A Growing OGRA Member Service Supported by the Ministry of Transportation

Municipalities are accountable for managing billions of dollars worth of assets, which requires accurate and reliable information on the assets' inventory and current conditions for future planning. With this in mind, the Ontario Good Roads Association (OGRA) developed the Municipal Data Works (MDW) program to address the asset management needs of municipal governments in Ontario. Asset management is a corporate philosophy that utilizes a system of formal processes based on engineering principles, sound business practices and economic rationale to effectively maintain, upgrade and operate public infrastructure assets over their lifecycles. To manage and maintain public infrastructure, municipalities must possess relevant strategic and operational information and analysis - which can be obtained through asset management practices. The Ministry of Transportation (MTO) has provided start-up funding for the development of MDW; a smart investment based on achievements to date with this new OGRA member service.

A good asset management system depends on data that is current, easily accessible, easy to manage, and ideally based on a uniform standard which is consistent across the province. Municipal Data Works is a web-based data storage repository for infrastructure asset data, based on Municipal Infrastructure Data Standard (MIDS 3.0 - the new common data standard for Ontario). MDW features the core asset inventory and the condition repository for roads, bridges, water, and sewers. In addition, the program also includes road and bridge inspection tools, a Capital Investment Plan tool (CIP), and a Road Data Conversion tool (RDC). Currently, an Asset Valuation module is being developed to assist municipalities in calculating "asset values" and generating reports that will comply with upcoming Public Sector Accounting Board (PSAB) requirements. MDW is an OGRA member service that allows municipalities, service providers, OGRA, and the provincial government to collect, access, evaluate, and report on infrastructure assets.

The Ministry of Transportation looks to Municipal Data Works for the collection of municipal road system data and for tools that municipalities can use to provide the Road Sufficiency Index (RSI) by using the Pavement Condition Index (PCI), the Bridge Condition Index (BCI), and the Bridge Sufficiency Index (BSI) calculations for the Canada-Ontario Municipal Rural Infrastructure Fund (COMRIF) and legacy funding programs. The road and bridge inventory and inspection module launched in 2005 provides inspection forms and calculators for PCI, BCI and BSI.

The Capital Investment Plan (CIP) tool launched in June 2006 allows municipalities to analyze their asset data and create a long-term investment plan that answers crucial questions like: What work needs to be done? Which work should be done first? How much it will cost? How it will affect the condition of the operating network? What will be the impact on the operating costs? Obtaining this information results in assets being treated with appropriate interventions to extend their useful life, which will save the municipality money in the long run.

The latest module released in July 2006 stores water and sewer asset data, plus tracks the condition of water, storm, and sanitary sewer networks. Municipalities can use MDW to record, store, and analyze asset and condition information about pipes, catch basins, hydrants, and valves. The water and sewer module also supports Bill 175 by enabling municipalities to better assess the condition of their municipal water and sewer networks, a matter that is becoming increasingly important to the Province of Ontario. Bill 175 requires municipalities to report to the Ministry of Environment on the provision of water and wastewater services, including information on the full cost of providing services (i.e., operating, financing, and renewal, replacement, and improvement costs).

After recognizing the benefits of Municipal Data Works, the Ontario Road Builders Association (ORBA) recently contributed funding towards development. In addition to partnerships with MTO and ORBA, twenty-one service providers are using MDW on behalf of municipal clients, thus demonstrating the practical application of MDW.

To get started on using MDW, municipalities must sign the municipal Data Provision Agreement (DPA), or have their service provider sign the License Agreement to use MDW on their behalf. Both agreements are available on the OGRA/MDW* website.

To take MDW for a test run in Demo Town, visit the OGRA/MDW website, click on "Test Drive," fill out the request for contact information, and send. You will receive a user ID and password in a separate email.

The Ontario Good Roads Association looks forward to the continued progress of MDW as an indispensable member service. MDW not only provides asset management tools for OGRA members, but is also a key part of OGRA's advocacy program for sustainable funding for municipal infrastructure in Ontario.