The TPB held its second meeting of the year on February 18. Key agenda items included: roadway safety, funding approval for the FY 2027-2028 Virginia Transportation Alternatives Program projects and briefings on the draft FY 2027 Unified Planning Work Program (UPWP) and the draft FY 2027 Commuter Connections Work Program (CCWP).

Featured Highlight: Regional Roadway Safety Findings 

Janie Nham, TPB Transportation Planner, and Nicole Waldheim, Fehr & Peers Principal, presented the findings of the TPB’s Regional Roadway Safety Study, an inventory of the safety strategies of TPB member jurisdictions, and also a white paper with current research on the effectiveness of automated traffic enforcement. This research stems from the recommendations of the 2024 Regional Safety Study Summit and a request to identify the region’s progress in addressing traffic-related incidents, fatalities, and injuries. A new TPB News highlight takes a closer look at the study, local safety strategies, and the findings of the automated enforcement research. 

Approval of FY 2027 and FY 2028 Virginia Transportation Alternatives Program projects

The board voted on February 18 to approve $12.5 million in federal Transportation Alternatives Set-Aside (TA Set-Aside) Program funding for seven small-scale projects in Virginia that will support safe walking, transit access, and ADA accessibility. Improvements include sidewalk extensions, crosswalks, new curb ramps, and updated bus stops. Read​ the News Highlight. 

FY 2027 Draft TPB Work Program and FY 2027 Draft Commuter Connections Work Program

Lyn Erickson, TPB Plan Development and Coordination Program Director, and Daniel Sheehan, TPB Transportation Operations Programs Director, briefed the board on the upcoming work programs for the TPB and Commuter Connections. The TPB board will take action on approving the work programs at their March 18 meeting.

FY 2027 UPWP Highlights

• The MPO plans on a budget of $28.9 million for FY 2027. This total includes new funds, unexpended, and carryover from FY 2026. A portion of funds represent $601,973 for Continuous Airport System Planning and State Planning & Research (DC).

• Key FY 2027 work activities include: Performance based planning and programming activities, continued safety research, DMVMoves implementation, Freight and Bicycle & Pedestrian Plan updates, TPB Participation Plan update, resilience scenario planning, a new Gen3 travel model, Vehicle Identification Number (VIN) data collection, and Regional Travel Survey

FY 2027 Commuter Connections Highlights

• Commuter Connections’ total FY 2027 draft budget is just over $8.38 million for commuter program operations, marketing, monitoring and evaluation, and employer outreach.

• In FY 2027, 37 percent of Regional TDM Marketing funding will be reallocated to Employer Outreach and Operations.

• Commuter Connections is experiencing a post-pandemic surge in program growth with the CommuterConnections.org website visits alone increasing by 241 percent from 2020.  

• Key FY 2027 program activities include: Continuation of core commuter programs such as free ridematching, Guaranteed Ride Home and regional events such as Bike to Work Day and the goDMV Commuter Competition. Also included are regional marketing campaigns and employer outreach.

• FY 2027 focus areas include: Doubling the capacity of ‘Pool Rewards Vanpool Program, implementing findings from the Guaranteed Ride Home Peer Program Study, conducting a Retention Rate Study, and conducting the Triennial Comprehensive Program Analysis (TDM Analysis).

More information on the UPWP is available in Item 8 of the February 18 agenda. Commuter Connections program details are available in Item 9.

Director’s Report and Committee Updates

TPB Staff Director Kanti Srikanth reported on Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) amendments for DC, MD, and VA approved by the TPB Steering Committee in February. This month, the TPB prepared letters of support for the following Maryland and Virginia transportation projects using federal Better Utilizing Investments to Leverage Development (BUILD) funding.

BUILD projects

Maryland

• Maryland’s Truck Parking and Driver Safety Plan (includes improvements on I-95 in Prince George’s County and on I-70 in Frederick County)  
• New Lakeforest Transit Center in Gaithersburg

Prince William County, Virginia

• Old Bridge Road and Gordon Boulevard
• Prince William Parkway and Clover Hill interchange

COG Data Center series

COG is hosting a series of forums on Data Centers in the DMV to help local governments work with data centers and AI sectors. Meeting summaries and presentations are available on the event pages: February 25 (Energy), March 2 (Water), and later this spring TBA (Land Use). 

DMVMoves endorsements

The DMVMoves initiative is gaining the support of TPB member jurisdictions. To date, the following localities and agencies have endorsed the regional effort.

Maryland: Montgomery County, Prince George’s County, City of College Park, City of Greenbelt, City of Rockville, and the City of Takoma Park

Virginia: Arlington County, Fairfax County, Loudoun County, City of Alexandria, City of Fairfax, City of Falls Church, and City of Manassas

Agencies: Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments, Northern Virginia Transportation Authority, Northern Virginia Transportation Commission, and Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority.

American Legion Memorial Bridge RFI

Finally, the Director’s Report included a memo summarizing comments and letters submitted to the December 11, 2025, Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) Request for Information on Expecting Delivery of the American Legion Bridge. The RFI received 123 comments including remarks from TPB member jurisdictions and partner organizations. For details, see Item 5 on the February 18 meeting page. 

Stay Connected

Agenda items, presentations, the Director’s Report, and the recorded livestream are available on the February 18 meeting page. The TPB board next meets on March 18 at 12:00 P.M.

Look for future announcements in TPB News and read highlights in the COG Newsroom. Subscribe to COG’s Regional Roundup for daily briefs on transportation in the DMV. 

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