The TPB is working on preliminary regional Transit Safety Targets as part of the federally required Performance Based Planning and Programming. This is the first time the TPB will be setting regional targets regarding safety on transit in the region. One goal of this target setting process is that it will lead to a greater focus on and understanding of the factors that affect safety on transit.

What is Performance Based Planning and Programming?

First a little reminder about Performance Based Planning and Programing and specifically, Transit Safety Targets. As part of federal transportation regulations, the TPB as an MPO is required to establish transit safety targets for all applicable providers of public transportation in the region. The effort requires that the TPB establish new relationships to collect and report transit safety information between the TPB and the region’s transit providers.

Learn more about Performance Based Planning and Programming. 

Transit safety performance is one of the five areas of the federal performance-based planning and programming regulations enacted in the federal MAP-21 surface transportation act and expanded in the most recent transportation law, the FAST Act. Other required areas include highway safety, pavement condition, bridge condition, and highway system performance. This process helps transportation agencies monitor how safely the system is performing and allows for periodic comparisons. It also provides an opportunity for decisionmakers to consider how investments may impact performance and what can be done to improve it. The new responsibility of MPOs to set targets for performance measures across these five areas is key to the new performance-based planning and programming process and leads to increased coordination with state departments of transportation and transit agencies in transportation decision-making.

Setting regional Transit Safety Targets for the first time

For the transit safety targets, the TPB must include all transit systems in the region that receive federal (FTA) funds. These include those run by WMATA, DDOT, and local buses in suburban Maryland. Local systems in northern Virginia are not included since the federal rulemaking does not apply to them. TPB staff have worked with the transit systems to collect and compile their system targets to create the preliminary regional targets. Through October, TPB staff will continue to work with the systems as they finalize their targets, and the final set of regional targets will go to the TPB for board approval in November.

The board will be required to adopt regional transit safety targets on an annual basis going forward.

Learn more about the preliminary targets.