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OCR for page 36
Benefits and Challenges to champion the implementation of new and inno-
vative TDM strategies in the state.
There are several advantages and benefits, as
well as challenges, to organizing a TDM program
like the GDOT program. GDOT's working relation- Utah Department of Transportation (UDOT)
ship with CAC has created a strong central clearing-
Utah's transportation and congestion context is
house with consistent branding that resonates with
very similar to many states in the Mountain West.
the public. The CAC brand has created a one-stop
Much of the development in this state has been fo-
shop for information about traffic and air quality,
cused on the densely populated suburban/urban areas
whether you are in Atlanta or Athens. The multiple
of the state. From 1990 to 2005, Utah experienced a
"behind the scenes support" received from other part-
71 percent increase in travel but only a 47 percent in-
ners, including GRTA and ARC, is not as evident
crease in population and only a 4 percent increase
from the branding perspective, which is actually
in the capacity of the state highway system.258 This
helpful in reducing confusion for the end-user.
trend is expected to continue into the future. Except
The involvement of multiple stakeholders, both
for the Dixie MPO in the southwestern corner of the
public and private, which have a voice in the Frame-
state and the Cache MPO in the northern part of the
work's subcommittee meetings, helps with statewide
state, the rest of the urbanized population resides
collaboration. Likewise, GDOT's programs, and
along the narrow I-15/I-84 corridor, spanning from
privately held non-profit organizations like CAC,
Utah County in the South to Weber County, with
receive a lot of support from the private sector, as il-
much of this area constrained between the Wasatch
lustrated by the number of private companies partic-
Mountain Range and the Great Salt Lake covering
ipating and the board member composition. Cur-
the state's major metro areas. Eighty-five percent of
rently, 20 out of 25 of the top Fortune 500 companies
its 2.5 million people reside within the five MPO
are partners of either CAC or a local TMA. Like-
boundaries.259 See Figure 7.
wise, approximately 2/3 of the CAC's board is made This congestion challenge coupled with energy,
up of large private companies that are major em- climate, and air quality concerns makes TDM a good
ployers in the Atlanta region.
To demonstrate success to the funders, GDOT has
effectively utilized performance measures and results-
oriented activities. For instance, CTE is able to show
that 64 percent of Cash for Commuters participants
continue to use their alternative mode 9 to 12 months
after completing the program, when the commuter is
no longer eligible for the financial incentive.257
In terms of challenges, like any other program,
there is the pressure to continually demonstrate tan-
gible results. Additionally, while the large number
of stakeholders is a benefit, it can also be a challenge
in finding ways to streamline processes. Now that
CAC has expanded statewide with support from
GDOT, there may also be challenges in identifying
the best ways of extending services available to non-
attainment areas to those that are in attainment, such
as the RideSmart system, which funds ridematching
Figure 7 The labeled areas show the five MPOs
in only non-attainment areas. in Utah.263
Nonetheless, GDOT has taken on a strong role
as the "nucleus" of all TDM activities in the state,
and has a supportive group of partners that continue
258 Utah Unified Transportation Plan, http://udot.utah.gov/
main/f?p=100:pg:0:::1:T,V:1842, p. 8, accessed 10/7/2009.
257 259 Utah Unified Transportation Plan, http://udot.utah.gov/
The Clean Air Campaign Press Kit, http://www.cleanair
campaign.org/For-the-Press/Press-Kit, accessed 10/22/2009. main/f?p=100:pg:0:::1:T,V:1842, p. 7, accessed 10/7/2009.
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UDOT undertook a nationwide research review and
Key Information local employer focus groups in order to determine
how to structure their TDM program in Utah.266
Annual Funding: $1.5 million260 through the Concurrently, UDOT's consultants reviewed TDM
Utah Department of Transportation (UDOT) best practices nationwide and used this information
planning budget and other partner funds261 to develop the TravelWise plan.267 The focus groups
Lead Department at the DOT: Planning included two groups of 1820 company executives in
the Wasatch Front metro area. It concentrated on their
Number of Full-Time Employees: 1 staff opinions regarding transportation issues, the reduction
member with 3 on-call consultants262 of traffic congestion, air quality improvement, and
Other Major Partners: Wasatch Front Re- reductions in energy consumption.268 One element of
gional Council, Utah Transit Authority, Salt concern to these executives was employee hiring and
Lake City, Salt Lake Solutions, Environmental retention, particularly related to the high costs of trans-
Protection Agency, Utah State Government portation for those employees.269 They were also inter-
(Working 4 Utah), Utah State Government, and ested in a single point: they wanted to work directly
with UDOT as a leader, rather than having to coordi-
other not-for-profit and private partners
nate amongst multiple agencies.270 Finally, the focus
Contact for More Information: group thought that TDM strategies needed a broader
Angelo Papastamos marketing message to resonate with the public.271
Transportation Planning Manager
UDOT
Phone: (801) 965-4185 TDM Services Offered by UDOT
Email: apapastamos@utah.gov
Web: http://www.travelwise.utah.gov · TravelWise--a comprehensive TDM market-
ing out outreach program
· Ridematching (using RidePro Automated
Services)--managed by Utah Transit
fit for further exploration in Utah. In fact, two sepa- Authority
rate organizations were pursuing TDM initiatives · Information on transit, bicycling, telecom-
concurrently but not coordinated--TravelWise and muting
the Clear the Air Challenge. · Social media marketing
TravelWise is both the brand and program name · Technical assistance for alternate commutes
for UDOT's TDM program, which started in 2008.
for employer
In 2007, former Governor Huntsman was promoting · Construction mitigation guidance
an energy reduction platform statewide.264 In response,
UDOT further explored TDM ideas for its employers
and residents. Previously, UDOT had identified TDM
as one of its strategies in the 2007 Unified Trans- 266 Phone interview with Angelo Papastamos, UDOT,
portation Plan to "make the system work better."265 10/14/ 2009.
267 Phone interview with Angelo Papastamos, UDOT,
10/14/2009.
260
Utah NCHRP 20-65-24 Survey Response, submitted 268 Dan Jones & Associates, "Qualitative Research Analysis:
8/21/2009. Travel Demand Management Study A Qualitative Study of
261
Phone interview with Angelo Papastamos, UDOT, Business Executives." Conducted for Governor Huntsman and
10/14/2009. the Utah Department of Transportation. September 2008.
262
Utah NCHRP 20-65-24 Survey Response, submitted 269 Dan Jones & Associates, "Qualitative Research Analysis:
8/21/2009. Travel Demand Management Study A Qualitative Study of
263
Utah Unified Transportation Plan, http://udot.utah.gov/main/ Business Executives." Conducted for Governor Huntsman and
f?p=100:pg:0:::1:T,V:1842, p. 8, accessed 10/7/2009. the Utah Department of Transportation. September 2008.
264
Phone interview with Angelo Papastamos, UDOT, 270 Phone interview with Angelo Papastamos, UDOT,
10/14/2009. 10/14/2009.
265 271 Follow-up email from Angelo Papastamos, UDOT,
Utah Unified Transportation Plan, http://udot.utah.gov/main/
f?p=100:pg:0:::1:T,V:1842, p. x, accessed 10/7/2009. 11/30/2009.
37
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During the focus group process, UDOT was quality and support changing travel behaviors in the
also pursuing feedback internally and externally on Salt Lake City area in response to citizens' concerns.
the development of the program. A "TDM Think Using a facilitator, the Salt Lake Solutions working
Tank," composed of a variety of stakeholders includ- group met over the course of 4 months to discuss the
ing Wasatch Front Regional Council, Utah Transit best ways to create this awareness about air quality
Authority, city government, and local citizens, met to and travel choices, and ultimately decided on a Clear
discuss ideas and brainstorm strategies for a statewide the Air Challenge.
program. Additionally, an internal group, the UDOT Although both the Clear the Air Challenge and
Technical Committee, made up of UDOT employees TravelWise started separately, their overlapping
from various departments, met to discuss how to push stakeholder groups quickly realized that these two
forward the statewide program internally across var- initiatives were aligned and that led to collaboration.
ious divisions. Finally, a UDOT Steering Committee Renee Zollinger, Salt Lake Solutions, explained that
was formed to help the TravelWise program manager "When we realized that, we quickly backed up and
handle the program internally and externally, partic- brought all of the players together so we could move
ularly with a focus on political challenges.272 forward together, rather than separately."276 Due to
As a result of the input received from the focus this collaboration, UDOT was able to connect with
group, research, and various committees, UDOT de- a pre-existing group of interested stakeholders that
cided to focus its program on behavior changes and could help to promote and expand the TravelWise
on partnerships. UDOT would take the lead to pur- program. Some of the initial partners in TravelWise
sue these strategies, but would build on partnerships actually were in the initial discussions for the Clear
throughout the state. the Air Challenge.
What resulted from 4 months of planning was
the Clear the Air Challenge (http://www.cleartheair
challenge.org)--a regional, 6-week challenge that
Clear the Air Challenge Results started in June 2009. The program encouraged partic-
ipants to find alternatives to driving single-occupant
The 6-week competition featured 3,500 drivers vehicles whenever possible. Then, they were eli-
working together to save over 1 million miles gible to win weekly, and a grand prize by meeting
and reduce 1.7 million pounds of emissions.273, 274 specific travel goals. The 6-week competition fea-
tured 3,500 drivers working together to save over
1 million miles and reduce 1.7 million pounds of
emissions.277, 278
Concurrently, but not coordinated at this time,
Clear the Air Challenge proved to be an effec-
Salt Lake Solutions, a public-private partnership led
tive launch for conversations on TravelWise and
by the mayor of Salt Lake City's forum for collabo-
TDM in Utah. Participants and employers were ex-
rative public-private problem solving, was planning
cited about the interest that it generated in the com-
a public TDM challenge. Salt Lake Solutions focuses
munity and wanted to do more.279
on actionable problem-solving strategies on a variety
of topics.275 This 20-person and very diverse stake-
TravelWise
holder group picks a very concrete issue or project
and identifies a way to solve it--in this case, they UDOT funds and manages the recently launched
wanted to do something to raise awareness for air statewide TDM program through the help of many
272 Follow-up email from Angelo Papastamos, UDOT, 11/30/ 276 Phone interview with Renee Zollinger, Salt Lake Solutions,
2009. 10/20/09.
273 Salt Lake Solutions, http://www.ci.slc.ut.us/slsolutions/ 277 Salt Lake Solutions, http://www.ci.slc.ut.us/slsolutions/
projects/airquality.htm, accessed 11/3/2009. projects/airquality.htm, 11/3/2009.
274 Total trips eliminated 120,017, equaling over 1 million miles 278 Total trips eliminated 120,017, equaling over 1 million miles
saved and over $600,000 saved. The Clear the Air Challenge, saved and over $600,000 saved. The Clear the Air Challenge,
http://cleartheairchallenge.org/index.php, accessed 10/20/2009. http://cleartheairchallenge.org/index.php, 10/20/2009.
275 Phone interview with Renee Zollinger, Salt Lake Solutions, 279 Phone interview with Renee Zollinger, Salt Lake Solutions,
10/20/09. 10/20/09.
38
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Figure 8 TravelWise homepage.
private and public partners, including Wasatch Front in the strategic plan are linked to the governor's plan
Regional Council, Utah Transit Authority, and Salt to reduce greenhouse gas reductions at the state level
Lake Solutions. The overarching goals of the pro- by 20 percent.281 Figure 9 outlines the strategic plan
gram are to reduce energy consumption, improve air for the program.
quality, and reduce congestion (see Figure 8). The Since this strategic plan is recent, UDOT has
TravelWise approach is unique in its emphasis on re- only begun to implement its many strategies to meet
ducing energy consumption, which is a major compo- these objectives. The overall approach is very part-
nent of the plan due to former Governor Huntsman's nership oriented. The vision/strategic action plan
energy platform. goes way beyond the abilities of UDOT, but rather
TravelWise serves as a statewide program through is just housed and lead by UDOT. The main activi-
its comprehensive clearinghouse of information and ties to date have been to create and codify specific
technical assistance, as well as a guide for TDM at types of partnerships. For instance, UDOT is pursu-
the DOT itself, helping set the stage for its practices ing partnerships with public agencies, private and
and plans. public employers, citizens, and state transportation
agencies (e.g., Utah Transit Authority and MPOs).
TravelWise as a Statewide TDM Program. From Each partnership comes with a unique set of agree-
the Clear the Air Challenge as a start, UDOT lever- ments and expectations.
aged that momentum through a larger strategic plan- Some of the notable partnerships established to
ning process for the TravelWise program. The strate- date across the different types of organizations/
gic plan identifies the vision, mission, goals, and stakeholders include the Wasatch Front Regional
objectives of the TravelWise program.280 The goals Council, Zions Bank, and Utah Transit Authority.
This partnership strategy also allows UDOT to tailor
280
UDOT, TravelWise Draft Strategic Action Plan Executive
281
Report 20102013, September 2009. Follow-up email from Angelo Papastamos, 11/30/2009.
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Vision: TravelWise is based on people ship with a telework organization that can promote
working together to develop a coordinated the benefits of telework, as well as provide services
transportation program that encourages and
supports other travel strategies than driving
to interested employers. Likewise, a car-sharing pro-
alone. gram will be a partner that not only educates its clients
on TravelWise Solutions, but can be the provider of
car sharing services for other TravelWise partners.283
In many ways, TravelWise can be seen as a partner-
Mission: The TravelWise program educates building and service-sharing organization for TDM
and provides Utahns and visistors with
viable and reliable travel choices. (see Figure 10). The following are some examples
of TravelWise partnerships.
Wasatch Front Regional Council--UDOT
formed a formal partnership with the Wasatch Front
Goals: Improve Air Quality, Reduce Regional Council (WFRC), the MPO for the Salt Lake
Energy Consumption and Reduce Traffic
Consumption City region, through an endorsement resolution.284
The resolution organized by the MPO serves as a for-
mal agreement to support and encourage the goals and
activities of the TravelWise program.285 Through the
Objectives: resolution, WFRC outlined the following goals and
Develop partnerships, strategies, including:
Educate drivers,
Encourage walking and bicycling, · WFRC has funded several TravelWise strate-
Encourage carpooling, ridesharing and vanpooling,
Using technology to save travel time, gies through the Transportation Improvement
Educate and support all partnerships, Program.
Use TravelWise strategies in the long-range transportation plans, · WRFC's Long-Range Transportation Plan in-
Develop performance measures,
Identify and allocate funding. cludes TravelWise Strategies.
· WFRC recognizes that encouraging Travel-
Wise strategies can make a difference in re-
ducing congestion, improving air quality, and
Strategies/Tactic: reducing energy consumption.286
Develop feedback loops
Coordinate with partners from across Utah Zions Bank--One of the larger employers
Integrate TravelWise programs into public buildings and facilities, in Salt Lake City, Zions Bank is an example of a
Incorporate TravelWise into employer work sites and private buildings,
Provide technical assistance to larger employers through one-on-one
private-sector partner that is taking the lead as one
meetings to establish these commitments, of the program's first partners. The partnership agree-
Expand education and promotion for TravelWise campaigns, ment identifies that UDOT will provide Zions Bank
Identify capital improvements to enhance multimodal/non-SOV travel
Incorporate into new development.
with support materials to educate employees and
individuals about TravelWise and will recognize
Figure 9 Strategic plan for TravelWise. Zions Bank as an official endorser of the program on
the website and program materials. In exchange,
Zions Bank will educate employees and clients about
TravelWise strategies to each individual organiza-
tion, making sure their TDM plans fit their TDM
challenges. To date, TravelWise has three signed
283
partnerships; the goal is to have 1525 very active Phone interview with Angelo Papastamos, UDOT,
strong partnerships statewide by summer 2010.282 10/14/2009.
284 Phone interview with Angelo Papastamos, UDOT,
Some partners provide funding support, others
10/14/2009.
offer services, and others will simply promote the 285 Resolution endorsing TravelWise, submitted by Wasatch
TravelWise programs internally to employees. For Front Regional Council, June 1, 2009, provided by Angelo
instance, UDOT is working on forming a partner- Papastamos via email on 10/14/2009.
286 Resolution endorsing TravelWise, submitted by Wasatch
Front Regional Council, June 1, 2009, provided by Angelo
282 Follow-up email from Angelo Papastamos, 11/30/2009. Papastamos via email on 10/14/2009.
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Figure 10 Partners of TravelWise.287
the TravelWise program and track the progress of
employees using its services.288 Below is an outline Working 4 Utah: An Example of a
of the specific agreement: Statewide TDM Strategy in Practice
· UDOT TravelWise will provide Zions Bank In an effort to reduce energy costs and emissions,
with support materials to assist in educating Governor Huntsman introduced the Working 4
employees and individuals about TravelWise Utah initiative in June 2008. The initiative in
strategies and goals; essence created a compressed work week for
· Zions Bank will educate employees and clients most state government services. The compressed
about TravelWise; work week is set for Monday through Thursday,
· UDOT TravelWise will recognize Zions Bank 7am to 6pm with a 1-hour lunch break.
as an official endorser, and will place the The governor has not only reduced opera-
company name, link, and logo on the Travel- tional costs, but also reduced energy usages
Wise website, and any other materials recog- associated with CO2 emissions, improved the
nizing partners; availability of state services beyond the tradi-
· UDOT TravelWise may highlight Zions Bank tional work day, and offered a unique quality-of-
and their TravelWise efforts in newsletters and life benefit to state employees.289
press releases; Preliminary analysis suggests that state
· Zions Bank will track progress of employees employees could save $6 million a year in ve-
while implementing TravelWise and will report hicle operating costs and that the state could
results to UDOT; save $3 million a year on building operation
· The partners will share in the mutual benefits costs.290 With fewer vehicles on the road on
of community goodwill created by UDOT Fridays, the state initiative also effectively
TravelWise; and shifts demand and balances the demand for
· UDOT TravelWise will retain all final decision- transportation infrastructure.291
making authority in regards to the operation
of the program.
289 Working 4 Utah Performance Report, Baseline Draft,
287 TravelWise Partners, http://travelwise.utah.gov, UDOT, August 2008.
290 Working 4 Utah Performance Report, Baseline Draft,
12/07/2009.
288 Community Partner Agreement with Zions Bank, signed August 2008.
291 Working 4 Utah Performance Report, Baseline Draft,
11/25/2009, provided by Angelo Papastamos via email on
10/14/2009. August 2008.
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Utah Transit Authority--Utah Transit Author-
ity occupies a unique place within TravelWise
because it provides the ridesharing database and
vanpool services that support the six-county region
in its service areas, as well as the primary rideshare
and vanpool service for the TravelWise program.
UTA uses RidePro, an automated rideshare software
system and has 9,200 active commuters on file.292
UTA is planning to update its website to better
reflect its rideshare and vanpool services, and will
cross-promote TravelWise solutions.293
TravelWise as a Department Strategy. Internally,
UDOT is also incorporating the TravelWise strate-
gies into its larger decision-making processes and
programs (see Figure 11). There is a UDOT Tech-
nical Committee, an internal committee staffed by
30 employees from a variety of departments that
supports the UDOT TravelWise program manager.
The group meets two to three times per year to dis-
cuss ways to incorporate TravelWise strategies into
other division practices at UDOT.294
The goal of the committee is to think about how
the messages can be incorporated into everyday
business at UDOT. For instance, when engineers are Figure 11 UDOT created a Construction
on site for construction, they can share information Mitigation brochure that TravelWise as the
about TDM and construction mitigation.295 Travel- main source of information on the subject.
Wise is listed as one of the strategies and resources
for alternate commutes during construction for the
Mountain View Corridor on Route 2100 North.296
UDOT developed a brochure for employers on con- CommuterLink is an ITS managed by UDOT that is
struction mitigation to help the department further designed to save lives, time, and money. The sys-
promote its TravelWise services. tem grew out of the Transportation Management
Additionally, UDOT is also planning to link Committee initiated by the Senate in 1995. While
its TravelWise philosophy through its ITS and CommuterLink does not currently link rideshare
CommuterLink program (traveler information).297 information and TravelWise to the 511 system oper-
Although CommuterLink predates TravelWise, it is ated by CommuterLink, UDOT plans to do so.298
one of the resources available through TravelWise. Aside from the emphasis on construction mitigation,
UDOT sees ITS as one of the other prime categories
that can be used to advance TravelWise solutions.299
UDOT's TravelWise program plans to coordinate
292 Phone interview with Jan Maynard, Utah Transit Authority, internally with CommuterLink to identify strategies
10/29/09. to reduce demand and incorporate those as Travel-
293 Phone interview with Jan Maynard, Utah Transit Authority,
Wise solutions.300
10/29/09.
294 Follow-up email from Angelo Papastamos, 11/30/2009.
295 Phone interview with Angelo Papastamos, UDOT,
298
10/14/2009. Phone interview with Angelo Papastamos, UDOT,
296 Mountain View Corridor, http://www.udot.utah.gov/ 10/14/2009.
299 Phone interview with Angelo Papastamos, UDOT,
mountainviewutcounty/content/alternate-routes, accessed
11/15/2009. 10/14/2009.
297 Phone interview with Angelo Papastamos, UDOT, 300 Phone interview with Angelo Papastamos, UDOT,
10/14/2009. 10/14/2009.
42
