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7 Corridor Travel Options Implementation Plan |
This study, completed in 2000 for the South Western Regional
Planning Agency (SWRPA) and the Housatonic Valley Council of
Elected Officials (HVCEO), was performed by Vanasse Hangen Brustlin,
Inc. and KKO and Associates, Inc. The study presented a list
of recommended changes to current transportation systems along
the Route 7 corridor in western Connecticut. The study aimed
to reduce traffic congestion, increase mobility, and provide
travel options for residents of the Housatonic Valley. The study
area was the Route 7 corridor between Norwalk and New Milford
which serves as a link between high density employment areas
with rapidly growing residential communities. Job growth is concentrated
at the southern end of the corridor in Stamford, Greenwich and
Norwalk and residential growth is concentrated in the northern
end of the corridor in Bethel, Brookfield and New Milford. Strong
job growth in New York City and along the I-95 corridor was projected
and acted as an impetus for the study. In anticipation of this
future growth, the result of this project is a list of commuter
rail service improvements and bus and shuttle service enhancements
as well as Travel Demand Management and Transit Oriented Service
Support strategies.
Commuter Rail Service Improvements
The study recommended two packages of commuter rail service improvements. The
first package deals with enhancing the existing Danbury Line and the second
package aims to extend the Danbury Line as far north as New Milford. The enhancement
package involves two phases of capital and service improvements and the extension
package involves three phases of development.
The Danbury Line enhancement package recommended increasing the maximum speed
on the Lien to 60 mph by adding a new signal and communication system. The
two phases of service improvements would increase service 55% and an additional
23%, respectively. The first phase of service improvements was projected to
reduce passenger travel time by 18%.
The final recommended service product would add
the following trips:
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• early morning shuttle (2) Wilton/Danbury – South
Norwalk – New York City
•
mid-day shuttle (3) Danbury – South Norwalk
• evening reverse (1) Danbury – South Norwalk
• morning reverse (3) South Norwalk – Danbury
• mid-day reverse (5) South Norwalk – Danbury
• late evening (1) Danbury – South Norwalk
• early evening (1) New York City through to Danbury
The number in the parentheses in the above list is the number of trips
scheduled to be added per time frame and direction end the end of the
two implementation phases
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The extension to New Milford rail service package involves three
phases of development that would ultimately provide commuter
service along the 14.2 miles of new or refurbished track between
Danbury and New Milford. The phased capital improvement program
and operating plan was designed to allow for an incremental approach
to the extension. The new signal and communication system discussed
in the enhancement package would also have to be extended to
New Milford and is included in the cost description of the extension
package. The extension package also includes infrastructure (track
and bridge) improvements and addition of service to three new
stations: Danbury North, Brookfield, and New Milford. During
the three phases of service extension, the following additional
or extended trips will be added:
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• extended existing AM and PM peak through
trains to New Milford (3)
• additional morning shuttles (2)
• additional evening peak shuttle (2)
• additional evening shuttles (2)
• extended mid-day roundtrips to New Milford (3)
• extended morning reverse (3) (2 to New Milford, 1 to Danbury North)
• extended evening reverse (2) (1 to New Milford, 1 to Danbury North)
• extended evening shuttles (2)
• additional evening through (1) New York City – New Milford
• extended mid-day roundtrips to Danbury North (3) |
Bus/Shuttle Service Enhancements
The study recommended bus/shuttle enhancements for the study area to accompany
the modifications to rail service. Bus service was recommended between Norwalk
and Danbury along the Route 7 corridor between Norwalk’s Wheels Hub
and Housatonic Area Regional Transit’s (HART) Pulse Point. The study
also recommended adding HART service between the Pulse Point and the Danbury
Rail Station and that a commuter connections study be conducted to analyze
the need for train station connections to major employers.
Travel Demand Management Strategies
The Travel Demand Management (TDM) strategies portion provided several recommendations
to increase ridership and provide additional mobility options for current riders.
Suggestions were made on a station by station basis. Generally, the TDM strategies
include:
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• Station enhancements (e.g. improved
security, commuter information kiosks, etc.)
• Evaluate feasibility of new rail stations in Norwalk (2) and Redding/Georgetown
• Conduct an Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) Study
• Create linkages within the transit system (e.g. shuttles/bus service,
pedestrian connections, bicycle facilities)
• Investigate feasibility of Universal Transit Card
• Conduct a Transit Oriented Development Feasibility Study
• Enhance marketing of public transportation resources
• Consider transit fare reduction to further stimulate increased transit
ridership |
Each of the TDM strategies is also associated with a general
estimated cost by station. The three furthest north stations
have low-cost opportunities where Branchville is in great need
of improvement and has an associated high cost for TDM enhancement
and the 3 southernmost stations have moderate costs associated
with them.
Transit Oriented Service Support Strategies
There were six recommendations that relate to Transit Oriented Service Support
strategies. The following institutional recommendations are made:
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• Establish a “Route 7 Travel Options
Coalition”
• Support ridesharing initiatives
• Conduct a service evaluation and governance study to evaluate operating
costs and cost structure for Danbury Line
• Pursue extending Danbury Branch to Stamford
• Evaluate feasibility of electrifying branch to Wilton
• Consider formation of Transportation Management Agencies (TMA) as a potential
long-term implementation strategy
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The study included a market research section (Technical Memorandum
#5 – Market Research Study). The most important travel
option improvements noted by survey respondents were available
and free parking at transit stations, transit fare reductions
and simplified fare collection, additional morning peak hour
trains, and extension of service to New Milford. A station-by-station
analysis indicated that most survey respondents rated security
as the most important station enhancement needed. The market
research survey indicated strong support for the express bus
service along Route 7 between Danbury and Norwalk. Shuttle services
received a particularly high level of support.
The rail service enhancements were projected to increase ridership
by 649 daily riders and the service expansions were projected
to net an additional 559 daily riders. The proposed route 7 corridor
bus service was projected to create 208 new daily bus trips.
With all the recommendations for the Route 7 corridor region,
the benefits of the implementation plan are reduced traffic volume,
improved air quality, and the maximization of public infrastructure
investments by increased transit capacity. These changes and
benefits are important to the region because of the projected
growth in population and highway congestion in the near future.
The Danbury Line is expected to have a 70% increase in riders
between 1999 and 2025 even without the recommended improvements.
Traffic volume was projected to decrease by 2,000 cars per
day with 1,600 of those cars removed from the road close to the
I-95 intersection in the southern section of the corridor. These
volume reductions are also anticipated to improve east-west corridor
traffic along I-95, Route 15, and Route 1.
After the study was completed and the recommendations were made, the final
suggestion was to create a Route 7 Travel Options Action Coalition. The purpose
of the coalition would be to oversee the implementation of the study recommendations,
to prioritize projects, to identify who will implement the changes, to identify
sources of funding, and to lobby for implementation with government officials.
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