Webinar Presentation

January 21, 2014

Commuter Corridors Study

Welcome!

Why are we here?

Study Goal: Determine the viability of high-capacity transit in the Central Oklahoma region

Project Sponsors:• Association of Central Oklahoma Governments (ACOG)• Del City; Edmond; Midwest City; Moore; Norman; Oklahoma City

Consultant Team:• URS Corporation

– Alliance Transportation Group– Butzer Gardner Architects– Dunbar Transportation Consulting– Economic & Planning Systems– Guernsey– Redbud Marketing

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Regional Transit Dialogue (RTD)

• Initiated by ACOG in cooperation with local partners in spring 2009

• Engages locally elected officials, policy stakeholders, private sector leaders, and general public

• Designed to define how transit can serve the Central Oklahoma region in the future

• Builds on recommendations from Fixed Guideway Study

• Guides CentralOK!go Commuter Corridors Study– Considers public input from workgroups and

public open houses– Makes final study recommendations

What is the Purpose of the Study?

• Enhance regional mobility and provide transportation options

• Analyze transportation options in three corridors identified in the region’s 2005 Fixed Guideway Study:– Between Edmond and

Downtown OKC– Between Midwest City/TAFB and

Downtown OKC– Between Norman and

Downtown OKC

• Generate a “locally preferred alternative” for each corridor

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Getting Everyone Involved

Community & Stakeholder Workgroup Meetings Round 1: July 2013 Round 2: November 2013• Round 3: Spring 2014

Public Open Houses Round 1: November 2013 • Round 2: Spring 2014

Newsletters Issue 1: January 2014 • Issue 2: Spring 2014• Issue 3: Summer 2014

Webinar January 2014

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What are the Steps of the Study?

Review of Study Goals, Objectives, and Criteria Used in Alignment Analysis

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Study Goals & Objectives

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Umbrella Goal: Enhance Quality of Life• Enhance Regional Connectivity and Increase Equitable Access

– Maximize connection of major activity centers in the region– Provide access to limited mobility (e.g., low-income and zero-car) populations– Maximize the use of dedicated right-of-way

• Support Economic Development and Shape Growth– Serve areas with highest existing/projected population and employment densities– Maximize development/redevelopment opportunities– Serves areas slated for transit-friendly development (e.g., mixed use or transit-oriented

development)– Compatibility with current and future land use plans

• Provide a Balanced and Coordinated Multimodal Transportation System– Maximize opportunities for multi-modal connections (i.e., connections with major

roadways, bike lanes, and bike/pedestrian trails)– Provide transit service in the areas with the worst congestion

• Maximize Regional Participation– Provide access/connect to a variety of jurisdictions in order to increase the number of

potential funding sources available to the project– Consistency with local comprehensive plans/input and regional transportation plan

(Encompass 2035)

Additional Goals from Workgroups

North Workgroup• Provide an easy to use service with a focus on multimodal connections• Maximize the ability to access local, regional, and federal funding to build

and operate the service through governance

East Workgroup• Provide for future transit growth through preservation of existing freight

corridors• Provide travel options to major activity centers, including “last mile”

connection within the East Corridor and the region

South Workgroup• Provide a reliable and convenient service• Enhance the transit and land use nexus

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Alignment Analysis Evaluation Criteria – Enhance Regional Connectivity

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Goal Objective Criteria Description

Enhance Regional

Connectivity

Maximize connections

between major activity centers

Number of Activity Centers

• Within half-mile of each alignment• Regionally Significant Activity Center• Significant Activity Center • Locally Significant Activity Centers

Provide access to limited mobility

populations

Percentage of zero-car households

• Based on 2010 Census data• Within half-mile of each alignment• Rankings based on natural breaks in the data

Percentage of individuals below poverty threshold

• Based on 2010 Census data• Within half-mile of each alignment• Rankings based on natural breaks in the data

Maximize the use of

dedicated right-of-way

(ROW)

Ability of existing ROW to accommodate dedicated ROW

• Qualitative assessment of the ability to accommodate dedicated transit ROW

• Each alignment ranked as positive, neutral, or negative

Evaluation Criteria and Screening - Overview

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• Purpose: To evaluate each potential high-capacity transit alignment and identify the most viable alignments in each corridor

• Methodology:– Used quantitative and qualitative evaluation criteria based on

established goals and objectives for the study– Scoring and Ranking

• Each alignment scored as positive (1; green), neutral (0; yellow), or negative (-1; red) for each criterion and totaled across all criteria

• Corridor weighting applied to each criterion• Negative scores subtracted from positive scores to determine total

points for each alignment

Review of Alignments Analyzed, Results of Analysis, and Recommended Alignments and Modes

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Alignment Identification Process

• Purpose: To identify potential alignments for evaluation of high-capacity transit

• Methodology:– Reviewed various corridor-level maps:

• Population and employment densities• Major activity centers• Limited mobility populations• Existing transit ridership• Capacity of existing transportation corridors

– Identified potential alignments based on the above maps and evaluated potential benefits, issues, and fatal flaws for each

– Established alignments for evaluation– Received feedback on alignments from workgroups and tweaked

portions of some alignments

Alignments Evaluated – South Corridor

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Alignment Analysis Results – South Corridor

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S1 S2 S3 S4 S5 S6 S7

-8.0

-6.0

-4.0

-2.0

0.0

2.0

4.0

6.0

8.0

10.0

Provide a Balanced & Coordinated Multimodal System Support Economic Development & Shape Growth

Enhance Regional Connectivity Total

Alignment Analysis – South Corridor

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• South Workgroup feedback indicated “Enhance Regional Connectivity” goal should be weighted the highest– Alignments S1, S2, and S4 received the highest scores

for this goal

• S2 and S4 also performed well on “Support Economic Development and Shape Growth”

• S1, S2, and S4 are the highest ranked alignments overall in the South Corridor and are the RTD-recommended alignments

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South Corridor Alignments Recommended for Detailed Analysis – S1, S2 and S4

Alignments Evaluated – East Corridor

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Alignment Analysis Results – East Corridor

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E1 E2 E3 E4 E5 E6 E7

-8.0

-6.0

-4.0

-2.0

0.0

2.0

4.0

6.0

8.0

Provide a Balanced & Coordinated Multimodal System Support Economic Development & Shape Growth

Enhance Regional Connectivity Total

Alignment Analysis – East Corridor

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• Workgroup feedback indicated “Enhance Regional Connectivity” and “Support Economic Development & Shape Growth ” scores should be weighted the highest– Alignments E5, E6, and E7 all scored positively for both goals

• E7 did not score well on “Provide a Balanced & Coordinated Multimodal System”

• E5 and E6 are the highest ranked alignments overall in the East Corridor and are recommended for detailed analysis

• E1 is also recommended for detailed analysis as the only all-rail alignment in the corridor

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East Corridor Alignments Recommended for Detailed Analysis – E1, E5 and E6

Alignments Evaluated – North Corridor

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Alignment Analysis Results – North Corridor

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N1 N2 N3 N4 N5 N6 N7

-4.0

-2.0

0.0

2.0

4.0

6.0

8.0

Provide a Balanced & Coordinated Multimodal System Support Economic Development & Shape Growth

Enhance Regional Connectivity Total

Alignment Analysis – North Corridor

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• Workgroup feedback indicated “Enhance Regional Connectivity” scores should be weighted the highest

• Alignments N2, N3, N4, N6 and N7 all scored positively on “Enhance Regional Connectivity”

• N6 and N7 did not score well on “Support Economic Development & Shape Growth”

• N2 and N3 are the highest ranked alignments in the North Corridor and are recommended

• N1 is the rail ROW alignment and is recommended as well

• N7 scored the highest on “Enhance Regional Connectivity” and is recommended

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North Corridor Alignments Recommended for Detailed Analysis – N1, N2, N3 and N7

All Corridor Alignments Recommended for Further Analysis

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Norman

Moore

Oklahoma City

Edmond

Mid

wes

t City

Modal Analysis for Recommended Alignments in Each Corridor

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Modal Analysis

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• Alignments recommended for additional analysis will also be evaluated for logical modal alternatives

• Mode: type of transit technology and vehicle used for a particular transit alignment (e.g. commuter rail, bus rapid transit, etc.)

• Not all modes appropriate for all corridors• The OCARTS model will assist team in

identifying appropriate modes for each recommended alignment

• Public and stakeholder feedback regarding preferred modes will inform the analysis as well

Modes Under Consideration

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South Corridor Alignments Recommended for Detailed Analysis – S1, S2 and S4

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East Corridor Alignments Recommended for Detailed Analysis – E1, E5 and E6

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North Corridor Alignments Recommended for Detailed Analysis – N1, N2, N3 and N7

Completed Tasks

Tasks completed to date:• Identify

– RTD-identified study goals– Workgroup-identified corridor-specific

goals and objectives– Transportation issues & opportunities– Existing conditions

• Screen– Alignment analysis– Initial modal analysis

• Outreach– RTD meetings– 1st and 2nd round workgroup meetings– 1st round open houses– 1st Newsletter

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Identify Screen Detail Refine

Coming Up Next

• Consider all input from RTD, workgroups, and public open houses

• Detailed analysis of alternatives• Work with RTD, stakeholders, and public to identify the

locally preferred alternative (LPA)• More workgroup meetings and public open houses in

spring 2014• Please visit our website: centralokgo.org

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Identify Screen Detail Refine

We need your input and your help!

• Complete the survey– www.surveymonkey.com/s/centralokgo

• Visit project website– centralokgo.org– Sign up for our mailing list– Stay current on project updates

• Tell your friends, family, and co-workers

• Stay engaged and help us plan for high-capacity transit in Central Oklahoma!

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www. centralokgo.org

Commuter Corridors Study

Thank you for attending!

Any Questions or Comments?

Webinar

January 21, 2014