CHAPTER 5

Planning and Decision-Making Framework

Introduction

This chapter outlines a framework for intermodal passenger facility planning and decision-making, taking into accounts different contexts, current trends, and potential uncertainties. It introduces 10 planning and decision-making categories with steps and considerations for implementing new or renovation projects and for ongoing operations. It introduces the complete trip concept and discusses how well-designed and well-managed intermodal passenger facilities can support seamless travel. It includes an example of how to use the typology and apply the framework to managing pickups and drop-offs and discusses other key elements of passenger facilities.

Categories of Planning and Decision-Making

Intermodal passenger facility planning and decision-making can be organized into 10 general categories:

• Governance and partnerships (see Chapter 7).
• Funding and finance (see Chapter 8).
• Permitting and regulations.
• Site planning and design.
• Equity and inclusion.
• Operations and maintenance.
• Safety and security.
• User experience.
• Data and information needs (see Chapter 6).
• Technology and systems.

Each intermodal passenger facility project is unique, and decisions should reflect the context and goals for that facility. Based on interviews with facility planners and owners, modal operators, and industry experts, certain important steps and considerations apply to most facilities. Table 4 highlights key steps and considerations for each planning category.

Supporting the Complete Trip and User Experience

According to U.S. DOT’s complete trip definition, a trip is complete when an individual traveler can execute every part of their trip from origin to destination regardless of location, income, or disability (U.S. Department of Transportation, n.d.). [The U.S. DOT Intelligent Transportation Systems Joint Program Office (ITS JPO) directs the Complete Trip – ITS4US Deployment Program, a partnership among FTA, FHWA, and Office of the Secretary of Transportation (OST).

Table 4. Selected steps and decision-making considerations by planning category.

The program provides funding to communities to showcase innovative business partnerships, technologies, and practices that promote independent mobility for all travelers.] Successfully executing each part of the complete trip is a minimum. An optimum trip is seamless, easy, and comfortable, without gaps, barriers, unreliable connections, or inefficient or circuitous travel options. Intermodal passenger facilities can help users achieve this optimum trip by emphasizing the user experience, which includes entering, using, and exiting the facility.

DOT’s complete trip, illustrated in Figure 6, involves multiple steps, including trip planning, navigating outdoor spaces, crossing intersections, boarding/using vehicles, paying fares or fees, transferring, transitioning to and from indoor spaces (and navigating them), and making further connections.

Table 5 demonstrates how an intermodal passenger facility supports each complete trip segment. Next is a discussion of:

• Public information for trip planning;
• Wayfinding for outdoor and indoor navigation;
• Design for connections, modal transfers, and street crossings; and
• Staffing, training, and contingency planning for indoor navigation.

Table 5. How an intermodal passenger facility supports the complete trip.

Public Information Trip Planning

Many customers who directly plan trips visit websites—either provider sites or travel sites. Such websites often include limited information about the intermodal passenger facility the customer will be using, leaving that part of trip planning to the customer. Facility owners can ensure that their websites offer clear and comprehensive information on what to expect when using their facility, what amenities are available and where they are located, and how to seek additional information. For example, customers may wish to know how to connect to Wi-Fi, whether Internet access is free, and where to charge devices.

Facility owners can work with partners (modal providers, local governments, nearby businesses, and local community groups) to ensure that information about traveling to/from the facility is current and easily accessible. They can also offer multiple channels for obtaining information and can be prepared to assist visitors using the facility, either with volunteer ambassadors or employees.

Wayfinding for Outdoor and Indoor Navigation

Wayfinding systems help people understand places and find destinations efficiently. By contrast, getting lost is almost always a negative experience and one that can have wider impacts. Some key principles of wayfinding include distinguishing places from one another to avoid confusion, limiting navigation choices, maximizing lines of sight, and offering simple and usable maps. As certain intermodal passenger facilities become larger, particularly airport terminals, wayfinding systems need clear information and signs placed at decision points to keep people on the proper path. This includes potential points of confusion where a traveler might make an incorrect choice based on broad categories such as ground transportation or potentially confusing terminology such as “app pickup” for ridehailing/TNCs. Furthermore, not all customers have sufficient language proficiency to understand signs in English. Having information in other languages

and using graphics with universal symbols can help those with limited English proficiency. For more information, see ACRP Research Report 177 (Harding et al. 2017).

Designing for Connections, Modal Transfers, and Street Crossings

A barrier-free seamless travel experience begins with good design, including the design of the physical space and the placement of elements within the space. Examples include limiting the distance that customers must travel and integrating moving walkways when distances are farther apart. [See TCQSM (Kittelson & Associates, Inc., et al. 2013).]

Prioritizing the user experience also means applying inclusive design principles that help all customers. For example, while the proliferation of smartphones has enabled many customers to plan, reserve, and pay for travel and to better navigate spaces, particularly outdoors, not all customers use technology for these purposes. Furthermore, not all customers have sufficient language proficiency to understand signs in English. Having information in other languages, using graphics with universal symbols, and offering alternative ways to pay for travel can help to address these challenges.

In addition, while older adults may speak English and may be perfectly comfortable with technology while traveling, they may still face challenges walking longer distances or they may be able to walk without difficulty but lack the confidence to navigate large unfamiliar spaces. Passengers with disabilities regularly encounter barriers or challenges even when facilities are designed to comply with the ADA. Examples include inoperable elevators or poorly placed accessibility features, missing or confusing signs, or curb ramps that do not align with street crossings. Universal design principles employed in the design and operation of intermodal passenger facilities can address many of these concerns by ensuring that facility features work for everyone (Harding et al. 2017). See TCQSM discussion for information on designing platforms, walkways, and vertical circulation areas.

Integrating Art into Intermodal Passenger Facilities

The introduction of documented artworks into transportation environments in the United States dates to the late 1800s, with a tradition of government programs funding art in public facilities that began in the mid-1930s (Yamamoto 2018). The U.S. DOT has been funding and supporting artworks in transportation projects since 1977, including in public transit. In 2011, APTA published a recommended practice, Why Design Matters for Transit (APTA 2011), and updated it in 2013. That same year, APTA also published Best Practices for Integrating Art into Capital Projects, which addresses the importance of art program development at the earliest stages of a capital project’s development. The report also notes that art must be maintained and that ongoing programs should introduce the public to art installed on the transit system (APTA 2013). Customers place a high value on the overall quality of differentiated yet deeply integrated experiences (Yamamoto 2018). The presence of art and good user-centered facility design are integral to the user experience and can also serve to engage community stakeholders in intermodal passenger facility projects.

Staffing, Training, and Contingency Planning for Connecting and Completing Trip Segments

While the sizing of spaces and circulation elements and the design of wayfinding systems are essential elements of the design process, staffing, training, and management of facility personnel are essential to supporting the complete trip. For example, travel delays are common at facilities that serve intercity travel. While individual carriers or providers are responsible for rearranging travel, sufficiently sized waiting areas and circulation spaces can mitigate crowd surges.

Training, Cross-Training, and Contingency Planning

Customer-facing employees who work at intermodal passenger facilities or for providers receive training appropriate to their assigned duties, and cross-training helps employees assume other roles when required. Cross-training is increasingly needed for working with homeless individuals, responding to severe weather events, and responding to emergencies.

In transit, cross-agency training for public transportation employees can provide important staff capacity building and can support mutual understanding. Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) includes a ride-along experience with transit police as part of its 30-day orientation for case management staff, who are partnered with transit officers to promote cross-discipline understanding (Zapata et al. 2024). This is particularly useful for working with homeless individuals or people who are in distress. As part of its ongoing efforts to change practices for interacting with unsheltered populations, the Metropolitan Atlanta Regional Transit Authority (MARTA) has invested in cross-training its outreach, customer service, and some operational staff in cultural awareness and de-escalation skills (Zapata et al. 2024).

According to NCHRP Research Report 970: Mainstreaming System Resilience Concepts into Transportation Agencies: A Guide, transportation agencies should ensure that decision-making processes and employee availability can survive major disruptions. A continuous order of operations plan (COOP) outlines the hierarchy of decision-making if key leadership is unable to make decisions (Dorney et al. 2021). The report suggests that the COOP include contingency procedures for different events based on frequency, duration, and impact.

Intermodal passenger facility owners can design and distribute emergency response procedure flip charts for events such as medical emergencies, tornadoes, power outages, chemical or bio-hazard spills, and fires.

Applying the Typology and Planning Categories for Managing Pickups and Drop-Offs

Ground access is an integral part of the complete trip for intermodal travel and for those arriving by car or bus; this means pickups and drop-offs. This section uses this important topic to demonstrate how to use the typology and planning categories for making decisions about managing pickups and drop-offs. It includes use cases and suggested guidance.

Typology Categories and Applications for Ground Access

Passenger pickups and drop-offs are integral to all large- and medium-hub airports. At intermodal ground passenger facilities, managing pickups and drop-offs is typically a higher priority at central and subregional facilities and can also be a priority at certain stations, terminals, and docks. The extent of planning required depends on the volume of intercity travel, development anchors, and site configuration.

Planning Considerations for Pickup and Drop-Off Management

Table 6 illustrates how the planning framework applies to ground access and includes steps and planning considerations.

It is not common for the facility owner to have control of the adjacent curb and street. While facilities with internal circulation roadways or those that control the curb can apply methods used at airports, when the curb space or street is separately owned, data management agreements and related partnership agreements help to improve coordination and clarify responsibilities. In addition, on-site supervision may be necessary to manage operations, protect vulnerable users, and ensure adjacent traffic flow. Facilities that accommodate pickup/drop-off activities on land they control (either on streets they control or off-street) may also need to devote staff resources to managing surges in demand.

Table 6. Planning categories and considerations for pickup and drop-off management.

Establishing a Curb Access Hierarchy at MBTA Stations

As part of its station access planning efforts with MassDOT, the MBTA established modal hierarchies for its rapid transit and commuter rail stations. Table 7 shows a summary of prioritizing curb access by mode.

Management of Curb Spaces and Other Rights-of-Way with Advanced Technology

Intermodal passenger facility owners and the government agencies that manage the public rights-of-way that serve them are increasingly relying on connected vehicle (CV) technology and other systems to exchange information, whether between systems or between people. NCHRP Web Only Document 340: Dynamic Curbside Management: Keeping Pace with New and Emerging Mobility and Technology in the Public Right-of-Way (Mitman et al. 2022) offers a framework for planning and managing the curb with a focus on using data and systems for improving performance and efficiency. The growth in AVs and CVs and associated advancements in technology and CV communications systems offer potential benefits to improving efficiency and system performance.

The ITE Curbside Management Practitioners Guide (Institute of Transportation Engineers 2019) includes suggestions for curb space allocation policy and implementation and presents a framework and toolbox for analyzing and optimizing curb space. This guide includes planning and implementation considerations, policy development, prioritization, available tools and treatments, and evaluation metrics

The International Transport Forum Report, The Shared-Use City: Managing the Curb (International Transport Forum 2018) discusses the street design and pricing implications of a large-scale introduction of ridehailing/TNCs and other innovative mobility options in urban settings. It looks at the potential for a shift away from a model of the use of curb space focused on street parking to one that makes more flexible use of curb space for pickup and drop-off zones for passengers and freight. The study presents the results of quantitative modeling of alternative curb-use scenarios and discusses their relative efficiency, how flexible curb space contributes to wider policy objectives, and implications on city revenues.

Table 7. Curb access hierarchy guidance for MBTA stations.

Source: MassDOT and MBTA (2020a)

Applicable Information and Lessons Learned from Airport Curb Management Strategies

ACRP Research Report 266: Airport Curbside and Terminal Area Roadway Operations: New Analysis and Strategies, Second Edition (InterVISTAS Consulting, Inc., forthcoming) offers information on a cohesive approach to analyzing traffic operations on airport curbside and terminal area roadways. The previous edition was published in 2010 as ACRP Report 40: Airport and Terminal Area Roadway Operations (LeighFisher 2010). ACRP Research Report 266 also covers sustainability, customer service, enforcement, TNCs, and peer-to-peer car rentals, and also considers anticipated services such as automated vehicles.

ACRP Research Report 266 uses the collective experiences of airport operators to assist others in improving the passenger pickup process, including better matching of arriving passengers with scheduled and demand-response transportation services. Airports with noteworthy remote (i.e., off the terminal frontage) ridehailing pickup operations include Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) and LaGuardia Airport (LGA). Both rely on application programming interface (API) data to monitor and collect information on arriving and departing TNC trips. Some innovative curb management strategies developed at airports can be applied to other ground transportation facilities in the following ways:

• Enforcement: Use both sworn and civilian officers for traffic management.
• Signage: Provide clear wayfinding signage for customers entering and exiting the facility and for all vehicle operators (bus operators, taxi or TNC drivers, private vehicle drivers).
• Surge management: Accommodate customer surges from the arrival of a ferry or intercity train by integrating schedules, tracking real-time arrivals, and adequately staffing periods of peak demand.
• Transit promotion: Prioritize curb access to encourage higher-occupancy shared transportation modes by reserving zones using design features and active curb management strategies.
• Trip planning: Work to integrate information on available landside modes (transit, bikeshare, ridehailing, private shuttles) with trip planning applications and on intermodal passenger facility websites.

Privately Owned Vehicles

Whether for pickup or drop-off or for parking, the use of privately owned vehicles is an essential and often dominant travel mode. While many well-designed parking strategies are available, managing private drivers arriving to pick up and drop off passengers is far more challenging, often necessitating operations staff to manage the flow of vehicles (as frequently seen at airports).