Transportation
Submit your comments about Transportation
The Transportation chapter is focused on improving how those who live in Annapolis, work here or visit the City get around. Our City is constrained geographically which means alleviating traffic congestion can’t be solved by simply expanding or adding new roadways. One of our best strategies is to improve the alternative mobility options that exist in the city to ensure those who wish to walk, bike, or use public transit can do so safely and comfortably, and to encourage more people to consider these options.
Goal:
Shift the mix of mobility investments towards public transit, micro-mobility/ridesharing, active modes and support for telework options to double the usage of these modes by 2040.
Performance Metric:
- Capital investments in transportation for public transportation, walking, biking, and Mobility-as-a-Service (MaaS) will increase from 7% to 15% of General Fund expenditures by Fiscal Year 2025 and 25% by 2030
Action 1: Complete the Bike network improvements identified in the 2011 Bike Master Plan.
Action 2: Ensure that all approved bike facility recommendations are budgeted and implemented with CIP roadway improvements.
Action 3: Prioritize the design and construction of the West East Express (WEE) bike corridor as the spine of the City’s bike network.
Action 4: Explore the feasibility of a no-fare public transit system to encourage more ridership.
Action 5: Implement a micro-transit pilot program to test the feasibility of on-demand service.
Action 6: Implement integrated micro-mobility options particularly to improve mobility into and through the downtown area, including micro-transit, bikeshare, paddleshare, ridesharing services, carshare, ferries, and an integrated Annapolis Mobility App integrated with Annapolis Transit.
Action 7: Connect Annapolis Transit with the Truman Parkway park-and-ride station and work with Anne Arundel County and MTA to create new express stop(s) for several routes at the County’s proposed multi-modal transit center.
Action 8: Work with MTA and private commuter bus services to establish rush hour stops along Forest Drive and explore the feasibility of a dedicated intermodal transit hub in the Bay Ridge/Hillsmere area.
Goal:
Build a policy environment in Annapolis that is mode-neutral, equitable, and oriented to safety.
Performance Metrics:
- Crash rate lower than rate of population + employment increase by 2025; Reduce serious injuries from car crashes to 3.0 per million VMT by 2040.
- Allow no new full-movement driveways on major arterials (and reduce the total number of existing driveway cuts)
Action 1: Adopt a Complete Street policy and process for every planning, design, and maintenance project.
Action 2: Update the requirements of the Adequate Public Facilities Ordinance to integrate non-auto facilities with automobile traffic facility requirements.
Action 3: Revise the Traffic Impact Analysis requirements to incorporate safety assessments and to be fully multimodal, including Quality/Level of Service (Q/LOS) assessments for bike, pedestrian, and transit modes.
Action 4: Adopt a Vision Zero policy, which is an initiative aimed at eliminating all traffic fatalities and severe injuries, that includes at minimum coordinated guidance on engineering, education, enforcement, and emergency medical services, and is aligned with Anne Arundel County’s Vision Zero policy.
Action 5: Prioritize bike and pedestrian facility improvements to the City’s major thoroughfares, where the highest number of traffic fatalities and injuries currently happen, as means of improving safety, minimizing conflicts between modes of travel, and lessening congestion.
Action 6: Prioritize improved bike and pedestrian connections to schools, particularly along Cedar Park Road, Forest Drive, and Spa Road.
Action 7: As part of future small area planning, address all physical barriers to mobility in the City and identify targeted actions for improving connections between neighborhoods.
Goal:
Transportation will take a leadership role in creating a greener and healthier Annapolis to sustain the economic, environmental, and societal quality of the City.
Performance Metrics:
- Triple the mileage of walking and biking facilities from 2020 to 2040.
- Increase bike + walk mode share to 5.0% by 2040.
- Expand the number of publicly accessible EV charging stations tenfold by 2025
Action 1: Adopt “Green Street” design standards that include maximum tree planting, use of silva cells, micro bioretention, permeable pavers, and other integrated stormwater best management practices. (also listed in the Water Resources element under goal WR 2)
Action 2: Work with BGE and other partners to establish more public car-charging stations in Annapolis, particularly downtown, as well as incentives to establish charging stations at existing multifamily and commercial developments. (also listed in the Environmental Sustainability element under goal ES 6)
Action 3: Revise ordinance language to require car-charging parking spaces for new or redeveloped residential and commercial properties that require major site plan review.
Action 4: Require existing parking lots to include one EV charging unit for the first 100 parking spaces and an additional EV charging unit for every additional 50 parking spaces.
Action 5: Become a Silver-level bike-friendly and Bronze-level walk-friendly community, designated by the League of American Bicyclists and Walk Friendly Communities, respectively.
Goal:
Expand partnerships with key public and private stakeholders to improve mobility, safety, and connectivity for residents and visitors alike.
Performance Metrics:
- Maintain current schedule of quarterly meetings with Anne Arundel County Transportation staff and SHA staff
- At least one transportation related CIP project in conjunction with Anne Arundel County, and one project with SHA, each year through 2040.
- By 2025, key segments of the bike network adjacent to St. John’s College and Housing Authority of the City of Annapolis (HACA) communities are complete.
Action 1: Continue to meet quarterly with Anne Arundel County Transportation staff to coordinate improvements to Forest Drive.
Action 2: Work with MDOT/SHA, NSA-Annapolis, and Anne Arundel County to implement the recommendations of the MD 450 Bicycle Retrofit Feasibility Study.
Action 3: Work with Anne Arundel County and MDOT/SHA to improve the intersections of Forest Drive at Chinquapin Round Road and Hilltop Lane for vehicular flow and bicycle/pedestrian safety, and improve the intersection of Forest Drive at Bay Ridge Avenue/Hillsmere Drive for bicycle/pedestrian safety.
Action 4: Work with MDOT/SHA, Anne Arundel County, civic and business associations, and private stakeholders to improve wayfinding signage throughout the city, particularly in conjunction with the City Dock/Hillman Garage project; new signage should utilize the City’s approved wayfinding standards to the best degree possible.
Action 5: Work with partnering agencies including Anne Arundel County, EMS, Fire, and Police to develop advanced routing for bus and emergency response vehicles on Forest Drive.
Action 6: Partner with MDOT/SHA, Anne Arundel County, and NSA Annapolis on the design and implementation of an Intelligent Traffic System (ITS) for traffic signals on all evacuation routes.
Action 7: Partner with St. John’s College and HACA to study and implement bike facility connections between King George Street and Calvert Street.
Action 8: Partner with MDOT/SHA, Anne Arundel County, HACA, and private property owners to create the West East Express (WEE), a dedicated bike corridor that extends the Poplar Trail east and west along the former WB&A railroad corridor.
Action 9: Continue to collaborate with Bicycle Advocates for Annapolis and Anne Arundel County (Bike AAA), Mid-Atlantic Off-Road Enthusiasts (M.O.R.E.), Pedal Power Kids, and other biking advocates to plan and implement improved access to the City’s bike network, as well as programs for riders of varying skill levels.
Action 10: Work with MDOT/SHA to improve State-owned roadways in the City for multi-modal travel, particularly MD 450 (West Street), MD 435 (Taylor Avenue), and MD 436 (Ridgely Avenue)
Action 11: Work with the Naval Academy Athletic Association (NAAA) to explore the feasibility of a transit hub at the Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium where tour buses could park and visitors could be shuttled into downtown via micro-transit options.