The region's extensive highway and road network forms the backbone of its transportation system. Every day, millions of people travel by car or truck to access jobs, schools, and medical care, as well as shopping, entertainment, and recreational opportunities. Roads also carry the majority of goods deliveries to homes, schools, businesses, and stores in the region.
The region also boasts one of the premier public transit systems in the country. Metro moves hundreds of thousands of people—commuters, students, and tourists—each work day. Commuter railroads in Maryland and Virginia and dozens of local bus and other transit providers move many thousands more. Together, these transit services play a critical role in sustaining economic vitality, serving the needs of low-income and other disadvantaged populations, providing high-quality alternatives to driving, building communities, and reducing environmental impacts.
COG and the TPB lead numerous efforts to monitor and manage traffic on area roadways, promote highway and traffic safety, forecast future travel demands, and coordinate long-term planning of roadway improvements. In addition, COG and the TPB analyze regional ridership trends and forecasts, coordinate long-term planning of major transit improvements, and organize programs to promote greater use of transit as a commute alternative. COG and the TPB also bring transit operators together from around the region to share best practices for improving short-term operations and to highlight long-term funding needs.
News & Multimedia
-
News
December 16, 2011
One of the best ways to understand the value of something is to take it away and measure the difference. So as part of our “Business Case” for transit study we...
-
News
December 13, 2011
A Metrorail station can make the land surrounding the station much easier to get to and from. Especially if traffic is bad and parking is costly as often...
-
News
December 6, 2011
Justin Antos WMATA Office of Long-Range Planning
-
News
December 2, 2011
Traffic congestion has increased significantly since 2008 and I-395 remains the most congested corridor in the region.
-
News
November 4, 2011
Recently the Center for Regional Analysis (CRA) at George Mason University published research quantifying the demand for housing in metropolitan Washington. The...