A centerpiece of the Kaine administration’s transportation policy is a 2006 law that requires major rezoning projects in Virginia to undergo traffic impact analysis. The goal is to ensure that local government officials understand the level of traffic that proposed developments will dump onto local and regional road networks before granting approval.
The idea is a simple one, but, as always, the execution is easier than it looks. Assistant Secretary of Transportation Jimmy Carr oversaw the drafting of regulations late last year, and now the Virginia Department of Transportation is holding a series of workshops around the state to make sure all the stakeholders — VDOT staff, local government officials, land developers — all understand the regulations. So far, so good.
But problems are emerging, I hear from one of my correspondents, who attended a VDOT session in Chester yesterday.
On the positive side, he said, the session was well attended, and the presentation covered all major topics. People are encouraged by VDOT’s proactive outreach. And attendees received free highlighters and calculators!
On the problematic side, my source said, many questions went unanswered. For example, who is covered by the “527 regulations,” as the regulations are called? Attendees could not get clear answers. Concludes my correspondent: “Following this latest training seminar, consultants are crazy if they don’t assume every potential development will meet the 527 regs.”
Intructors frequently brushed aside hypothetical questions with a we-don’t-think-we’ll-see-that-situation-very-often, so-we’ll-just-deal-with-that-on-a-case-by-case basis response. My source’s concern: “Hear me now and believe me later, EVERY case will become a ‘case-by-case basis'”.
And a final point: Mixed use developments are becoming increasingly prevalent in Virginia, driven by the conviction that they generate far less traffic on critical collector roads and arteries than traditional development does. Says my source: “The regs — though recently updated — include outdated methodologies that will particularly impact mixed use.” He’s concerned that the impact studies will overstate the traffic impact of many mixed use projects, thus discourage use of a beneficial land use strategy.
I have no idea whether this kind of feedback filters back up to senior Kaine administration officials, or whether the top dogs get told everything is just hunky dory. But the Kainiacs cannot afford to see this signature initiative flounder. Someone needs to ride herd on the training-and-outreach process to make sure the initiative doesn’t plunge the development sector into a state of confusion.