Glossary of Transportation Terms

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Bus Rapid Transit (BRT): A combination of high-tech, route, and equipment improvements to give buses faster, more frequent service. BRT may describe signal prioritization,
level-floor platforms, special lanes, real-time passenger info, and roadways dedicated only to buses away from car traffic, connected to flexible feeder routes to serve areas off main trunk lines.

Bypass: A road that typically forms a loop around a city or town with limited access from on and off ramps. Bypasses are intended to divert through-traffic from busy urban streets to reduce congestion and improve road safety in urban area. Charlottesville Area Transportation Study (CATS): The 20-year plan adopted by the Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) and updated every five years. In the spring of 2001, the MPO changed the name CATS to the Charlottesville-Albemarle Regional Transportation (CHART) plan. Both the old and new names describe a long range plan for Charlottesville and Albemarle County that is part of the larger the United Jefferson Area Mobility Plan 2025 (UnJAM 2025). (Source: http://www.tjpdc.org/transportation/unjam.asp)

Charlottesville-Albemarle Regional Transportation Plan (CHART): The 20-year long-range plan adopted by the MPO and updated every five years. Please see the definition above.

Commonwealth Transportation Board (CTB): A board appointed by the Governor that approves all funding for federal-aid and state transportation projects through the annual Virginia Transportation Development Program. For example, the CTB would approve funding from the federal and state governments for a project like TJPDC’s Places 29 in Albemarle County, or the Northwest Fluvanna Louisa Corridor study.

Charlottesville Transit Service (CTS): The public bus service for the City and selected routes extending into urban portions of Albemarle County.

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Environmental Justice: Environmental Justice describes the fair treatment and meaningful involvement of all people regardless of race, color, national origin, or income with respect to the development, implementation, and enforcement of environmental laws, regulations, and policies. It will be achieved when everyone enjoys the same degree of protection from environmental and health hazards and equal access to the decision-making process to have a healthy environment in which to live, learn, and work.

Federal Aviation Administration (FAA): The Federal agency that coordinates and regulates the airline industry and airports, including the Charlottesville Albemarle and Louisa County Airports

Federal Highway Administration (FHWA): This federal agency provides transportation project and planning funds to localities through programs such as the Surface Transportation Program (STP), the National Highway System (NHS) and and the Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act (ISTEA) Enhancement program. See PL.

Federal Transit Administration (FTA): provides grant funding for developing public transit systemscapital, transit system operations, and Metropolitan Planning Organization planning. See Virginia Department of Rail and Public Transportation (DRPT).

Four Step Modeling Process: part of the Urban Transportation Modeling System. Includes:

• Trip Generation: predicts trip flow into and out of each zone, but not where trips come from or go. Typically measured as daily trips by household or Transportation Analysis Zone (TAZ). Separated into productions and attractions.
• Trip distribution: links trip ends predicted in trip generation together to form origin-destination flows. The gravity model is the most common math model used. Production and attraction interchanges must be converted to an origin-destination trip table.
• Mode split: models percentage of travel flow that will use each available mode (other than single occupant vehicle (SOV)). Mode split can occur: (1) before trip distribution (assumes that most transit ridership is captive) or (2) after trip distribution (transit is a viable alternative to SOV).
• Trip assignment: places origin-destination flows for each mode on specific routes of travel through respective modal networks. Based on user equilibrium - the assumption that people try to take the path that is least expensive, shortest, or some combination of the two. This is different from system equilibrium, which means that all the routes are operating at an equal level of delay/congestion.

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JAUNT, Inc.: Public transportation service for people with disabilities and the rural public in the Planning District. JAUNT is a public service corporation owned by the localities of the Thomas Jefferson Planning District, except Greene (Planning District 10) .

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Level of Service (LOS) a six-level rating that describes how good or bad traffic is. It is measured by speed and travel time, freedom to maneuver, traffic interruptions, and comfort and convenience. Level of service is not calculated the same way for every transportation facility. Jurisdictions traditionally have used this rating to identify what LOS they want to provide for specified roads when considering new development. However, some jurisdictions are getting away from using this ranking since it is so subjective. It also emphasizes free flowing traffic as a priority with no attention to the comfort of other users such as pedestrians and bicyclists.

• Level of Service A: Traffic flows freely. Individual users are unaffected by the presence of others.
• Level of Service B: Stable traffic flow, but the presence of others starts to be felt. Maneuvering and speed is affected moderately.
• Level of Service C: Traffic flows consistently, but the presence of others regularly affects the user’s maneuvering and speed, though there is still some freedom remaining.
• Level of Service D: The flow remains stable and tolerable, but the presence of others severely restricts freedom of speed and maneuvering. This is the minimum acceptable LOS for roads.
• Level of Service E: Speed is below level D. The flow is unstable, and vehicle usage is at or near capacity.
• Level of Service F: The capacity of the highway is exceeded. Traffic flow is irregular, travel times are long, and speed is slow. Stop lights or other traffic control devices can contribute to a LOS F.

Light rail (streetcar, tramway, or trolley) is lightweight passenger rail cars operating singly (or in short, usually two-car, trains) on fixed rails in right-of-way that is not separated from other traffic for much of the way. Light rail vehicles are typically driven electrically with power being drawn from an overhead electric line via a trolley or a pantograph, but can also be powered by self-propelled diesel engines.

Measure of Effectiveness (MOE): are evaluation tools used in many transportation studies (including US29 in Charlottesville/Albemarle). Examples of MOEs include travel time, average travel speed, traffic volume-to-capacity ratio, transit ridership by route, and bicycle compatibility.

Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO): Charlottesville-Albemarle Metropolitan Planning Organization, formed in 1981 based on a federal mandate for MPO’s in urban areas greater than 50,000 population. Its job is to develop long-range plans (see CHART) and funding programs (see TIP) for federal transportation projects in the region. The Policy Board includes two elected officials from Charlottesville, two from Albemarle, and a VDOT official as well as several nonvoting members representing transit agencies and UVA. The Technical Committee includes local and state planning staff and citizens. Advisory committees are in place for transit and ridesharing plans, bicycle and pedestrian plans, context-sensitive road design, and the long-range plan. http://www.tjpdc.org/transportation/mpo.asp

MINUTP: A computer software model used by VDOT to predict Charlottesville-Albemarle traffic using population and employment projections that are developed by local planning staff based on locally adopted comprehensive plans.

Mobility: The movement of people or goods.

Modeling systems: Planners can create a transportation model to predict how people will use the roads. The purpose of a model is to predict where there may be traffic problems as there are changes in land use, population, and transportation networks. Much data has to be gathered to get an accurate model. This includes surveying people’s origins and destinations, analyzing the land use patterns, examining economic factors, among others. Therefore, creating a model can be expensive. VDOT helps smaller jurisdictions and PDCs with modeling, while larger PDCs have their own modeling staff.

• Determinate: no randomness, get the same answer each time with the same inputs, used for one type of transportation, get level of service, queue length
• Stochastic/Microsimulation: incorporates randomness and variations in driver behavior, used for all transportation types, can provide a wide variety of measures of effectiveness but not level of service
• Urban Transportation Modeling Systems: used for an entire urban transportation network with region divided into zones, predicts what happens if you put a new road into an urban area, results are volume-to-capacity ratios. (Also see Four Step Modeling Process).

Multi-modal: Describes an area that has many different kinds of transportation modes. These may include cars, pedestrians, trains, bicycles, subways, buses, trolleys, airplanes and helicopters, and ferries.

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Planning District Commissions (PDC): PDCs are regional planning bodies established by the Virginia Area Development Act in 1969, operating on funds from the state, member localities, and public or private grants. There are 21 planning districts. See TJPDC. http://www.vapdc.org/

Preallocation Hearing: An annual public hearing on the draft Virginia Transportation Development Program (formerly called the Six-Year Improvement Program) usually held for the Culpeper district in late spring.

Public Hearing: VDOT and the MPO must have public hearings on long range plans, annual transportation improvement programs, and work plans. VDOT must also have public hearings on proposed locations and designs of new roads. Sometimes VDOT or the MPO hosts public information meetings at which comments are solicited, but they are not considered formal public hearings.

Public Participation: The participation or engagement of residents in the planning processes for transportation projects and studies. VDOT and the MPO are required to have formal plans to ensure ample opportunities for participation by all members of the public in the development of transportation plans and projects.

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Regional Transportation Plan: The Charlottesville Albemarle Regional Transportation (CHART) plan, updated by the MPO every five years and used as a basis for securing Federal transportation funds through the annual TIP. http://www.tjpdc.org/transportation/mpoChart.asp

RideShare: A regional program funded by VDRPT and staffed by the TJPDC which promotes traffic reduction through the use of alternatives to single-occupant vehicles, including carpooling, vanpooling, transit, bicycling, and walking; and employment options such as flextime, staggered hours, and telecommuting. http://www.rideshareinfo.org

SAFETEA-LU: Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: a Legacy for Users. Federal transportation legislation passed in 2005. http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/safetealu/index.htm

Transportation Improvement Program (TIP): The three-year program of proposed road and transit projects for the MPO area. Regionally significant projects requiring federal funds or approval must be endorsed in the TIP.

Title VI: Legislation included in the Civil Rights Act of 1964 that states that no person can be excluded from participation, denied benefits, or subject to discrimination because of race, color or nation origin.

Thomas Jefferson Planning District Commission (TJPDC): A twelve-member regional planning commission of elected officials and citizens appointed by local governments of Charlottesville, Albemarle, Fluvanna, Greene, Louisa, and Nelson Counties. The Charlottesville-Albemarle MPO is housed at and staffed by the TJPDC. See also PDC. http://www.tjpdc.org

Unified Planning Work Program (UPWP): The annual plan of work for the MPO showing budgets and tasks for studies and administrative functions.

University Transit Service (UTS): A private service of the University of Virginia funded through student and staff parking fees http://www.virginia.edu/parking/bus/bus.html

University of Virginia (UVA): State-funded four-year institution located in the Charlottesville-Albemarle area. UVA has a nonvoting representative on the MPO Policy Board and a voting representative on the Technical Committee. http://www.virginia.edu

Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT): Agency responsible for statewide transportation facility planning, construction, and maintenance. Staff of the VDOT Transportation Planning Division in Richmond serve as voting members of the MPO Policy and Technical Committees. Other VDOT divisions with whom the MPO works are the Culpeper District Administrator's office, the Charlottesville-Albemarle Resident Engineer's office, and the Location and Design division in Richmond. See also VDRPT. http://www.virginiadot.org

Virginia Department of Rail and Public Transportation (DRPT): Formerly a section of VDOT, now its own agency reporting to the Secretary of Transportation. VDRPT manages grant funds for CTS, JAUNT, RideShare, and a portion of the MPO planning funds. http://www.drpt.state.va.us

Volume to Capacity (V/C) Ratio: This figure shows how close a road is to reaching its capacity of vehicles. It compares the amount of vehicles on the road (volume) with the maximum number of vehicles the road is designed to hold (capacity). A rating of 0.8, for example, means the number of vehicles using the road is 80% of the maximum number it was designed to hold. Speed isn’t always a factor in a V/C ratio. To get a better picture of the conditions, V/C Ratio can be compared with the Level of Service (LOS) rank. A road may be operating with a 1.0 ratio (100% capacity), yet the flow is consistent, at a good Level of Service. However, a road may have a low ratio, say at 0.5, yet because of other conditions, such as cross-traffic or rubber necking, the Level of Service is low.