At its September meeting, the TPB approved an amendment to the District of Columbia Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) to update funding information for the District Department of Transportation. The board also received briefings on preliminary findings from the state of the Commute survey, safety activities in Maryland, and an update on staff activities related to the Aspirational Initiatives. 

Get all the materials and listen to the audio recording of the September TPB meeting

Early results from the 2019 State of the Commute survey

The board was briefed on the early results from Commuter Connections’ 2019 State of the Commute survey. The survey asked approximately 6,000 area commuters about a broad range of topics, from commute patterns and commute satisfaction to awareness of Commuter Connections outreach and access to different transportation modes and alternative commute mode services.

The survey found that drive-alone commuting continues to fall in the region, with 58% of commuters doing so on a regular basis. That’s down from 61% in 2016, and 71% in 2004. The survey also showed telework continuing to gain popularity, with 35% of workers in the region doing so “at least occasionally.” And when it comes to commute satisfaction, those who bike or walk to work are happiest with their commutes, while Metro riders and drivers are least satisfied.

Learn more about the early findings from the 2019 State of the Commute.

Listen to the board discussion.

Maryland Department of Transportation safety briefing

MDOT returned to brief the TPB to update the board on its safety programs. At the January TPB meeting when the board set federally required data driven safety targets for the region. Board members were concerned that the latest numbers showed more fatalities on the region’s roads than in the previous year. As part of its resolution, the board asked for briefings from the transportation agencies about their safety programs and plans to improve road user safety. All three departments of transportation have briefed the board to discuss factors that contribute to fatal crashes and their activities to address these factors. This latest briefing focused on some of Maryland’s programs to address safety in the state.

Learn more about these safety presentations. 

MDOT’s Timothy Kerns and Anyesha Mookherjee presented on the kinds of interventions, through road design and education to address these factors. Kerns focused on education programs that focus on distracted driving like the “Buckle Up Phone Down” campaign. He also mentioned the Street Smart campaign. Mookherjee presented on the partnerships and collaboration that local jurisdictions have both inside and outside of Maryland.

Get the presentation

Listen to the presentation and board discussion.

Other items

Aspirational Initiatives: Staff provided an update to the board about activities to make the Aspirational Initiatives a reality. The Aspirational Initiatives are 7 concepts that together could go a long way to improve our region’s transportation system and are part of Visualize 2045, the long-range plan. Staff are planning a series of site visits throughout the region to learn what projects, programs, and policies the jurisdictions are working on that support these concepts and what the TPB could do to help. Get the presentation. Listen to the presentation.

Citizens Advisory Committee: The CAC met on September 12. CAC Chair Robert Jackson reported that the committee received a briefing on the TPB’s work to expand the National Capital Region Trail Network. Committee members were supportive of this effort and asked about signage, safety, and even more expansion. The committee also tested out an exercise to discuss how the TPB’s Aspirational Initiatives affect them. They explored the initiatives through story telling and thinking about how they traveled to the meeting that night. Read the full CAC report. Listen to the CAC report.

Access for All Advisory Committee: At its September meeting the AFA received briefings on the pre-application conferences for the Enhanced Mobility grant solicitation. All applicants are required to attend one of the conferences and they have been well attended so far. The committee also learned about Montgomery County’s accessible taxi incentive program. Committee members expressed frustration that there aren’t more accessible taxis available. The AFA also discussed takeaways from an earlier workshop about dockless bikes and scooters. Members are interested in more ways they can be involved in these policy discussions. Listen to the AFA report. Read the full AFA report.

Get the full audio and meeting materials from the September meeting.

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