MASTER PLAN COUNTYWIDE Transportation Approved Countywide Master Plan of Transportation November 2009 The Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission Prince George’s County Planning Department 14741 Governor Oden Bowie Drive Upper Marlboro, Maryland 20772 www.mncppc.org/pgco Abstract TITLE: Approved Countywide Master Plan of Transportation AUTHOR: The Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission SUBJECT: The Master Plan of Transportation for Prince George’s County DATE: November 2009 SOURCE The Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission OF COPIES: 14741 Governor Oden Bowie Drive, Upper Marlboro, Maryland 20772 SERIES NUMBER: 829092405 NUMBER OF PAGES: 120 ABSTRACT: The Approved Countywide Master Plan of Transportation updates the earlier Prince George’s County Master Plan of Transportation, which was approved in 1982 and has since been updated by the transportation recommendations in 34 master and sector plans that have been adopted and approved since 1982. The plan was developed with the assistance of the citizens of Prince George’s County; elected officials; and state, regional and local government agencies. The plan’s goals, policies, and strategies seek to ensure an efficient multimodal transportation infrastructure in the county that accommodates the needs of all user groups. Amendments of this plan by future master and sector plans will be reflected on the Countywide Master Plan of Transportation web page at www.mncppc.org/county/Transportation_MP/. Approved Countywide Master Plan of Transportation i Table of Contents Chapters: I. Executive Summary. 1 II. Introduction and Background . 1 III. General Plan Context. 3 Figure 1: Planning and Growth Policy Tiers, Centers, and Corridors. 4 IV. Trails, Bikeways, and Pedestrian Mobility. 7 Table 1: Major Long-Distance Bicycle Routes in the Subregion 6 Portion of the Rural Tier. 11 Table 2: Trail and Bikeway Recommendations . 19 V. Transit . 40 Table 3: Transit Network Recommendations. 41 VI. Streets, Roads, and Highways. 45 Figure 2: Guide to Traffic at Signalized Intersections. 46 Table 4: Street, Road, and Highway Facility Recommendations. 50 Table 5: Special Roadways. 59 VII. Strategic Transportation Policy and Master Plan Implementation . 67 VIII. Maps . 73 Foreword The Prince George’s County Planning Board is pleased to make available the Approved Countywide Master Plan of Transportation. The plan is also available on the internet at: http://www.pgplanning.org/Projects/Completed_Projects/Approved_Countywide_Master_Plan_of_Transportation.htm. Policy guidance for this plan came from the 2002 Prince George’s County Approved General Plan. The goals, concepts and guidelines, which outlined the major issues, were presented to the Planning Board in May 2007 and the County Council in September 2007. The public participation process has included focus groups held in November 2007, public workshops conducted in March and April 2008, and a wrap-up open house held in July 2008. This plan provides goals, policies, and strategies for the trails, fixed guideway transit, and street, road, and highway components of the county transportation network. Other recommendations in the plan concern policy guidance for interagency and interjurisdictional coordination to solve the strategic transportation planning problems identified in the plan, such as transportation funding innovations, integrated transportation and land use planning, transit-oriented development, concurrency and adequate public facility strategies, and corridor congestion management, and to develop a process for updating the Approved Countywide Master Plan of Transportation as future master plans are approved with transportation recommendations that revise or otherwise amend those recommendations contained in this plan. A joint Prince George’s County Planning Board and Prince George’s County District Council public hearing was held on the Preliminary Countywide Master Plan of Transportation on February 3, 2009, to solicit comments from citizens, property owners, and other concerned stakeholders. Staff then prepared a digest of the testimony and exhibits received at the public hearing or submitted before the public hearing record was closed. Prince George’s County Planning Board Resolution No. 9-61 adopted the Preliminary Countywide Master Plan of Transportation and transmitted it to the Prince George’s County Council. The Prince George’s County Council, sitting as the District Council, authorized a second joint public hearing, which was held on October 26, 2009. Council Resolution CR-89-2009 approved the Countywide Master Plan of Transportation with 38 amendments on November 17, 2009. This Approved Countywide Master Plan of Transportation is intended to complement the on-going Envision Prince George’s Initiative. This effort engages a broad cross-section of county residents, investors, and other stakeholders to develop a shared vision for the county’s future direction and growth, a process that the countywide transportation network recommended in this plan is intended to further. We invite you to continue to engage with the Envision Prince George’s initiative by visiting the web site at www.mncppc.org/Envision. Sincerely, Samuel J. Parker, Jr., AICP Chairman Prince George’s County Planning Board ii Approved Countywide Master Plan of Transportation MASTER PLAN Chapter III: The General Plan Context describes the policy COUNTYWIDE Transportation Chapter I: geography—the tiers, centers, and corridors—with guidance from Executive Summary that plan and relates the strategic growth and development vision for Prince George’s County to the need for a balance between transportation and land use. The next three chapters describe the three transportation—or The Countywide Master Plan of Transportation (MPOT) for Prince modal—elements in the General Plan: George’s County is the functional master plan that addresses the strategic transportation issues for all modes in Prince George’s Chapter IV: Trails, Bikeways, and Pedestrian Mobility updates County. At a time when the Washington metropolitan region is the 1975 Adopted and Approved Countywide Trails Plan for Prince ranked in a tie for the second-most congested area in the country, George’s County, Maryland and the 1985 Equestrian Addendum to there is a great need to reiterate the commitment to implementing the Countywide Trails Plan. strategies for reducing congestion, to incorporate amendments from Chapter V: Transit provides a strategic framework for countywide, other county master plans, and to acknowledge changes to the county as well as state, transit policies, such as the Maryland Comprehensive transportation network itself. It is important that the transportation Transit Plan (MCTP), the MARC Growth and Investment Plan, and system provide quality accessibility and mobility—and be clearly the Prince George’s County Five-Year Transit Service and perceived to be doing so—for county residents and workers and that Operations Plan. the system attract development in a way that demonstrates environmental stewardship. Chapter VI: Streets, Roads, and Highways updates the highway recommendations made by current master plans to reflect the General Updating the Countywide Master Plan of Transportation is one of Plan’s preferred development pattern and the updated county the major implementation strategies identified in the 2002 Prince transportation policies recommended in the General Plan. George’s County Approved General Plan, which contains a chapter on transportation systems. Each modal element recommends strategic policy and guidance to the county, local, regional, and state transportation agencies on the The previous Master Plan of Transportation is 27 years old. Since it types and locations of transportation facilities and services needed to was approved in 1982, it has been amended by 31 subsequently carry out the goals and policies of the General Plan. approved master plans in Prince George’s County. This updated Countywide Master Plan of Transportation incorporates all previous Chapter VII: Strategic Transportation Policy and Plan amendments into one document. It takes into account and reconciles Implementation focuses on land use, capital programming and area master plan transportation recommendations where necessary funding, transit-oriented development (TOD), the need for and provides the more detailed recommendations for a transportation comprehensive follow-on master plan coordination among agencies, network that will support the Prince George’s County Approved concurrency between development and the transportation General Plan. infrastructure needed to support it, transportation demand, and interjurisdictional corridor congestion management. It includes criteria Chapter II: Introduction and Background covers MPOT for transit-supportive land uses and outlines a procedure for preparation, including the major changes in the county and regional reconciling the Countywide Master Plan of Transportation with future transportation systems that make it timely and appropriate to update transportation master and sector plans. the plan. The introduction gives a brief description of comments received from the MPOT public workshops and open house. A technical bulletin is available under separate cover. MASTER PLAN Capital Park and Planning Commission (M-NCPPC) staff, operating agencies such as the Department of Public Works and Transportation COUNTYWIDE Chapter II: Transportation (DPW&T) and the Maryland Department of Transportation (MDOT), Introduction