How does a community plan for its future transportation needs? Did you know that more than 1,000 regionally significant road and transit projects are currently being planned by transportation agencies throughout our region? Insight is currently being gathered across the region on how to address the region's transportation challenges, including how to reduce overall traffic congestion and to improve air quality for the future!
Visualize 2045 is a federally required long range transportation plan for the Metropolitan Washington region, including Frederick County. It is a new kind of plan, taking a multi-modal approach. In addition to road and transit projects that have already been planned and funded, Visualize 2045 will also highlight bicycle and pedestrian projects. Additionally, Visualize 2045 seeks to identify key land-use issues facing the region. The plan focuses on how transportation can accommodate future population growth.. The aim of this effort is to help community leaders and elected officials, regional planners, and members of the public better understand the kinds of decisions a community needs to make today to realize a more desirable transportation outcome in the future.
Visualize 2045 is being developed by the National Capital Region Transportation Planning Board (TPB), the federally designated metropolitan planning organization (MPO) for metropolitan Washington. The TPB is made up of elected officials representing 23 county and city jurisdictions in the region. According to the Visualize 2045 website, the TPB’s official planning area spans more than 3,500 square miles across Northern Virginia, suburban Maryland, and the District of Columbia. The region is home to more than 5 million people and a broad diversity of travel needs.
Following up on a survey conducted by TPB last summer, interactive public forums are now being hosted all over the region to seek community input. The first of these forums was held at Thomas Johnson High School right here in Frederick. The nearly 50 attendees participated in table discussions and online polling to provide input on the plan. All of the comments garnered from these forums will be used to finalize Visualize 2045, that is planned for adoption in October 2018.
Alderman Kelly Russell shared, “As the 2nd Vice Chair of the TPB, I am pleased that the first of these interactive forums was held in Frederick. Frederick is an exciting and thriving community that significantly contributes to the region, and it is crucial that we have our voices heard in this long range planning process.”
Interested in participating in future forums? A complete list of upcoming forums can be found on the Visualize 2045 website.
