[Editor: An interesting update to the Hawaii story (June 30, 2017): Companies that work in transportation could advise the transportation management association and help create policies to ease traffic on Waikiki’s streets. Makes sense, and is similar to recommendations recently in a George Mason study on how Arlington, Va., could work more closely with delivery companies to improve the ways they park around the county.]
One of the most popular pages on MobilityLab.org is our What is TDM? page. It makes sense, since there is clearly a groundswell of more cities and regions focusing on improving education about and access to transportation options.
Just this week in the news, Chester County, Pa., is exploring a new “holistic” way to look at transportation options and the Waikiki City Council in Hawaii is proposing the establishment of a “transportation management association.”
According to the local KHON Channel 2, the impetus for a TMA is the bad traffic caused by what some claim is a lack of parking.
It’s especially difficult for large vehicles like delivery trucks and trolleys in Waikiki and that can impact other drivers. create the Waikiki Transportation Management Association – a special improvement district that would make the necessary changes to get traffic moving more smoothly in the area.
Well-known companies like Royal Star Hawaii and Waikiki Trolley support the measure, but the big question remains – who’s going to pay for it all? According to the letter from Waikiki Improvement Association, “a core group of private transportation businesses has agreed to voluntarily fund the WTMA district in order to get it started.
Where a TMA could be particularly helpful is in deciding if indeed the problem is “too much parking.” That is rarely the case. More likely, such an organization could determine better, more efficient ways to allocate parking space so traffic and other options like biking, walking, and transit can be encouraged and flow more freely.
In Pennsylvania, Chester County has designed a public survey, which 4,200 residents have taken so far, to inform the comprehensive plan they’re developing called Landscapes3. Improving transportation is a big part of the plan.
“Chester County is advancing a holistic approach of the multimodal movement of people,” said Tim Phelps, executive director of the Transportation Management Association of Chester County. “Whether it is biking along the Chester Valley Trail or taking a train on the Keystone Corridor or even sharing a ride on newly reconstructed highway, Chester County commuters have a variety of safe and convenient transportation options to get to work. Working with its partners, Chester County is making smart investments in our trails and train stations; these investments provide clean and affordable mobility options for commuters.”
On a countywide scale, approximately 380,000 commuters live or work in Chester County every day, according to Census figures. Many of these people are commuting within Chester County, but there is a large proportion of commute trips to other counties in our region, according to the Chester County Planning Commission.
About 80 percent of commuters in Chester County are traveling by single-occupancy vehicle. However, other modes of transportation to work have seen an increase in recent years. For instance, transit ridership has increased 20 percent in the last 15 years, according to the county’s Planning Commission.
Residents can complete the survey here. Meanwhile, the article goes on to quote lots of county leaders who recognize the importance of transportation options beyond just roads and highways. They talk about making business districts much easier to reach by foot, bicycle, and transit in order to improve the local economy.
The first hurdle for improving business and making places more enjoyable is simply recognizing the need to do something. Improving access through transportation options is a smart place to start, and leaders in Waikiki and Chester County appear to have figured that out.
Photo of Waikiki sunset and crosswalk by Peter Lee/Flickr.