Real estate developments in Arlington County, Virginia, must obtain approval of a Transportation Management Plan (TMP) to occupy their property. A TMP, often referred to as a Transportation Demand Management (TDM) plan, spells out a developer’s or property owner’s program to increase the availability and awareness of transportation options for residents, employees, and visitors beyond single-occupancy vehicles.

Wells + Associates’ nationally recognized TDM team develops TDM plans and audits these programs to help properties ensure their compliance with Arlington County’s TDM requirements. Uniquely, our team also implements and manages programs, serving as Property Transportation Coordinators (PTCs), so that busy property managers can focus on their own important roles. Our implementation of TDM programs brings a wide range of transportation amenities to properties, including:

• Digital transportation displays with real-time transit and bikeshare availability
• Carsharing vehicles
• Bike room enhancements
• Branded bicycles for resident or employee use
• Shuttle programs
• Micromobility solutions

Our TDM expertise brings more than mere compliance to the properties we work with, but also a deep understanding of how to deliver and promote TDM strategies as transportation amenities that provide them a competitive advantage.

Background: TDM for Site Plans in Arlington

Arlington County’s TDM guidelines began with its 1990 TDM Policy which provided an early set of recommended TDM strategies to reduce vehicular congestion. Site plan projects in Arlington govern the TDM strategies written into site plan conditions for new developments.

Under Arlington’s Administrative Regulation 4.1, a TDM plan must be submitted and approved as part of a development’s site plan development proposal to the County. The County reviews and negotiates the conditions in a property’s TDM plans which are ultimately set and approved.

Arlington County’s Standard Site Plan Conditions state that once the County approves the TMP (TDM plan), the “Developer agrees to implement all elements of the plan.”

Wells + Associates takes the burden of implementing all elements of TDM plans off developers and property managers so they can focus on their important work.

W+A’s TMP/TDM Services in Arlington County

Across the country, TDM plans are increasingly being required for new or redeveloped properties. While many transportation consultants and traffic engineering firms claim the ability to write these plans, very few have experience in implementing them.

Wells + Associates’ TDM team – part of a larger transportation consulting team serving Arlington – is unique in that we have over 40 years of combined experience in implementing and monitoring TDM programs using creative methods and technology-based systems. We take the burden of “implement(ing) all elements of the plan” off developers and property managers.

Management and Participation: Property Transportation Coordinator

Arlington County states that developers must “designate and keep current a member of building management as Property Transportation Coordinator (PTC).” The PTC serves as a primary point of contact with the County and is responsible for “coordinating and completing all Transportation Management Plan (TMP) obligations.”

In our experience implementing and managing TDM programs and amenities, many property managers prefer to outsource the PTC role so that they can focus on the many other responsibilities of property management.

In addition to management of the TDM plan, our team goes beyond merely informing properties about local transportation initiatives. We implement these initiatives, such as participating in regionally sponsored traffic mitigation promotions and cooperating with the County in implementing transit-advertising programs.

Transportation Amenities: Facilities and Improvements

The transportation facilities and amenities in properties play a key role in TMP/TDM plans. These include the display of electronic transportation information in building lobbies and developing and promoting bicycle parking and storage facilities in the building. Rather than just providing standards or recommendations for facilities, we actively support the design and implementation of these amenities in coordination with property management.

In an increasingly competitive real estate market, certification of a property’s amenities can provide a competitive edge. Our team is trained and certified in conducting tangible measurements and assessments of the “active transportation” facilities at real estate developments through the ActiveScore and ModeScore certifications.

These certifications recognize buildings’ active transportation networks and facilities, enabling owners and managers to improve the marketability of their properties by highlighting the infrastructure and services they offer that support and inspire active transportation. This provides developers with additional value for building or going beyond the County’s requirements.

Promotions, Services and Policies

TDM plans in Arlington require properties to fund for each new residential lessee or employee one of the following: a SmarTrip card, a one-year bikeshare membership, or a one-year carshare membership.

Our TDM team fully implements these programs for properties, including the purchase and distribution of these memberships and cards. We are able to customize this for each property, using a form to determine resident preferences, distributing them directly to residents, and tracking usage as required.

Through our ongoing residential marketing programs, we ensure that residents are aware of the transportation options available to them through new resident packages, transit promotional materials and advertisements, and participation in regional traffic mitigation programs. 

Performance and Monitoring

Measuring the performance of TDM programs is a crucial element to ensuring successful outcomes. For example, property owners are required to reimburse the County for, and participation in, transportation performance monitoring studies.

Our team has nearly two decades of experience surveying residents and monitoring TDM programs to report outcomes. While Arlington County performs surveys as part of their TDM for Site Plans process, with our experience, we can be involved to help clients pull out additional recommendations from the survey results and then tweak their TDM program to improve performance. 

Contact our Arlington TDM/TMP Team

Note:

Arlington Transportation Partners (ATP) is a division of Arlington County Commuter Services, which includes TDM for Site Plans. ATP serves as an information resource related to TDM plans, including providing standards and recommendations for facilities, informing properties about local transit initiatives, bulk purchasing of transit cards, and delivering performance monitoring studies. However, these services, which are contracted by the County, do not go beyond this.

Our TDM team is built to fully implement the complete range of TDM services that are built into each TDM/TMP plan, including tenant promotions and campaigns, annual reporting, program management, incentive tracking, and facility enhancements. As part of this, we work in conjunction with TDM for Site Plans to fulfill plan requirements and elevate your property’s compliance standing with Arlington County.