HomeMy WebLinkAbout2026001 TIA+ (MEP) Supporting SlidesTIA+
A more robust traffic impact analysis
The request before the Board
•Adopt the criteria in the final section of this proposal as the required table of contents for all future Traffic Impact
Assessments.
•On adoption, the Office of Planning and Economic Development (OPED) will craft the corresponding submission
requirements for projects going forward.
Prepared by Michael King and Mark Pingel, Planning Board
TIA+ · Proposal to the Saratoga Springs Planning Board 1 of 5
Why reform the current process
Traffic impact is an infrastructure question, like sewer or electrical capacity: new development should not overtax the exist ing system without
contributing to it.
Studies almost always find “no significant
impact.”
Applicant-prepared TIAs routinely conclude the project requires no roadway
improvements —relieving the applicant of any obligation.
Vehicle -only, delay-focused.Current practice measures peak-hour intersection delay to drivers (Level of Service)
and largely ignores walking, cycling, transit, and connectivity.
“Last one in pays.”Reviewing projects one at a time makes the most recent applicant responsible for the
full cost of an improvement it only partly caused, while cumulative impact goes
unaddressed.
Mitigation can “induce” traffic.Adding lanes or turn lanes to relieve delay tends to increase traffic, by making it easier
to drive —the opposite of the intended effect.
TIA+ · Proposal to the Saratoga Springs Planning Board 2 of 5
Why this fits Saratoga Springs
The network is largely “full.”
•Broadway downtown will not be widened.
•Homes on Lake Avenue will not be moved back for another
lane.
•West Avenue stays three lanes for the foreseeable future.
The current process is misaligned with the Comprehensive
Plan’s vision of a compact, walkable, multimodal city. Where
road capacity cannot be added, a study that only points to
added capacity has little to offer.
What current studies miss —two local examples
25 New Street
Scant mention of walking or cycling. No mention of the 450 bus on
Ballston Avenue. No discussion of connections to Aletta Street or
Railroad Run —both adjacent to the site.
South Broadway
Focused on avoiding a signal and applicant-funded improvements.
Adjacent Spa Park is never mentioned. Calls safety a non-issue despite
crash history –prevailing speeds near 57 mph are typically fatal to
people walking or cycling.
TIA+ · Proposal to the Saratoga Springs Planning Board 3 of 5
What the criteria require
If adopted, every future TIA would be organized under these headings. OPED would set the specific submission details within each.
1 Study area map
Full transportation network within ¼ mile of the site (streets,
sidewalks, lanes, transit, paths, crossings); select facilities to ½ mile.
2 City plans
Narrative on how the project advances adopted City plans —
Comprehensive, Missing Sidewalk Links, Open Space, Complete
Streets, Greenbelt Trail.
3 Parking & trips
Net new parking spaces and net new vehicle, walking, and cycling
trips; travel times to key destinations; encouraged demand-
management strategies.
4 Traffic safety
Recent safety findings, speed data, three-year crash data with cost
analysis, sight-distance analyses, and proposed countermeasures.
5 Traffic volume
Multimodal volumes, existing and proposed volume-to-capacity
ratios, queue analysis, and improvements that avoid inducing vehicle
traffic.
TIA+ · Proposal to the Saratoga Springs Planning Board 4 of 5
The applicant is responsible for justifying why any item is not needed in their TIA submittal.
6 Transparency
OPED copied on all correspondence with outside jurisdictions
(NYSDOT, Saratoga County) during review.
What adoption changes
From
•Vehicle -only, delay-based (Level of Service)
•Predicted trip counts the applicant is motivated to minimize
•Project-by-project mitigation, “last one in pays”
•Improvements that add capacity —and induce traffic
To
•Multimodal —walking, cycling, transit, and vehicles
•Net new parking as a clearer proxy for trips
•Contribution toward a network-level solution led by the City
•Improvements aligned with City plans and existing
infrastructure
Requested action
Adopt the criteria as the required table of contents for future Traffic Impact Assessments; ask OPED to develop
submission requirements accordingly.
TIA+ · Proposal to the Saratoga Springs Planning Board 5 of 5