Abstract Manager

Complex transportation infrastructure projects are inherently constrained, involve multiple stakeholders, and are time-intensive. Because they unfold over many years, they are frequently exposed to changing conditions—accelerated population growth, evolving land use patterns, and new transportation policy priorities that emerge after key design and procurement decisions have already been made. When these shifts arise late in project development or during delivery, agencies often lack practical tools to respond without restarting planning, delaying construction, or destabilizing projects already in motion.

This presentation focuses on the use of a formal Value Planning (VP) methodology as a pragmatic tool for navigating these situations. Grounded in established Value Methodology principles, VP offers a structured yet adaptable approach to clarifying objectives, reconciling competing priorities, and supporting transparent decision-making under compressed timelines. Importantly, VP can be applied in parallel with active delivery and procurement, rather than being limited to early planning or design value engineering exercises.

The Windsor Street Exchange project (WSE) in Halifax Regional Municipality is used as a contextual example. A critical regional gateway and National Trade Corridor, the WSE has been under development for several years and entered delivery through a Progressive Design-Build contract. As groundbreaking approached, Council responded to community calls to incorporate dedicated BRT lanes and enhanced active transportation facilities into the design. The project team turned to the Value Planning methodology.

The presentation will illustrate how the VP approach was applied in this environment: the use of prescribed phases, intensive multi-stakeholder workshops, consensus-based value criteria, and enabling a robust creative idea generation process without compromising on the objectives or schedule. The results of this accelerated effort will be compared with a typical 12–18‑month planning process, highlighting how the VP study was completed in only three months.

Attendees will gain practical insight into Value Planning, when it’s an appropriate intervention, how it can be deployed without derailing active projects, and how it can help teams respond to emerging priorities while maintaining momentum, credibility, and confidence in complex infrastructure delivery.