Transportation and Infrastructure Planning Flashcards

What is the primary purpose of a Congestion Management Process (CMP) in metropolitan transportation planning?

Answer: To monitor performance and identify strategies to manage congestion in urbanized areas

The CMP is a federally required systematic process for managing congestion in Transportation Management Areas through monitoring, strategies, and performance measures.

Which infrastructure planning concept involves designing systems with redundancy and flexibility to withstand disruptions?

Answer: Resilient infrastructure

Resilient infrastructure planning incorporates redundancy, adaptability, and recovery capacity to maintain function during and after natural disasters or other disruptions.

What is 'paratransit' in public transportation?

Answer: Demand-responsive transportation services for people with disabilities

Paratransit provides door-to-door or curb-to-curb transportation for people with disabilities who cannot use fixed-route transit, as required by the ADA.

What does a 'bicycle level of stress' (BLS) analysis measure?

Answer: The degree of traffic stress experienced by cyclists on road segments and intersections

BLS analysis evaluates infrastructure quality for cycling by assessing how comfortable or stressful a route segment is for cyclists of varying comfort levels.

What is 'value capture' in transportation finance?

Answer: Recovering a portion of land value increases created by public transportation investments

Value capture mechanisms like Tax Increment Financing and special assessment districts allow governments to fund transit by recapturing land value increases that transit generates.

What is the 'network effect' in public transportation planning?

Answer: The principle that transit system value increases as more routes and connections are added

The network effect means that each additional transit route or connection disproportionately increases system utility because it enables more origin-destination pairs.