DEVELOPING SOUND REGIONAL TRANSPORTATION POLICY

Sound planning requires that the impacts of every major transportation facility within the metropolitan Washington area be carefully evaluated, often taking into account factors that reach far beyond jurisdictional boundaries. The National Capital Region Transportation Planning Board (TPB) provides an excellent forum for cooperative discussion of these transportation policies, plans, and programs. At the TPB, estimates of future travel based on data assembled and analyzed by the Council of Governments' (COG's) transportation planning staff are presented periodically, and play an important role in the development of transportation policy. Such information provides greater insight to elected officials and their transportation planning staffs as to the impacts of growth on the transportation network. Because of this data, the capability of existing and planned facilities to provide for future traffic can be better evaluated and problem areas identified. The District of Columbia's current priorities are in the areas of reconstruction and maintenance of streets and bridges. A notable exception to this is the soon-to-be designed link in the highway system of the Southeast Freeway and Kenilworth Avenue. This new transportation facility will probably be the last freeway to be built in the city. Currently the District is involved in installing a completely new solid state computerized traffic signal system.