Urban Transportation Planning

Introduction to Metropolitan Transportation Planning

Definition of Transportation Planning

Transportation planning provides the information, tools, and public involvement needed for improving transportation system performance

Transportation planning is a continuous process that requires monitoring of the system’s performance and condition

Transportation Planning Affects…

Policies Choices among alternative

strategies Priorities Funding allocations

More than Transportation

Land Use Clean Air Act / Air Quality Standards National Environmental Policy Act

(NEPA) Americans With Disabilities Act

(ADA) Title VI / Environmental Justice

Types of Plans

Long-Range Strategic Project/Facility Implementation Improvement (“program”) Comprehensive Site (TIAs) Statewide

Legislation: SAFETEA-LU

Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users

Plan Requirements Institutional Structures Funding Conformity

Metropolitan Planning Factors I

(A) Support the economic vitality of the metropolitan area, especially by enabling global competitiveness, productivity, and efficiency

(B) Increase the safety of the transportation system for motorized and nonmotorized users

(C) Increase the security of the transportation system for motorized and nonmotorized users

Metropolitan Planning Factors II

(D) Increase the accessibility and mobility of people and for freight

(E) Protect and enhance the environment, promote energy conservation, improve the quality of life, and promote consistency between transportation improvements and State and local planned growth and economic development patterns

Metropolitan Planning Factors III

(F) Enhance the integration and connectivity of the transportation system, across and between modes, for people and freight

(G) Promote efficient system management and operation

(H) emphasize the preservation of the existing transportation system

Metropolitan Planning OrganizationMPO

Has the authority of Federal law (SAFETEA-LU)

Is a representative group of local stakeholders

Leads the transportation planning process for the metropolitan area

Is the region’s policymaking organization responsible for prioritizing transportation initiatives

Carries out the urban transportation planning process in cooperation with the State DOT(s) and transit operators

MPO Structure

Policy Board (“Planning Commission”) Sets regional long-term transportation policy

and approves plans Prioritizes and programs specific transportation

initiatives for funding Staff Advisory Committees Examples:

SEWRPC, DRCOG, PSRC, DVRPC, SCAG

Metropolitan Planning 3 C’s

Comprehensive Cooperative Continuing

Scope of Work for MPOs

A Unified Planning Work Program (UPWP) or simplified statement of work

Public involvement process/plan (PIP)

Financial Plan

Principal Products of MPOs

A Long-Range Transportation Plan Transportation Improvement

Program (TIP) Special Studies

Simplified Statement of Work (Large MPOs)

Planning tasks and studies to be conducted

Any transportation-related air quality planning tasks

All Federally funded studies State/local planning activities conducted

without Federal funds Funding sources identified for each

project Schedule of activities Agency responsible for each task or study

Public Involvement Process

Proactive Early and continuing Open and collaborative A formal Public Involvement Plan

(PIP) is required of Large MPOs (TMAs, Transportation Management Areas)

The Long-Range Transportation Plan

Describes vision for the region, and policies, operational strategies, and projects to achieve it

Covers at least the next 20 years Leads to an “intermodal” system Reflects public involvement Contains a financial plan and is

fiscally constrained Is updated every 4-5 years

Urban Transportation Planning Process

Southeastern Wisconsin Regional Planning Commission

http://www.sewrpc.org/

Holistic Approach

Transportation Improvement Program (TIP)

A staged, multi-year, intermodal program of prioritized transportation initiatives consistent with Plan

Shows annual activity for a 3-year period

Projects must be in the TIP for FHWA or FTA funding

Key Issues

Air Quality Freight Movement Land Use and Transportation Models and Their Use Performance Measures Project Development and the NEPA Process Public Involvement System Management and Operations (M&O) Title V1/Environmental Justice Transportation Demand Management (TDM)

Air Quality Conformity

Plans must demonstrate consistency with the emissions budgets needed to satisfy the Clean Air Act

Projects cannot move forward without conformity

Air Quality I

Sources Stationary sources Area sources Mobile sources

Pollutants (NAAQS) Ozone precursors (VOCs, NOx) Carbon monoxide (CO) Particulates (PM-10 or PM-2.5)

Air Quality II

Nonattainment Areas by Pollutant Extreme Severe Serious Moderate Marginal Maintenance

Milwaukee is Severe for Ozone

Air Quality III

Transportation plans, TIPs, and projects cannot: Create new violations of the National

Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS);

Increase the frequency or severity of existing violations of the standards

Delay attainment of the standards.

Air Quality IV

State Implementation Plan (SIP) Conformity CMAQ

Transit improvements, shared-ride services, traffic flow improvements, pedestrian and bicycle programs, construction of high-occupancy vehicle (HOV) lanes, I/M programs, and transportation demand management strategies

Freight I: Process

Define system elements that are critical for efficient movement of freight

Identify ways to measure system performance in terms of freight movement

Develop freight-oriented data collection and modeling

Creating a freight movement advisory committee

Freight II: Policies and Projects

Truck Restrictions Peak period bans, freeway section bans, route diversions…

Road Design and Construction Improved entry/exit ramps and merges, exclusive truck facilities…

Road Pricing Peak period permits and tolls, freeway permits…

Fleet Management Voluntary off-peak operations, automatic vehicle location/routing…

Traffic Engineering Wider lanes, Speed restrictions, Variable message signs…

Shipper/Receiver Actions Voluntary off-peak operations, mandatory off-peak operations…

Incident Management Automated detection, site and area surveillance/communications

Inspection/Enforcement Automated surveillance…

Information Management Highway advisory radio, traffic information…

Land Use I: Federal Regs

Transportation planning process should consider "the likely effect of transportation policy decisions on land use and development and the consistency of transportation plans and programs with the provisions of all applicable short- and long-term land use and development plans...."

Land Use II

Transportation/Land Use Interaction Land use creates trips Transportation facilities

create land use Smart Growth

and Economic Development

Models

Travel Forecasting Models

A travel forecasting model is the major analysis tool for evaluating urban transportation plans and conducting conformity analysis

Travel Models: Four Steps?

(Activity Allocation) Trip Generation Trip Distribution Mode Split Traffic Assignment (Measures of Effectiveness) (Impact Models)

Performance Measures I

Accessibility Percent population within "x" minutes of "y"

percent of employment sites Access by elderly Quality of ADA compliance

Mobility Average travel time Change in average travel time Average trip length Percentage of trips per mode Time lost to congestion Percent on-time transit performance

Performance Measures II

Economic development Jobs created New housing starts Percent of region's unemployed who cite lack

of transportation as principal barrier Economic cost of congestion

Environmental quality of life Environmental and resource consumption Tons of pollution generated Fuel consumption

Performance Measures III

Sprawl Change in difference between urban

and suburban household densities; decrease in wetlands; changes in air quality, land use, or mobility.

Safety Number of crash incidents or economic

costs of crashes

National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA)

It is the policy of the US government to protect the environment

Environmental Impact Statements Environmental Assessments (FONSI) Categorical Exclusions

Council on Environmental Quality

Environmental Impact Assessment Process

Public Involvement

Early and continuous involvement Reasonable public availability of technical

and other information Collaborative input on alternatives,

evaluation criteria, and mitigation needs Open public meetings where matters

related to transportation policies, programs, and projects are being considered

Open access to the decision making process prior to closure

Transportation System Management

Metropolitan traffic management centers Traffic signal coordination Incident management programs Preferential treatment for

transit/rideshares Special event traffic management Emergency management strategies Pricing of transportation services ITS applications for transit Traveler Information

Environmental Justice

Avoiding, minimizing, or mitigating disproportionately high and adverse human health and environmental, social or economic effects on minority and low-income populations

Ensuring the full and fair participation in the transportation decision making process by all potentially affected communities

Preventing the denial of, reduction in, or significant delay in the receipt of benefits by minority and low-income populations

Discussion: Milwaukee Environmental Justice

Are these strategies environmentally just? Locating Miller Park at old County

Stadium site Widening all Milwaukee freeways by 1

lane Eliminating the park-n-ride lot a

Bayshore Mall

Transportation Demand Management

Offering commuters alternative transportation modes and/or services

Providing incentives to travel on these modes or at non-congested hours

Providing opportunities to link or "chain" trips together

Incorporating growth management or traffic impact policies into local development decisions

See www.vtpi.org

Transportation Decision Making

Vision What do you want your transportation

system to be in 20 years? Coordinate with land use vision Identify current strengths and

weaknesses Identify opportunities and threats

Vision Metropolitan Washington DC

In the 21st Century, the Washington metropolitan region remains a vibrant world capital, with a transportation system that provides efficient movement of people and goods. This system promotes the region's economy and environmental quality, and operates in an attractive and safe setting--it is a system that serves everyone. The system is fiscally sustainable, promotes areas of concentrated growth, manages both demand and capacity, employs the best technology, and joins rail, roadway, bus, air, water, pedestrian and bicycle facilities into a fully interconnected network.

Goals and Objectives

Goals Broad General Intangible Abstract Few

“Improve transportation safety”

Objectives Narrow Precise Tangible Concrete Many

“Reduce the number of traffic conflict points”

Criteria and Standards

Criteria Specific numerical

expression of an objective

“Number of conflict points”

Standards Desired level of

achievement through plan implementation

“10% reduction in conflict points”

Operational Strategies

The “how” Linked to objectives “Identify intersections with poor crash

experience; introduce channelization, better signalization and coordination.”

“The one thing we need to do to solve our transportation problems is to stop thinking that there is one thing we can do to solve our transportation problems.”-Robert Liberty, Executive Director, 1000 Friends of Oregon

Example: Ann Arbor Goals

1. Provide appropriate access and mobility, with minimal negative impacts, for all people and goods

2. Protect and enhance the natural environment and the human, residential and built environment.

3. Promote a safe and secure transportation system.

4. Invest in transportation infrastructure in a manner consistent with other goals.

Example: Ann Arbor Objectives I

First Goal: Provide appropriate access and mobility, with minimal negative impacts, for all people and goods. Objective A: Minimize vehicle miles and vehicle

hours spent traveling. Objective B: Increase the occupancy rate for

motorized modes. Objective C: Reduce barriers to the use of the

transportation system, especially its non-motorized components by facilitating pedestrian and bicycle access on public rights-of-way.

Objective D: Improve bicycle access on public roads.

Example: Ann Arbor Objectives II

Objective E: Increase the number of bus centers and commuter lots and improve their distribution and efficiency throughout the SEMCOG region.

Objective F: Increase the contiguity among public transportation services and non-motorized transportation modes.

Objective G: Implement travel demand management plans to reduce commuter traffic and congestion.

Objective H: Increase mode choices and their coordination for the movement of goods and people.

Objective I: Encourage the development of commuter rail services, particularly the Detroit/Ann Arbor/Lansing proposal, on the Norfolk Southern and Ann Arbor Railroads.

Inventory and Data

Role of GIS See Course Reader for an long list of

items for an inventory

Alternatives/Scenarios

Alternative A unified set of projects, policies and

operational strategies that will meet the community's goals and achieve the vision

Scenario A future state of the urban area,

independent of any alternatives Futures forecasting/Delphi

Delphi

In what year will the following happen? Gasoline prices reach $5 per gallon Nuclear fusion becomes commercially

viable for electric power generation First mag lev system in the US in

commercial service

Additional Reading

Edward Weiner, “Urban Transportation Planning In the United States: An Historical Overview: Fifth Edition”, 1997, http://tmip.fhwa.dot.gov/clearinghouse/docs/utp/