Transportation 2035 - State of Rhode Island: Division of Planning

December 2012COMMUTER RAIL LOTSThe Massachusetts Bay Area Transportation Authority (MBTA) conducts vehicle counts at their South Attleboroand Attleboro stations for the commuter rail lots that utilize the rail service to Boston. The latest count for dailyvehicles was completed on June 22, 2010.StationVehicle CountSouth Attleboro 746Attleboro 698It is important to note that a majority of the vehicles parked at the South Attleboro commuter rail lot have RhodeIsland registration plates. The MBTA did not account for vehicle registration plate state origin in their June 2010survey. However in previous surveys, upwards of 90 percent of the vehicles parked at the South Attleborocommuter rail station contain Rhode Island registrations.In an agreement with the MBTA, Rhode Island extended MBTA commuter rail service to/from Boston south ofProvidence to T.F. Green Airport in 2010. The service was further expanded south in 2012 to the WickfordJunction Station in North Kingstown. The daily vehicles in Rhode Island’s commuter rail parking garages forpassengers most likely utilizing the MBTA service consist of the following:Station Vehicle Count TimeProvidence Train Station 306 September 14, 2012 at 11:00 a.m.Warwick Interlink 80 Daily Average for August 2012Wickford Junction 70 Daily Average for July 2, 2012 to July 20, 2012DEFINING CAUSES OF CONGESTIONRECURRING CONGESTIONRecurring congestion is fairly predictable and occurs primarily in the normal morning and late afternoon peakperiods when the traffic volumes on the roads approach or exceed the design capacity of the highway. This ismostly associated with commutation to work; however, schools also generate many trips and commuting traffic isnoticeably less when schools are not in session. Afternoon peak hour congestion is usually greater than morningpeak hour because of the additional volume of non-work trips (medical, social, retail, etc.) Bus routes may alsosuffer from recurring congestion during peak hours. Another type of recurring congestion is seasonal tourist oftraffic. Rhode Island has a robust tourist economy, and summer weekend traffic in Newport and near the beachesin South County can be very challenging.Recurring congestion is monitored on Rhode Island interstate highways principally through the TrafficManagement Center (TMC) and Traffic.com. An extensive Intelligent Transportation System (ITS) detectscongestion and broadcasts traffic alerts to motorists using various means of communication.NON-RECURRING CONGESTIONThis type of congestion is event related – sometimes anticipated, sometimes not, but which is estimated by FHWAto be responsible for nearly half of traveler delays. Examples of event traffic that are anticipated includeconstruction work zones, special events (conventions, festivals, etc), and some weather events (hurricanes, snow,and heavy rains). Unanticipated events may include crashes and certain types of weather (summerthunderstorms).Transportation 2035 (2012 Update)State Guide Plan Element 611Rhode Island Statewide Planning ProgramA-6