RTA 2013 Leadership Briefing and Tour Report Suburban MD, Northern VA, Baltimore, Washington, DC Mike Fendrick, PE, Parsons Brinckerhoff Bill Jenkins, PE, AECOM Mike Surasky, PE, A. Morton Thomas & Associates, Inc.
Presented at: RTA Solutions Forum 17: SuperCircles Thursday, August 8, 2013 Hosted by the Research Triangle Park www. letsgetmoving. org Join the conversation on Twitter!
Introduction Tour Report Agenda What the Regional Transportation Alliance does Why RTA hosts the Leadership Briefing and Tour Tour overview Trip Elements & Photos Tolled Freeways Freeway Traffic Management Interchanges, intersections, boulevards, and streets Transit (rail & bus) Bicyclists & Pedestrians Key Takeaways Potential Applications for the Triangle Region Conclusion
Introduction
About the Regional Transportation Alliance RTA mission statement: RTA is the business leadership group that provides a strategic, action-oriented focus and a powerful, collaborative voice to advance regional transportation solutions that will attract top talent, grow our prosperity, and sustain the quality of life for our families and our region.
About the Regional Transportation Alliance RTA members and staff focus on: Highlighting crucial projects Catalyzing initiatives Advocating for legislation, policy, referenda Bringing together key players from across the region Identifying pathways to success to keep our region and our economy moving.
RTA Leadership Briefings and Tours 2013 - Suburban Maryland, Northern Virginia, Baltimore, and Washington, DC 2012 - Cleveland and Pittsburgh 2011 - Denver 2009 - Dallas and North Texas 2005 - San Diego and Orange County All tour reports available at letsgetmoving.org/resources
Comparison of the Washington-Baltimore and Raleigh-Durham metropolitan regions
Comparison of Regions Washington & Baltimore Raleigh & Durham Area size (sq. miles) 2,638 sq. mi 1,781 sq. mi Population: (Millions) 5.9M + 2.7M = 8.6 M 1.2M + 0.5M = 1.7M Density: (persons/sq. mile) 3,260 954 Distance between Cities (miles) Loop Length (miles) 41 24 I-495 DC Beltway: 64 mi I-695 Baltimore: 52 mi I-440: 16 miles Future NC 540: 71 miles Miles of Freeway 622 miles 87 miles Miles of Freeway / 1M persons 72 miles 51 miles Rail Transit Services 7 heavy rail, 3 light rail & 5 commuter rail lines In study phase only Buses 2,300 buses on over 350 routes 120 routes Total Transit Ridership 1,500,000 pass/day (46% rail, 54% bus) Approx. 35,000 pass/day (primarily bus) Major Airports 3 with 31.5 M passengers/year 1 with 4.5 M passengers/year
2013 RTA Tour Agenda Sunday, May 5 Tuesday, May 7
Tolled Freeways and Freeway Traffic Management
Comparison of Tolled Freeways Features Virginia I-495 Express Lanes Location Base Condition I-495 from Tysons Corner to Springfield Urban freeway with tight ROW Maryland I-95 Express Toll Lanes I-95 north of Baltimore Rural freeway with median Maryland Inter County Connector Suburban eastwest freeway New alignment Ownership Private Entity Public Agency Public Agency Status In operation Opening Fall 2014 In operation Source of Tolls Express lane Express lane All lanes Managed Lanes 4 Buffer separated 4 Barrier separated All lanes HOV Treatment HOV-3 free No HOV or Green discount No HOV or Green discount Tolling Rates Congestion based Time of day based Time of day based Toll Collection E-Z Pass only E-Z Pass & video E-Z Pass & video Operations Center Separate from DOT Regional location Regional location
MD 200 Automated Tolling
495 Express Lanes Dynamic Tolling
495 Express Lanes with Buffer Separation
495 Express Lanes Traffic Operations Center
All on shoulder Freeway Traffic Management on I-66 in Virginia Outside shoulder used as lane in peak periods on I-66 HOV restrictions 1 lane each direction separated by stripes outside I-495 Exclusive HOV freeway inside I-495 Substantial non-compliance for HOV lanes everywhere Part-time on-ramp meters in Virginia Ramps directly to transit stations in Virginia & Maryland
HOV and Shoulder Use Lanes HOV lane (No Tolling) Outside (pink) shoulder lane Used During Rush Hours
Part-time On-Ramp Metering I-66 Virginia
Freeway Traffic Management on US 50 in Maryland US 50/301 freeway conversion in Maryland Conversion of signalized arterial to non-interstate standard freeway Application of AASHTO minimum vs. desirable standards Lower speed ramps at interchanges Maintain some right in-right out access ramps Reversible lane operations on Chesapeake Bay Bridge
Bay Bridge Reversible Lanes
Interchanges, Intersections, Boulevards & Streets
Interchanges Interchanges, Intersections, Boulevards & Streets Diverging diamond interchange that replaced a roundabout interchange (MD 295) Grade separations for suburban boulevard (US 50 Virginia) Grade separation in urban grid context (DC, at South Capitol Street)
Roundabouts Interchanges, Intersections, Boulevards & Streets Statewide "roundabouts considered first" policy (Md. State Highway Admin) Very large roundabout, 3 circulating lanes + bypass lane (I-495 at Ritchie Marlboro Road) Modified SuperCircle (MD Route 100 at Snowden River) Arterial corridor with series of consecutive roundabouts (MD Route 216) Roundabout interchanges along US 29 (including interchange at Johns Hopkins Road)
Interchanges, Intersections, Boulevards & Streets Urban Traffic Management HOV lane on urban street (Alexandria, VA) Parking innovations including pay-by-mobilephone (Washington, DC)
Diverging Diamond Interchange at MD 295/Arundel Mills
Roundabouts
Transit: Rail and bus
Transit Rail Existing light rail in Baltimore that was originally constructed with 40% single track (Central corridor) Under construction DC Streetcar (Washington DC, near Union Station) Proposed Purple Line in suburban Maryland circumferential light rail with different operating modes in various contexts Forecast to have 69,000 daily riders Goal is to remove 17,000 cars from road
Transit Bus Bus on shoulder for signalized arterial (US 29) Existing downtown bus circulator system with $1 fee (DC, multiple routes) Proposed Corridor Cities Transitway bus rapid transit Forecast to have 56,000 daily riders for 15 mile corridor (suburban Montgomery Co ) Proposed premium transit alternatives either bus rapid transit or streetcar (DC)
Transit Coordination with Land Use Selling air rights above existing rail facility (DC, near Union Station) Land use along DC Streetcar (Washington DC, near Union Station) Transit-oriented development and median reservation for proposed Corridor Cities Transitway BRT (Montgomery Co) Private port operator (Ports America at Port of Baltimore)
BWI light rail & proposed purple line
Urban Corridors Urban HOV Lane King Farm Future Transit Corridor
DC Streetcar Corridor
Bicyclists and Pedestrians
Bicyclists & Pedestrians District of Columbia Largest bicycle sharing network in America (regional network in Washington, Northern Va.) Public enclosed bicycle station at Union Station Bicycle rental kiosks with credit cards Greenway trail encircling BWI Airport Greenways important aspects of DC parkways within National Park Service property (e.g. Geo. Washington Parkway in Virginia)
Washington, DC DOT Presentation
Bike Facilities in DC Capital Bikeshare and Commuter Bike Station
Key Takeaways
Key Takeaways Across Modes Right-of-way Reservation Right Sizing Openness Data Driven with Key Goals Defined Long Term Focus with Incremental Implementation
Managed Lanes Key Takeaways Highways Managed toll lanes allow for direct connection between a demand for faster commute and revenue to pay for it This strategy also lessens the expectations on the normal general purpose lanes since an alternative exists Options on how to encourage vehicle sharing and how to limit the regressive aspects of tolling could be considered HOV discounts to address this concern may minimize revenue, increase enforcement costs, and encourage noncompliance Managed lanes are large projects and require significant forward thinking
Key Takeaways Highways Directional Cross Over Interchanges Easier to use than single point urban interchanges plus fewer conflicts, lower costs Roundabout Interchanges / Intersections In the right situations roundabouts work very well These should be evaluated in many locations based on low cost, workability, off-peak delay improvement, and safety
Key Takeaways Highways Part-time on-ramp meters Low impact/ lower cost improvement that can preserve freeway capacity Short Term Versus Long Term Creative solutions seem to come out when money is tight Always ask how savings on all projects affects the overall ability to fix more issues
Key Takeaways Transit How to Get Started Continuing from 2012 RTA Tour: keys to getting major transit projects started Corridor without many transportation conflicts Or one that can be simultaneously improved Existing and potential transportation demand Land use development objectives and opportunity
Key Takeaways Transit Particular transit mode or technology is not super important but frequency, reliability are Again continuing from 2012 RTA Tour lessons, the I ll only ride a train factor seems to be lessening Potential riders seem to be reacting to reliability, frequency, and land use (walkability)
Key Takeaways Transit Transit ROW is different than Highway ROW Transit ROW is different from Highway ROW Walkability = proximity of land use, transit corridor = increased transit efficiency, all else equal Can create opposition without neighborhood buy-in Relationship of highway goals to transit goals Many successful transit projects seem to have direct connection to a specific highway corridor
Key Takeaways Bicycles Evolved thinking around bikeshare DC Bikeshare uses taxi model not rental car model Where a concessionaire is better Bikeshare technology is easy to get enamored with A kiosk with a bike rental concessionaire would be significantly cheaper and limit government exposure
Conclusions and potential applications for our market
Conclusions DC & Baltimore have developed multifaceted transportation systems out of need Focus on travel improvement and reliability, not the specific technology Long-term plans with short-term flexibility
Potential Applications for the Triangle Freeways Managed (express) lanes Phased improvements Interchanges, intersections, boulevards, and streets Consider roundabouts from initial stages Transit and multimodal transportation Consider all technology types Couple with private development where possible
Questions
RTA 2013 Leadership Briefing and Tour Report Suburban MD, Northern VA, Baltimore, Washington, DC Mike Fendrick, PE, Parsons Brinckerhoff Bill Jenkins, PE, AECOM Mike Surasky, PE, A. Morton Thomas & Associates, Inc.