Chapter 9 of the Caltrans Project Development Procedures Manual states that projects shall be adequately scoped prior to approval for funding. The basis for scope, cost, and schedule shall be documented in a PID for all major projects on the State highway system (SHS).

Projects-funded-by-others will require an encroachment permit and either a permit engineering evaluation report (PEER) or a PID using the Project Study Report - Project Development Support (PSR-PDS) template. 

If a project is considered to be a non-complex project and the construction cost of the project is less than $1 million, then the review and approval of the project is completed under the encroachment permit process.  For projects less than $1 million, Caltrans determines the complexity of the project through the permit application review.
If the project is considered to be a non-complex project and the construction cost of the project is less than $3 million, then review and approval of the project can be completed through the PEER process.  The PEER melds engineering review of permit proposals into the normal encroachment permit application review to eliminate any separate processing of a PID.  The PEER process is intended to streamline the processing of projects-funded-by-others by reducing the steps in the project development process.

If the project is considered to be a complex project or exceeds $3 million, then review and approval of the project can be completed through the traditional PID process using the PSR-PDS template.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

When is a PID required?

Do non-STIP projects require a PID?

What type of projects can utilize the streamlined PID process?