Route 8 & Waterbury Branch Line Corridor Transit-Oriented Development & Alternate Transit Modes Assessment Project

May 24, 2017 AGENDA

– Introductions – Project Background – Existing Conditions – Public Outreach – TOD Scenarios – Other Tasks – Next Steps

Naugatuck Valley Council of Governments 2 PROJECT STUDY TEAM

– Naugatuck Valley Council of Governments – Liaison, Administrator – AECOM – Prime Consultant – CDM Smith – TOD Scenarios, Forecasting – Harriman – TOD Scenarios, Urban Design – Planning4Places DBE – Planning Support, Build Out Scenarios – Zuvic & Carr Associates SBE – Data Collection, Parking Inventory

Naugatuck Valley Council of Governments 3 Project Background PROJECT AREA

– Waterbury Branch Rail Line (WBL) – Waterbury to Devon Wye – Route 8 Expressway – Waterbury to Downtown Bridgeport – Bridgeport Avenue Corridor – Derby-Shelton Station Area – Ansonia Station Area – Seymour Station Area – Beacon Falls Station Area – Naugatuck Station Area

Naugatuck Valley Council of Governments 5 PROJECT GOALS

Route 8 Corridor – Identify new, enhanced and alternate public transit Bus Rapid Transit facilities and services, including local bus service, bus rapid transit routes and commuter rail, to transform town centers into vibrant, high-density communities that have

access to efficient and high quality transit services. Commuter Rail Line: Waterbury Branch – Provide built environment densities that meet transit Improvements supportive standards for land uses and walkability, in order to facilitate and encourage the use of enhanced transit services. Transit Oriented Development – Enhance transit connectivity, reliability and attractiveness. Lower Naugatuck Valley Urban Centers – Develop an implementation plan for incentivizing transit oriented and supported developments in the lower Naugatuck Valley Region. Station Area Enhancements – Advance HUD’s livability principles and extend WBL Stations sustainable communities.

Naugatuck Valley Council of Governments 6 OBJECTIVES

Open discussion on Project Goals…

Naugatuck Valley Council of Governments 7 Existing Conditions EXISTING CONDITIONS

– Previous Studies – Passenger Rail – Road Network – Local Bus – Parking – Environmental – Connecting Services – Travel Patterns

Naugatuck Valley Council of Governments 9 PREVIOUS STUDIES

– CTDOT Waterbury Branch Line Improvement Study – MetroCOG Long Range Transportation Plan – Greater Bridgeport Alternate Modes Study – CNVR Long Range Transportation Plan – Valley Long Range Transportation Plan – Naugatuck River Greenway Project – CTDOT Capital Projects Report – GBT Transit Master Plan – Let’s Go CT – Waterbury Bus Study – Waterbury Area Transit Study – Connecticut Statewide Bus Study

Naugatuck Valley Council of Governments 10 PASSENGER RAIL - WBL

– Meetings with CTDOT and MNRR – Existing operations – Travel times – Infrastructure – Ridership counts – Programmed improvements – Constraints

Naugatuck Valley Council of Governments 11 ROAD NETWORK

– Route 8 travel times/speeds – Traffic analysis Route 8 and connecting rail station corridors – Crash assessment – Commodore Hull Bridge future operations

Naugatuck Valley Council of Governments 12 LOCAL BUS

– Meetings with providers: • CT Transit Waterbury & New Haven, GBT – Examined • Route characteristics, ridership, funding/fares, fleet, programmed improvements, travel times – Ridership counts, and route surveys on key corridor routes • Waterbury Routes: 40, 42, T74, T114, N1, N2, 928/925 • New Haven Routes: J4,F5 • Bridgeport Routes: 15, 22x, 23

Naugatuck Valley Council of Governments 13 PARKING

– ½ mile rail station – 10+ hour parking only – Capacity, type, utilization, cost, ownership

Station ½ Mile Total % Increase % % Station Capacity Occupied Utilized from 2002 Capacity Occupied Utilized Capacity Utilized Utilization Waterbury 248 45 18.1% Yes 3,253 1,195 36.7% 3,451 1,240 35.9% Naugatuck 125 28 22.4% Yes 382 51 13.3% 507 79 15.6% Beacon Falls 54 8 14.8% Yes 314 23 7.3% 368 31 8.4% Seymour 23 14 60.9 No 328 79 24.8% 351 93 26.5% Ansonia 80 33 41.3% No 357 147 41.2% 437 180 41.2% Derby/Shelton 77 73 94.8% Yes 661 253 38.3% 738 326 44.2% Total 557 201 36.1% -- 5,259 1,748 33.0% 5,825 1,949 33.3%

Naugatuck Valley Council of Governments 14 ENVIRONMENTAL

– Waterbury Branch Line, Stations, Bridgeport Avenue (Shelton) and the Route 8 centerline and primary connecting roadway(s) and ramps to the rail stations. – Land use, open space, zoning, flood zones, wetlands, farmland soils, brownfields, endangered species, water quality, historic sites, community resources

Naugatuck Valley Council of Governments 15 CONNECTING SERVICES

– At Stations and within corridor communities – Modes: • Paratransit • Commuter bus • Intercity • Ferry Service • Taxi/TNC Services • Rideshare services

Naugatuck Valley Council of Governments 16 TRAVEL PATTERNS

– 77.7% drive alone – Average commute time = 25.4 minutes – 30.1% of corridor residents work in the corridor and 23% work in New Haven County – The corridor is a net exporter of workers – 3.69% of Bridgeport residents work in the corridor

Naugatuck Valley Council of Governments 17 Public Outreach STAKEHOLDER INVOLVEMENT

– 3 Study Advisory Committee GOALS OF THE PI PROCESS meetings – Create meaningful Two-way Channels of Communication – 1 Public Information meeting – Manage a Resonant Message – Five Charrettes – Build Consensus – Meetings with transit providers and CT DOT – Identify Champions

– WBL site investigations – Work with communities to understand issues and opportunities related to transportation and land use

Naugatuck Valley Council of Governments 1919 PROJECT WEBSITE

– URL: http://rt8corridorstudy.com/

Naugatuck Valley Council of Governments 20 PROJECT SCHEDULE

Route 8 & Waterbury Branch line Corridor Transit-Oriented Development and Alternative Transit Modes Assessment Project Project Timeline

Months Tasks 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 Task 1 - Advisory Committee

Task 2 - Public Outreach

Task 3 - Definition of Study Area

Task 4 - Data Collection/Existing Conditions

Task 5 - TOD Scenarios

Task 6 - Alt. Modes Assessment

Task 7 - Corridor Alignment

Task 8 - WBL Action Plan

Task 9 - Preferred Alternatives Plan

Task 10 - Administration

Committee Meeting Deliverable Public Meeting

Naugatuck Valley Council of Governments 21 Transit Oriented Development (TOD) Opportunities TOD PROCESS

Naugatuck Valley Council of Governments 23 CHARRETTES

TOWNS – Two workshops per town – Workshop 1: Visioning for stations and TOD Ansonia visual preferences Seymour Naugatuck – Workshop 2: Model block Beacon Falls Shelton/Derby

Naugatuck Valley Council of Governments 24 TOD DISCUSSION TOPICS

– TOD Development in Flood Plain – Brownfields Development – Density and Service Frequency – Coordination with Ongoing TOD in Corridor – Other

Naugatuck Valley Council of Governments 25 FUTURE TASKS

– Conduct Alternative TransportationVCOG/SAC Modes – Needs Assessment • Discussion with local officials/stakeholders – Develop Corridor Alignments • Three possible alignments • Bike and pedestrian connectivity – Create Waterbury Branch Line Improvements Action Plan – Finalize Preferred Alternatives Plan

Naugatuck Valley Council of Governments 26 Next Steps NEXT STEPS

– Complete existing conditions report – Finalize goals and objectives – Schedule and conduct charrettes (Fall 2017) – Quantify transportation need in the region – Begin developing multimodal alternatives

Naugatuck Valley Council of Governments 28 Thank You