Transcript Slide 1

Urban Transportation Planning
Introduction to Metropolitan
Transportation Planning
Definition of Transportation Planning
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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…
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Policies
Choices among alternative
strategies
Priorities
Funding allocations
More than Transportation
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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
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Long-Range
Strategic
Project/Facility
Implementation
Improvement (“program”)
Comprehensive
Site (TIAs)
Statewide
Legislation: SAFETEA-LU
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Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient
Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy
for Users
Plan Requirements
Institutional Structures
Funding
Conformity
Metropolitan Planning Factors I
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(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
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(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
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(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 Organization
MPO
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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
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Policy Board (“Planning Commission”)
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Sets regional long-term transportation policy
and approves plans
Prioritizes and programs specific transportation
initiatives for funding
Staff
Advisory Committees
Examples:
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SEWRPC, DRCOG, PSRC, DVRPC, SCAG
Metropolitan Planning 3 C’s
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Comprehensive
Cooperative
Continuing
Scope of Work for MPOs
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A Unified Planning Work Program
(UPWP) or simplified statement of
work
Public involvement process/plan
(PIP)
Financial Plan
Principal Products of MPOs
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A Long-Range Transportation Plan
Transportation Improvement
Program (TIP)
Special Studies
Simplified Statement of Work (Large
MPOs)
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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
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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
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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
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http://www.sewrpc.org/
Holistic Approach
Transportation Improvement Program
(TIP)
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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
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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
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Plans must demonstrate consistency
with the emissions budgets needed
to satisfy the Clean Air Act
Projects cannot move forward
without conformity
Air Quality I
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Sources
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Stationary sources
Area sources
Mobile sources
Pollutants (NAAQS)
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Ozone precursors (VOCs, NOx)
Carbon monoxide (CO)
Particulates (PM-10 or PM-2.5)
Air Quality II
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Nonattainment Areas by Pollutant
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Extreme
Severe
Serious
Moderate
Marginal
Maintenance
Milwaukee is Severe for Ozone
Air Quality III
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Transportation plans, TIPs, and
projects cannot:
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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
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State Implementation Plan (SIP)
Conformity
CMAQ
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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
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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
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Truck Restrictions
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Road Design and Construction
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Automated detection, site and area surveillance/communications
Inspection/Enforcement
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Voluntary off-peak operations, mandatory off-peak operations…
Incident Management
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Wider lanes, Speed restrictions, Variable message signs…
Shipper/Receiver Actions
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Voluntary off-peak operations, automatic vehicle location/routing…
Traffic Engineering
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Peak period permits and tolls, freeway permits…
Fleet Management
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Improved entry/exit ramps and merges, exclusive truck facilities…
Road Pricing
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Peak period bans, freeway section bans, route diversions…
Automated surveillance…
Information Management
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Highway advisory radio, traffic information…
Land Use I: Federal Regs
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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
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Transportation/Land
Use Interaction
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Land use creates trips
Transportation facilities
create land use
Smart Growth
and Economic
Development
Models
Travel Forecasting Models
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A travel forecasting model is the
major analysis tool for evaluating
urban transportation plans and
conducting conformity analysis
Travel Models: Four Steps?
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(Activity Allocation)
Trip Generation
Trip Distribution
Mode Split
Traffic Assignment
(Measures of Effectiveness)
(Impact Models)
Performance Measures I
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Accessibility
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Percent population within "x" minutes of "y"
percent of employment sites
Access by elderly
Quality of ADA compliance
Mobility
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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
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Economic development
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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
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Environmental and resource consumption
Tons of pollution generated
Fuel consumption
Performance Measures III
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Sprawl
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Change in difference between urban
and suburban household densities;
decrease in wetlands; changes in air
quality, land use, or mobility.
Safety
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Number of crash incidents or economic
costs of crashes
National Environmental Policy Act of
1969 (NEPA)
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It is the policy of the US
government to protect the
environment
Environmental Impact Statements
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Environmental Assessments (FONSI)
Categorical Exclusions
Council on Environmental Quality
Environmental Impact Assessment
Process
Public Involvement
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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
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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
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Avoiding, minimizing, or mitigating
disproportionately high and adverse
human health and environmental, social
or economic effects on minority and lowincome 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
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Are these strategies
environmentally just?
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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
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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
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Vision
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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
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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
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Goals
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Broad
General
Intangible
Abstract
Few
“Improve
transportation
safety”
Objectives
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Narrow
Precise
Tangible
Concrete
Many
“Reduce the
number of traffic
conflict points”
Criteria and Standards
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Criteria
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Specific numerical
expression of an
objective
“Number of
conflict points”
Standards
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Desired level of
achievement
through plan
implementation
“10% reduction in
conflict points”
Operational Strategies
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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
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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
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First Goal: Provide appropriate access and
mobility, with minimal negative impacts,
for all people and goods.
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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 nonmotorized components by facilitating
pedestrian and bicycle access on public rightsof-way.
Objective D: Improve bicycle access on public
roads.
Example: Ann Arbor Objectives II
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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
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Role of GIS
See Course Reader for an long list
of items for an inventory
Alternatives/Scenarios
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Alternative
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A unified set of projects, policies and
operational strategies that will meet
the community's goals and achieve the
vision
Scenario
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A future state of the urban area,
independent of any alternatives
Futures forecasting/Delphi
Delphi
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In what year will the following
happen?
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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
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Edward Weiner, “Urban
Transportation Planning In the
United States: An Historical
Overview: Fifth Edition”, 1997,
http://tmip.fhwa.dot.gov/clearingho
use/docs/utp/