IV.  IMPLEMENTATION PLANNING AND PROGRAMMING

 

TASK 4.07           ADA / Human Service Agency Transportation Options/ Welfare-to-Work / Special

     Transportation    

 

CDTC staff continues to work with the Access Transit staff and county agencies to assure success of the brokerage.  CDTC and CDTA staff will continue in 2004-05 to seek additional brokerage opportunities in other service areas.

 

CDTC continues to assist CDTA in its development of several related initiatives, including the successful regional program using state funds (Transportation Assistance to Needy Families) and the federal Jobs Access / Reverse Commute program.  These efforts will continue.

 

A review of Special Transportation Needs treatment in New Visions will produce material for discussion in the New Visions 2030 forums.

 

TASK 4.17          Arterial Management Planning

 

Formal arterial management efforts were modest during 2003-04.  Staff expects to revisit various CDTC arterial management guidelines in 2004-05, including 'standards' for arterial capacity and levels-of-service.  Additionally, work will begin on an urban arterial version of the "level of compatibility" indices developed in 1995 for suburban settings.

 

TASK 4.18        ITS Architecture and Integration (complete)

 

NYSDOT and CDTC, along with CDTA, the NYSTA and other major players, completed development of a "regional architecture" for the Capital District ITS deployment in 2003-04.

 

 

 

TASK 4.62           Transit Operations Planning

 

Further development of best bus concepts will continue in 2004-05.  The further articulation of a full build scenario for Bus Rapid Transit in the NY5 corridor will take place through a consultant contract executed in 2003-04; an "incremental build" scenario is funded in the 2001-06 TIP and will be progressed as well.  In 2003-04, attention was directed to BRT aspects of TIP project A341, Central Avenue:  Everett to the city line.  An additional Congressional earmark for BRT implementation was incorporated into the FFY03 transportation appropriations bill, as well.  Phase 2 of the BRT development effort will be funded from that TIP entry (T70).

 

All of CDTA's staff planning charges are included under this task.

 

TASK 4.67           Bikeway / Pedestrian Facility Planning

 

The Bike and Pedestrian Transportation Task Force remained active during 2003-04.  Activities and products included provision of technical support to the Saratoga Heritage Trail program and involvement in CDTC's Spot Improvement Program, Linkage planning and Greenway contract and TIP issues.  A major effort has been work to update the “Tool Box” adopted as part of the New Visions plan.  Candidates for addition to the priority network have been reviewed, and subcommittees have helped with the overall effort.  The group revisited the Mohawk-Hudson bike map and updated.  It will be published in 2004-05.

 

Under this task heading, CDTC staff will continue to offer community assistance related to bike and pedestrian planning issues, including the broader category of "traffic calming" options.  Additionally, CDTC will continue its cooperative work with county traffic safety committees and the Governor's Traffic Safety Board to coordinate attention on bike and pedestrian safety issues.

 

TASK 4.85           Staffing for the Transportation Management Center (completed)

 

NYSDOT opened the regional Transportation Management Center in July 1999.  To provide for supplemental staffing (weekends and holidays, for example), CDTA served as the employer for part-time staff, being reimbursed through the CMAQ-funded TIP project RG37.  NYSDOT has now made other arrangements and the task no longer needs to appear in the UPWP.

 

TASK 4.72           TIP Project Planning and Development Work (TIP funded)

 

NYSDOT continues project planning and development work for a number of projects on the CDTC TIP.  This work will define the range of feasible alternatives to be considered in preliminary engineering, based on traffic operations, cost, and ROW impacts.  Among the projects being studied are the Albany County Airport area projects (I-87 Exit 3/4), I-90 and I-87 rehab projects and the Balltown Road, Glenridge Rd. and Slingerlands Bypass projects.   NYSDOT is also working to package corridor and project information developed by CDTC staff (in past UPWPs) into documents acceptable for use in NYSDOT's preliminary engineering process.  Work will continue in 2004-05.

 

TASK 4.97           TIP Development, Monitoring and Update

 

During 2003-04, the TIP was maintained through numerous amendments and publication of a "real time" TIP on CDTC's web site.  The 2003-08 TIP was adopted in June of 2003, including formal action on both a three-year and five-year program.  Work will began in the summer of 2002 toward development of a 2005-10 TIP.  This effort will need to incorporate policy products of NYSDOT’s transformation process, as well as address funding levels related to TEA-21 reauthorization.  The TIP update is expected to involve full solicitation and evaluation of candidate projects.  Internet resources will again assist in this effort, as CDTC will publish application material on its web site, and maintain a running draft with supporting summary tables as the new TIP is assembled.  The draft will be released by March 2005 for final approval in May and incorporation into a Statewide TIP by October 2005.  As with the 2003-08 TIP, examination of energy / CO2 impacts will be included in project and program evaluation. The existing TIP will be maintained through amendments over the coming year.