2007 transportation metropolitan Atlanta performance report

2007 Transportation MAP Report

2007 Transportation Metropolitan Atlanta Performance Report
The Georgia Regional Transportation Authority 245 Peachtree Center Ave., NE Atlanta, GA 30303 404-463-3000 www.grta.org

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
The Georgia Regional Transportation Authority (GRTA) acknowledges and thanks the following partner organizations which contributed to compiling the 2007 Transportation MAP Report (2007 Transportation Metropolitan Atlanta Performance Report).
U.S. Department of Transportation The Georgia Department of Transportation (GDOT) The Environmental Protection Division of the Georgia Department of Natural
Resources The Atlanta Regional Commission Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority (MARTA).
This report is updated and produced annually by GRTA. To request copies of this report call GRTA at 404-463-3000 and ask for the 2007 Transportation MAP Report. To access this report online, see http://www.grta.org under the "Mobility" section.

2007 Transportation MAP (Metropolitan Atlanta Performance) Report

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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The 2007 Transportation MAP Report updates the Transportation MAP Report, which set baselines and targets for use in tracking the overall performance of the transportation system in Metropolitan Atlanta. Measures and targets were set in five general categories Mobility, Transit Accessibility, Air Quality, Safety, and Transportation System Performance.
The 2007 report reveals a mixed picture for the Metropolitan Atlanta transportation system, with some progress and some slippage in each of the areas of Mobility, Transit Accessibility, Air Quality, and Safety.
More specifically, the pavement condition rating of Atlanta deteriorated markedly from 2005 to 2006. Freeway congestion during the morning and evening peak periods, as measured by the travel time index, worsened compared to the previous year and to the 2002 baseline. Travel time reliability, as measured by the newly introduced planning time index and buffer time index, also declined during both peak periods. Daily vehicle miles traveled per person decreased slightly, continuing a trend that began in 1998.
Due to MARTA service realignment and cutbacks annual revenue service hours continued their downward trend in 2005. A sign that the MARTA services are stabilizing are the improvements in its transit passenger miles traveled, transit passenger boardings and passenger trips per transit service hour. Transit revenue service hours on other providers Cobb Community Transit (CCT), Douglas County Rideshare (DCR), GRTA, and Gwinnett Transit--increased, as did the overall number of vanpools, with both exceeding their respective targets set for 2006.
On the air quality front, the efforts to improve air quality will have to continue in light of the new, tougher 8-hour ozone and the new fine particulate matter (PM2.5) standards. The emissions measures--daily vehicle emissions of volatile organic compounds, nitrogen oxides and primary fine particulate matter--show that vehicle emissions in 2006 were 72, 74 and 75 percent of their respective year 2000 level--a drop of more than a quarter over five years.
Safety was the surprise for 2005 with an unexpected jump in both the absolute number and rate of highway, pedestrian and bicycle fatalities. Roadway clearance time, which contributes heavily to reducing congestion in metropolitan Atlanta, added the final positive touch on the region's transportation picture by beating the 2006 tractor-trailers target of 60 minutes with an actual time of 56.6 minutes and meeting the vehicle target of 30 minutes.
The newly introduced Atlanta transportation performance index synthesizes the state of the roadway services, roadway safety, roadway emissions, and transit services in the region. Although this index reveals the steady improvement of the Atlanta transportation system, the breakdown by area is uneven. Figure 1 on the next page shows a composite performance index value of 103.6 in 2005, which is an overall improvement in the transportation system performance over the base year of 2002. The roadway emissions index of 124.6 and the transit services index of 103.1 for 2005 contributed to this positive trend. The roadway services index and the roadway safety index lower the system's performance with values of 95.9 and 88 for 2005, respectively.

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Figure 1: Atlanta Transportation Performance Index
130

Index, % (going up indicates improvement)

125

120

115

113.0

110

107.8

105

100

100

95

90

100.2 99.6
97.3
92.0

102.9 102.4 98.4 94.0

85 2002

2003

Year

2004

Roadway Services Index Transit Services Index Roadway Emissions Index Roadway Safety Index Atlanta Transportation Performance Index

124.6
103.6 103.1 95.9 88.0 2005

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OVERVIEW
Metropolitan Atlanta will make significant investments in its transportation system over the next 25 years. In order to assess the effectiveness of those investments, a group of agencies responsible for managing those investments has developed a set of measures and targets for tracking the performance of those investments. This is the fourth annual Transportation Metropolitan Atlanta Performance (MAP) Report summarizing those measures and targets. The measures and targets focus on five areas: Mobility, Transit Accessibility, Air Quality, Safety, and Transportation System Performance. These measures are obtained for the 13-county Atlanta area consisting of Cherokee, Clayton, Cobb, Coweta, DeKalb, Douglas, Fayette, Forsyth, Fulton, Gwinnett, Henry, Paulding, and Rockdale.
The agencies tracking these measures are the U.S. Department of Transportation, GDOT, the Environmental Protection Division of the Georgia Department of Natural Resources, the Atlanta Regional Commission, GRTA, and MARTA.
Baseline and target years have been set for the measures, typically 2000 or 2001 for the baseline year and 2006 for the target year. The specific targets, respecting the unique quality of each measure, were set after review and discussion by appropriate professionals from the respective agencies. Each year, after the data is collected and certified, the agencies present a report of the region's progress in meeting the targets that have been set. New measures and targets are developed and added to this report as they become necessary.

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MOBILITY
The mobility measures for the region track highway and transit system performance. This year's report introduces two travel time reliability measures--the planning time index and the buffer time index in addition to the six existing measures of mobility:
Freeway travel time index, Arterial congestion, Daily vehicle miles traveled (VMT) per person, Pavement condition rating, Transit passenger miles traveled, Annual transit passenger boardings.
The first six measures address the ease and reliability with which an individual vehicle can travel over the roads, the distances the average person drives each day, and the physical condition of the roadway. The final two measures track how far people in the region travel on public transit in a year, which is roughly analogous to annual vehicle miles traveled, and the number of people that board public transit each year.
The freeways are at the heart of Atlanta's highway system. The roads that move traffic onto and off the freeway are called arterials. The amount of traffic a road is designed to handle is the road's capacity. The traffic actually on the road is its volume. The volume, capacity and travel time are used to calculate mobility measures.
FREEWAY TRAVEL TIME INDEX
Measuring congestion on the region's freeways is a difficult task that can be approached using a variety of tools. The 2007 report updates the travel time index (TTI) as a measure for congestion on the Atlanta region's freeways. TTI is the ratio of the average travel time over the free-flow travel time obtained for a certain portion or segment of the freeway system. For this report, measurements were created using GDOT's NaviGAtor video detection cameras. The Metropolitan Atlanta freeway network covered by the Georgia NaviGAtor system is split into 16 bidirectional segments. Coverage is determined by the functioning NaviGAtor infrastructure across the Metropolitan Atlanta freeway system as depicted on Figure 2 on page five.
These cameras are strategically placed to monitor speeds and volumes, with each camera taking a measurement every 20 seconds. As many as 1.5 billion measurements are taken by these cameras each year. The measurements are examined and aggregated into 15minute intervals for the morning peak period (6:00 a.m. to 10:00 a.m.) and evening peak period (3 p.m. to 7 p.m.) for the weekdays only. Subsequently, the freeway travel time index during the slowest region-wide one-hour morning (7:30 a.m. to 8:30 a.m.) and evening peak (5:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m.) period is obtained for each of the 16 segments. The regional travel time index is then obtained as the weighted average of the freeway segment TTIs with VMT used as weight. In cases when a segment TTI is less than one the respective segment TTI is assumed equal to one. The higher the TTI number the worst the congestion is. Figure 3 on page 6 depicts the Metropolitan Atlanta TTI for the slowest one-hour morning and afternoon peak period, respectively.

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The freeway travel time index measure is the VMT-weighted average of the freeway segments' TTIs for the one-hour morning and evening peak period with the slowest regional freeway travel speed, averaged across all directional freeway segments.

Figure 2: NaviGAtor Video Detection Coverage

CHEROKEE
575

COBB

Legend

75
1

NaviGAtor Instrumented Freeway Segments

Future Coverage

Segment Boundary

1-16 Segment Numbers

285

10 FULTON

400

11
285

12
285

GWINNETT

141

7

85

400

2

8

85 75

285
13 78

CITY OF ATLANTA

75/85

20

15 3

FULTON

75/85

166

4

285

9 75

85

5

285

75

85

CLAYTON

20
16
285
675
6

285
14 DEKALB
20
ROCK HENRY DALE

FAYETTE

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For the 2002 base year, during the morning peak period, TTI was 1.22. This TTI increased to 1.34 in 2006. During the afternoon peak period the average TTI worsened from 1.26 in 2002 to 1.36 in 2006.
GA 400 north of I-285 was the worst performing segment in 2004 with TTI of 2.28 (southbound) for the morning peak and 2.53 (northbound) for the evening peak. It is assumed that this still would be the case if 2005 and 2006 data were available. However, 2005 and 2006 data for this segment are not available due to data collection problems. In the absence of such data, the worst performing morning segment in 2006 was northbound I-75 between I-85 and I-20, with an average TTI of 2.18. The worst performing evening segment was southbound I-285 between I-85 and US-78, with TTI of 2.35. The actual travel times by freeway segment used in obtaining the regional TTI are summarized in the Appendix.
It is important to recognize that the regional TTI measure is a VMT-weighted average. With speeds on some segments of the freeway network in excess of 70 mph and others at less than 30 mph, at the same time of day, the average TTI may seem low to those who regularly travel the segments with slower speeds. The freeway travel time index, by creating a weighted average TTI for the slowest one-hour periods of the day, provides a constant by which the performance of the freeway network can be compared from year to year. Additionally, the measure provides a record of the performance of individual segments of the network, thus making it easier for the region to assess the impacts on congestion of improvements or degradations to individual segments of the freeway network.
In order to put the regional TTI measure in context, the travel time index, by individual segment, is summarized in Table 1 on page seven. Additionally, the 2006 TTIs, depicted by freeway segment, are presented in Figure 4 (morning peak hour) and Figure 5 (evening peak hour) on pages eight and nine, respectively.

Freeway Travel Time Index

Figure 3: Freeway Travel Time Index
1.40

1.36

1.35

1.34

1.33

1.30

1.30

1.29

1.30

1.26

1.26

1.27

1.25

1.22

1.20

AM (7:30 a.m. - 8:30 a.m.)

PM (5:00 p.m. - 6:00 p.m.)

1.15 2002

2003

2004 Year

2005

2006

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Table 1: 2006 Travel Time Index by Freeway Segment (Segment-Specific Peak Hour)

Segment Morning

Length Peak

Freeway Segment Description 1: I-75 NB (from I-285 to Wade Green Road)

(miles) 14.00

Hour 9:00

1: I-75 SB (from Wade Green Road to I-285)

14.55

7:15

2: I-75 NB (from I-85 to I-285)

8.45

6:30

2: I-75 SB (from I-285 to I-85)

7.86

8:00

3: I-75/I-85 NB (from I-20 to I-85)

4.41

7:45

3: I-75/I-85 SB (from I-85 to I-20)

4.40

8:15

4: I-75 NB (from I-85 to I-20)

3.88

7:45

4: I-75 SB (from I-20 to I-85)

3.75

8:00

5: I-75 NB (from I-285 to I-85)

4.00

7:30

5: I-75 SB (from I-85 to I-285)

4.12

6:00

6: I-75 NB (from Hudson Bridge Road to I-285)

14.53

7:00

6: I-75 SB (from I-285 to Hudson Bridge Road)

14.45

6:00

7: I-85 NB (from I-285 to Old Norcross Road)

10.71

7:45

7: I-85 SB (from Old Norcross Road to I-285)

10.66

7:15

8: I-85 NB (from I-75 to I-285)

9.96

8:30

8: I-85 SB (from I-285 to I-75)

10.45

8:00

9: I-85 NB (from Camp Creek Parkway to I-75)

4.86

6:00

9: I-85 SB (from I-75 to Camp Creek Parkway)

4.20

6:00

10: GA-400 NB (from I-285 to Old Milton Parkway) 13.14

N/A

10: GA-400 SB (from Old Milton Parkway to I-285) 13.16

N/A

11: I-285 EB (from I-75 to GA-400)

6.82

7:30

11: I-285 WB (from GA-400 to I-75)

7.21

8:15

12: I-285 EB (from GA-400 to I-85)

6.48

7:15

12: I-285 EB (from I-85 to GA-400)

6.37

8:00

13: I-285 NB (from US-78 to I-85)

5.37

7:45

13: I-285 SB (from I-85 to US-78)

5.89

9:00

14: I-285 NB (from I-20 to US-78)

8.20

7:30

14: I-285 SB (from US-78 to I-20)

7.45

9:00

15: I-20 EB (from I-285 to I-75/I-85)

6.43

7:45

15: I-20 WB (from I-75/I-85 to I-285)

7.12

9:00

16: I-20 EB (from I-75/I-85 to I-285)

9.85

6:00

16: I-20 WB (from I-285 to I-75/I-85)

9.39

7:45

Morning Period
TTI 1.00 1.93 1.00 1.00 1.27 1.19 2.18 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.11 1.82 1.00 1.17 1.00 1.00 N/A N/A 1.22 1.00 1.00 1.58 1.54 1.00 1.62 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.26

Evening Peak Hour 17:00 15:00 16:45 17:15 17:15 17:15 15:30 16:45 15:45 16:45 17:00 17:00 17:00 18:00 17:00 17:00 15:30 16:45 N/A N/A 17:15 17:15 17:00 17:00 15:00 17:00 17:30 17:00 15:00 17:00 17:15 18:00

Evening Period
TTI 1.92 1.00 1.28 1.02 1.34 1.83 1.04 1.00 1.00 1.17 1.00 1.53 2.22 1.00 1.03 1.21 1.00 1.00 N/A N/A 1.00 1.82 2.21 1.28 1.00 2.35 1.00 1.15 1.00 1.00 1.04 1.00

The TTIs presented in this table are the VMT-weighted average TTI for each of the segments during the one-hour segment-specific peak period with the slowest average speed.

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Figure 4: 2006 Travel Time Index Morning Peak (7:30 a.m. 8:30 a.m.)

2007 Transportation MAP (Metropolitan Atlanta Performance) Report

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Figure 5: 2006 Travel Time Index Afternoon Peak (5 p.m. 6 p.m.)

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FREEWAY PLANNING TIME INDEX
Travel time reliability can be defined as how much trip travel times vary over the course of time. This variability in travel times from one day to the next is due to the fact that underlying conditions vary widely. Consequently, travelers must plan for these unreliable conditions on congested roadways by leaving earlier than normal just to avoid being late.
Measuring the travel time reliability is based on obtaining the average travel time and the size of the "buffer" time the extra time needed by travelers to ensure a predetermined rate of on-time arrival. Based on this idea, two travel time reliability measures are introduced with this year's report planning time index (PTI) and buffer time index (BTI).
PTI is the ratio of the 95th percentile travel time, also known as planning time, over the free-flow travel time obtained for a certain portion or segment of the freeway system. In other words PTI tells a traveler how much longer it is going to take to make a trip under congested conditions compared to free-flow conditions so that this traveler arrives on-time 95 percent of the time.
Measurements for the planning time index were created using GDOT's NaviGAtor video detection cameras as described in the freeway travel time index section of the report. The Metropolitan Atlanta freeway network covered by the Georgia NaviGAtor system is split into 16 bidirectional segments. Coverage is determined by the functioning NaviGAtor infrastructure across the Metropolitan Atlanta freeway system as depicted on Figure 1 on page four. The measurements are examined and aggregated into 15-minute intervals for the morning peak period (6:00 a.m. to 10:00 a.m.) and evening peak period (3 p.m. to 7 p.m.) for the weekdays only. Subsequently, the freeway planning time index during the slowest region-wide one-hour morning (7:30 a.m. to 8:30 a.m.) and evening peak (5:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m.) period is obtained for each of the 16 segments. The regional planning time index is then obtained as the weighted average of the freeway segment PTIs with VMT used as weight. In cases when a segment PTI is less than one the respective segment PTI is assumed equal to one. The higher the PTI number the less reliable the travel time is. Figure 6 on page 11 depicts the Metropolitan Atlanta PTI for the slowest one-hour morning and afternoon peak period, respectively.
The freeway planning time index measure is the VMT-weighted average of the freeway segments' PTIs for the one-hour morning and evening peak period with the slowest regional freeway travel speed, averaged across all directional freeway segments.
For the 2002 base year, during the morning peak period, PTI was 1.53. This PTI jumped to 1.80 in 2006. During the afternoon peak period the average PTI worsened from 1.83 in 2002 to 2.02 in 2006.
GA 400 north of I-285 was the worst performing segment in 2004 with PTI of 3.29 (southbound) for the morning peak and 3.93 (northbound) for the evening peak. It is assumed that this still would be the case if 2005 and 2006 data were available. However, 2005 and 2006 data for this segment are not available due to data collection problems. In the absence of such data, the worst performing morning segment in 2006 was northbound I-75 between I-85 and I-20, with an average PTI of 3.17. The worst performing evening segment was southbound I-285 between I-85 and US-78, with PTI of 3.90. The actual planning time index by freeway segment used in obtaining the regional PTI are summarized in the Appendix.

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The freeway planning time index, by creating a weighted average PTI for the slowest one-hour periods of the day, provides a benchmark by which the travel time reliability of the freeway network can be compared from year to year. Additionally, the measure provides a record of the reliability of individual segments of the network, thus making it easier for the region to assess the impacts on reliability of improvements or degradations to individual segments of the freeway network.
In order to put the regional PTI measure in context, the planning time index, by individual segment, is summarized in Table 2 on page 12. Additionally, the 2006 PTIs, depicted by freeway segment, are presented in Figure 7 (morning peak hour) and Figure 8 (evening peak hour) on pages 13 and 14, respectively.

Figure 6: Freeway Planning Time Index

2.10

2.02

2.00

1.98

1.93 1.91

1.90
1.83 1.80
1.80

Freeway Planning Time Index

1.70

1.72

1.62

1.68

1.60 1.53

1.50

AM (7:30 a.m. - 8:30 a.m.)

PM (5:00 p.m. - 6:00 p.m.)

1.40 2002

2003

2004 Year

2005

2006

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Table 2: 2006 Planning Time Index by Freeway Segment (Segment-Specific Peak Hour)

Segment Morning

Length Peak

Freeway Segment Description 1: I-75 NB (from I-285 to Wade Green Road)

(miles) 14.00

Hour 9:00

1: I-75 SB (from Wade Green Road to I-285)

14.55

7:15

2: I-75 NB (from I-85 to I-285)

8.45

6:30

2: I-75 SB (from I-285 to I-85)

7.86

8:00

3: I-75/I-85 NB (from I-20 to I-85)

4.41

7:45

3: I-75/I-85 SB (from I-85 to I-20)

4.40

8:15

4: I-75 NB (from I-85 to I-20)

3.88

7:45

4: I-75 SB (from I-20 to I-85)

3.75

8:00

5: I-75 NB (from I-285 to I-85)

4.00

7:30

5: I-75 SB (from I-85 to I-285)

4.12

6:00

6: I-75 NB (from Hudson Bridge Road to I-285)

14.53

7:00

6: I-75 SB (from I-285 to Hudson Bridge Road)

14.45

6:00

7: I-85 NB (from I-285 to Old Norcross Road)

10.71

7:45

7: I-85 SB (from Old Norcross Road to I-285)

10.66

7:15

8: I-85 NB (from I-75 to I-285)

9.96

8:30

8: I-85 SB (from I-285 to I-75)

10.45

8:00

9: I-85 NB (from Camp Creek Parkway to I-75)

4.86

6:00

9: I-85 SB (from I-75 to Camp Creek Parkway)

4.20

6:00

10: GA-400 NB (from I-285 to Old Milton Parkway) 13.14

N/A

10: GA-400 SB (from Old Milton Parkway to I-285) 13.16

N/A

11: I-285 EB (from I-75 to GA-400)

6.82

7:30

11: I-285 WB (from GA-400 to I-75)

7.21

8:15

12: I-285 EB (from GA-400 to I-85)

6.48

7:15

12: I-285 EB (from I-85 to GA-400)

6.37

8:00

13: I-285 NB (from US-78 to I-85)

5.37

7:45

13: I-285 SB (from I-85 to US-78)

5.89

9:00

14: I-285 NB (from I-20 to US-78)

8.20

7:30

14: I-285 SB (from US-78 to I-20)

7.45

9:00

15: I-20 EB (from I-285 to I-75/I-85)

6.43

7:45

15: I-20 WB (from I-75/I-85 to I-285)

7.12

9:00

16: I-20 EB (from I-75/I-85 to I-285)

9.85

6:00

16: I-20 WB (from I-285 to I-75/I-85)

9.39

7:45

Morning Period
PTI 1.02 2.90 1.05 1.42 1.72 1.62 3.17 1.03 1.22 1.01 1.36 1.00 1.64 2.67 1.01 1.72 1.19 1.00 N/A N/A 1.73 1.04 1.04 2.06 2.71 1.00 3.14 1.00 1.30 1.00 1.00 1.65

Evening Peak Hour 17:00 15:00 16:45 17:15 17:15 17:15 15:30 16:45 15:45 16:45 17:00 17:00 17:00 18:00 17:00 17:00 15:30 16:45 N/A N/A 17:15 17:15 17:00 17:00 15:00 17:00 17:30 17:00 15:00 17:00 17:15 18:00

Evening Period
PTI 2.52 1.10 2.20 1.63 2.37 2.43 2.53 1.28 1.00 1.68 1.27 2.88 2.99 1.21 1.48 1.67 1.00 1.15 N/A N/A 1.29 2.70 3.45 2.68 1.45 3.90 1.27 1.65 1.00 1.35 1.60 1.00

The PTIs presented in this table are the VMT-weighted average PTI for each of the segments during the one-hour segment-specific peak period with the slowest average speed.

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Figure 7: 2006 Planning Time Index Morning Peak (7:30 a.m. 8:30 a.m.)

2007 Transportation MAP (Metropolitan Atlanta Performance) Report

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Figure 8: 2006 Planning Time Index Afternoon Peak (5 p.m. 6 p.m.)

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FREEWAY BUFFER TIME INDEX
The buffer time index is a measure of travel time reliability based on obtaining the size of the "buffer" time the time in addition to the average time needed by travelers to ensure a predetermined rate of on-time arrival.
Buffer time is defined as the difference between the 95th percentile travel and the average travel time. BTI is the size of the buffer time expressed as a percentage of the average travel time and obtained for a segment of the freeway system. In other words, BTI tells a traveler the extra time as a percentage of the average travel time necessary for a trip so that this traveler reaches destination on-time 95 percent of the time.
Measurements for the buffer time index were created using GDOT's NaviGAtor video detection cameras as described in the freeway travel time index section of the report. The methodology for obtaining the BTI is analogous to the one used for TTI and PTI. The freeway buffer time index measure is the VMT-weighted average of the freeway segments' BTIs for the one-hour morning and evening peak period with the slowest regional freeway travel speed, averaged across all directional freeway segments. The resulting BTI for Metropolitan Atlanta is depicted on Figure 9.
For the 2002 base year, during the morning peak period, BTI was 26.1%. This BTI increased to 33.8% in 2006. During the afternoon peak period the average BTI was roughly flat for the same period, ranging from 41.7% in 2002 to 42.9% in 2006.
The worst performing morning segment in 2006 was northbound I-285 between I-20 and US-78, with BTI of 94%. The worst performing evening segment was northbound I-75 between I-85 and I-20, with an average BTI of 142%. The actual buffer time index by freeway segment used in obtaining the regional BTI is summarized in the Appendix.
The buffer time index, by individual segment, is summarized in Table 3 on page 16. Additionally, the 2006 BTIs, depicted by freeway segment, are presented in Figure 10 (morning peak hour) and Figure 11 (evening peak hour) on pages 17 and 18, respectively.
Figure 9: Freeway Buffer Time Index
50

Freeway Buffer Time Index, %

45

43.3

42.9

43.9

42.9

41.7

40

35

33.8

30

28.1

31.5

32.0

26.1

25

AM (7:30 a.m. - 8:30 a.m.)

PM (5:00 p.m. - 6:00 p.m.)

20 2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

Year

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Table 3: 2006 Buffer Time Index by Freeway Segment (Segment-Specific Peak Hour)

Segment Morning

Length Peak

1: I-75 NB (from I-285 to Wade Green Road)

(miles) 14.00

Hour 9:00

1: I-75 SB (from Wade Green Road to I-285)

14.55

7:15

2: I-75 NB (from I-85 to I-285)

8.45

6:30

2: I-75 SB (from I-285 to I-85)

7.86

8:00

3: I-75/I-85 NB (from I-20 to I-85)

4.41

7:45

3: I-75/I-85 SB (from I-85 to I-20)

4.40

8:15

4: I-75 NB (from I-85 to I-20)

3.88

7:45

4: I-75 SB (from I-20 to I-85)

3.75

8:00

5: I-75 NB (from I-285 to I-85)

4.00

7:30

5: I-75 SB (from I-85 to I-285)

4.12

6:00

6: I-75 NB (from Hudson Bridge Road to I-285)

14.53

7:00

6: I-75 SB (from I-285 to Hudson Bridge Road)

14.45

6:00

7: I-85 NB (from I-285 to Old Norcross Road)

10.71

7:45

7: I-85 SB (from Old Norcross Road to I-285)

10.66

7:15

8: I-85 NB (from I-75 to I-285)

9.96

8:30

8: I-85 SB (from I-285 to I-75)

10.45

8:00

9: I-85 NB (from Camp Creek Parkway to I-75)

4.86

6:00

9: I-85 SB (from I-75 to Camp Creek Parkway)

4.20

6:00

10: GA-400 NB (from I-285 to Old Milton Parkway) 13.14

N/A

10: GA-400 SB (from Old Milton Parkway to I-285) 13.16

N/A

11: I-285 EB (from I-75 to GA-400)

6.82

7:30

11: I-285 WB (from GA-400 to I-75)

7.21

8:15

12: I-285 EB (from GA-400 to I-85)

6.48

7:15

12: I-285 EB (from I-85 to GA-400)

6.37

8:00

13: I-285 NB (from US-78 to I-85)

5.37

7:45

13: I-285 SB (from I-85 to US-78)

5.89

9:00

14: I-285 NB (from I-20 to US-78)

8.20

7:30

14: I-285 SB (from US-78 to I-20)

7.45

9:00

15: I-20 EB (from I-285 to I-75/I-85)

6.43

7:45

15: I-20 WB (from I-75/I-85 to I-285)

7.12

9:00

16: I-20 EB (from I-75/I-85 to I-285)

9.85

6:00

16: I-20 WB (from I-285 to I-75/I-85)

9.39

7:45

Morning Period
BTI 4% 50% 27% 41% 35% 36% 45% 19% 31% 10% 38% 5% 48% 46% 11% 47% 33% 15% 48% 44% 41% 18% 19% 30% 76% 12% 94% 6% 44% 5% 9% 30%

Evening Peak Hour 17:00 15:00 16:45 17:15 17:15 17:15 15:30 16:45 15:45 16:45 17:00 17:00 17:00 18:00 17:00 17:00 15:30 16:45 N/A N/A 17:15 17:15 17:00 17:00 15:00 17:00 17:30 17:00 15:00 17:00 17:15 18:00

Evening Period
BTI 32% 11% 72% 60% 76% 33% 142% 34% 12% 43% 38% 88% 35% 21% 43% 38% 12% 25% 55% 46% 47% 48% 56% 109% 44% 66% 26% 43% 6% 40% 54% 8%

The BTIs presented in this table are the VMT-weighted average BTI for each of the segments during the one-hour segment-specific peak period with the slowest average speed.

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Figure 10: 2006 Buffer Time Index Morning Peak (7:30 a.m. 8:30 a.m.)

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Figure 11: 2006 Buffer Time Index Afternoon Peak (5 p.m. 6 p.m.)

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ARTERIAL CONGESTION
The Arterial Congestion measure is based on the data compiled by GDOT's consultant, SkyComp. The SkyComp database associates a level of service (LOS) grade by segment of several state highways based on analysis of overlapping aerial photography of these arterials. LOS grades are classified as Uncongested (LOS A, LOS B, LOS C, and LOS D), Moderately Congested (LOS E) and Severely Congested (LOS F). The Arterial Congestion measure is the percentage of lane miles for each of the three congestion levels as defined.
The SkyComp measurements are taken in early autumn, on weekdays, with good weather and with no incidents impeding traffic flow. The 2004 round of flights covered arterials not covered in the 2001 survey. Therefore, in order to ensure thorough coverage of the region, this performance measure is based on 2004 data as well as the data from the 2001 survey. The arterial congestion measure will be updated when new data becomes available in 2007.
For the morning peak period (6:30 a.m. to 9:30 a.m.), 88 percent of the arterial lanemiles are uncongested, 9 percent are moderately congested and 3 percent are severely congested. For the evening peak period (4:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.), 81 percent of the arterial lane-miles are uncongested, 15 percent are moderately congested and 4 percent are severely congested. These results are graphically depicted in Figure 12 and Figure 13, respectively.
Figure 12: Arterial Congestion Morning Peak
Unconge s te d 88%

Severely Congested 3%
Figure 13: Arterial Congestion Evening Peak
Unconge s te d 81%

M ode r ate ly Conge s te d
9%

Severely Congested 4%

M ode r ate ly Conge s te d
15%

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DAILY VEHICLE MILES TRAVELED PER LICENSED DRIVER / PERSON
Daily vehicle miles traveled per licensed driver measures the average distance each licensed driver in the region drives each day.1 In 1998 that number was 58.8 miles. In the baseline year of 2000, that number had declined to 56.7 miles. The 2006 target is to reduce the daily vehicle miles traveled per driver to 45 miles.
Similarly, daily vehicle miles traveled per person measures the average distance each person in the region drives each day.2 In 1998 that number was 34.7 miles. In the baseline year of 2000, that number had fallen to 32.9 miles. The 2006 target is to reduce the daily vehicle miles traveled per person to 30 miles.
Reduction of VMT may be interpreted as a sign that people are choosing to live closer to their daily work, play, and other destinations, that they are more carefully choosing their routes or are trip chaining, or that they are engaging in other behaviors such as carpooling, vanpooling, riding transit, walking or biking that result in reducing the distances that they drive each day.
Reducing VMT reduces the amount of emissions generated by the vehicles. With the region's population expected to increase by approximately two million persons over the next 25 years, reducing VMT will be a necessary component of controlling the vehicle emissions that contribute to poor air quality.

Figure 14: Daily Vehicle Miles Traveled Per Licensed Driver / Person

Daily Vehicle Miles Traveled per Licensed Driver / Person

70
2000 Baseline VMT per Driver

60

56.7

56.7

58.8

53.9

2006 Target -

50.4

VMT per Driver

50

47.8

47.1

44.9

40 34.7
30
20 1998

33.3

32.9

32.5

2000 Baseline VMT per Person
1999 2000 2001

32.0
2002 Year

31.6 2003

45.0

32.3

30.8

30.0

2006 Target VMT per Person

2004 2005 2006

1 Daily vehicle miles traveled per licensed driver is computed as the total daily VMT divided by the number of the licensed drivers in the 13-county Atlanta area. The VMT data and licensed drivers data are obtained from GDOT and the Department of Driver Services (DDS), respectively. 2 Daily vehicle miles traveled per person is computed as the total daily VMT divided by the total population for the former 13-county Atlanta area. The VMT data and population data are obtained from GDOT and ARC, respectively.

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PAVEMENT CONDITION RATING
It is important to keep pavement in good shape. When roadway surfaces are not maintained, the roadway must be rebuilt from the ground up. It is more economical to systematically maintain roadways than to rebuild them.
The PACES (Pavement Condition Evaluation System) rating is a system by which GDOT measures the quality of the roadway pavement. A pavement in perfect condition receives a maximum value of 100 and points are deducted according to the extent and severity of observed distress. Roadways rated 70 and below are further evaluated to determine if they are good candidates for a preservation action and what that action will be, typically resurfacing or rehabilitation. Although it may be expanded in the future, currently the PACES rating covers only state and national highway system routes, i.e. those roads for which GDOT has maintenance responsibility.
Pavement condition rating is the percentage of pavement rated better than PACES of 70. In the baseline year of 2000, 88 percent of the GDOT roads had a PACES rating of 70 or better.3 The 2006 target is to maintain that standard, with 90 percent of the roads having a PACES rating value of 70 or better. This target allows GDOT to resurface or replace each of the roads it is responsible for about every 10 years. The 2005 spike in pavement condition rating, due to GDOT implementing several resurfacing projects during that year, is followed by an unexpected sharp decline in 2006.
Figure 15: Percent of Pavement Rated Better than PACES 70
96

Percent of Pavement Rated Better than PACES 70

94 2000 Baseline
92

90 90

88

88

88

88 N/A 87

2006 Target
90 88.6

86

85

85

84 84

82 1996

1997

1998

1999

2000

2001 2002 Year

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

3 A 2001 pavement condition rating estimate is not available because of a statewide data collection problem.

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TRANSIT PASSENGER MILES TRAVELED
The measure "transit passenger miles traveled" is the sum of the distances of bus and rail annual usage by all passengers of all transit systems in the 13-county Atlanta area. This measure is roughly analogous to "vehicle miles traveled." Increasing transit passenger miles traveled may reduce the growth in VMT that can be expected from increased population. Lower VMT can result in lower emissions, which contributes to improved air quality.
In the base year of 2001, passengers using public transit traveled 874 million miles. That slid to 811 million miles in 2005, due mainly to MARTA service reductions. The target for 2006 is to increase the number of transit passenger miles traveled to 900 million annually.

Figure 16: Transit Passenger Miles Traveled4
950
2001 Baseline
900 874 856
850

808

803

800 780

2006 Target 900

806

811

750

Passenger Miles Traveled (in millions)

700 1999

2000

2001

2002

2003

Year

2004

2005

2006

4 The transit passenger miles information comes from the National Transit Database. The MetroVanPool portion of the GRTA's passenger miles for 2002 is estimated.

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ANNUAL TRANSIT PASSENGER BOARDINGS
The annual transit passenger boardings measure represents the number of passengers who board the 13-county region's buses and trains in a given year. Passengers are counted each time they get on vehicles no matter how many vehicles they use to travel from their origin to their destination. In the base year of 2001, there were 167 million passenger boardings. That number declined to 148 million boardings in 2005 but recovered to 156 million boardings in 2005. The target for 2006 is 175 million boardings. As with transit passenger miles traveled, increasing transit boardings may offset potential increases in VMT attributable to increased population, with the corresponding reduction in vehicle emissions.

Figure 17: Annual Transit Passenger Boardings5
180

175
170 166
165

170

2001 Baseline

166 167

175 2006 Target

Annual Transit Passenger Boardings (in millions)

160 155
150 145
1999

2000

2001

151

2002

2003

Year

148 2004

156 2005

2006

5 The transit passenger boardings (unlinked passenger trips) information comes from the National Transit Database. The motorbus portion of the GRTA's transit passenger boardings for 2003 is based on GRTA data.

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TRANSIT ACCESSIBILITY
The transit accessibility measures assess the availability of transit to the public. There are four specific measures:
Population within walk distance to transit,
Transit revenue service hours,
Passenger trips per transit service hour, and
Number of vanpools.
The more accessible and available transit is, the more likely it is to be used, leading to increased transit passenger miles traveled and transit boardings and their associated benefits.
POPULATION AND EMPLOYMENT WITHIN WALK DISTANCE TO TRANSIT
The measure population and employment within walk distance to transit measures how many people live or work within 4/10 of a mile of a transit stop, this being considered a distance which the average person is willing to walk in order to use transit.6 In 2001, the baseline year, 1,057,000 people lived and 1,085,000 people worked within walking distance of a transit stop. Population and employment within walk distance to transit have increased to 1,113,000 and 1,165,000 in 2005, correspondingly. For target year 2006, the goal is to increase these numbers to 1,150,000 and 1,200,000, respectively.

Figure 18: Population and Employment Within Walk Distance to Transit

1400

Population and Employment Within Walk Distance to Transit (in thousands)

1350

1300 1250 1200 1150 1100 1050 1000
950

1000 996

1085 1057

2001 Employment 2006 Employment

Baseline

Target

1175

1089 1061

1127

1156 1104

1165 1113

2006 Population Target
2001 Population Baseline

900 2000

2001

2002

2003 Year

2004

2005

1,200 1,150
2006

6 This measure is estimated for the 13-county Atlanta region by using ARC's travel demand model and combining ARC's socio-economic forecasts with highway and transit networks updated for each year.

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TRANSIT REVENUE SERVICE HOURS
The measure "transit revenue service hours" reflects the total number of hours trains and buses are running and available to carry passengers in a given year. One vehicle in service for one hour equals one transit revenue service hour. In terms of number of passengers carried, one train car equals two transit buses. An increase in transit revenue service hours reflects an increase in the availability of transit to the public.
In the baseline year of 2001 there were 3,339,000 revenue service hours provided by MARTA, CCT, DCR, transit providers reported through GRTA and Gwinnett County Transit. MARTA provided 3,182,000 revenue service hours.7 The other transit systems combined provided a total of 157,000 revenue service hours. (C-TRAN service began in October of 2001 and Gwinnett County Transit began service in November of 2001. Their first year revenue service hours are reported as part of the 2002 statistics.). The target for transit revenue service hours for all transit systems in 2006 is 3,650,000 revenue service hours 3,300,000 for MARTA and 550,000 for the other transit systems combined.

Figure 19: Transit Revenue Service Hours MARTA8

4,000 3,500

2001 Baseline

2006 Target

2,004

2,263

2,255

2,298

2,321

2,319

2,285

Transit Revenue Service Hours - MARTA (in thousands)

3,000

2,500

2,000

3,300

1,500

1,000

875

837

863

896

861

817

838

500

0 1999

2000

2001

2002 2003 Year

2004

Rail Bus Target

2005

2006

7 The transit service providers reporting to the National Transit Database through GRTA are C-TRAN, Quicklink and MetroVanPool for 2002; C-TRAN, Quicklink, Emory Shuttle, MetroVanPool, GBA/GRTA Vanpool for 2003; C-TRAN, Buckhead Shuttle "Buc," Emory Shuttle, Georgia Tech, and GRTA Vanpool for 2004; and C-TRAN, Buckhead Shuttle "Buc," Emory Shuttle, Georgia Tech, Xpress, and GRTA Vanpool for 2005. 8 The transit revenue service hours are the sum of the rail and bus revenue service hours. The bus figure also includes the paratransit service. The revenue service hours information comes from the National Transit Database.

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Figure 20: Transit Revenue Service Hours Cobb Community Transit, Douglas County Rideshare, GRTA and Gwinnett County Transit9
800 2006 Target
700

129

138

120

Transit Revenue Service Hours - CCT, DCR, GRTA and Gwinnett Transit (in thousands)

600

500 2001 Baseline
400

300

.

274

550

223

15

171 12

156 8 173

153 7 81 24

200

179

150 7

144 6

143 5

100

0 1999

2000

2001

CCT

DCR

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

Year

GRTA

Gwinnett Transit

Target

Cobb Community Transit, Douglas County Rideshare, GRTA and Gwinnett County Transit have provided a combined total of 597,000 revenue service hours in 2005 already exceeding their target of 550,000 hours for 2006.

9 The revenue service hours information for years 1999 through 2003 comes from the National Transit Database. The GRTA portion of transit revenue service hours for 2003 is based on GRTA data. The 2004 system wide transit passenger boardings number is based on information provided directly by the regional transit agencies Cobb Community Transit, Douglas County Rideshare, GRTA, and Gwinnett Transit.

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PASSENGER TRIPS PER TRANSIT SERVICE HOUR
The measure "passenger trips per transit service hour" reflects the average number of unlinked passenger trips per revenue hour trains and buses are running and available to carry passengers in a given year. One vehicle in service for one hour equals one transit revenue service hour. In terms of number of passengers carried, one train car equals two transit buses. An increase in passenger trips per transit service hour reflects an increase in the transit system effectiveness.
In the baseline year of 2001 there were 52 passenger trips per transit service hour for MARTA. The other transit systems combined (CCT, DCR, transit providers reported through GRTA, and Gwinnett County Transit) had 19 passenger trips per transit service hour. The target for passenger trips per transit service hour for MARTA in 2006 is 50 and 22 for the other transit systems combined.

Figure 21: Passenger Trips per Transit Service Hour

70

2001 MARTA Baseline

2006 MARTA Target

60

53

52

52

53

50

49

50

52

46

44

50

40

2001 Non-MARTA Baseline

2006 Non-MARTA Target

30

22 19

20

20

16

24

21

22

17 22

19

10

Passenger Trips per Transit Service Hour

0 1997

1998

1999

2000

2001 2002 Year

2003

2004

2005

2006

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NUMBER OF VANPOOLS
Vanpools are perhaps the most flexible form of public transit other than a carpool. They operate at the convenience of the vanpool group and are able to be in service at any hour of the day and to travel any route the group desires, from door-to-door service to pickup and drop-off at fixed locations. This flexibility is particularly useful for people working second and third shifts, those working at locations not currently served by regularly scheduled public transportation, and for others not effectively served by available public transit service. A typical vanpool operating a 15-passenger van takes seven cars off the road, contributing to reductions in both emissions and congestion.
Prior to 1997, there were four vanpool programs operating in the region CCT's vanpool program, MetroVanPool, Douglas County Rideshare and the Georgia Building Authority's (GBA) vanpool program. When CCT's vanpool program disbanded service in October of 1997, all 28 of its routes were taken over by MetroVanPool. MetroVanPool is a private operator in the region and also provides some service to the public operators.10 Another private operator--Enterprise, entered the market in 2005 to offer vanpool services as a vendor for the Clean Air Campaign (CAC) and the transportation management associations. In October of 2003 GRTA absorbed the GBA's vanpools into its operation. GRTA and Douglas County operate public vanpools. The baseline year for vanpools in the region is 2002, when 178 vanpools were operating. The total number of vanpools in metro Atlanta was 323 at the end of 2006, thus exceeding the target of 300 for the same year.

Figure 22: Number of Vanpools
400

350 2002 Baseline: 178
300

2006 Target: 300

50

30 50

25 55 2

Number of Vanpools

250

200

28 50

23 35

21 35

150

193

100

166

138

120

122

28 1014 36

50

0 1997

2002

2003

2004

Year

2005

2006

Cobb County MetroVanPool Douglas County GBA GRTA Enterprise

10 MetroVanPool van fleet provides service to and/or from 28 counties in the Atlanta metropolitan area.

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AIR QUALITY
DAYLY VEHICLE EMISSIONS
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has designated the metropolitan Atlanta area as a nonattainment area under the National Ambient Air Quality Standards for 8hour ozone and fine particulate matter. The 8-hour ozone standard is based on the measured concentration of ozone in the air, averaged over eight-hour periods. Particulate matter is the general term used for a mixture of solid particles and liquid droplets found in the air. "Fine" particulate matter is less than 2.5 microns in diameter. Volatile organic compounds (VOC) and nitrogen oxides (NOX) are chemical precursors to the formation of ozone; NOX is one precursor to the formation of fine particulate matter. Emissions of VOC and NOX, as well as primary particulate matter, which is emitted directly by vehicle engines, are used as proxies for air quality since they are directly related to the performance of the transportation system.
Total daily vehicle emissions of VOC, NOX and primary PM2.5 are estimated for the 13-county Atlanta area by multiplying the summer-adjusted average total daily VMT for the area by the corresponding MOBILE6 emissions factors. In order to make the measures directly comparable, their absolute values are converted into percentages and then compared to the baseline (year 2000) levels.11 Figure 16 shows that total daily vehicle VOC, NOX and primary PM2.5 emissions in 2005 were 72, 74 and 75 percent of their respective year 2000 levels--a decrease of more than 25 percent over five years. Since the average total daily VMT has continued to increase each year, these decreases in emissions are due to declining emission factors resulting from advanced emission control technologies on newer vehicles and the Georgia Environmental Protection Division's clean gasoline and vehicle emissions inspection programs. However, despite these reductions in emissions, Atlanta is still not meeting the current 8-hour ozone and fine particulate matter standards.

VOC, NOx and Primary PM2.5 Vehicle Emissions Relative to 2000 Levels

Figure 23: VOC, NOX and PM2.5 Vehicle Emissions in the Atlanta Area Relative to Year 2000

110% 100%
90% 80% 70%

100% 100% 100%

97% 97% 95%

VOC NOx PM2.5

92% 94% 90%

87%

85%

84%

80% 82% 82%

72% 74% 75%

60%

50%

40%

30%

20%

10%

0% 2000

2001

2002

2003

Year

2004

2005

11 These measures are similar to the respective emissions measures found in the 2005 Air Quality Report.

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SAFETY
The safety measures address personal transportation safety as well as the roadway clearance time. The latter measure also affects mobility in the region, as each minute an incident blocks a travel lane results in three to seven minutes of delay and increases the probability of secondary incidents as traffic backs up.
The first two measures address fatalities. The ultimate target would be to eliminate highway, pedestrian and bicycle fatalities completely. Given that this is unlikely, the following measures and targets have been set.12

HIGHWAY FATALITIES
In the base year of 2001, the 13-county Atlanta region experienced 494 highway fatalities at a rate of 1.12 fatalities per 100 million miles driven. 2005 marks a significant increase in both absolute highway fatalities and fatalities per 100 million miles driven. The target is a 10 percent reduction to 445 fatalities or 1.01 per 100 million vehicle miles traveled by 2006.

Figure 24: Highway Fatalities
600

2001 Baseline

550

543

Highway Fatalities

500

490

494

466

460

504 496
2006 Target

450

445

441

400

350 1998

1999

2000

2001

2002 Year

2003

2004

2005

2006

12 Data for the safety measures comes from the Fatality Analysis Reporting System web-based encyclopedia located at http://www-fars.nhtsa.dot.gov.

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Highway Fatality Rates per 100 Million VMT

Figure 25: Highway Fatality Rates per 100 Million Vehicle Miles Traveled
1.7

1.63 1.58 1.5
1.3

1.55

1.53

1.54

1.51

1.53

1.51

1.49

1.48 1.45

1.43

1.44

1.42

2001 Baseline

1.55 1.47
2006 Target

1.10 1.1

1.09

1.14

1.12

1.16
1.08 1.05

0.99 1.01

0.9 1998

1999

2000

2001

2002

2003

Year

Fatality Rate Atlanta Fatality Rate Georgia

2004

2005

Fatality Rate U.S.

2006

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PEDESTRIAN AND BICYCLE FATALITIES
In the base year of 2001 there were 67 pedestrian and six bicycle fatalities in the 13county Atlanta region. Both pedestrian and bicycle fatalities dropped in 2005. The 2006 target is a 10 percent reduction, to 60 pedestrian fatalities and five bicycle fatalities.

Figure 26: Pedestrian and Bicycle Fatalities
100

Pedestrian and Bicycle Fatalities

82 80
60
40
20 7
0 1999

58
6 2000

79

80

74

67

69

2001 Pedestrian Baseline

60

2006 Pedestrian Target

2001 Bicycle Baseline

2006 Bicycle Target

6

4

8

9

3

2001

2002

2003

Year

2004

Pedestrian Fatalities

Bicycle Fatalities

2005

5 2006

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ROADWAY CLEARANCE TIME
Over fifty percent of all congestion nationally is non-recurring. It is caused by traffic incidents, work zones, and weather.13 For each minute an incident blocks a travel lane, roughly three to seven minutes of delay is created. Some studies have shown as much as seventy percent of daily delay is due to "non-recurring" congestion.14
Traffic incident management is a strategy that uses many different techniques to help emergency responders quickly and safely clear traffic incidents so the roadway can return to normal flow with a minimum of additional delay. The Traffic Incident Management Enhancement (TIME) Task Force, a partnership between transportation agencies, police, fire, towing and recovery operators, and other emergency responders, has been implementing techniques to improve traffic incident management in Metro Atlanta.
The key performance measure for traffic incident management in Atlanta is "roadway clearance time." Roadway clearance time is defined as the "time between first recordable awareness (detection/notification/verification) of an incident by a responsible agency and first confirmation that all lanes are available for traffic flow."15 The response time is the time between the first recordable awareness of an incident and the first arrival by a responder on scene.
In 2002, the baseline year, response time for tractor-trailer incidents was 17 minutes and for automobiles 10 minutes. On-scene time for tractor-trailer incidents was 65 minutes, and 30 minutes for automobiles. The roadway clearance time for a typical tractor-trailer incident was more than twice (82 minutes) the 40 minute duration of an automobile incident.16 The difference in time is influenced by a number of factors, including degree of seriousness, HAZMAT concerns, number of lanes affected, and availability of equipment necessary to accommodate tractor-trailer size and weight.
In 2006 the actual roadway clearance time for incidents involving tractor-trailers was 56.6 minutes, easily beating the target of 60 minutes. Similarly, the actual roadway clearance time for incidents involving automobiles of 29.8 minutes was slightly better than the target of 30 minutes.

13 http://ops.fhwa.dot.gov/program_areas/reduce-non-cong.htm 14 http://depts.washington.edu/trac/bulkdisk/pdf/568.2.pdf 15 FHWA Focus States Initiative - Traffic Incident Management Performance Measures - Action Plan. 16 Data source--monthly incident data found in the GDOT's HERO Monthly Statistics publication.

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Figure 27: Roadway Clearance Time Tractor-trailers
120
2002 Baseline 100

2006 Target

Roadway Clearance Time - Tractor-trailers (in minutes)

80

60 64.6
40
20 16.7
0 2002

60 86.5

52.3

53.1 44.2

11.6

11.1

11.4

2003

2004 Year

2005

Response Time Clearance Time Target

12.4 2006

Figure 28: Roadway Clearance Time Passenger Vehicles
45 2002 Baseline
40

Roadway Clearance Time - Vehicles (in minutes)

35

30

25

29.8

22.8

20

22.8 19.9

15

10

5

10.3

9.6

9.4

11.7

0 2002

2003

2004 Year

2005

Response Time Clearance Time Target

2006 Target 30
18.2
11.6 2006

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TRANSPORTATION SYSTEM PERFORMANCE
This section introduces a new measure--Atlanta Transportation Performance Index (ATPI)--as a means of summarizing a number of multidimensional factors in the areas of roadway, transit, safety, and air quality, in order to measure the overall performance of the Atlanta transportation system.
ATLANTA TRANSPORTATION PERFORMANCE INDEX
The Atlanta Transportation Performance Index synthesizes a number of different factors reflecting roadway, transit, safety and air quality performance measures. This composite index is a single measure that tracks the state of the metropolitan Atlanta transportation system, similarly to the way the temperature is the main weather-related measure. The main advantage of the transportation performance index is that it minimizes the number of measures reported.
The Atlanta transportation performance index is obtained by employing the weighted sum model. A composite index is produced based on 12 input measures weighted by their relative importance (determined from a customer satisfaction survey performed by Georgia DOT in 2005).17 The composite transportation performance index can be viewed as consisting of four basic indices--Roadway services index, Roadway safety index, Roadway emissions index, and Transit services index--tracking separately important performance aspects of roadway and transit services.18 Each of these indices is normalized to a 100 scale for the base 2002 year for ease of presentation. An index number of more than 100 indicates improvement over the base year.
The Atlanta transportation performance index helps the region understand whether the region's transportation system is improving or worsening as a whole. The resulting composite performance index for the Atlanta region of 103.6 in 2005 shows that, overall, the transportation system performance improved over the base year of 2002. The roadway emissions index of 124.6 and the transit services index of 103.1 for 2005 contributed to this positive trend. The roadway services index and the roadway safety index lower the system's performance with values of 95.9 and 88 for 2005, respectively.

17 The ATPI is composed of the following measures: Travel time index, Planning time index, Daily vehicle miles traveled, Transit revenue service hours - MARTA, Transit revenue service hours - other, Transit passenger miles traveled, Transit passenger boardings, Vehicle NOx emissions, Vehicle VOC emissions, Vehicle PM2.5 emissions, Highway fatality rate per 100 million VMT, Pedestrian and bicycle fatalities per 100,000 population. 18 The roadway services index is composed of the following measures: travel time index, planning time index, and daily vehicle miles traveled. The roadway safety index consists of the highway fatality rate per 100 million VMT and pedestrian and bicycle fatalities per 100,000 population. The transit services index includes transit revenue service hours - MARTA, transit revenue service hours - other, transit passenger miles traveled, and transit passenger boardings. The roadway emissions index is based on the vehicle nitrogen oxides emissions, vehicle volatile organic compounds emissions, and vehicle primary fine particulate matter emissions.

2007 Transportation MAP (Metropolitan Atlanta Performance) Report

36

Figure 29: Atlanta Transportation Performance Index
130

Index, % (going up indicates improvement)

125

120

115

113.0

110

107.8

105

100

100

95

90

100.2 99.6
97.3
92.0

102.9 102.4 98.4 94.0

85 2002

2003

Year

2004

Roadway Services Index Transit Services Index Roadway Emissions Index Roadway Safety Index Atlanta Transportation Performance Index

124.6
103.6 103.1 95.9 88.0 2005

2007 Transportation MAP (Metropolitan Atlanta Performance) Report

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SUMMARY OF 2007 TRANSPORTATION MAP MEASURES AND TARGETS

Mobility

Performance Measure

Description

Baseline Value Year

Freeway travel time index The slowest periods: 7:30 a.m. 8:30 a.m. 5:00 p.m. 6:00 p.m.

Freeway TTI, weighted by segment VMT, during the slowest regional onehour morning and evening peak period

1.22
1.26 (PM)

2002

Freeway planning time index The slowest periods: 7:30 a.m. 8:30 a.m. 5:00 p.m. 6:00 p.m.

Freeway PTI, weighted by segment VMT, during the slowest regional onehour morning and evening peak period

1.53
1.83 (PM)

2002

Freeway buffer time index The slowest periods: 7:30 a.m. 8:30 a.m. 5:00 p.m. 6:00 p.m.

Freeway BTTI, weighted by segment VMT, during the slowest regional onehour morning and evening peak period

26.1%
41.7% (PM)

2002

Arterial congestion Percentage Un-

88% 2004

Notes:

lane miles congested

The morning peak is defined as 6:30 a.m. to 9:30 a.m.
The afternoon peak is

defined as uncongested, moderately congested,

(LOS A, B, C, and D)
Moderately Congested

81% 9%

2004

defined as 4:00 p.m. and

(LOS E)

15%

to 7:00 p.m.

severely

The afternoon peak congested Severely

3% 2004

number is given in

Congested

italic.

(LOS F)

4%

Daily vehicle miles traveled per licensed driver / per person

Vehicle miles traveled per licensed driver / person per day

56.7 2000 32.9 2000

Pavement condition rating

Percent of the state highway system with a PACES rating greater than 70

88% 2000

Transit passenger miles traveled

Transit passenger miles traveled (in millions)

874 2001

Annual transit passenger boardings

Cumulative sum of the number of passengers who board public transportation vehicles annually (in millions)

167 2001

Update Value Year 1.34 2006 1.36 (PM) 1.80 2006 2.02 (PM) 33.8% 2006 42.9% (PM) N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A 44.9 2005 30.8 2005 84% 2006
811 2005 156 2005

Target Value Year N/A N/A N/A N/A
N/A N/A N/A N/A
N/A N/A N/A N/A
N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A 45.0 2006 30.0 2006 90% 2006
900 2006 175 2006

2007 Transportation MAP (Metropolitan Atlanta Performance) Report

38

SUMMARY OF 2007 TRANSPORTATION MAP MEASURES AND TARGETS (CONTINUED)

Transit Accessibility

Other MARTA Other MARTA Empl Pop.

Performance Measure
Population and employment within walk distance to transit

Description
Number of people that live or work within 4/10 of a mile of a transit stop year (in thousands)

Baseline Value Year 1,057 2001

Update Value Year 1,113 2005

Target Value Year 1,150 2006

1,085 2001 1,165 2005 1,200 2006

Transit revenue service hours (MARTA, CCT/DCR/GRTA/ Gwinnett Transit)
Passenger trips per transit service hour (MARTA, CCT/DCR/GRTA/ Gwinnett Transit)

Total number of hours trains and buses are running and available to carry passengers in a given year (in thousands)
Average number of unlinked passenger trips per revenue hour trains and buses are running and available to carry passengers in a year

3,182 2001 2,879 2005 3,300 2006 157 2001 597 2005 550 2006 52 2001 49 2005 50 2006 19 2001 22 2005 22 2006

Number of vanpools

Total number of vanpools operating in a given year in the 28county Atlanta area

178 2002 323

2006 300

2006

Daily Vehicle

VOC

Emissions (relative to

2000 levels)

NOx

100% 2000 72% 2005 N/A N/A 100% 2000 74% 2005 N/A N/A

Primary PM2.5

100% 2000 75% 2005 N/A N/A

Highway fatalities

Total number of highway 494 2001 543 2005 445 2006

/Highway fatality rate fatalities

Highway fatality rate per 1.12 2001 1.16 2005 1.01 2006 100 million VMT

Pedestrian and bicycle Pedestrian fatalities

fatalities

Bicycle fatalities

67 2001 69 2005 60 2006 6 2001 3 2005 5 2006

Roadway clearance Incidence Tractor- 81 2002 57 2006 60 2006

time

response and trailers

clearance time (in min.) Vehicles 40 2002 30 2006 30 2006

Atlanta Transportation The Transportation

100 2002 103.6 2005

Performance Index* Performance Index

* An index number of synthesizes system's

more than 100

roadway, transit, safety,

indicates improvement and air quality

over the base year. performance

N/A N/A

Air Quality

Safety

Transp. System Performance