FHWA-NJ-2004-016 COMPUTER MODELING AND SIMULATION OF NJ TRANSIT PENN STATION NEWARK FINAL REPORT August 2004 Submitted by Dr. Lazar N. Spasovic, Keir Opie, Professor Principal Transportation Engineer School of Management NCTIP/IITC New Jersey Institute of Technology University Heights, Newark, NJ 07102-1982 NJDOT Research Project Manager Nicholas Vitillo In cooperation with New Jersey Department of Transportation Division of Research and Technology and U.S. Department of Transportation Federal Highway Administration DISCLAIMER STATEMENT The contents of this report reflect the views of the authors who are responsible for the facts and the accuracy of the data presented herein. The contents do not necessarily reflect the official views or policies of the New Jersey Department of Transportation or the Federal Highway Administration. This report does not constitute a standard, specification, or regulation. TECHNICAL REPORT STANDARD TITLE PAGE 1. Report No. 2. Government Accession No. 3. Recipient’s Catalog No. FHWA-NJ-2004-016 4. Title and Subtitle 5. Report Date Computer Modeling And Simulation Of NJ Transit August 2004 Penn Station Newark 6. Performing Organization Code 7. Author(s) 8. Performing Organization Report No. Dr. Lazar N. Spasovic and Keir Opie 9. Performing Organization Name and Address 10. Work Unit No. National Center for Transportation and Industrial Productivity New Jersey Institute of Technology 11. Contract or Grant No. 323 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. University Heights Newark, NJ 07102-1982 12. Sponsoring Agency Name and Address 13. Type of Report and Period Covered U.S. Department of Transportation N.J. Department of Transportation Research and Special Programs 1035 Parkway Avenue Administration P.O. Box 600 th 400 7 Street, SW Trenton, NJ 08625-0600 14. Sponsoring Agency Code Washington, DC 20590-0001 15. Supplementary Notes The purpose of the project was to model the impacts of proposed improvements to the Newark Penn Station pick-up/drop-off facilities and to the surrounding roadway infrastructure. As part of the project, a Paramics simulation model for the study area surrounding Newark Penn Station was built and calibrated to existing conditions. Analyses were conducted for the base ‘No Build’ condition, as well as for the planned NJDOT / City of Newark improvements and for multiple NJ TRANSIT recommendations. Analyses were also completed to determine the impact of large future developments in the immediate vicinity of Newark Penn Station. The major findings of the report include: • The NJDOT/City of Newark proposal of adding a left turn from Raymond Blvd WB to Route 21 (McCarter Highway) SB results in negative impact and increased delay for all vehicles trips on Raymond Blvd and buses on Market Street. • NJ Transit’s combined recommendations (as outlined in the following) result in significant improvements and a reduction in delay for all vehicles and person trips on both Raymond Blvd and on Market Street. • The most effective way to improve bus, auto, and truck circulation in the vicinity of Newark Penn Station is to implement NJ TRANSIT’s recommendations and remove the proposed NJDOT/City of Newark allowance of left turn vehicles from Raymond Blvd to Route 21 SB from further consideration. 16. Key Words 17. Distribution Statement Traffic simulation, Bus lanes No Restrictions. This document is available to the public through the National Technical Information Service, Springfield, VA 22161. 18. Security Classif (of this report) 19. Security Classif. (of this page) 20. No of Pages 21. Price Unclassified Unclassified 34 Form DOT F 1700.7 LIST OF CONTENTS ABSTRACT........................................................................................................ 1 1.0 INTRODUCTION...................................................................................... 2 2.0 RESEARCH PROBLEM AND BACKGROUND........................................ 3 2.1 Research Objectives............................................................................. 4 3.0 RESEARCH APPROACH ........................................................................ 5 3.1 Task 1: Definition of Study Area .......................................................... 5 3.2 Task 2: Data Review and Collection .................................................... 7 3.3 Task 3: Existing Conditions Simulation Network Modeling .................. 7 3.4 Task 4: Improvement Scenario Simulation Models.............................. 8 3.5 Task 5: Presentation of Findings ......................................................... 9 3.6 Task 6: Future Work ............................................................................ 9 4.0 RESULTS OF THE STUDY.................................................................... 10 4.1 No Build Analysis................................................................................ 10 4.2 NJDOT / City of Newark Recommendation: Add Left Turn from Raymond Blvd WB onto Route 21 SB ................................................ 11 4.3 NJ TRANSIT Recommendation #1: Westbound Bus Priority Lane on Raymond Blvd ............................................................................... 12 4.4 NJ TRANSIT Recommendation #2: Change Raymond Plaza West (RPW) to Two-Way Traffic Flow ......................................................... 16 4.5 NJ TRANSIT Recommendation #3: Add Pick-Up/Drop-off Area at Raymond Plaza East and Market Street............................................. 19 4.6 Impacts of Combined Implementation of NJ TRANSIT Recommendations.............................................................................. 21 4.7 Impacts of Proposed Developments ................................................... 23 5.0 CONCLUSIONS ..................................................................................... 26 6.0 RECOMMENDATIONS .......................................................................... 27 6.1 Phased Implementation ...................................................................... 27 6.2 Mode Split........................................................................................... 28 ii LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1: Illustration Map of the Newark Penn Station Site...................................6 Figure 2: No Build Scenario Simulation ..............................................................10 Figure 3: Raymond WB Left Turn onto Route 21 SB ..........................................11 Figure 4: Simulation of Allowed WB Left Turn at Route 21 .................................11 Figure 5: NJ TRANSIT Recommendation #1, WB Bus Priority Lane ..................12 Figure 6: Raymond Blvd Delays for NJ Transit Recommendation #1 (Left Most or Curbside Lane Bus Priority Lane and Signal Treatments).......15 Figure 7: Market Street Delays for NJ Transit Recommendation #1 (Left Most or Curbside Lane Bus Priority Lane and Signal Treatments).......16 Figure 8: Proposed Two-Way with Rotary Raymond Plaza West ......................17 Figure 9: Raymond Blvd WB Delays for NJ Transit Recommendation #2 (Two-way RPW With and Without Rotary Element) .....................................18 Figure 10: Market Street Delays for NJ Transit Recommendation #2 (Two-way RPW With and Without Rotary Element) .....................................18 Figure 11: Added Pick-Up/Drop-Off Area on Raymond Plaza East and Market Street................................................................................................19 Figure 12: Raymond Blvd Delays for NJ Transit Recommendation #3 (With and Without RPW Rotary Element).....................................................20 Figure 13 Market Street Delays for NJ Transit Recommendation #3 (With and Without RPW Rotary Element).....................................................20 Figure 14: Simulation of All NJ TRANSIT Recommendations............................21 Figure 15: Raymond Blvd WB Delays: Implementation of All NJ TRANSIT Recommendations .......................................................................................22 Figure 16: Market Street WB Delays: Implementation of All NJ TRANSIT Recommendations .......................................................................................23 Figure 17: Proposed Development Parking and Traffic Circulation ....................24 Figure 18: Current and Future Goal Mode Split for Downtown Newark .............28 iii ABBREVIATIONS USED NJ TRANSIT New Jersey Transit Organization NJDOT New Jersey Department of Transportation NJIT New Jersey Institute of Technology NCTIP National Center for Transportation & Industrial Productivity WB Westbound SB Southbound RPE Raymond Plaza East RPW Raymond Plaza West Blvd Boulevard sec/veh Seconds per vehicle iv ABSTRACT The project “Computer Modeling and Simulation of New Jersey Transit Penn Station Newark Study” was completed by the NJIT National Center for Transportation and Industrial Productivity staff under contract to the New Jersey Department of Transportation (NJDOT) and under advisement from NJ TRANSIT staff. The purpose of the project was to model the impacts of proposed traffic improvements to Newark’s Penn Station pick-up/drop-off facilities and to the surrounding roadway infrastructure. As part of the project, a Paramics simulation model for the study area surrounding Newark Penn Station was built and calibrated to existing conditions. Analyses were conducted for the base ‘No Build’ condition, as well as for the planned NJDOT / City of Newark improvements and for multiple NJ TRANSIT recommendations. Analyses were also completed to