Kaycee Mertz, Georgia Department of TransportationDavid Pickworth, Atkins

Patti Schropp, AtkinsJim Evans, Metro Planning and Engineering, Inc.

Project Purpose

Georgia Department of Transportation undertook this study in 2011 to evaluate the Atlanta to Athens Corridor Optimize travel efficiency and

safety Improve transportation

connectivity to major employment and activity centers

Improve mobility across and within the study area

Linkage between transportation planning, land use, and economic development efforts

Atlanta to Athens Study Area

I-85

I-75

I-75

Study Area Boundary

Barrow

Jackson

DeKalb Rockdale

Walton Oconee

Clarke

Gwinnett University of Georgia

Downtown Atlanta

Study Area Information• 2 MPOs, 9 partial counties, 4 transit

providers, 5 CIDs

• East-west length of the corridor is over 54 miles long and the north-south distance is over 22 miles wide

• Home to over 1.3 million people in 2010Forecast to increase to 1.7million by 2040

• Over 371,000 jobs in 2010Forecast to increase to 633,000 by 2040

• Home to several regional malls , activity centers and University of Georgia (current enrollment – over 32,000)

• 31.1 million Daily VMT in 2010Forecast to increase to 48.5 million by 2040

Georgia Goals Study Goals

Improve the movement of people and goods and expand Georgia's role as a logistics hub

1. Strengthen connections and mobility between activity centers, educational centers, freight centers, job centers, etc.

Protect the public's safety 2. Improve safety for all users

Improve intergovernmental coordination for successful infrastructure development. Create jobs and grow businesses.

3. Promote economic development by strengthening the relationships between transportation and land use plans and policies

4. Coordinate A2A Study with agencies, local governments, stakeholders, and the public

Project Goals

Key Study Activities

• Stakeholder Involvement

• Compilation of Local Land Use Plans

• Develop Travel Demand Model

• Existing Conditions Evaluation

• Future Needs Evaluation

•Identification and Evaluation of Alternatives for Study Area

•Case Study Analysis

We are here

The Public

SteeringCommittee

StakeholderCommittee

ProjectTeam

Technical Process

Perform three levels of analyses to identify potential needs and solutionsEvaluate study area conditions

(macroscopic)Evaluate corridor-level

conditions and travel patterns (mesoscopic)

Perform detailed analysis of eight selected case study areas (microscopic)

Strategy Development and Evaluation Process

Evaluation of Future System (E+C) and Stakeholder Input

Improvement Strategy 1 Development

Evaluation of Improvement

Strategy 1

Improvement Strategy 2 Development Using

“Lessons Learned” From Strategy 1 & Case Studies

Evaluation of Improvement

Strategy 2

Major Corridor Definition & Performance Measures

Study GoalsMajor Corridor Definitions

Existing Conditions Analysis Performance Measures / Evaluation Criteria

Improvement Strategy Development and Evaluation Process

Three-Tier Approach

A2A Travel Demand Model

Major Travel Corridors

Case Study Areas

Macroscopic Model

Mesoscopic Model

Microscopic Model

Evaluate LOS, travel time, delay, speed for study area

Develop broad range of improvement strategies

to meet study goals

Evaluate LOS, travel time, delay, speed by corridor

Assess impact of potential improvement strategies applied to

various situations

1st Step - Build the Travel Demand Model

Integration of ARC , Athens, & Statewide models

Multimodal Non-motorized travel Highway

Auto (SOV, SR2 & SR3+) Truck (Medium, Heavy & Commercial)

Transit Bus Heavy Rail (HT) Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) Light Rail (LT) Commuter Rail

Used for the Analysis of Study Area and Major Travel Corridors

Building the Model

Study Area Clipped

ARC Updated Network Clipped Study Area

(780+ Zones)

ARC Plan 2040 Network(1700+ Zones)Jackson County Network

From GA Statewide Model(27 Zones)

Athens-Clarke County NetworkFrom MACORTS Model

(332 Zones)

Final Atlanta to Athens Network(3800+ Zones)

Downtown Atlanta

Downtown Athens

Three-Tier Approach

A2A Travel Demand Model

Major Travel Corridors

Macroscopic Model

Mesoscopic Model

Evaluate LOS, travel time, delay, speed for study area

Develop broad range of improvement strategies

to meet study goals

Evaluate LOS, travel time, delay, speed by corridor

Assess impact of potential improvement strategies applied to

various situations

Purpose of Major Travel Corridors

Focus on routes used for regional travel

More detailed analysis at corridor-level

Use stakeholder input to test and evaluate Improvement Strategies in these corridors

Major Travel Corridors

Evaluation of Major Travel Corridors

Utilize dynamic traffic assignment

Develop list of potential improvement concepts or templates that can be selectively applied to various situations throughout study area

Assess potential success associated with each of identified improvement conceptsMost efficient and cost-

effective

Three-Tier Approach

A2A Travel Demand Model

Major Travel Corridors

Case Study Areas

Macroscopic Model

Mesoscopic Model

Microscopic Model

Evaluate LOS, travel time, delay, speed for study area

Develop broad range of improvement strategies

to meet study goals

Evaluate LOS, travel time, delay, speed by corridor

Assess impact of potential improvement strategies applied to

various situations

Purpose of Case Study Areas

• The case study areas will be used to analyze and provide detailed insights associated with potential alternative improvement strategies incorporating combinations of transportation and land use strategies.

Selecting Case Study Locations

• Meet criteria that indicate relevance to study goals

• Select locations with a variety of transportation and development issues

• Industrial development

• Regional activity center

• Commercial development

Case Study Areas

1. US 78@SR 20/SR 81 2. SR 60/I-85 3. SR 138 @ I-20

4.US 78/SR 10 between SR 316 & Atlanta Hwy

5. US 78 @ SR 83

6.SR 20 @ Mall of Georgia

7.Loop 10 and 129 Interchange

8.US 78 and Mt. Industrial

Case Study Areas

Improvement Options with Land Use StrategiesID Description Transportation Land Use

Roadway Widening Access Management Regulations

New Roadway Connectivity Requirements

Special Intersection Treatment (Grade Separation, Continuous Flow, Etc.) Pedestrian-Oriented Design

Travel Demand Management (HOV, Telecommuting, Flex Hours, Etc.) Bicycle-Oriented Design

Commuter Transit - Rail/BRT/Express Bus Transit-Oriented Design

TDM/Carpool/Vanpool Programs

Managed Lanes (HOV, Toll, Truck Only)

Access Management/Control Including Medians

Passing Lanes

Transit Circulator Systems at Activity Centers

Frontage Roads

Collector/Distributor Roadways

Signal Timing and Bus Prioritization

Transit Circulator Systems at Activity Centers Commercial Redevelopment Overlay Districts

Local Transit Service Parking Management Techniques

TDM/Carpool/Vanpool Programs Bicycle-Oriented Design

Special Intersection Treatment (Continuous Flow, Intersection Design, Etc.) Transit-Oriented Design

Frontage Roads Access Management Regulations

Traffic Operational Improvements (Signal Timing, Turn Lanes, Etc.)

Inter-Parcel Access Roadways

Pedestrian/Bicycle Facilities

Reliever Routes To Divert Through Traffic

Special Purpose Truck Only Lanes Truck-Oriented Design

Access Management Access Management Regulations

Passing Lanes Zoning Regulations for Industrial Land Uses

Highway/Rail Grade SeparationsTraffic Operational Improvements (Signal Timing, Turn Lanes, "Last Mile" Street Improvements, Trucking Parking Areas, Etc.)

Frontage Roads

Reliever Routes To Divert Through Traffic

Designated Truck Routes

Special Intersection Treatment (Grade Separation, Continuous Flow, Etc.)

New Roadway

Access Management Including Shared Parcel Access Connectivity Requirements

Traffic Operational Improvements (Signal Timing, Turn Lanes, Etc.) Access Management RegulationsPedestrian/Bicycle Facilities Pedestrian-Oriented DesignInter-Parcel Access Roadways Bicycle-Oriented Design

Local Transit Service Transit-Oriented Design

Roadway Widening

4 Collector Service Segment

1 Commuter Segment

2 Commercial Activity Segment

3 Freight Logistics Segment

Sample Case Study Simulation

Sample Intersection Improvement Strategy

Continuous Flow Intersection

Before After

Study Still Underway

• Evaluation of Case Study Areas still underway

• Development of Tool Box which relates transportation improvements with land use strategies

For More InformationGDOT Project Manager/Contact Person

Kaycee MertzGDOT Office of Planning

kmertz@dot.ga.govPhone: 404-347-0245

http://www.dot.ga.gov/AtlantatoAthens

Websitehttp://www.dot.ga.gov

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