Title
Triangle Regional Transportation Demand Management Plan Update
Andrea Eilers, Triangle J Council of Governments
Body
North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT) adopted a statewide TDM plan in 2004. In 2006 and 2007, organizations in the Triangle region came together to create ?the Triangle Region 7-Year Long Range TDM Plan. This Plan had a single goal of reducing annual growth in VMT (Vehicle Miles Traveled) by 25%, to support the Senate Bill 953. The Triangle Region TDM Plan was first updated in 2014 to revise the list of activities and update the hotspots, which are targeted priority areas for funding under the program.
A second update to the Triangle TDM Plan is underway in 2019 and is expected to be completed by early 2020. The update is necessary for several reasons. Firstly, the Triangle TDM Program has surpassed its original goal of 25% reduction in growth of VMT for many years and needs a more challenging goal. Secondly, Bill 953 has since expired and, in the absence of any new goals, it is important to revisit and update the original goal. Next, with new technology-based mobility entrants such as Uber and Lyft, arrival of cheap modes such as scooters, concerns about congestion, and adverse impacts on health from increasing vehicular traffic, it is critical that the Triangle TDM Program makes itself more relevant to the changing transportation landscape. Lastly, the TDM Program has historically relied on VMT as the measurement of its success, though it provides many additional benefits such as reduced congestion, better environmental quality, reduced road construction, and better public health and safety. It is important to communicate these benefits to promote alternative commutes and mitigate the future anticipated challenges in the region arising from population increase, climate change impacts, and technological advances.
Staff from TJCOG plan to present the Triangle Region TDM Plan Update goals at the November 2019 Executive Boar...
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