NYS Advisory Panel on Transportation Policy for 2025 Buffalo, NY, Meeting Notes August 3, 2004 A Report for the New York State Department of Transportation Prepared by University Transportation Research Center UNIVERSITY TRANSPORTATION RESEARCH CENTER The City College of New York, New York, NY 10031 (Report No BUF-080304) University Transportation Research Center - 08/18/04 – Page University Transportation Research Center - 08/18/04 – Page New York State Advisory Panel on Transportation Policy for 2025 Mission Statement The New York State Advisory Panel on Transportation Policy for 2025, formed in 2004 by the NYSDOT and chaired by NYSDOT commissioner Joseph H Boardman, is a 12-member committee that seeks to aid the department in gathering advice and insight from the public, transportation industry, and other stakeholders during the development of the next statewide transportation master plan The panel plans to accomplish this by holding nine public hearings throughout New York State throughout June, July and August The panel is comprised of individuals with government, transportation industry and business backgrounds, and will provide a forum for the presentation of testimony and discussion of New York State's transportation system needs and policy issues Following the public hearings, the panel will review its findings and prepare a report this fall University Transportation Research Center - 08/18/04 – Page New York State Advisory Panel for Transportation Policy 2025 Wednesday, August 3, 2004 Meeting Notes Erie Community College, Downtown Campus, Buffalo Notes prepared by University Transportation Research Center, Region Panelists: Joseph Boardman (chair), Dennis Fitzgerald, Dick Garman (co-chair), Pat Gilchrest, Jim McGowan, Jim Melius, Jim Newman, Janette Sadik-Kahn, Lee Sander BACKGROUND/FACTS Positioning NYS Trade, Technology and Traffic (primarily truck traffic) are factors reshaping our future and will effect how the State’s transportation system performs in five priority result areas: • Mobility & Reliability – providing choices and predictable travel times • Safety – reducing deaths and injuries • Environmental Conditions – improving the environment through transportation actions • Economic Competitiveness – the economy depends on transportation costs in New York State being competitive with our neighbors and large economic centers throughout the country and worldwide • Security – strengthening our ability to prevent, mitigate and recover There have been fundamental changes in the flow of world trade and the nature of freight (logistics – just in time deliveries) that have caused truck traffic to increase and the recent growth is expected to continue The northeast is its own economic center contributing to travel demands as well Congestion downstate has a financial cost upstate Rail systems may provide some relief to highway congestion, but new policies and approaches will be needed Without change, the impacts of trade, technology and traffic on the northeast will increase the cost of doing business, making us less competitive and lowering our quality of life To improve our quality of life we need to win Public Trust through Environment and Energy Practices Regional Issues Borders and Corridors • 75% increase in trucks over Peace Bridge o Trade o Technology o Traffic, primarily truck • Five priority result areas Focus on Key Corridors • Buffalo trades heavily with Canada and the Midwest • Eastern Long Island is the second-largest intrastate trading partner • Many areas in New York State rely heavily on Buffalo for trade University Transportation Research Center - 08/18/04 – Page • Need to establish global trade corridors within New York State POLICY ISSUES RAISED IN TESTIMONY (Written testimony submitted by meeting participants is part of the meeting record and is supplemented by the summary) The Environment in Which Transportation Policy/Investments Are Made Global Nature of the Economy One speaker mentioned that the US and Canada have the world's largest trading partnership of $1 billion per day and the Peace Bridge handles approximately $80 million in goods daily Another speaker mentioned that there are approximately 63,000 jobs dependent on trade across Peace Bridge Recent population growth in Canada presents an opportunity for Western NY for more jobs and trade business Influence of Metropolitan Regions The predicted population growth in the region (Toronto, Western NY) means growth of opportunity for Western NY This will bring increase of trade The region must increase its transportation capacity to respond to the growth and to capture the Canadian market that will be created Need for Increased Cooperation and Coordination between Agencies In planning for and funding of current capital needs it is important to work with regional entities and initiatives in a constant and collaborative way to avoid some of the mistakes of the past and to achieve the essential successes of the future One speaker had some comments on regional cooperation: • Regional cooperation and coordination on transportation policy can provide benefits to any Metropolitan area • Regionalizing operation of the transportation system leads to the most efficient and costeffective solutions that are developed through the involvement of all affected stakeholders Another speaker had these comments: • New York State needs a five-year plan to set direction and priorities • Scarce resources must be prioritized regardless of ownership • Elected officials and representatives from economic development agencies must be encouraged to coordinate with transportation agencies and involve the designated MPOs One speaker asked that even though the Southern Tier counties not warrant an MPO, they should be given a greater voice in the regional planning process Consider the creation of an University Transportation Research Center - 08/18/04 – Page RPO (Rural Planning Organization) for rural areas with same mandate as an MPO for urban areas Mandates and Regulations That Agencies Must Work Under One speaker suggested the DOT should merge its separate entities functionally following the example the governor has used with the economic development agencies which would allow the DOT to consolidate offices and eliminate redundant staff Finance One speaker noted that important projects should be funded from a statewide pool prior to application of the standard funding formula The DOT could also help to allow localities to use innovative financing methods to stretch the dollars they get And finally brownfield reclamation and other developer-leveraged initiatives should be given greater priority as they could also benefit the State and help pay for transportation improvements One speaker took issue with the distribution of funding between upstate and downstate areas, for which the speaker believes that New York City gets too much funding proportionate to the amount of road and bridge area it has The speaker also recommended that the DOT and the Thruway Authority research and develop a five-year capital plan A couple speakers talked about how the Consolidated Highway Improvement Program funding is essential to the town highway departments of New York State Costs of building and repairing roads and bridges have gone up continuously but funding for the program has not One speaker requested funding increases in the program and a more predictable funding timeline so that projects could be bid on earlier in the construction season Another mentioned that it is becoming more difficult to attract young people into the road construction industry because of the evershrinking budgets of local industries One speaker commented that in the poorer western counties it is not feasible to impose additional tax levies for the construction/rehabilitation of industrial corridor roadways even though they may be necessary to retain an attract businesses and their jobs Another speaker talked about how transportation infrastructure must be recognized as critical and funded accordingly User fees such as gas taxes and tolls are essential to funding the transportation infrastructure One speaker had these comments about local road finance: • Local roads are key to access of the state network • Local roads/bridges are behind state facilities for maintenance • Local bridges not and cannot compete fairly for federal funds compared to state bridges • Local government needs predictable sources of funds for local roads and bridges One speaker said the state should revise its funds allocation formula to better address safety on local roads University Transportation Research Center - 08/18/04 – Page Environmental Issues One speaker mentioned that in order to meet higher federal emission standards the advancement of diesel retrofits to reduce particulate emissions and nitrogen oxide emissions is essential The Transportation System Itself Competition between Logistics and Commuters for Capacity Resource Scarcity One speaker talked about how Route 219 underserved the freight corridor ("Continental 1") from Toronto to Miami that it was a part of and should be upgraded to better serve freight and people movement Physical Components (Infrastructure) versus Inter-Agency Integration (Management) One speaker mentioned that the state should give priority to trade and tourism corridors in planning Route 219 and I-86 were both specific examples mentioned Transportation Mode Specific Issues Transit/Paratransit One speaker gave several initiatives for improving intercity public transportation: • Develop a comprehensive statewide public transportation plan • The State must commit to the plan vision and allocate necessary resources • Create a New York State Public Transportation Authority One speaker had some comments on public transit: • Effective public transit must be affordable In order to keep fares low public transit agencies must reduce operating costs and decrease the costs of worker compensation and liability insurance • Public transit must provide mobility to people with disabilities Rail One speaker felt that New York State should support intercity rail transit as it supported growth through more efficient land-use, lower highway maintenance costs, reduced congestion, etc Further rail comments: • Increase reliability and reduce travel times • Promote intermodal freight movement • Maintain the integrity of former NY Central System Another speaker asked that New York State support the expansion of tourism rail passenger service to destinations in central and western New York State Rapid/high-speed rail services University Transportation Research Center - 08/18/04 – Page to other central and western New York cities and other cities to the west of New York should also be supported in the longer-term One speaker mentioned that rail freight is critical in sustaining manufacturing jobs throughout the State and Southern Tier counties, and rail lines must be maintained and upgraded to keep rail service viable One speaker suggested that Metrorail, which operates with clean air technology, is underfunded because of a lack of guaranteed funds Expansion of Metrorail to the airport is sought and possible if NYSDOT has the will to build it Another speaker said that an example of a state with a good program for rail is Pennsylvania PennDOT administers funds (70% state and 30% private) set aside for rail improvement The State should also support short line railroads to accommodate heavier freight Trucks One speaker asked that New York State support the development of intermodal facilities (including connections to both air and rail) in rural areas as well as more populous areas Another speaker had these comments on trucking: • New York State is heavily taxing the trucking industry • Abolish the unfair ton-mileage tax (high evasion rate by out-of-state truckers) • Design and develop load permits with user input to replace the ton-mileage tax Airports Borders One speaker had these comments on borders: • Multiple border crossing facilities within a region should be viewed as a single crossing • Implementation of technology at the border for traveler information and crossing management should be accelerated One speaker recommended a dedicated bridge for commercial trucks at the border to alleviate delays The existing FAST pass system is inadequate for the current traffic volume To expedite commercial traffic at the border, one speaker had these suggestions: • Reconfigure customs plazas • Dedicated Nexus lanes Crucial Role of Security One speaker mentioned the need to consider security in the movement of commodities University Transportation Research Center - 08/18/04 – Page Importance of Demand Management The Impacts of Transportation Investments Transportation Planning and Land Use One speaker noted that Western New York's population is down 1.2% yet the amount of land occupied is up by 28%, transportation policies that encourage urban revitalization, agricultural land protection, and increased use of underutilized infrastructure could be of great assistance in combating these patterns Another speaker supported proposed traffic calming for some local projects and the creation of walkable communities and pedestrian pathways Economic Development Resulting from Transportation Investment A coordinated effort to integrate state, regional and local transportation entities and policies to support local economic and industrial development strategies and initiatives is absolutely essential It is also important to give increased attention to the issue of matching transportation patterns and capabilities with business growth and the physical development in the region One speaker noted a collection of projects for the poorer Southern Tier counties, which would have important transportation benefits and also important economic benefits to these depressed areas Several speakers mentioned the completion of I-86 as an important economic development for their region Transportation infrastructure is a fundamental building block required to attract investment and create jobs Firms place great weight on transportation resources when making decisions as to where to locate A speaker suggested that transportation policies must be flexible enough to serve the region in a current and long-term sense The speaker mentioned how the problem of access to the North America Center in West Seneca has a near-term economic benefit from a possible transportation investment One speaker talked about the development of the Niagara Wine Trail This speaker talked about the need for better roadway signage to help the industry compete with competitors in Canada Local Quality-of-Life Impacts of Projects University Transportation Research Center - 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Transportation Research Center - 08/18/04 – Page New York State Advisory Panel on Transportation Policy for 2025 Mission Statement The New York State Advisory Panel on Transportation Policy for. .. future One speaker had some comments on regional cooperation: • Regional cooperation and coordination on transportation policy can provide benefits to any Metropolitan area • Regionalizing operation... deaths and injuries • Environmental Conditions – improving the environment through transportation actions • Economic Competitiveness – the economy depends on transportation costs in New York State