Envision Central Texas - Quality Growth Tools - Your Ideas Our Region's Future- www.envisioncentraltexas.org

Quality Growth Toolbox

In May 2004, ECT released the Envision Central Texas Vision which paints a compelling portrait of what we would like life to be like in our Central Texas regional community 20-40 years from today. In 2005, ECT transitioned from visioning to implementation with the creation of six Implementation Committees, which are developing tools, resources and projects to help Central Texas communities realize that preferred future. This online "quality growth implementation expert system," is a first tool in that toolkit. It builds upon the results of a 2003 research project commissioned by TXDOT to identify effective techniques that localities can use to implement quality growth in Texas (Paterson et al., 2003).

The expert system helps communities identify effective, context sensitive quality growth implementation tools and techniques that can be used to promote such quality growth goals as:

1. Provide Transportation Choices: Provide a range of transportation choices beyond the automobile, including transit, walking, and bicycling. This goal is closely related to the goals of promoting social equity, promoting accessibility, and reducing auto vehicle miles traveled (VMT). Policies designed to manage the expansion of the urbanized area can also help to provide transportation choices.

2. Reduce Auto Vehicle Miles Traveled (VMT): This goal is closely related to the goals of managing congestion and minimizing environmental impact. Policies designed to provide transportation choices can help to reduce auto VMT but do not guarantee that drivers will choose the alternatives. Policy actions that promote infill development also tend to create more multimodal land uses and reduce VMT.

3. Manage Congestion: Manage congestion in the road system without necessarily reducing vehicle travel. This goal is closely related to the goal of reducing auto VMT but emphasizes policies designed to shift travel out of peak periods.

4. Ensure Adequate Level of Service: Ensure that the road system provides an adequate level of service in terms of travel times and delays, traffic signal coordination, and that the transit system provides an adequate level of service in terms of frequencies and geographic coverage. It also entails the prevention of traffic spillover to neighborhood streets. This goal is closely related to the goals of managing congestion and providing transportation choices.

5. Promote Land-Use Accessibility: Promote accessibility to needed and desired services, including job centers, stores, medical services, parks, etc. This goal emphasizes policies that shape development patterns so that activities are closer together. Policies that promote accessibility also help to provide transportation choices by bringing activities within walking and bicycling distance. This goal is also related to the goals of promoting social equity and strengthening community livability.

6. Manage Expansion of Urbanized Area: Manage the expansion of the urbanized area so that land is used efficiently as population grows and scattered pockets of development are avoided. This goal is closely related to the goal of preserving natural resources and open space and to the goal of minimizing environmental impact. Managing the expansion of the urbanized area requires close coordination between land use and transportation planning.

7. Preserve Natural Resources and Open Space: Preserve natural resources and open spaces, including waterways, wildlife corridors, and plant and animal habitats for environmental, economic, and/or social purposes. This goal is closely related to the goal of minimizing environmental impact but focuses on impact on land rather than air quality or water quality. Policies that help to manage the expansion of the urbanized area usually help to preserve natural resources and open space.

8. Minimize Environmental Impact: Minimize the impact of transportation and development on the environment, particularly impact on air quality and water quality. Impact on wildlife habitats and open space is considered in the goal of preserving natural resources and open space. Policies that reduce auto VMT also help to minimize environmental impact.

9. Promote Economic Vitality: Promote the vitality of local economies, particularly in older communities and neighborhoods. This goal is related to the goals of strengthening community livability and promoting social equity.

10. Promote Social Equity: Promote social equity by ensuring that "transportation disadvantaged" populations, including low-income households, the elderly, and persons with disabilities, have adequate access to needed and desired activities and do not disproportionately bear the costs of transportation and land development. Policies that promote accessibility or reduce cross-subsidies from urban to suburban residents and provide transportation choices usually promote social equity. Policies that affect the price of transportation or land development may work for or against social equity.

11. Strengthen Community Livability: Strengthen community livability by enhancing quality of life environmentally, economically, and socially in existing neighborhoods. Policies that strengthen livability in existing communities help to manage the growth of the urbanized area. This goal is also related to the goal of promoting accessibility.

12. Strengthen Coordination: Strengthen coordination between agencies within a region, between agencies at different levels of government, between agencies with transportation and land-use responsibilities, between public agencies and the private and nonprofit sectors, and in order to achieve growth-management objectives. Strengthening coordination helps to facilitate the achievement of all other goals.