Lessons Learned from Regional Congestion Pricing Workshops (RCPWs)
CHAPTER 3. CROSS-CUTTING ISSUES IDENTIFIED ACROSS THE WORKSHOP REGIONS
Across the workshops, the following issues were raised commonly by the stakeholders and representatives.
How do agencies address the critique, "Is tolling (i.e., congestion pricing) just double taxation?"
- Agencies commonly provide alternatives other than tolled or priced options, such as carpooling, taking transit, or alternative routes. "Given limited resources dedicated to transportation, agencies may find that a congestion pricing strategy is the most effective method to reduce congestion along a particular corridor (e.g., no gas tax increase over a number of years). One common example is the need for a traveler to pick up a child at daycare. The traveler would rather pay the cost of the toll than to arrive later and pay more for daycare.
How do agencies develop public acceptance and political support for Congestion Pricing Programs?"
- To gain public acceptance for the program, in addition to holding public meetings, agencies should conduct comprehensive public education about the benefits of reduced congestion through implementation of pricing programs.
- To gain political support, agencies commonly cultivate project champions that foster the Congestion Pricing Initiative. A champion may be an elected official, community leader, or individual from private sector. It is beneficial to have champion outside transportation sector.
Is a State required to obtain approval from the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) to convert an existing general purpose (GP) lane to a /High-Occupancy Toll (HOT) lane?
- Yes. A State must obtain tolling authority under the Value Pricing Pilot Program (VPPP) to convert an existing general purpose lane into a HOT lane. Using MnDOT as an example, following an extensive study process, the State was granted tolling authority to convert the existing GP lane to a HOT lane as part of the I-35 E MnPass project.
What criteria helps define the process to select a pricing strategy?
- Based on existing practice, the selection process relies on an assessment of various feasibility considerations, driven by the program goals and overall regional and statewide planning efforts. These feasibility considerations are part of a conceptual planning process that identifies and addresses different elements of an initial comprehensive implementation plan. Commonly, the plan details an examination of issues related to institutional capability (e.g., tolling authority, legal, staff), design (e.g., possibility of physical construction), operations (e.g., daily functional practicality), implementation (e.g., project phasing, opening), financial, and public and political support.
What are some high-level goals and objectives to consider when deploying congestion pricing?
- Typically, agencies that implemented congestion pricing have prioritized either congestion management or revenue generation. Other objectives include improving travel time reliability; increasing transit serviceability and ridership; movement of commercial goods and services; supporting community land use and development goals; or improving air quality. Prioritization of goals should be undertaken because not all objectives align.
How does an operating agency decide to increase capacity in HOV-HOT conversion lanes?
- Agencies make operational and tolling decisions by regularly monitoring performance to assess the aspects that are operating poorly. Agencies also estimate the impact of various operational changes (e.g., increasing the occupancy requirement or changing the toll rate) by using engineering judgement and microsimulation modeling.
What should agencies do to start the conversation and build the narrative?
- Successful project sponsors have typically justified congestion pricing by tying overall program goals to specific measures, and showing how implementation can improve performance. For example, if improving congestion is a goal, showing how pricing would reduce trip times and offer a route without degraded delay. Depending upon the strategy, transit services, carpools, and single occupant vehicles can all use the priced facility without encountering delay — an option that did not previously exist. Sponsors need to articulate benefits and clearly stipulate the type and amount of investment needed. Public engagement and education is critical and needs to occur early during the project development process.
Can agencies implement congestion pricing and ramp metering together?
- Yes, agencies can implement ramp metering in concert with congestion pricing and other active traffic management strategies. California and Minnesota are examples of States that operate ramp metering for corridors with priced managed lanes facilities. For those corridors, it would be best to house the operation of the managed lane in the same traffic management center as the ramp metering operation.
