-Program was a gradual process. Starting with a trial allowed the team to gain experience with the platform, while a deliberate implementation and data validation process helped build confidence in the system.

Today, the TPO has a more flexible way to manage its TIP, a more accessible way for the public to explore transportation projects, and more control over the information its staff relies on every day.

For other transportation agencies considering a move away from legacy systems, Clark’s advice is straightforward:

“Don’t be averse to technology and software that can make you more efficient,” said Clark. “If you need to do manual checks or spot checks with the data to gain confidence in it, do it, and then, run with it.”