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Transportation Planning – Frequently Asked Questions
OVERVIEW • FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS • MODELING 101

Inside the MPO

Planning Approaches

Project Selection

Technical Fundamentals

Inside the MPO


Why and when was the MPO established? Back to Top
The Federal-Aid Highway Act of 1963 created the key federal requirements for urban transportation planning. It mandated that, in order to receive federal funds, transportation projects in urbanized areas with a population of 50,000 or more must derive from a continuing, comprehensive transportation-planning process undertaken cooperatively by state and local governments.
In January 1973 a framework for regional transportation-planning in the Boston area was institutionalized when a memorandum of understanding established that the MPO agencies would:
  • Work together on the federally required transportation-planning process
  • Establish a Joint Regional Transportation Committee (now known as the Regional Transportation Advisory Council) to ensure citizen participation in regional transportation-planning
  • Work together to prepare federally mandated planning documents
  • Establish a joint technical staff to support decision making (the Central Transportation Planning Staff)
In 1976 the MPO was expanded to include Massport and the MBTA Advisory Board. Subsequently, in 1997, it incorporated the Massachusetts Turnpike Authority, the City of Boston, and six municipalities (three cities and three towns serving elected terms).
How are the municipalities elected to the MPO? Back to Top
Seven of the 14 MPO members are municipalities. The City of Boston is a permanent member, and the other 6 municipal members—3 cities and 3 towns—are elected. One city and one town are elected each year to three-year terms. The MPO election is held at the Metropolitan Area Planning Council´s annual spring meeting and is administered by MAPC and the MBTA Advisory Board.
What part does public involvement play in the MPO planning process? Back to Top
The ongoing regional transportation-planning process relies on public participation to gather input and guidance for studies and certification documents. The MPO actively solicits information and receives and responds to comments year-round by phone, e-mail, and U.S. mail, and at public meetings. Typically the draft Transportation Improvement Program and the draft Unified Planning Work Program are developed by the MPO´s Transportation Planning and Programming Committee from late spring to early summer. The Committee releases the draft documents for a midsummer public-review period. The MPO finalizes the certification documents in late summer.
What part does public involvement play in the development
of a specific transportation project? Back to Top
A transportation project, whether roadway, bicycle path, or transit facility, requires an extensive development process, with public involvement at each step. The process starts with a project concept and proceeds with identifying and studying alternatives, designing an alternative that has been selected, conducting an environmental review, and funding the project. At the conceptual stage, public involvement helps to define the scope of a project. Selection of the preferred alternative for a project is done with the help of public comments. While a project is in the design phase, public input supplements engineering expertise with invaluable local knowledge. Transportation projects undergo an environmental assessment (some projects require an extensive environmental review) in which the public aids in identifying issues and mitigation strategies for addressing them. When a project is ready to be considered for funding, public involvement informs the MPO´s process for prioritizing funding.
How is the Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) developed? Back to Top
For the highway program, the MPO allocates available funds to projects based on the TIP criteria: condition, safety, mobility, community impacts, land use, economic development, environmental effects, the readiness of the project, policy issues, and geographic equity.

For the transit program, the MPO uses criteria from the MBTA´s five-year Capital Investment Program to identify projects that help promote the MPO´s planning goals.
How are the MPO transportation-planning studies generated? Back to Top
MPO studies are generated largely during the Unified Planning Work Program (UPWP) development period, which generally starts in early spring of each year. Ideas for studies come from concerns raised by individuals and municipalities during the UPWP public-participation process, past comments on the development of the Transportation Plan, and the Mobility Management System (MMS), which monitors the performance of roadways and other facilities. Staff describe each concern and group them into categories to facilitate evaluation by the UPWP Subcommittee of the Transportation Planning and Programming Committee (TPPC). Evaluation includes a rough assessment of the concern using MMS and other monitoring information, estimates of the potential study´s cost and of total funds available, and a determination of whether another study, past or future, addresses the same concern. The UPWP Subcommittee develops a recommendation on which studies will be performed each year and presents it for endorsement, first by the Planning and Programming Committee and then by the MPO.

Planning Approaches


What are the sources of funding for transportation plans and projects? Back to Top
The funding for transportation plans and projects comes from a variety of sources, including the federal government, the state government, special authorities, MBTA assessment districts, local government contributions, and tolls.

Federal funds, from the Federal Highway Trust Fund (federal gas tax) and from supplemental general funds, are first transferred to the state and then distributed to metropolitan areas.
How is mass transit funded in Massachusetts? Back to Top
By far the largest single provider of mass transit service in the state is the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA). In accordance with the “forward-funding” mechanism, which was instituted by the Commonwealth in state fiscal year 2001, funding for operating and maintaining MBTA services comes primarily from four sources, listed below in order from the largest to the smallest amount of funding:
  1. Twenty percent of the state´s sales-tax receipts (excluding meals)
  2. Fares paid by riders
  3. Monetary assessments charge to localities that are served by the MBTA
  4. Non-fare revenues generated from advertising, real estate transactions (such as leases and land sales), parking revenue, and other sources, such as corporate sponsorships
The MBTA´s annual operating budget is more than $1 billion, which includes payments on debts. The MBTA is responsible for making payments on both the principal of and the interest on a debt of approximately $5 billion that was spent on long-term capital (equipment and infrastructure) investments. A substantial portion of this debt was incurred prior to the forward-funding legislation. Before forward funding, the Commonwealth assumed direct responsibility for annual deficits in the MBTA´s budget, including deficits resulting from extending or adding transit lines. Since the forward-funding legislation was passed, the MBTA has been responsible for its own debt payments. However, partly in response to the effects of repaying these prior debts, the Massachusetts Executive Office of Transportation and Public Works determined that funding for future capital expansion projects would again be the responsibility of the Commonwealth, with limited exceptions.

The federal government also provides funding for transit under a formula based on the population of the metropolitan area served, the number of riders carried per year, and the mileage and age of the vehicles used to transport riders. Federal grants are also available, on a competitive basis, for major capital improvements, pilot projects using innovative technologies, and services that further air-quality, environmental-justice, and other initiatives of the federal government. An example of such an initiative is the Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality Improvement Program of the U.S. Department of Transportation. Some funding from this program is distributed on an annual basis by the MPO to expand suburban mobility through new transit services.

Fifteen regional transit authorities (RTAs) provide local and express bus service in population centers and rural areas outside Boston. RTAs are funded through a mechanism similar to the one described above for the MBTA, with the exception that there is no dedicated portion of state sales tax revenue directed to RTAs. Instead, the Federal Transit Administration´s funding for transit operations is distributed by the Commonwealth´s Executive Office of Transportation and Public Works and makes up a substantial portion of RTA budgets.
How is it determined whether the level and quality of transit service are
provided without regard to race, color, or national origin? Back to Top
The MBTA must comply with Title VI of the federal Civil Rights Act of 1964 to ensure that it does not discriminate in the provision of its services—intentionally or unintentionally—on the basis of race, color, or national origin. The MBTA monitors its services on a regular basis to analyze performance in minority and nonminority areas and reports the results to the Federal Transit Administration every three years. For the purpose of Title VI reporting, a minority area (for example, a minority neighborhood or census tract) is defined as one where the proportion of minority persons residing in that area exceeds the average proportion of minority persons in the whole transit service area. To be designated as a “minority-neighborhood” bus route or rail line, the route/line must have least one third of its route-miles in minority areas.

To comply with Title VI requirements, the MBTA determines whether services in both minority and nonminority areas meet its service standards, and/or are consistent with its policies, for vehicle load (the ratio of passengers to seats), vehicle headway (the time interval between two vehicles traveling in the same direction on the same route), on-time performance (a measure of trips completed as scheduled), distribution of transit amenities (items of comfort and convenience for the riding public such as shelters, maps, and schedules), service availability (how close transit services are to one´s home or workplace), vehicle assignment (which vehicles are assigned to each route within the system), and transit security. The performance of each bus route or rail line that is designated as a minority-neighborhood route is then compared to the performance of that type (“mode”) of transit within the system as a whole to determine whether there are any differences. (A transit “mode” is a specific category of transit, such as bus, rapid transit, express bus, and bus rapid transit.) If the analysis shows an inferiority in the performance of minority services, this must be remedied.

The MBTA also measures the quality of the services that connect a selected sample of minority areas to the most frequently visited destinations in the MBTA´s service area and compares it to the quality of services connecting a sample of nonminority areas to the same destinations. If the minority-area services do not perform as well in terms of average travel time, number of transfers, total trip cost for the passenger, and cost per mile for the passenger, the MBTA is required to take action to resolve the differences.

Although the Civil Rights Act does not include income in its purview, the MBTA, as of October 2007, planned to examine service performance for low-income areas (in addition to minority areas) in its Title VI analysis to comply with the environmental justice requirements that were originally set forth in presidential Executive Order #12898 (February 1994).
What are the key components of a transportation-planning study? Back to Top
Depending on the problem or the question that needs to be examined, the work program for a transportation- planning study may include the formation of an advisory body to oversee the study, data collection and gathering, the calibration and application of a planning, microsimulation, or other model, development and testing of alternatives, traffic operations analysis, and documentation.
What is a corridor transportation-planning study? Back to Top
This type of study typically examines an arterial roadway where concerns have been raised about delays, congestion, safety, or access. The concerns relate to vehicular travel in general, buses, bicycling, or walking. Even if the concerns relate only to one mode, staff evaluate the integrated, multimodal environment of the corridor and address the concerns in a multimodal manner. The study may or may not include a land use component, depending on the nature of the concerns and solutions.
Is bicycle and pedestrian planning integrated into all studies, or is it done separately? Back to Top
These modes are being integrated more and more. Studies on roadway configurations, for example, routinely include consideration of bicyclists and pedestrians. Nevertheless, there are studies that pertain only to bicycling and walking, such as feasibility reports on trails, as well as studies that do not include these modes, such as one on how to design the Braintree Split.
Are there situations where improvements for pedestrians can be detrimental to bicyclists? Back to Top
There are situations where narrowing travel lanes to improve walking conditions can result in less roadway width for bicyclists. This generally occurs in areas where the narrowing is designed to “calm” traffic and thus create safer, more comfortable walking conditions. A curb extension, for example, narrows the traffic lane so that pedestrians have less roadway width to cross and so that traffic will slow, allowing more reaction time for both motorists and pedestrians. If the lane is not wide enough for motor vehicles and bicycles to share it, bicyclists would “take the lane”—and, of course, yield to pedestrians as any law-abiding motorist would. The general slowing of traffic in these areas is also good for bicycle travel.

Project Selection


How are new capital improvements prioritized for transit? Back to Top
The Program for Mass Transportation (PMT) is the MBTA´s long-range plan for major projects. It defines the 25-year vision for public transportation in eastern Massachusetts. The PMT is updated every five years and is not restricted by already-identified sources of funding (in other words, it is “fiscally unconstrained”). The PMT determines which projects—expansion, enhancement, and system-preservation projects—would be needed to achieve the MBTA´s vision for the future, regardless of the expected funding levels, and it lists and describes those projects.

The PMT is implemented through the MBTA´s Capital Investment Program (CIP), a rolling five-year plan that is updated annually, which authorizes funding for specific projects. Unlike the PMT, the CIP is restricted to already-defined sources of funding (it is “fiscally constrained”), so only capital projects that the MBTA can afford are advanced to the CIP. These projects are selected and prioritized for funding based on the impact of each project on the effectiveness of the commonwealth´s transportation system, service quality standards, the environment, health and safety, operating costs, the prevention or avoidance of deferred maintenance, and debt repayment costs. Environmental justice concerns are also considered in the CIP decision-making process.

The PMT is important to the MPO´s planning process since it encompasses the set of transit projects that can be drawn on for inclusion in the MPO´s long-range Regional Transportation Plan and in its Transportation Improvement Program (TIP). The Transportation Plan is the region´s fiscally constrained, 25-year multimodal transportation plan for the projects that receive federal funding. The TIP, which is also fiscally constrained, is both a program and a document. It is used for determining which projects in the Plan are implemented.
How are route and schedule changes decided upon by the MBTA? Back to Top
Minor changes are made to MBTA bus, rail, and boat services several times a year based on service performance data, comments from customers, and employee observations. These changes generally address urgent crowding or schedule-adherence problems that may have occurred because of new commercial development along a route or increased traffic congestion. Examples of minor changes include lengthening the scheduled travel time for a route during certain periods of the day to respond to poor on-time performance, or reducing slightly the time between trips to respond to an increase in ridership during that time period.

Major service changes are made as part of the MBTA´s ongoing service-planning process and are documented in the biennial MBTA Service Plan. The service-planning process includes a comprehensive evaluation of routes with respect to the following indicators:
  • Passenger loads (the number of passengers onboard a train or bus)
  • Schedule adherence (on-time performance)
  • Scheduled frequency of service
  • Span of time during which a route operates during the day
  • Net cost per passenger
For example, with respect to passenger loads, the average maximum load per trip during each 30-minute portion of peak travel periods should not exceed a certain number that is related to the number of seats on a vehicle. With respect to schedule adherence, individual trips on lower-frequency routes must depart and arrive within a few minutes of their scheduled times. On high-frequency routes, the time between trips must also remain within a few minutes of the scheduled times. Routes are designated as “complying” or “not complying” with designated standards corresponding to each of these indicators and the other indicators listed above. When noncompliance is found, corrections are proposed as part of the Service Plan. More details on the evaluation of routes may be found in the MBTA´s Service Delivery Policy.

The service-planning process also includes an analysis of how proposed new routes and route extensions would compare to existing transit services. The estimates of operating costs and number of riders on proposed transit services are made based on the performance of comparable services elsewhere in the region or through computer-based demand models. Proposed changes may be implemented if their expected performance meets the Service Delivery Policy standards and compares well with existing services. However, the funding for operating transit services generally remains consistent from year to year, and therefore increases in service on one route usually must be balanced by decreases in service on another route.

Ideas for route and schedule changes are solicited at community workshops throughout the region as part of the service- planning process, and additional meetings are held to review draft Service Plans before they are finalized. The MBTA also accepts written suggestions via e-mail or U.S. mail:
  • E-mail: serviceplan08@mbta.com
  • U.S. mail: MBTA Service Planning Unit, 45 High Street, Boston, MA 02110
Who decides when and where road construction is done? Back to Top
The MPO prioritizes and allocates federal funding for projects. Generally, cities and towns (for low-capacity roads) or MassHighway (for large projects and bridges) are the proponents for roadway projects. Maintenance needs are usually identified through monitoring systems, while the need for additional capacity (to accommodate more vehicles) is identified through planning studies.
Who decides when and where expansion of the transit system occurs? Back to Top
The MBTA and other transit agencies monitor the performance of their systems and conduct studies, such as the MBTA Program for Mass Transportation, to identify unmet needs and new markets for transit service. Each potential expansion project undergoes an extensive planning process conducted by the staff of the state agency that would be carrying out the project, consultants, and state planning officials in consultation with the public. Ideas are examined in detail in a major investment study to determine their feasibility. If a feasible preferred alternative emerges, the agency identifies funding, and may apply for federal New Starts funds, which are awarded by the Federal Transit Administration in a competitive process.
Who is responsible for making roads more bicycle-friendly? Back to Top
Roads are under the jurisdiction of either a municipality or the Commonwealth. If major reconstruction would be needed to make the road safer for bicycling, that would be considered when the road is ready for such work. Sometimes, however, lane markings can be changed to improve bicycle travel.

Technical Fundamentals


What is the difference between light rail, heavy rail, and commuter rail? Back to Top
Definitions of the types of rail-passenger transportation services are complicated by the great variety of systems used throughout the world now and in the past. In the United States, the terms heavy rail and light rail are generally applied to two forms of urban rail systems that are not part of the national railroad network. Common characteristics of heavy-rail lines are exclusive rights-of-way, which may include subways, elevated structures, or ground-level sections; multiple-car trains propelled by electric motors drawing power from a third rail or overhead wires; and high-level platforms at all stations. In the MBTA system, the Red, Orange, and Blue lines are classified as heavy rail.

Light-rail lines can operate on exclusive rights-of-way similar to those of heavy-rail lines, but often some segments of a route is on tracks located in city streets. They may have high-level or low-level station platforms, or a combination of the two. Most systems have electrically powered vehicles that draw current from overhead wires, but a few have vehicles powered by diesel engines. Vehicles may be run individually or with two or more vehicles coupled together. In the MBTA system, the Green Line and the Mattapan High Speed Line are classified as light rail.

The term commuter rail is usually applied to short-distance passenger-train services running on tracks that are part of the national railroad network, with repetitive trips between home and work locations (commuting) being the predominant type of trip. Commuter rail vehicles may be individually powered by electric motors or internal-combustion engines, or may be pulled or pushed by locomotives. In the MBTA system, the routes radiating from North Station and South Station (shown in purple on MBTA system diagrams) are classified as commuter rail.
What factors contribute to higher demand for transit service in a community? Back to Top
The demand for transit service in any community (which means the number of people who want to use transit service), depends on many factors. Among these are the cost and convenience of transit service as perceived by potential riders when compared with other available means of accomplishing the same trips. Measures of convenience are partly subjective but include such considerations as the total travel time, frequency of service, proximity of transit stations to actual origins and destinations, number and ease of required transfers, and the seating arrangements on vehicles. Travelers with limited options, such as those who cannot drive or do not have autos available, are more likely to use transit service than those with more choices.

The amount of transit ridership in any travel corridor is a percentage of the total travel in that corridor; this means that more residents would potentially want transit service in corridors where the total amount of travel is greater, if other factors are similar. The actual number of riders using a transit line may be limited by the capacity of the service provided on the line itself or by the capacities of the services and facilities used for access and egress to and from that line. Limited parking facilities at stations where people board trains may discourage transit use, but limited parking near final destinations may encourage more travelers to use transit instead of cars.

Policies that encourage new residential or mixed-use development close to transit facilities can increase the use of those facilities. The addition of walking and bicycling paths that lead to transit stations, as well as improvements to existing paths, can also be helpful. These improvements can include providing better lighting, upgrading surfaces, installing or retiming pedestrian lights at busy intersections, and providing secure bike racks at stations.
Why do buses and streetcars sometimes “bunch up”? Back to Top
On routes with a high frequency of service, unplanned grouping, or “bunching up,” of vehicles can happen if one vehicle is delayed. There are different causes for delays, including heavy automobile traffic along a route, a higher-than-anticipated number of passengers at one or more stops on the route, or a temporary blockage of a road or tracks along a route. When a vehicle is delayed, it tends to have more passengers waiting at each successive stop, since the gap between it and the previous vehicle (or “leader”) is longer than planned. With more passengers boarding, the time spent at each stop is longer, which further delays the vehicle.

The vehicle immediately behind the delayed one (the “follower”) then has fewer people waiting for it than normally anticipated, since the gap between it and the delayed vehicle in front of it is shorter than planned. With fewer passengers on board, this follower generally has fewer stops to make and spends less time at each one. This allows the follower to catch up to the delayed vehicle, resulting in two vehicles operating in tandem. On a very busy route, or after an unusually long delay, sometimes more than two vehicles become “bunched up.”
What is traffic calming? Back to Top
According to the Institute of Transportation Engineers, traffic calming is “the combination of mainly physical measures that reduce the negative effects of motor vehicle use, alter driver behavior, and improve conditions for non-motorized street users”. Such measures include high-visibility crosswalks, allowing on-street parking, providing bicycle lanes, reducing curb radii at intersections, lower speed limits, limiting/prohibiting right turns on red, sidewalk extensions (bulb-outs), pavement narrowing, speed bumps/tables, diagonal diverters (eliminating through movements at intersections), roundabouts, and street closures.
What are intellgient transportation systems (ITS)?? Back to Top
Intelligent transportation systems (ITS) are defined by the Intelligent Transportation Society of America “as the application of advanced sensor, computer, electronics, and communications technologies and management strategies, in an integrated manner, to increased the safety and efficiency of the surface transportation system”. Elements of ITS include the following systems: regional multimodal traveler information, traffic signal control, freeway management, incident management, electronic toll collection, electronic fare collection, transit management, emergency management, and railroad grade crossing warning. In order to ensure system compatibility and interconnections, the U.S. Department of Transportation developed the National ITS Architecture, a framework “which defines the functions that must be performed, the subsystems that provide these functions, and the information that must be exchanged to support the user services.” ISTEA legislation mandated that ITS projects must be part of a regional ITS architecture in order to qualify for federal funds. In 2004 MPO staff participated in the development of the Regional ITS Architecture for Metropolitan Boston, led by the Office of Transportation Planning of EOTPW (Executive Office of Transportation and Public Works).
What is the “management and operations” planning factor? Back to Top
A major theme of federal transportation policy in the SAFETEA-LU legislation has been the system management and operational considerations in planning, project selection, and program implementation. Environmental impacts and financial constraints dictate a better balance between capacity-adding projects and operational efficiencies. ITS strategies have an operations focus, and they may serve as a catalyst for a decisive shift towards management and operations. One of this MPO´s policies in the development of the Transportation Plan is the maintenance and preservation of the existing transportation infrastructure, and Plan funds are allocated with this policy in mind.
What are common strategies for managing congestion and improving mobility on arterials? Back to Top
Improvement strategies for arterials can pertain to the design, operations or management of the arterial. Depending on the problem that needs to be addressed, strategies may include intersection improvements, one-way streets, access management, traffic calming, sidewalks and pedestrian crosswalks, traffic signal improvements, traffic signal coordination, turn prohibitions, improved traffic control devices, traffic signal priority, bicycle lanes, parking management, or increased enforcement.
What roads in the region allow bicycle travel? Back to Top
All roads except limited-access highways are open to bicyclists. Bicyclists have the same rights and responsibilities as motor-vehicle drivers.