The Denver Department of Transportation and Infrastructure (DOTI) Evaluation Initiative evaluates the effectiveness of projects to understand if they are having the desired impact towards achieving Denver’s transportation vision. Evaluation results are used to identify necessary changes to street design, prioritize future safety improvements, make data-driven decisions to install the most effective treatments, and gather community support for similar projects. The initiative gathers quantitative data (crashes, volumes, speeds, bikes+ ridership, etc.) and qualitative data (user comfort and perception) to build a comprehensive understanding of DOTI’s projects.
DOTI’s evaluation program helps ensure that transportation projects deliver real, measurable improvements for Denver residents. Key benefits include:
1. Understanding what works By measuring outcomes before and after a project is built, we can see which designs and strategies are most effective at improving safety, mobility, and quality of life.
2. Learning and improving over time Consistent evaluation helps DOTI refine project designs, update standards, and continuously improve how we plan and deliver transportation improvements.
3. Supporting transparent decisionmaking Evaluation results help community members, City Council, and partners understand the impacts of transportation projects and why certain decisions are made.
4. Building public trust Sharing data and outcomes shows our commitment to accountability and reinforces that DOTI is making evidence based choices that benefit the community.
5. Using resources wisely Evaluation helps identify which investments produce the greatest benefit, guiding future spending and helping DOTI get the most value from limited transportation dollars.
6. Identifying issues early Postconstruction monitoring allows DOTI to catch and address challenges – such as unexpected traffic patterns or operational concerns – before they become long term problems.
The Evaluation Program reports results by project type. DOTI’s capital funding is tied to specific types of transportation assets – such as traffic calming, bikeways, transit improvements, major multimodal projects, and pedestrian crossings. Reporting results by project type helps us understand how each investment category performs over time.
Multiple projects are needed for reliable findings within a project type. A single project can offer valuable insights, but no one location represents an entire project type. DOTI evaluates several projects within the same category to build findings that are statistically meaningful and reflect a broad range of conditions across Denver.
Project types. DOTI has identified several project categories that will be evaluated on an ongoing basis to build a robust, statistically significant dataset:
Studying these categories over time helps DOTI track progress, improve design standards, and inform future investments.
Treatment-level evaluations. DOTI also studies specific traffic safety and mobility treatments installed at multiple locations – such as neighborhood traffic circles, right-turn-on-red restrictions, rectangular rapid flashing beacons (RRFBs), etc. Evaluating how these treatments perform across different neighborhoods and street contexts helps identify the most effective design solutions citywide and allows DOTI to build statistically significant findings that support better engineering, operations, and planning decisions.
DOTI uses a range of data sources to understand how transportation projects perform and whether they are improving safety, comfort, and mobility for people across Denver. The type of data collected depends on the goals of each project.
Project‑specific goals guide what we measure. Every transportation project is different—whether it’s improving pedestrian safety, upgrading a bikeway, enhancing transit reliability, or managing vehicle speeds. DOTI tailors its data collection to match the goals and expected outcomes of each project.
Common types of data DOTI uses:
Evaluation depends on strong baseline data. To understand how much a project changes safety, mobility, or comfort, DOTI needs reliable “before” data for comparison. When baseline data is limited, evaluation results may be less precise or limited. DOTI is building capacities to ensure that appropriate data is collected before project construction to set a strong foundation for evaluations.
Spring 2026
DOTI is gathering quantitative and qualitative (survey) data to evaluate the following treatments:
Fall 2025 (Findings available soon!)
DOTI gathered quantitative and qualitative data to evaluate the following project types:
Specific findings from these projects are being incorporated to support engineering, design, and planning. Additional projects will be evaluated under each of these project types to build statistically significant findings for the effectiveness of each project type.
In 2025, DOTI completed the Vision Zero and Bikeways Evaluation Study, the first large-scale evaluation effort in DOTI's Project Evaluation Program. This study showed, among other insights, that our projects are helping to achieve our safety and mode shift goals. Some specific treatments worked better than others and DOTI is adjusting its planning, design, and construction practices to make our projects even more effective at increasing safety and mobility in Denver.
Evaluation Study Results(PDF, 3MB)
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