Integrated Land Use and Transportation Planning

The impacts of “sprawl,” including unwanted traffic, are taking their toll on communities throughout Central New Jersey.  Stand-alone subdivisions, single-use office centers, strip malls and big box retail centers continue to consume our landscape.  At the same time, this type of development scenario increases our dependency on cars for the simplest errands, adding trips to an already overburdened roadway system.

The New Jersey Department of Transportation (NJDOT) recognizes that we can no longer ignore other potential solutions and continue to simply build our way out of this problem with bigger roads.  It is a costly proposition, and in the end, fails to address the problem, since our roads eventually fill up with more cars.  NJDOT also acknowledges that communities must be equipped with new planning solutions to help address this difficult and complex issue.

The good news is that innovative planning approaches are being pioneered across New Jersey with funding support from NJDOT.  Many of these involve highway corridor-based planning issues and range from rural and scenic resource preservation priorities to access management on commercial corridors to urban redevelopment and context sensitive design.  The issues may vary from one place to the next.  However, there are two common themes among them.  First, transportation issues need to be tackled through intermunicipal cooperation in many instances.  After all, the land use decisions made in one community frequently generate traffic impacts on others.  Secondly, transportation issues must be addressed in part through strategic land use decisions.  Indeed, the volume, type, mix and pattern of development all affect automobile dependency as well as the ability to walk, bike or use transit.  So how can we learn from the experiences and insights gleaned from communities engaged in integrated land use and transportation planning?

With funding from NJDOT, the Municipal Land Use Center, in collaboration with the Project for Public Spaces, will conduct a series of educational programs in Central New Jersey beginning in the fall of 2005 and running through the spring of 2006.  These programs will provide municipal leaders, among others, with information on tools, strategies, resources and successful case study examples of integrated land use and transportation planning approaches.  Land use planning techniques, “context-sensitive solutions,” form-based zoning, transit-friendly development, traffic calming techniques and more will be covered during five initial workshops.  Hands-on training will offer participants an opportunity to apply the information from classroom discussions to an actual site, using a combination of in-the-field observations and design and implementation discussions.  Local leaders, professionals and state and national experts will help lead these important workshops.  A five-county program will follow, providing another opportunity for municipalities and many others to learn from experts, share experiences and network.

For further information, please contact Caroline Armstrong at 609.771.2865