Acronyms:
|
| CAAA |
1990 Clean
Air Act Amendments |
| CIP |
Capital Improvements
Program |
| CMS |
Congestion
Management System |
| FAA |
Federal Aviation
Administration |
| FFY |
Federal Fiscal
Year (Oct. 1 – Sept. 30) |
| FHWA |
Federal Highway
Administration |
| FTA |
Federal Transit
Administration |
| HPMPO |
High Point
Urban Area Metropolitan Planning Organization |
| ISTEA |
Intermodal
Surface Transportation Efficiency Act |
| ITS |
Intelligent
Transportation Systems |
| LOS |
Level of Service |
| LPA |
Lead Planning
Agency |
| LRTP |
Long Range
Transportation Plan |
| MAB |
Metropolitan
Area Boundary |
| MOA |
Memorandum
of Agreement |
| MOU |
Memorandum
of Understanding |
| MPO |
Metropolitan
Planning Organization |
| MTIP |
Metropolitan
Transportation Improvement Program |
| NCDOT |
North Carolina
Department of Transportation |
| PART |
Piedmont Authority
for Regional Transportation |
| PIP |
Public Involvement
Plan |
| PWP |
Planning Work
Program |
| ROW |
Right of Way |
| SFY |
State Fiscal
Year (July 1 – June 30) |
| SIP |
State Implementation
Program |
| SOV |
Single Occupancy
Vehicle |
| STIP |
State Transportation
Improvement Program |
| TAC |
Transportation
Advisory Committee |
| TCC |
Technical Coordinating
Committee |
| TCM |
Transportation
Control Measure |
| TEA |
Transportation
Enhancement Activity |
| TEA-21 |
Transportation
Equity Act for the 21st Century |
| TIA |
Transportation
Impact Analysis |
| TIP |
Transportation
Improvement Program |
| TMA |
Transportation
Management Area |
| USDOT |
United States
Department of Transportation |
| UAB |
Urbanized Area
Boundary |
| VMT |
Vehicle Miles
of Travel |
| |
Definitions: |
| 3C Planning: |
Comprehensive,
Cooperative and Continuous transportation planning process. |
| Aggregate Demand
Model: |
A model obtained
by combining travel observations for individuals into geographic
zones. |
| Analysis Area: |
Any geographic
area such as a zone or group of zones combined for the purpose of
making an analysis. |
| Annual Average
Daily Traffic (AADT): |
The daily traffic
seasonally adjusted to compensate for the changing amounts of traffic
at different times of the year. |
| Attainment
Area: |
An area with
air quality that meets or exceeds the U. S. Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA) health standards as stated in the Clean Air Act. Nonattainment
areas are areas considered not to have met these standards for designated
pollutants. An area may be an attainment area for one pollutant
and a nonattainment area for others. |
| Attraction: |
The pull of
attracting power of a zone normally measured as a fraction of employment
activity. For non-home based trips, attractions in a zone can be
considered synonymous with trip destinations in that zone. |
| Authorization: |
The level of
funding designated by Congress for specific legislation. |
| Auto Occupancy: |
The average
number of people in a vehicle for a particular trip purpose. Used
to convert person trips to vehicle trips. |
| Average Daily
Traffic (ADT): |
The average
number of vehicles passing a specified point during a 24-hour period. |
| Base Fleet: |
The average
number of transit revenue vehicles in scheduled operation during
the non-peak hours of the average weekday operation. |
| Base Volume: |
The traffic
existing on the network in the base year. |
| Block: |
A unit of spatial
aggregation used by the U. S. Bureau of the Census in reporting
decennial census data, corresponding roughly to its colloquial meaning. |
| Block Groups: |
Block Groups
are combinations of census blocks within census tracts and block
numbered areas. |
| Block Number
Areas (BNA): |
Small statistical
subdivisions of a country. They are used for grouping and numbering
blocks in all countries and statistically equivalent entities without
census tracts. |
| Bottleneck: |
The point of
minimum capacity along a highway segment. |
| Bus: |
A self-propelled
rubber tired vehicle designed to carry a substantial number of passengers,
commonly operated on streets and highways. |
| Bus Trip: |
A bus trip
is defined as a one way trip by a bus while in revenue service,
starting at one end of a route and ending at another end of a route.
A round trip is counted as two separate bus trips. |
| Capacity: |
The maximum
number of vehicles that can pass over a given section of a lane
or roadway in one direction during a given time period under prevailing
roadway and traffic conditions. |
| Carbon Monoxide
(CO): |
A colorless,
odor-less, tasteless gas formed in large part by incomplete combustion
of fuel. Human activities (i.e., transportation or industrial processes)
are largely the source for CO contamination. |
| Carpool: |
Any vehicle
(usually a car) or arrangement in which two or more occupants, including
the driver, share the use or cost, in traveling between fixed points
on a regular basis (also referred to as ride sharing). |
| Census Tracts: |
Small areas
with generally stable boundaries, defined within counties and statistically
equivalent entities, usually in metropolitan areas and other highly
populated counties. They are designed to be relatively homogeneous
with respect to population characteristics, economic status, and
living conditions. |
| Census Transportation
Planning Package (CTPP): |
A special tabulation
of transportation related data for transportation analysis zones
and larger areas. It includes data by place of residence, by place
of work, and from a cross tabulation of place of residence by place
of work for use in studying commuting patterns. |
| Central Business
District (CBD): |
An area of
intense commercial development in the center of the City. |
| Centroid: |
An assumed
point in a zone that represents the origin or destination of all
trips to and from the zone. |
| Centroid Connector: |
Attached the
centroid to the highway network: as such, it is a representation
of all local streets in that zone. |
| Code of Federal |
The Code of
Federal Regulations is a set of the general |
| Regulations: |
and permanent
rules published in the Federal Register by the Executive departments
and agencies of the Federal Government. The Code is divided into
50 titles that represent broad areas subject to Federal regulation. |
| Collector Street: |
The roadways
servicing traffic between major and local roadways. These are roadways
used mainly for traffic movements within residential, commercial,
and industrial areas. |
| Commuter Rail: |
The portion
of main-line railroad transportation operations which encompass
passenger train service for local short-distance travel between
a central city and adjacent suburbs. |
| Comprehensive |
A planning
process that requires inclusion of land use, |
| Planning: |
transportation,
water and sewer, education, health and other elements. |
| Conformity: |
Process to
assess the compliance of any transportation plan, program or project
with air quality implementation plans. The conformity process is
defined by the Clean Air Act. |
| Congestion: |
The level at
which transportation system performance is no longer acceptable
to the traveling public due to traffic interference. |
| Congestion
Management System (CMS): |
A systematic
process that provides information on transportation system performance
to decision makers for selecting and implementing cost-effective
strategies to manage new and existing facilities so that traffic
congestion is alleviated and the mobility of persons and goods is
enhanced. |
| Congestion
Mitigation & Air Quality (CMAQ): |
The Congestion
Mitigation & Air Quality Improvement Program directs funds toward
transportation projects in Clean Air non-attainment areas for ozone
and carbon monoxide. These projects will contribute to meeting the
attainment of the NAAQS. |
| Cordon Line: |
An imaginary
line enclosing a study area, along with external interviews are
conducted, or along which travel counts are made. |
| Corridor: |
Broad geographical
band connecting major sources of trips. |
| Cross Classification: |
Procedure used
for determining trip productions by relating trip making to various
household characteristics such as income, auto availability, or
household size. |
| Daily Vehicle
Miles Traveled (DVMT): |
The total number
of miles driven per day in a specified area by all vehicle types. |
| Deadhead Miles: |
Miles a transit
vehicle travels without passengers or cargo on board. |
| Demand ResponseSystem
(DMS): |
Passenger trips
are generated by calls from passenger to the transit dispatcher
who on demand responds by dispatching a vehicle to provide a trip.
Not a fixed route system. |
| Design Hourly
|
Total traffic
in both directions generally representing the |
| Volume (DHV): |
highest hour
of volume of the future year chosen for design purposes. |
| Destinations: |
The zone in
which a trip terminates. |
| Disadvantaged
Business Enterprises (DBE): |
Disabled Business
Enterprise, Women’s Business Enterprise, and Minority Business Enterprise
– all known as DBE’s and is a consideration for Federal funds guidelines
of implementation. |
| Discrimination: |
Refers to any
intentional or unintentional act, or any failure to act, which has
the effect of excluding or denying a person from participation in
benefits, or has otherwise subjected a person to unequal treatment
under any program or activity because of race, color or national
origin. |
| Divided Highway: |
A multi-lane
facility with a positive barrier median, or a median that is 4 feet
or wider. |
| Donor State
Bonus: |
States that
contribute more to the Highway Trust Fund than any receive back
in Federal-aid highway programs. These states receive a predetermined
amount based on a comparison of a projection of all payments into
the Highway Trust Fund. |
| Emissions Budget: |
The part of
the State Implementation Plan (SIP) that identifies the allowable
emissions levels, mandated by the National Ambient Air Quality Standards
(NAAQS), for certain pollutants emitted from mobile, stationary,
and area sources. The emissions levels are used for meeting emission
reduction milestones, attainment, or maintenance demonstrations. |
| Environmental
Protection Agency (EPA): |
The Federal
regulatory agency responsible for administering and enforcement
of Federal environmental laws including the Clean Air Act, the Clean
Water Act, and others. |
| Exclusive Lane: |
A preferential
lane separated from the general-purpose lanes, used for high occupancy
vehicles. |
| Expressway: |
A divided highway
for through traffic with partial access control and including grade
separations at all or most major intersections. |
| External Trip: |
A trip with
one end inside a study area and the other end outside the study
area. |
| Fare Recovery: |
The cash collected
in fares on bus trips. Transfers, token, passes, and other non-currency
forms of payment should not be counted as farebox revenue. |
| Federal Fiscal
Year (FFY): |
A twelve-month
period for which records are kept, from October 1st to September
30th. |
| Federal Highway
Administration (FHWA): |
The FHWA is
part of the U.S. Department of Transportation, and is responsible
for administering all federal-aid public transportation funds and
programs. |
| Federal Transit
Administration (FTA): |
The Federal
Transit Administration, formerly known as the Urban Mass Transportation
Administration (UMTA), is part of the U.S. Department of Transportation
and is responsible for administering all federal-aid public transportation
funds and programs. |
| Fixed Route
Service: |
A system in
which vehicles follow a predescribed route and schedule. |
| Forecasting: |
The process
of determining the future values of land use, socioeconomic, and
trip making variables within the study area. |
| Freeway: |
A divided major
roadway with full control of access and with no crossings at grade. |
| Functional
Classification: |
Classification
of urban and rural roadways by function. Roadways at the top to
the hierarchy serve intercity and other long-distance movement.
Roadways at the bottom provide access to land. |
| Geographic
Information System (GIS): |
A highway network
(spatial data which geographically represents the geometry of the
highways, an electronic map) and its geographically referenced component
attributes data that are integrated through GIS technology to perform
analysis. |
| Grant: |
An agreement
between the Federal Government and a State or local government whereby
the Federal Government provides funds or aid in kind to carry out
specified programs. |
| Headway: |
The time interval
between successive vehicles crossing a given point. |
| Heavy Rail
(HR): |
Electric rail
transit system with exclusive right-of-way and high volume passengers.
Called subways, elevated (or “els”) and metros. |
| High Occupancy
Vehicles (HOV): |
A motor vehicle
carrying two or more persons, including the driver, depending on
local regulations. |
| Highway: |
Any road, street,
parkway, or freeway/expressway that included right-of-way, bridges,
railroad-highway crossings, tunnels, drainage structures, signs,
guardrails, and protective structures in connection with highways. |
| Highway Performance
Monitoring System (HPMS): |
The system
used by the FHWA to provide information to Congress, the States,
and the public on the extent and physical condition of the nation’s
highway system, it’s use, performance, and needs. |
| Inspection
and Maintenance Program (I/M): |
An emissions
testing and inspection program implemented by states to ensure that
the catalytic or other emissions control devices on in-use vehicles
are properly maintained. |
| Intermodal: |
The ability
to connect, and connections between, modes of transportation. |
| Intermodal
Facility: |
A transportation
element that accommodates and interconnects different modes of transportation. |
| Intermodal
Surface Transportation Efficiency Act (ISTEA): |
Signed into
law on December 18, 1991, it provided authorizations of highways,
highway safety,and mass transportation for a six-year period. The
purpose of the act is to develop a National Intermodal Transportation
System that is economically efficient, environmentally sound, provides
the foundation for the Nation to compete in the global economy,
and will move people and goods in an efficient manner. Replaced
in 1998 by TEA-21. |
| Intermodal
System: |
A transportation
network for moving people and goods using various combinations of
transportation modes. |
| Interstate: |
Although a
part of the National Highway System, the Interstate System will
retain its separate identity and will receive Interstate construction,
Interstate substitute highway projects, Interstate substitute transit
projects, and Interstate Maintenance Program. |
| Land Use: |
The purpose
for which land or the structure on the land is being used. |
| Lead Planning
Agency (LPA): |
Official recipient
of Section 104 (PL) funds designated under Title 23 of the United
States Code as designated by the Governor. |
| Level of Service
(LOS): |
A set of qualitative
descriptions of a transportation system's performance. The Highway
Capacity Manual defines levels of service for intersection and highway
operations, with ratings that range from A (best) to F (worst). |
| Life Cycle
Analysis: |
Procedures
for evaluating the economic worth of one or more projects or investments
by discounting future costs over the life of the project or investment. |
| Light Rail
(LR): |
Electric rail
transit system with "light" volume of traffic capacity,
as compared to heavy rail. May be on exclusive or shared right-of-way.
Includes streetcars and trolleys. |
| Link: |
In traffic
assignment, a section of the highway network defined by a node at
each end. |
| Local Share:
|
Non-federal
funds provided by a grantee to secure a federal transit grant. |
| Local Street:
|
Roadways used
primarily for direct access to residential, commercial, industrial,
or other abutting property. They do not include roadways carrying
through traffic. |
| Long Range
Transportation Plan (LRTP): |
Federally mandated
20-25 year transportation plan which provides guidance in the development
of an efficient, multimodal transportation system. The plan should
identify transportation facilities that will function as an integrated
system, giving emphasis to facilities that serve important national
and regional transportation functions, and includes a financial
plan that demonstrates how the plan can be implemented. |
| Long Term:
|
In transportation
planning, refers to a time span of, generally, 20 years. The transportation
plans for metropolitan areas and for States should include projections
for land use, population and employment for the 20-year period. |
| Maintenance
Area: |
Any geographical
region of the United States that the USEPA has designated as a maintenance
area for transportation related pollutant(s) for which a national
ambient air quality standard exists. |
| Management
Systems: |
Each State
must develop, establish, and implement six management systems: Highway
Pavement, Bridge, Highway Safety, Traffic Congestion, Public Transportation
Facilities and Equipment, and Intermodal Transportation Facilities
and Systems. The State can finance the management systems with NHS,
STP, Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality apportioned bridge and
planning funds. |
| Mass Transportation:
|
The provision
of general or special transportation service, either publicly or
privately, to the public on a regular and continuing basis in an
urban area. Does not include school bus, charter or sightseeing
service. |
| Metropolitan
Planning Organization (MPO): |
The organization
designated by law with lead responsibility for developing transportation
plans and programs for urbanized areas with populations of 50,000
or more. MPOs are established by agreement of the Governor and units
of general purpose local government which together represent 75
percent of the affected population of an affected area. |
| Metropolitan
Statistical Area (MSA): |
Defined by
the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) as a county with at least
50,000 inhabitants. |
| Mobile Source:
|
Mobile sources
include motor vehicles, aircraft, seagoing vessels, and other transportation
modes. The mobile source related pollutants are carbon monoxide
(CO), volatile organic compounds (VOCs), nitrogen oxides (NOx),
and small particulate matter (PM10). |
| Mobility: |
Ease of location,
a function of available transportation and of the individual traveler.
Individuals who are "mobility-limited" are those for whom
it is difficult or impossible to use traditional transportation
facilities without assistance or without modification of those facilities. |
| Mode of Travel:
|
Means of travel
such as auto driver, vehicle passenger, mass transit passenger,
walking, or bike rider. |
| Multimodal:
|
The Consideration
of more than one mode to serve transportation need in a given area
and is included within the meaning of intermodal. |
| National Ambient
Air Quality Standards (NAAQS): |
Federal standards
that set allowable concentrations and exposure limits for various
pollutants. The EPA developed the standards in response to a requirement
of the CAA. |
| National Environmental
Policy Act (NEPA): |
The National
Environmental Policy Act of 1969, as amended (42 U.S.C. 4321 et
seq.). |
| National Highway
System (NHS): |
The national
transportation system designated by Congress that includes the Interstate
Highway System and other nationally significant roads for interstate
and interregional travel, national defense, intermodal connection,
and international commerce. |
| Network: |
A system of
links describing a transportation system for analysis. |
| Node: |
A numbered
point on a link representing an intersection or a zone centroid. |
| Non-attainment
Area: |
A geographical
region of the United States that the EPA has designated as not meeting
the air quality standards. |
| North Carolina
Department of Transportation (NCDOT): |
The State agency
that monitors and funds the transportation needs of both highway
and transit within the state. |
| Operating Expense:
|
The total of
all operating costs incurred during the reporting period. |
| Operating Subsidy: |
Revenue received
through federal, state and local cash grants or reimbursements to
fulfill operating expense obligations not covered by fares or other
revenues generated by the transit system. |
| Origin: |
For transportation
purposes, it is the location of the beginning of a trip or the zone
in which the trip begins. |
| Ozone (O3:):
|
A colorless
gas with a sweet odor. Ozone is not a direct emission from transportation
sources. It is a secondary pollutant formed when VOCs and NOx combine
in the presence of sunlight. Ozone is associated with smog or haze
conditions. Although the ozone in the upper atmosphere protects
us from harmful ultraviolet rays, ground-level ozone produces an
unhealthy environment in which to live. Ozone is created by human
and natural sources. |
| Paratransit
Vehicle: |
Any form of
rubber tired high-occupancy vehicle, such as taxi, van and so forth,
that is available for hire to the public. They generally do not
operate on a fixed schedule and are smaller than conventional transit
vehicles. |
| Particulate
Matter (PM): |
Any material
that exists as solid or liquid in the atmosphere. Particulate matter
may be in the form of fly ash, soot, dust, fog, fumes, etc. |
| Passenger Miles:
|
The sum of
the distance ridden by each passenger. |
| Peak Direction:
|
The direction
of higher demand during a peak commuting period. |
| Peak Hour:
|
That one-hour
period during which the maximum amount of travel occurs. Generally,
there is a morning peak and an afternoon peak and traffic assignments
may be made for each period, if desired. |
| Planning Work
Program (PWP): |
A document
which describes urban transportation and transportation related
activities to be undertaken in an area during a period of time.
The PWP is prepared by the Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO). |
| Preliminary
Engineering (PE): |
First phase
of project construction, defines scope and project design. |
| Public Participation:
|
The active
and meaningful involvement of the public in the development of transportation
plans and programs. |
| Revenue: |
All operating
funds associated with the provision of transit service. Includes
fares, charter, school bus revenue; auxiliary and non-transportation
revenues. |
| Revenue Vehicle
Hours: |
The sum of
the number of hours each vehicle is scheduled to be in revenue services
during the calendar year reporting period. |
| Roadway: |
The portion
of a highway, including shoulders, for vehicular use. |
| Specialized
Transportation: |
Operates a
door-through-door paratransit service to individuals who are unable
to use conventional modes of transportation due to disability. |
| State Fiscal
Year (SFY): |
A twelve-month
period for which records are kept, from July 1st to June 30th. |
| State Implementation
Plan (SIP): |
A plan mandated
by the CAA that contains procedures to monitor, control, maintain,
and enforce compliance with the NAAQS. |
| State Transportation
Improvement Program (STIP): |
North Carolina's
multiyear program of transportation projects that is comprised of
all the MPO's Transportation Improvement Programs. |
| Thoroughfare:
|
Part of the
roadway system serving as the principal network for through traffic
flow. The routes connect areas of principal traffic generation and
important rural highways entering the city. |
| Transportation
Control Measures (TCMs): |
Actions to
adjust traffic patterns or reduce vehicle use to reduce air pollutant
emissions. These may include HOV lanes, provision of bicycle facilities,
ridesharing, telecommuting, etc. Such actions may be included in
a SIP if needed to demonstrate attainment of the NAAQS. |
| Transportation
Equity Act for the 21st Century (TEA-21): |
Legislative
initiative by the U.S. Congress that funds transportation programs
for fiscal years 1998-2003. TEA-21 authorizes increased levels of
highway and transportation funding and continues ISTEA planning
and funding provisions with minor modifications. |
| Transportation
Improvement Program (TIP): |
Also known
as a transportation program, a TIP is a program of transportation
projects drawn from or consistent with the transportation plan and
developed pursuant to Title 23, U.S.C. (United States Code) and
the Federal Transit Act. |
| United State
Department of Transportation (USDOT): |
The principal
direct Federal funding agency for transportation facilities and
programs. Includes the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), the
Federal Transit Administration (FTA), the Federal Railroad Administration
(FRA), and others. |
| Urbanized Area:
|
Area that contains
a city with a population of 50,000 or more plus incorporated surrounding
areas meeting set size and density criteria. |
| Vehicle Miles
Traveled (VMT): |
The sum of
distances traveled by all motor vehicles in a specified region. |
| Volatile Organic
Compounds (VOCs): |
VOCs come from
vehicle exhaust, paint thinners, solvents, and other petroleum-based
products. A number of exhaust VOCs are also toxic, with the potential
to cause cancer. |
