Border Freight Scoping Border Freight Scoping StudyStudy

Scott SmithVolpe National Transportation Systems Center

23 October 2006

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Freight Scoping Study

• A three month effort– Late September – December 2006. – Funded by Section 5512 of SAFETEA-LU (TRANSIMS

development)– Sponsored by the U.S. Federal Highway Administration

• Objectives– Articulate the freight issues in Buffalo-Niagara Falls

area, and the decisions to be supported by improved modeling

– Identify available data for a freight model– Outline how TRANSIMS might be adapted for the

regional simulation of freight

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Presentation Outline

• What is the Transportation Analysis Simulation System (TRANSIMS)

• Findings to date– Freight issues– Decisions to be supported by improved

modeling– Data to support an improved model

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TRANSIMS

• Microsimulation model• Differences from conventional 4-step

– Simulation of individual entities e.g., households or freight movements

– Generation of tours– Not tied to

Traffic Analysis Zones (TAZ)Time-of-day buckets

– Detailed modeling of highways and intersections

• But, any model is only as good as the available data

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Freight Issues

• Cross-Border and Domestic• Freight Growth

– NAFTA– Feeder port possibility

• Primary mode is truck• Increasing need for reliable travel times• Congestion

– Cross Border– Other highway

Freight Flows throughNew York State

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Cross-Border CongestionIssues• Two crossings for commercial vehicles• NAFTA impact on commercial traffic• Congestion at borders and on highways• Security concerns

Initiatives• Warnings for truck queues• Pre-clearance

–FAST, NEXUS

• Bridge expansion• Inspection station relocation and expansion

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U.S. Domestic Issues

• Economic Growth• Congestion

–Grand Island Bridges Narrow lanes Steep grade

– I 90 / I 290 Interchange

• Non-freeway movements

– Route 219– Route 63

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Decisions to be Supported

• Grand Island Bridge Improvements

Peace Bridge and Plaza Improvements •

Queenston – Lewiston:Bridge, Plaza and Approach Improvements

• I90 / I290 Interchange

QEW Improvements

• Ferry• Mode shifts: truck to rail

Route 63

Route219

ITS Investments

Airport Area Development

Ontario

New York

Niagara Falls

Buffalo

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Data: Freight Movements

• Internal vs. External• Cross-border vs. domestic• X-X

– CCMTA National Roadside Study– Regional models (e.g., FAF)

•X-I– CCMTA National Roadside Study– Regional models (e.g., FAF)– Local economic forecasts– Local origins/destinations

• I-I– Urban goods movement

e.g., warehouse to retail

I-I

X-I

X-X

X-X

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Data: Traffic Flows

• All traffic–Existing regional model as a source of data –Background congestion

• Truck traffic• Sources

– Satellite tracking of trucks– Toll counts (classification)– Other traffic counts, including classification– Turning movement counts

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Data: Highway Network

• Four-step model– Link capacities

• Microsimulation model– Intersection capacity

Signals Turning lanes

– Road physical characteristics

Hills, curves Lane width

– Barriers Tolls, border crossings

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Topics for Discussion

• Issues affecting freight movements• Decisions to be supported• Scope of a planning model

– Domestic with cross-border coordination– Bi-national

• Data sources for traffic growth and mode split

• Data sources for origin-destination movements

• Data for modeling the highway network• Classification counts for calibration and

validation