Transportation & Land Use Coordination

Through better coordination and planning, the transportation system and development patterns can support one another more effectively and help metropolitan Washington accommodate significant growth and continue to prosper. Both COG's Region Forward Vision and the TPB Vision recognize this important relationship and made transportation and land use coordination regional goals. 

One way that COG and the TPB coordinates is through the Cooperative Forecasting Program, which enables local and regional planning to be coordinated by using common assumptions about future growth and development based on various data, such as adopted land-use plans and planned transportation improvements. The COG forecasts are used extensively by the TPB in modeling travel demand and emissions.

Another focus area of COG and the TPB has been Activity Centers, the region's major housing and job centers. COG and the TPB have analyzed growth in Activity Centers and proposed strategies to help inform area leaders making transportation and development decisions. Strengthening these centers, including the regional core, and connecting them with good transportation options allows the region to grow and use land more wisely, bolsters the economy, and creates numerous opportunities to move people and goods more efficiently.

While the region is already nationally known for successes in concentrating mixed-use development in Activity Centers, especially those served by transit, challenges still remain. Through the Transportation/Land-Use Connections (TLC) Program, the TPB helps local jurisdictions address community-level issues by providing both direct technical assistance and information about best practices and model projects through the TLC Clearinghouse.

The TPB has also performed several studies to explore alternative land use and transportation scenarios for the region’s future.