HomeMy WebLinkAbout2010 06 15 Memorandum P2P SolutionsMEMORANDUM CITY OF SPRINGFIELD
DATE OF WORK SESSION: June 15th, 2010
TO: Springfield Planning Commission PLANNING COMMISSION
TRANSMITTAL
FROM: David Reesor, Senior Transportation Planner MEMORANDUM
SUBJECT: Regional Transportation Options Plan (RTOP)
ISSUE: Point2point Solutions, City of Springfield, and other local jurisdictions and agencies
have begun outlining a work plan to develop a Regional Transportation Options Plan (RTOP).
The Plan’s purpose is to both broaden and focus the definition and application of the
Transportation Demand Management (TDM) elements of our local and regional transportation
plans. The Plan will create new Transportation Demand Management (TDM) policies and
strategies which will be integrated into local and regional transportation plans. Point2point
Solutions staff and Lane Council of Governments (LCOG) staff will present upcoming steps in
the planning process and seek Planning Commission input / direction on outcomes of the
Regional Transportation Options Plan (RTOP).
DISCUSSION: The metropolitan area’s transportation planning is layered with the state-
required local Transportation System Plans (TSPs), the Regional Transportation System Plan
(RTSP), and the federally-required Regional Transportation Plan (RTP). Updates of all of these
plans are currently under way. In order to better coordinate Transportation Demand
Management (TDM) elements of these plans, local jurisdictions will create a combined Regional
Transportation Options Plan (RTOP).
The Regional Transportation Options Plan (RTOP) will help guide Transportation Demand
Management (TDM) elements of Springfield’s local Transportation System Plan (TSP) by using
Springfield stakeholder input throughout the planning process. The Plan will outline a
comprehensive, cross-jurisdictional approach to managing the demand for road use, and will
provide local and regional Transportation Options (TO) guidance for our immediate and long-
range planning needs.
The result of this effort will be a long-range Transportation Options (TO) plan which provides an
effective approach to meeting mobility needs, prioritizing and evaluating projects, and meeting
social and environmental targets in the region.
Point2point Solutions and Lane Council of Governments (LCOG) staff will present Regional
Transportation Options Plan (RTOP) information to the Planning Commission and outline future
steps towards improving transportation options in Springfield. An opportunity for questions and
comments will be provided during the presentation.
RECOMMENDATION: No recommendation included. This is an informational work session.
ACTION REQUESTED: No specific action is requested.
ATTACHMENTS: No Attachments
June 5, 2010
To: City of Springfield Planning Commission
From: Petra Schuetz, Lane Council of Governments
Subject: Regional Transportation Option Plan Overview
Issue Statement
This region’s transportation planning partners have embarked on an unprecedented
coordination effort to integrate long-range transportation planning including:
Coburg Transportation System Plan (TSP)
Eugene Transportation System Plan (TSP)
Springfield Transportation System Plan (TSP)
Long Range Transit Plan
Regional Transportation System Plan (RTSP)
Regional Transportation Plan (RTP)
Considering the growing importance of transportation demand management’s role in
creating more balanced transportation systems, the Central Lane Metropolitan
Planning Organization (MPO) staff and point2point Solutions have taken advantage of
the opportunity to develop a Regional Transportation Option Plan (RTOP) in
coordination with current planning efforts. The RTOP project aims to replace the
transportation demand management portion of the RTP and provide a best practice
document to assist both regional and local governments expand their demand
management programs and projects.
The purpose of this memo is to provide a project overview. During June and July 2010
project staff will be meeting with area planning commissions and other organizations to
introduce the project and take note of feedback prior to beginning the formal planning
process.
Background
The MPO and point2pont Solutions
Since the late 1960s, Lane Council of Governments (LCOG) has participated in the
planning and coordination of regional transportation. As the designated Metropolitan
Planning Organization for the Eugene-Springfield metropolitan area, LCOG is
responsible for preparation of the RTP. The RTP is one product of the MPO. It is the
federal long-range regional transportation plan. The MPO is also responsible for
providing technical modeling of the transportation system to local governments;
facilitating the interaction of federal, state, and local agencies dealing with transportation
issues; managing the analysis and process for maintaining conformity with federal air
Attachment 1-1
quality standards; preparation of financial analysis and project programming; and
providing opportunities for public involvement.
Partners in the MPO are: City of Eugene, City of Springfield, City of Coburg, Lane
County, Lane Transit District and Oregon Department of Transportation. LCOG
coordinates and staffs the MPO; point2point Solutions (formerly Commuter Solutions,
housed at LTD)
coordinates and
staffs the
Transportation
Demand
Management or
Transportation
Options area of
work. The
presentation
accompanying
this memo will
provide more
information
about the
existing
Transportation
Options
programs in the
region.
Transportation Demand Management or Transportation Options
Transportation Demand Management (TDM) or Transportation Options (TO) (as it is
commonly known in Oregon) programs have long played a significant role in the
region’s transportation system planning and implementation. In 1996, the MPO helped
establish a regional TDM program, Commuter Solutions, which has developed as the
region’s primary source for information about non-single occupancy travel options over
the last 15 years. In 1997, the regional TDM Refinement Plan completed which
bolstered policy-level substantiation for growth in this area of transportation planning.
In 2004, this Plan evolved into a chapter of the Regional Transportation Plan (RTP).
Since this time point2point Solutions (p2p) has grown in sophistication. other local TO
efforts have been evolving about the area. It will be important to the future of TDM in
the region to revisit the long range vision and provide recommendations to expand its
programs and increase the regional coordination efforts.
Regional Transportation Options Plan
Timeliness and Need
In addition to the long-range regional planning efforts, other area efforts are occurring
including; the Case Statement for Active Transportation, the City of Eugene’s growing
bike and pedestrian program, Smart Ways to School, and Lane Coalition for Healthy
Active Youth (LCHAY) programs. These examples provide valuable and sometimes
Attachment 1-2
overlapping services related to TO. At the federal and state level, evolving
requirements to address green house gas, land use integration, and least-cost
planning all relate to the evolving role of TO. A goal of the RTOP project is
to identify, leverage and redefine these many relationships. By
developing this project now, long range TO planning will be able to
integrate the many current transportation planning efforts in
the region.
RTP Balanced & Integrated Transportation
Planning Framework
In addition to the timeliness of the RTOP project, there has
been no long-range TO planning effort – at the
regional level – since the late 1990s. Coupled with
the evolving federal and state requirements, there
is a need to integrate a number of planning
efforts and redefine the role of TO in the
region. More discussion regarding the
variables affects the RTOP will be discussed
at the meeting.
Early in 2010, a draft work plan was developed in coordination with staff from all the
MPO transportation planning partners. In March 2010, the work plan was incorporated
into a Transportation Growth Management Program application. In April, the
Metropolitan Planning Committee (MPC) provided $20,000 to kick-start the RTOP
project. If the project is not funded by TGM, it is possible that additional federal funds
are pursued through the MPO.
The Work Plan
The RTOP work plan continues to be refined, but will include the following general
tasks:
Background – includes refinement of the work plan, formation of a
technical advisory committee, website, and stakeholder contacts
Existing Conditions – includes review of TDM best practice, regional
TDM-related program development since 2002, develop a gap
analysis, and identify the TO role in emerging related
trends/requirements such as: climate change/green house gas;
universal access and mobility; congestion management process;
statewide performance measurement
Opportunities – includes a cost/benefits analysis
Policy Framework – includes review of existing RTP policies related to
TO and development of revised policies
Performance Measurement and Evaluation - identify performance
measures and evaluation methods that are part of regional TO
strategies/programs/projects.
Preferred Alternatives - By applying the performance measurements
and cost/benefit analysis to the opportunities, preferred alternatives
are identified and created as a matrix to illustrate relationships.
Draft Regional Transportation Options Plan – draft RTP element and
best practice document
Plan Adoption and Production
Attachment 1-3
Public Involvement
The public involvement efforts for the RTOP are crucial to the project’s success.
Staff is coordinating the public involvement closely with the RTSP process. The
RTSP public involvement strategies continue to be developed and aim to
accomplish the following:
Facilitating efficient identification, notification, and engagement of a
range of stakeholders and stakeholder groups;
Maximizing the value of public participation by developing tools to
share input amongst jurisdictions, and that allow information to be
sorted according to specific travel modes (rail, transit, bike/ped,
auto);
Specific geographic areas (corridors, neighborhoods, communities);
Issues (greenhouse gas emissions, economic development, safety);
and
Agencies (MPO, Cities, County, ODOT, LTD or point2point
Solutions).
Coordinating key messages and maintaining a common language in
communications to the public and decision-makers.
Next Steps
The immediate next step for this project is to introduce the RTOP project to
region stakeholders. When the funding for the entire project is secured, the
project management team will refine the work plan and work through he
contracting process.
Attachment 1-4