Transportation Agency Actions for Efficient Transportation
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TDM
Encyclopedia
Victoria Transport Policy Institute
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Updated
June 20, 2007
This chapter identifies TDM policies and programs suitable for implementation by transportation agencies.
Transportation agencies (including organizations such as port, toll, transit and parking authorities) plan, evaluate, implement and operate transportation facilities and services. In these roles, transportation agencies often make decisions that affect whether TDM strategies are considered at all, how TDM solutions are evaluated and compared with alternatives, and how TDM strategies are implemented. Transportation agencies employ many transportation professionals, and so can encourage professional development that supports TDM, such as research, conferences and workshops regarding nonmotorized transportation planning, parking management and transportation pricing reforms.
When all impacts (costs and benefits) are considered, TDM strategies are often the most cost effective way for Transportation Agencies to achieve their objectives, including traffic and parking congestion, road and parking facility cost savings, consumer cost savings, increased safety, improved mobility for non-drivers, reduced energy consumption and pollution emissions, improved community livability and improved public fitness and health. In contrast, many conventional solutions, such as expanding roads and parking facilities, only solve one or two problems, but tend to exacerbate others by stimulating total vehicle travel and sprawled land use patterns. As a result, more Comprehensive Planning and Evaluation, that considers a wider range of impacts, tends to justify more emphasis on TDM solutions than what transportation agencies previously applied.
TDM can complement other transportation agency programs. For example, Transit Encouragement strategies can increase the cost effectiveness and benefits of transit investments, Road Pricing can help finance transportation programs, and Special Event transport management strategies can be used to reduce traffic problems during highway construction projects.
Transportation agencies can support TDM implementation in the following ways:
· Introduce Institutional Reforms that result in more comprehensive and objective planning and investment practices. Support Change Management that supports innovative transportation solutions within their organization and by other organizations that influence transportation planning decisions.
· Apply Least-Cost Planning, which allows demand management to be considered equally with capacity expansion options. Raise the quality of transport Planning and Evaluation.
· Measure transportation system quality based on Accessibility rather than mobility, and improve Modeling to account for Induced Travel and indirect impacts.
· Develop Operations and TDM Programs that implement specific TDM strategies. Work to continually improve the quality of such programs, both those they operate directly, and those operated by other organizations, such as Municipal Governments, Transportation Management Associations and Employers.
· Educate Agency staff concerning the why and how to implement TDM strategies, and implement Commute Trip Reduction programs within their own organizations.
The following strategies are particularly suitable for implementation by transportation agencies. For more detailed information see the TDM Summary Table.
Access management
increases coordination between roadway design and land use development patterns
to improve transportation system performance, including reduced congestion and
accidents, and improved accessibility.
Various policies and
programs can help preserve the value of assets such as roadways and parking facilities.
Various management
strategies can increase air transport efficiency, including strategies that
encourage use of alternative modes, reduce total air traffic, increase air
travel system efficiencies, and reduce specific aviation external costs such as
air and noise pollution.
Improved bicycle parking, storage and changing facilities support
cycling.
There are various
ways to improve the integration of bicycling and public transit travel,
including improved cycling access and bicycle storage at transit stops and
stations, and the ability to carry bikes on transit vehicles.
Bus Rapid Transit
(BRT) systems provide high quality bus service on busy urban corridors.
Car-free planning
strategies reduce automobile travel at particular times and places, and to
create pedestrian oriented streets.
Carsharing refers to vehicle rental services that substitute for private
vehicle ownership. This requires that rental services be easily accessible,
affordable and convenient to use, even for short time periods.
Change Management
involves various techniques that help build support for innovation within
organizations.
Increased density
(number of people or employees located in an area) and clustering (locating
related activities close together) tend to reduce travel distances and improve
travel options.
Various commuter financial incentives can be used to encourage use of
more efficient commute modes. These include parking cash out, travel allowance, transit benefits, and rideshare
benefits. They are often provided as an alternative to subsidized employee
parking.
Transportation price
and market reforms can encourage more efficient transportation and support TDM
objectives.
Comprehensive
Transport Planning
Various planning
reforms can result in more comprehensive and accurate transportation
decision-making. Current planning results in omissions and distortions that
tend to overvalue automobile-oriented improvements and undervalue alternative
solutions to transportation problems. More comprehensive planning is particularly
important when evaluating TDM and alternative modes.
Improved roadway and
pathway connectivity tends to improve accessibility and reduce vehicle travel
distances
Flexible design
requirements to reflect community values.
Planning that deals
with uncertainly by identifying solutions to potential future problems.
There are many ways to improve cycling conditions and encouraging cycling
activity, including improved design and maintenance of cycling paths and lanes,
improved bicycle parking and changing facilities, and user education and
information, and encouragement programs.
Emergency
Response Transport Management
Mobility management
strategies can help improve transportation services during emergencies.
Employee
Commute Trip Reduction
Commute Trip Reduction
(CTR) programs provide encouragement, incentives and support for commuters to
use alternative modes, alternative work hours, and other efficient transport
options.
Freight
Transportation Management
Freight Transport
Management increases freight transportation efficiency by shifting improving
the quality of efficient freight modes (such as rail and integrated
distribution services), providing incentives to use the most efficient option
for each type of delivery, increasing load factors, improving logistics, and
reducing unnecessary shipping distances and volumes.
There are various
ways to fund transport programs, some of which support TDM objectives by
charging directly for vehicle use.
Guaranteed Ride Home
(GRH) programs provide an occasional subsidized ride to commuters who use
alternative modes, to help deal with unexpected conditions.
High Occupant
Vehicle (HOV) priority strategies give priority to public transit vehicles,
vanpools and carpools in traffic and parking.
Institutional
reforms include various changes to transportation organizations’ policies and
practices that support Transportation Demand Management.
Intelligent
Transportation Systems
New information
technologies can improve transportation system performance and efficiency.
Least Cost Planning
refers to planning and investment reforms that support demand management
implementation when overall cost effective. This tends to support TDM policies
and programs.
Light Rail Transit
(LRT) systems provide convenient local transit service on busy urban corridors.
Location
Efficient Development
Location Efficient Development consists of residential and commercial development located and designed
to maximize accessibility and overall affordability. Location Efficient Mortgages recognize the household savings at such
locations, increasing borrowing ability.
A Multi-modal Access
Guide provides customized directions to a particular destination by various
modes.
New Urbanism (also
called Neotraditional Design) includes various design and development
practices that create more accessible, walkable, multi-modal, and livable
communities. People who live and work in such communities tend to drive less
and rely more on alternative modes than in more automobile-dependent locations.
Nonmotorized
Facility Management
Nonmotorized facilities
such as walkways, sidewalks and paths can be managed to reduce conflicts and
improve user convenience and safety.
Nonmotorized planning can improve walking and cycling conditions, and
encourage use of nonmotorized modes.
Improved operations
and management can encourage more efficient use of existing roadways.
Park & Ride
facilities are parking lots at transit stations and stops. They support
ridesharing and public transit use.
Various management
strategies can result in more efficient use of parking resources. These include
sharing, regulating and pricing of parking facilities, more accurate
requirements, use of off-site parking facilities, improved user information,
and incentives to use alternative modes.
Parking pricing involves charging motorists directly for using parking
facilities and services, which provides revenue and cost recovery, encourages
more efficient use of parking facilities, reduces parking facility costs and
land requirements, reduces vehicle traffic and encourages use of alternative
modes.
Comprehensive menu
of solutions to parking problems.
Improved pricing
methods can reduce the transaction costs and increase the cost efficiency of
road tolls, parking fees and mileage charges.
Principles for
prioritizing transportation activities and investments.
There are various
ways to encourage public transit ridership by improving service, reducing
fares, increasing user convenience and information, providing incentives, and
supporting marketing programs.
Ridesharing refers to carpooling and vanpooling. Rideshare programs
include ridematching services (which help travelers find travel partners), and
strategies that give rideshare vehicles priority in traffic and parking.
Road pricing means that motoristspay directly for driving on a particular
roadway or in a particular area. “Congestion pricing” (also called “value
pricing”) refers to variable
tolls, with higher prices under congested conditions and lower prices under
less congested conditions, intended to reduce peak-period traffic volumes to
optimal levels.
Changes in roadway
design and management practices can encourage more efficient transportation by
providing more space for walking, cycling, ridesharing and public transit.
Sharing parking
facilities among various users can increase efficiency and support various TDM
strategies.
Smart Growth involves various local and regional land use planning practices that create more
accessible, multi-modal, efficient and livable communities. This tends to
reduce driving and increase use of alternative modes.
Special programs can
help managed transportation efficiently during major events, construction
projects and emergencies.
Reducing traffic speeds tends to improve walking and cycling conditions,
increase safety, reduce air and noise pollution, encourage more compact development,
and reduce total automobile travel.
Street reclaiming
involves various strategies that increase community interaction on neighborhood
streets.
Streetscaping
involves various ways to redesign roadways (particularly urban arterials) to
support more multi-modal transportation and create more attractive and
accessible communities.
Data collection and
participant surveys for TDM program evaluation.
TDM can help achieve
sustainable transport planning objectives.
TDM marketing
programs and strategies investigate the types of transportation services people
want, identify barriers to alternative modes, and promote use of efficient
transport options.
TDM
Planning and Implementation
Discusses various
issues to consider when planning and implementing Transportation Demand
Management programs.
This chapter
discusses different types of transportation management programs, how they are
organized and funded, and their role in implementing TDM strategies.
Traffic Calming refers to various roadway design features intended to
reduce traffic speeds and volumes.
There are many ways to improve public transit service quality, including
increased service speed, frequency, convenience, comfort, user information,
affordability and ease of access.
Transit Oriented Development (TOD) refers to residential and commercial
districts located around a transit station or corridor with high quality
service, with good walkability, parking management and other design features
that facilitate transit use and maximize overall accessibility.
Transportation
Management Associations (TMAs)
Transportation
Management Associations (TMAs) are member-controlled organizations that provide
transportation services in a particular area. They support implementation of
many TDM strategies.
Transportation
Model Improvements
Transportation
models can be improved to increase their accuracy when comparing modes and
evaluating TDM strategies. Current models tend to undervalue TDM strategies.
Transportation
systems can be better designed and managed to accommodate all users, including
people with disabilities and other special needs.
Vehicle use
restrictions limit vehicle traffic at a particular time and place.
There are many ways to improve walking conditions and encourage
pedestrian transportation, including improved design and maintenance of
sidewalks, paths, crosswalks, and better user information.
Walking
and Cycling Encouragement
There are many ways to encourage walking and cycling transport, including
facility improvements, promotion campaigns, events, educational programs, and
development of guides and other information materials.
Win-Win
Transportation Solutions
Win-Win
Transportation Solutions are various TDM strategies that provide a combination
of economic, social and environmental benefits.
The
·
TDM Definition,
Overview and Rationale
·
Canadian
Experience and Resources
·
International
Experience and Resources
·
TDM Project
Database
Office of Operations is a U.S. Federal Highway Administration department that promotes innovative policies and programs that result in more efficient and cost effective use of roadway systems. It coordinates research, planning and implementation related to mobility management, freight management and intelligent transportation system programs.
A new approach to
protecting communities that meshes road design, transit systems, and bicycle
and pedestrian paths with downtowns, neighborhoods, and the natural environment
is quickly gaining acceptance in
The new approach, known in
technical circles as “context-sensitive design” or “context-sensitive
solutions,” replaces the conventional, one-size-fits-all approach to
transportation projects with a citizen-led planning process that is much more
sensitive to a community's sense of place.
Last summer, the bipartisan Michigan Land Use
Leadership Council formally recommended that state and local road agencies and
communities adopt the new design process.
According to the Institute's
new report, “People and Pavement: Transportation Design that Respects
Communities,” (www.mlui.org) the high-level
attention to context-sensitive design reflects both the increasing public
resistance to new road construction and growing civic wisdom about the need to
reduce costs and improve the conception and quality of new highways and other
transportation systems.
Sometimes roads are like rivers, says the
report. Increase the flow too much and they drastically reshape their
surroundings. Pump up the traffic on a road through a small town, for example,
and all sorts of new gas stations, billboards, and fast food outlets spring up.
Soon the road widens and sprawl, like a
mudslide, buries the town's character.
“Context-sensitive design is
an approach that places preservation of historic, scenic, natural environment,
and other community values on an equal basis with mobility, safety, and
economics,” says Mary E. Peters, director of the Federal Highway
Administration. “We should seek to institutionalize the principles of CSD with
the same commitment that drove the implementation of the Interstate Highway
System.”
A beautifully landscaped boulevard, for
instance, can serve as a community's signature gateway. A bustling bus or train
stop can spur urban revitalization and generate good business for nearby shops.
Sidewalks and bicycle routes can raise property values and promote healthier
lifestyles and more sociable communities.
“Folks, crafting a
21st-century transportation system entails much more than concrete, asphalt,
bricks, and mortar,” Gov. Granholm told a statewide transportation summit in
December. “It's vastly more complex than building highways and mass transit systems.
It's about building and connecting communities. It's about creating
livelihoods, economic stability, and reaching out beyond our borders and
comfort zones.”
Transport
Airport environmental
management policies that the
Booz-Allen & Hamilton (2001), Organizing for
Regional Transportation Operations: An Executive Guide, Federation Highway
Administration and
Colin Buchanan and Partners (2003), Transferability
Of Best Practice In Transport Policy Delivery, Scottish Executive (www.scotland.gov.uk/library5/development/bpitp-00.asp).
Community Impact Assessment Website (www.ciatrans.net), sponsored by the U.S. Federal Highway Administration, provides information on methods for evaluating the impacts of transportation projects and programs on communities.
Department for Transport (www.dft.gov.uk) has extensive resources on transportation and land use planning, travel demand management, and traffic calming.
David Dowall
(2002), “Reforming
Infrastructure Planning,” ACCESS 20 (www.uctc.net), Spring
2002, pp. 8-13.
Dr. Marcus Enoch, Lian Zhang and David Morris (2005),
Organisational Structures for Implementing Travel Plans: A Review,
FHWA, National Dialogue on Transportation Operations (www.ops.fhwa.dot.gov/nat_dialogue.htm), discusses institutional changes needed to implement more efficient transportation.
FHWA (2006), Managing Travel Demand: Applying European
Perspectives to
International Council for Local Environmental Initiatives (www.iclei.org) provides tools to help communities become healthier and more environmentally responsible.
Todd Litman
(2006), “Transportation Market Distortions,” Berkeley Planning Journal; issue theme Sustainable Transport in the
Todd Litman
(2007), Socially Optimal Transport Prices and Markets, VTPI (www.vtpi.org);
available at www.vtpi.org/sotpm.pdf.
Michael Meyer
(2001), Measuring System
Performance: The Key to Establishing Operations as a Core Agency
(www.ops.fhwa.dot.gov/Speech%20Files/FHWAPerformancemeasures.doc).
OTM, Transportation Performance Measures, Office of Transportation Management, Federal Highway Administration (www.fhwa.dot.gov/planning/toolbox).
Shelly J. Row (2003), “The National Transportation Operations Coalition: Moving From Dialogue to Action,” ITE Journal, Vol. 73, No. 12, Institute of Transportation Engineers (www.ite.org), December 2003, pp. 28-31.
Strategic Policy Options for Sustainable Development Database (www.iges.or.jp/cgi-bin/rispo/index_spo.cgi), Research on Innovative and Strategic Policy Options (RISPO) by the Institute for Global Environmental Studies provides information, recommended best practices and case studies on a wide range of sustainable policies and strategies.
Joseph M. Sussman (2001), Transportation Operations: An Organizational And Institutional Perspective, National Dialogue on Transportation Operations, Federal Highway Administration (www.ops.fhwa.dot.gov/Speech%20Files/Sussman1.doc).
Transport Institutions in the Policy Process (www.strafica.fi/tipp/about.html)
is a European research program investigating how institutional arrangements and
interactions affect the implementation of transport policies.
This
Encyclopedia is produced by the Victoria Transport Policy Institute to help
improve understanding of Transportation Demand Management. It is an ongoing
project. Please send us your comments and suggestions for improvement.
www.vtpi.org info@vtpi.org
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