OSU’s master plan presents a vision of growth, renovation and relocations on the medical campus that will occur over the next ten to twenty years. In order for the Medical Center to reach its envisioned goals and to successfully “compete” in the healthcare market, an efficient transportation system had to be planned to effectively accommodate patients and visitors; medical, research, and administrative staff; faculty and students; and, most importantly, emergency services. In addition, the Medical Center requirements were folded into the overall transportation system requirements of the OSU campus.
Trans Associates assisted with identifying a traffic and transportation system master plan to meet both near- and long-term requirements of the Medical Center and OSU in general. Services include transportation planning, feasibility studies for a new parking structure, traffic signal warrant studies and the design of three traffic signal installations with signal interconnect.
The purpose of this study was to develop Smart Transportation Improvements that would create connections between residents and key community destinations such as the health care district, Seton Hill University, the central business district and the Five Star Trail. Transportation in the study area was highly oriented to motor vehicle traffic with little to no infrastructure present to support Active Transportation modes such as walking and bicycling.
Components of the study included data collection and analysis of 22 intersections, evaluation of five possible trail connections, a multimodal analysis, and development of alternative improvement programs. The community was involved in charrettes to identify missing connections to neighborhood housing locations, churches, schools, shopping, transit stops and trail access.
The adopted Strategic Business Plan for Downtown Columbus represented a community-wide consensus based on feedback and ideas from hundreds of community and business leaders. As an element of the action plan, the City initiated the “Downtown Columbus Circulation Study”.
A primary goal of these planning efforts was to improve “livability” to support redevelopment, while maintaining appropriate mobility.
This project included the investigation of:
(1) what streets can be converted from one-way to two-way,
(2) if streets must remain one-way, what can be done to make them more “livable”,
(3) how transit can be incorporated into the Downtown system,
(4) traffic calming features to enhance the Downtown environment,
(5) potentials for on-street parking, and
(6) design guidelines for improving the pedestrian and bicycle systems
Several streets were converted from one-way to two-way operations, on-street parking was added, and pedestrian and biking facilities were installed. Trans Associates was responsible for traffic volume forecasting, the assessment of various road diet alternatives, and the conceptual planning of the preferred plans for such streets as Marconi Boulevard/Civic Center Drive, Town Street, and Front Street.
The City of Pittsburgh Department of City Planning created a bicycle plan in order to make bicycling within the City safer, more convenient, and more accessible to residents.
The City retained Trans Associates to create a manual of policies and guidelines for bicycle facilities within the City of Pittsburgh. In 2007, our firm was asked to perform a traffic study at various locations including Liberty Avenue, to determine the feasibility of installing bicycle lanes on the street.
Trans Associates conducted a field investigation of the study area last year and recommended the installation of bicycle lanes along Liberty Avenue between Herron Avenue and 45th Street/Canoe Way.
Shared roadway bicycle lane markings, a fairly new innovation adopted in California, were recommended. The markings are typically used when roadway widths cannot accommodate a separate bicycle-only lane and are intended to demonstrate to bicyclists and motorists the location within the shared lane that could be used by bicyclists safely away from parked cars.
Trans Associates’ services included:
- Field investigation
- Coordination with the Department of Public Works
- Preparation of a summary findings report
In April of 2002, the City of Columbus published the Strategic Business Plan for Downtown Columbus. At its core, the Plan is guided by five action strategies: (1) build more housing Downtown, (2) stabilize the Downtown office market, (3) concentrate new mixed-use development around City Center, (4) create a riverfront park and promenade, and (5) improve parking and the movement of cars, transit, and people.
Trans Associates continues to undertake traffic studies to define compatible roadway plans – within the context of the Strategic Business Plan. A primary goal of these planning efforts is to improve “livability” to support redevelopment – while maintaining appropriate mobility. In addition, Trans Associates will assist the riverfront park planning and design team with Design Development of Phase I of the Scioto Mile.
Trans Associates was retained by the Municipality of Mount Lebanon to study the feasibility of installing a bicycle lane or bicycle trail on local roads in the Osage Road to Jefferson School section of the Municipality. The area evaluated currently serves as an unofficial bike and jogging course by the residents and adjoining neighborhoods
A Field Investigation of Proposed and Alternate Bicycle Trails was conducted to document the following features:
- Intersections with conflicting vehicular movements
- Vehicular parking areas that would service the bicycle facility
- Alternate bicycled paths
- Sections of road that require pavement repairs or replacement
- Inlet grates which need upgraded to bicycle safe grates
Trans Associates’ services included:
- Field investigation
- Trail and signage recommendations
- Intersection and pavement improvement recommendations
Trans Associates was retained by the City of Pittsburgh Department of City Planning to conduct a parking study for the construction of the First Avenue Parking Garage. The garage houses approximately 1,250 spaces, and connects to a Transit station. The study objectives were to identify impacts upon the traffic, parking, and pedestrian activity, and to develop appropriate mitigation strategies as necessary. These objectives were accomplished through the:
- Performance of traffic and pedestrian counts, and analysis of traffic conditions to identify existing problems
- Projection of future 2009 base traffic and pedestrian volumes by projecting area-wide traffic and pedestrian growth
- Assessment of traffic and pedestrian operations under 2009 base conditions
- Projection of future 2009 combined traffic and pedestrian volumes including the proposed parking garage development
- Assessment of traffic and pedestrian operations under 2009 combined conditions and determination of mitigating actions required to address the impacts of the proposed parking garage
- Assessment of existing on-street parking in the area adjacent to the proposed garage development
The Urban Redevelopment Authority of Pittsburgh (URA) retained Perkins Eastman Architects and TA to conduct a planning study of the Allegheny riverfront. The Allegheny Riverfront Vision Plan seeks to create a comprehensive and unified vision for the redevelopment of 6.5 miles of the Allegheny’s south shore stretching from 11th Street in the Strip District to Highland Park and a small area on the north shore at the 16th Street Bridge. The study area involves hundreds of parcels, both publicly and privately owned.
TA’s services include a general review of existing transportation conditions including vehicles, pedestrians, truck traffic and bicycles, and evaluation of potential changes to the transportation network as the Visioning process unfolds. The study extensively evaluated intermodal and multi-modal alternatives with investigation of the interface between river traffic, commuter rail, public transit, bicycles, pedestrians, truck traffic and automobiles.
