2008 Transportation Report Card

In support of the 2004 General Plan Mobility Element, the Annual Transportation Report Card was established to inform and update constituents on the performance of key elements of the City’s public road and transit system. Additionally, the Report Card measures the effectiveness of traffic mitigation measures and the trip reduction ordinance.

Since 2006, the Report Card has been updated annually and includes the following three sections: traffic count database, travel time and speed studies of arterials, and the Pasadena Area Rapid Transit System (ARTS) annual ridership report. The Report Card is also used to help city staff in managing multimodal corridors to promote and improve citywide transportation services. For example, the ARTS Bus ridership report is conducted annually to assist city staff in determining the effectiveness of the bus routes, stop locations, and headways.

Section 1: Traffic Count Database

As new developments have increased, the amount of traffic in the city likewise has increased. This is clearly shown through historical traffic counts collected by the city. In 2006, the Department of Transportation (DOT) implemented a user friendly search engine located on the transportation website where the public may retrieve traffic volumes via portable document format (pdf). The following link accesses the website as well as easy to follow instructions on how to search for turning movement volumes.

http://cityofpasadena.net/trans/trafficoperations/show_files.asp

Currently, staff members are working to develop a Geographic Information System (GIS) base traffic count map. This will allow the public to visually see historical traffic counts on a map in place of retrieving pdf documents. The anticipated release of the GIS format traffic count map is early 2010.

Section 2: Travel Time & Speed Studies

An effective methodology for measuring travel time and speed for corridors is to conduct a “floating car” travel time study. In the floating car technique, the driver is instructed to travel according to the traffic flow speed. Travel time studies are widely used to document congestion and to quantify the actual impact of mitigation improvements. The Department of Transportation worked closely with the Transportation Advisory Commission (TAC) to identify 15 corridors to be studied.

Upon review of available technologies, the use of Global Positioning System (GPS) technology allows for the most efficient and convenient way of data collection. Specialized hardware and software from GeoStats were selected for the task of collecting data. The equipment consisted of a data storage unit (called a Data Logger), a GPS receiver/antenna, and a cord to connect the Data Logger to the GPS receiver. GeoStats supplied two computer software programs referred to as Geologger Download Utility and TravTime.

The morning, mid-day and the evening peak travel periods were defined as the time periods to gather the data. The morning peak period is 7 a.m. to 10 a.m.; the mid-day peak is 10 am to 3 pm; and the evening peak period is 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. All data gathering runs were limited to Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays. The Department of Transportation staff drove assigned routes three times during each time period. Drivers were instructed to maintain a consistent driving style. The driver should drive with the flow of traffic and not to weave in and out of lanes. It is optimal for travel time studies to have a sample size from two to six runs for each time period and corridor studied. It was determined that three runs would be sufficient for each corridor. The gathering of data took approximately 2 weeks.

Once all the data was downloaded from the Data Logger and analyzed using the TravTime software, the results were tabulated and listed in Appendix A by segment. A chart comparing the 2008 versus 2007 segment data is located in Appendix B. Graphs and charts comparing three years of collected average speed and travel time data of each route is located in Appendix C.

A new addition to the Report Card this year includes results that are shown graphically on the city’s website through Google Maps©. The following links accesses a map of the corridors and their respective average travel times and speeds, respectively, by direction and year.

Click on Map below to see Average Travel Time:

Click on Map below to see Average Speeds:

Section 3: Area Rapid Transit System (ARTS)

The Department of Transportation tracks ridership information for the City’s Pasadena Area Rapid Transit System (ARTS) service on a fiscal year basis. Located in Appendix D is the ARTS 2008 Ridership Information. The information is collected and reported to the department by the City’s contractor. The information presented in this report looks at the overall number of passenger boardings or trips, the number of passenger trips on each of the routes, and the number of passengers per service hour operated.

The following is a snapshot of the ARTS service:

Fiscal Year 2008
Service Area:	23 Square Miles
Population based on Metro 2005 Data:	146,166
Annual Passenger Trips:	1,654,147
Annual Service Hours:	60,917
Annual Service Miles:	637,063
Total Operating Expenses:	$4,104,965
Annual Farebox Revenue:	$516,353
Farebox Recovery Ratio:	13%

Conclusion

Travel Time & Speed Studies

In 2008, out of the 15 corridors that were studied only two corridors: Arroyo Pkwy and Hill Avenue had an increase in travel time greater than one minute compared to the year prior. As noted on the map, lane closures due to on-street construction projects caused delay in travel time during the study period. Consequently, the average speeds of Arroyo Pkwy and Hill Ave have decreased by three or more miles per hour. One corridor that has shown substantial improvement from the year prior is Fair Oaks Avenue with a decrease of approximately two minutes in average travel time and increase in average speeds by approximately three miles per hour. This may be the result of DOT engineers fine tuning traffic signals at the Gold Line Metro Rail grade crossings and the completion of on-street construction on Raymond Avenue which parallels Fair Oaks Avenue.

Even though development has increased significantly throughout the city within the last couple of years, the travel time and speed data have remained relatively constant with only minor fluctuations. Therefore, it is reasonable to assume that the traffic mitigation measures and trip reduction program have been effective in maintaining the “status quo” of traffic flow on city arterials.

Pasadena Area Rapid Transit System Report

Overall, ridership decreased by 3 percent in Fiscal Year 2008 compared to ridership in Fiscal Year 2007. There are several factors that may have affected ridership. Weather appears to have been one factor due to the significant increase in rain fall during late autumn and winter compared to the prior year. Another factor is the change in Pasadena Unified School District’s policy to allow more students to attend schools closer to their homes. This may have impacted student trips.

It is interesting to note that while ridership on the Local Lines decreased, ridership on the Feeder Lines increased. Additionally, while the overall ridership dropped by three percent during the past fiscal year, the full fare passenger category showed an increase in ridership of six percent.

The operating costs for the ARTS program are broken into three categories: 1) contract costs, 2) fuel costs, and 3) administrative costs. Both contract and fuel costs have significantly increased; however, administrative costs decreased due the reduction in printing cost activities. In FY08, overall system operating costs increased by 7%; however, the increased numbers of hours operated off-set this resulting in a cost per hour increase of only 5%.

Continued growth in transit ridership and improvement of travel time along major corridors is expected with the on-going efforts of city staff and the public. A larger sample over the course of several years is necessary in determining trends of increases or decreases in average travel time and speed along study corridors. Future annual report cards will contain updated information and data for further comparison and analysis. The report will evolve as technology and resources become available in the future.

For additional questions on the 2008 Transportation Card, please contact Amanda Ta