August 14, 2006
RALEIGH – Light rail isn’t the solution to traffic congestion in the Triangle. The good news is that there are several immediate, common-sense, and far less costly solutions available to Triangle leaders. Those are described in a new John Locke Foundation Regional Brief.
Click here to view Dr. Michael Sanera as he discusses this Regional Brief.
Over the past 15 years, while Triangle leaders have sent local tax revenues toward the Triangle Transit Authority (TTA) and pushed for federal funding of TTA and its goal of regional rail transit, traffic congestion in the Triangle continued to worsen, said economist Christopher Goff, the report’s author. Citing relatively low population densities for rail transit and poor cost-effectiveness of the project, the feds have continued to reject rail transit in the Triangle. Meanwhile, Goff said, policymakers have largely ignored realistic, proven anti-congestion measures.
Even if TTA’s light rail had received federal funding, it couldn’t solve traffic congestion in the Triangle, said Dr. Michael Sanera, research director at the John Locke Foundation. “Nationally, light rail has done poorly in reducing congestion, even in areas where it was considered feasible,” Sanera said.
“The first step to pursuing policies to alleviate and prevent traffic congestion is to understand its sources,” Sanera said. “This report lists those sources and offers several solutions that address them.”
According to the report, physical bottlenecks account for 40 percent of congestion, and traffic incidents and bad weather are responsible for another 40 percent. Poor signal timing and work zones contribute another 15 percent.
“The primary way to reduce traffic congestion is to add more road capacity,” Goff said. “Build more roads and add lanes to existing ones to accommodate the Triangle’s growing population.”
Another option is traffic signal optimization, Goff said. “When traffic signals are properly timed, traffic flows more smoothly, reducing congestion.” Goff noted that Raleigh is currently implementing plans to upgrade the city’s 500-plus traffic signals.
Traffic incident management is another key way to reduce congestion, Goff said. He cited N.C. Department of Transportation’s Incident Management Assistant Patrols as an example of a program that helps clear the roadway when accidents and breakdowns occur and keeps congestion low. Goff said the Triangle needs to have traffic incident management on the following highways: I-540, the I-440 beltline, U.S. 1, U.S. 401, U.S. 70, and U.S. 64.
Goff also supported toll roads, toll lanes, and congestion pricing (peak pricing) for heavily traveled Triangle highways. “Combining toll roads with peak pricing in a whole network of premium lanes would significantly reduce congestion levels in the Triangle,” Goff said. “Drivers would evaluate for themselves whether to pay the toll or take different routes from the heavily traveled highways.”
Other solutions to the congestion problem on Triangle roads, Goff said, include improving intersections, especially increasing left-turn capacity; increasing bus rapid transit; and encouraging telecommuting.
“The Triangle is already at the forefront in telecommuting,” Goff said. “Policymakers need to ensure they don’t erect barriers against it, either by zoning codes that restrict home-based work, by minimum parking requirements, or by taxing Internet access or online sales.”
Christopher Goff’s Regional Brief, “Conquering Traffic Congestion in the Capital City: More Effective Solutions Than Light Rail,” is available at the JLF web site. For more information, please contact Dr. Michael Sanera at (919) 828-3876 or [email protected]. To arrange an interview, contact Mitch Kokai at (919) 306-8736 or [email protected].