Since the 1990s when Fehr & Peers first began using Simulation Modeling, our technological capabilities and innovative strategies have continued to expand.

Fehr & Peers was honored at the 13th Annual Utah Work/Life Award Ceremony on January 12, 2012.  This is one of the most prestigious and rigorous workplace awards in the country. We are delighted and inspired to have been recognized as one of the recipients.  Fehr & Peers looks forward to celebrating with great strides, innovations, and success in 2012 and beyond.

The original San Francisco Transbay Terminal was built in the 1930s to service electric commuter trains and streetcars between San Francisco and Oakland via the lower-deck of the Bay Bridge.  Over the years, rail service to the East Bay was replaced by bus service operated by AC Transit and the terminal’s function was expanded to include MUNI, Greyhound and other regional bus connections.  As usage expanded and building codes improved, the terminal became unsuitable for the current needs of Bay Area commuters and travelers.  The original Transbay Terminal (which expanded over 3 city blocks) was closed in August of 2010 to make way for a state-of-the-art, 21^st century transit center that will be host to numerous transit lines, including the end station of California’s proposed high speed railway system.

This plan presented one major problem: construction of the new terminal was anticipated to take five to seven years, and the existing terminal would have to be demolished in order to construct the new one.  Planners were forced to come up with a way for the city to serve commuters and travelers that relied on the Transbay Terminal in the meantime.  Fehr & Peers’s San Francisco office gladly stepped up to the challenge, helping to draft plans for a Temporary Transbay Terminal.  Located in a nearby, one-block parking lot, the team designed an intricate plan to service all of the bus lines in a space roughly one-third of the size of the old terminal.  At the height of rush hour, there can be up to 170 buses that visit the terminal in one hour.  This inspired a complicated choreography along with a technologically advanced simulation.  The simulation details included arrangement, timing and schedules to ensure that all travelers’ needs were met. 

In addition to ensuring the terminal itself would function properly, Fehr & Peers was asked to identify how buses would travel to and from the terminal from the Bay Bridge.  Prior to the original Transbay Terminal closure, specific bus ramps were created to service transportation lines on and off of the Bay Bridge.  With the closure, these ramps became obsolete, forcing buses that once had a direct route to battle the city’s traffic.  To enhance the fluidity of the routes, Fehr & Peers planned “Transit Only” lanes on recommended streets surrounding the temporary terminal.

Roughly a year and a half after the original Terminal’s closure, the Temporary Transbay Terminal is up and running smoothly.  The entire project’s cost to the city was only $15 million, a true “steal” in the terms of large-scale transportation projects.  The temporary terminal will serve as an integral part of San Francisco’s transportation landscape until 2017, when the new $4.2 billion Transbay Transit Center is scheduled for completion.

Now, many of the quick-response tools developed by Fehr & Peers are assembled in one package.  The ASAP Platform brings together years of research on topics such as:

• Estimating the amount of travel generated by mixed-use developments (MXD)
• Quantifying the effectiveness of a wide range of transportation management strategies in reducing energy use, greenhouse gas emissions, and other impacts
• Predicting transit ridership based on station-area land use and transportation service characteristics

In addition, the ASAP Platform links clients to our many state-of-the-practice techniques, from pedestrian safety assessments to a Complete Streets design toolbox to location-efficient/context-sensitive performance standards, all focused on providing cost-effective planning services that improve the quality of the transportation options in the communities we serve.

Current methods of traffic impact analysis understate the traffic benefits of mixed-use developments (MXDs) leading to exaggerated roadway impacts, higher impact fees, exactions, and negotiated payments than should be the case and discouraging development of otherwise desirable smart growth projects. The new MXD method accurately estimates trip generation and accounts for the smart growth characteristics of projects.

Fehr & Peers led a national study for the US EPA to develop methodology to more accurately predict the traffic impacts of MXDs. The study evaluated household travel surveys from 239 mixed-use developments in Seattle, Portland, Sacramento, Houston, Atlanta and Boston and found statistical relationships between site characteristics and the amount of vehicle travel generated in and out of the site. MXDs were found to reduce traffic impacts relative to single-use suburban development.  Key factors such as diverse on-site activities that capture a large share of trips internally, and placement within central walkable areas with good transit access, accommodate walking, transit travel, and reduced trip lengths.

The MXD trip generation method is recommended by the US EPA, has been used in traffic impact reports in certified envirnomental documents, and has been adopted by organization such as the San Diego Association of Governments (SANDAG) as a recommended resource for trip generation of smart growth developments.  Additional information can be found at CoolConnections.org.

Fehr & Peers takes pride in developing transportation projects to support healthy and active communities. We have assisted numerous clients – local and regional public agencies, developers, and institutions – with planning and design work to encourage people to walk, bike, and, in general, be active. Our projects improve safety, consider opportunities to incorporate creative storm water treatment, and, especially where there is an environmental justice component, improve access to healthy foods.  Our expertise in multi-modal planning, the relationships between land use and transportation, and development of strategies to reduce single-occupant vehicle travel and improve air quality provide the necessary foundation for healthy projects and communities. Our health-related services include:

• Active Transportation Plans
• Safe Routes to School
• Transit Plans
• Corridors/Safety Studies
• Health Impact Assessments
• Health Elements for General Plans

Contact Nicole Hervol Nagaya for more information.