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Park South Parking and Transportation Demand Management study report

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    Park South Neighborhood

    PTDM Peer Review

    FINAL REPORT

    June 2014

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    Table of Contents

    Page

    Background ................................................................................................................................ 1

    Key Findings .............................................................................................................................. 1Todays Parking System ........................................................................................................................... 2Todays Transportation Demand Management (TDM) Measures..................................................... 4

    Key Recommendations .............................................................................................................. 5Parking Recommendations ....................................................................................................................... 5Transportation Demand Management (TDM) Recommendations ..................................................... 7Site and Garage Design Recommendations ........................................................................................ 9

    Appendix A Methodological Approach ............................................................................... 1Parking Demand ........................................................................................................................................ 1Transportation Demand Management (TDM) ....................................................................................... 1

    Appendix B Existing Parking and TDM ............................................................................... 1Todays Parking System ........................................................................................................................... 1Todays TDM Measures .......................................................................................................................... 10

    Appendix C Parking Analysis ............................................................................................. 1Off-Street Parking Management ........................................................................................................... 1On-Street Parking Management ............................................................................................................ 9

    Appendix D TDM Analysis .................................................................................................. 1Unbundling of Parking and Parking Cash-Out Programs.................................................................. 3Universal Access Passes ............................................................................................................................ 4Ridesharing ................................................................................................................................................. 5Guaranteed Ride Home ........................................................................................................................... 5Car Sharing ................................................................................................................................................. 6On-Site Bicycle Accommodation ............................................................................................................. 7Transit Enhancements ................................................................................................................................. 7Monitoring and Evaluation ....................................................................................................................... 8

    Appendix E Site Recommendations .................................................................................... 1Site Design .................................................................................................................................................. 1Garage Design .......................................................................................................................................... 4

    Appendix F Peer Best Practices ........................................................................................... 1Yale-New Haven Hospital, New Haven, CT ......................................................................................... 2Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN ..................................................................................................................... 3Maine Medical Center, Portland, ME .................................................................................................... 5University of Rochester Medical Center, Rochester, NY ..................................................................... 6Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus, Buffalo, NY .................................................................................. 7Seattle Childrens Hospital, Seattle, WA ............................................................................................ 10University of Maryland-Baltimore, Baltimore, MD ............................................................................ 12

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    BACKGROUNDThe City of Albany contracted Nelson\Nygaard to provide an evaluation and analysis of the parking impacts and

    transportation demand management (TDM) opportunities associated with the proposed Albany Medical Center

    (AMC)/Tri-City development proposal.

    The team took a two-pronged approach: 1) examine the proposed development site in isolation; and 2) consider

    the site in the context of the Park South neighborhood and infrastructure that exists nearby. As observed

    repeatedly around the county, in mixed-use, urban environments, development projects do not exist in isolation:

    they are impacted by their surrounding land uses, transportation systems, and other factors.

    In support of this, the sites locationwithin the City's Park South Urban Renewal Plan (PSURP) will benefit from

    that plans neighborhood-wide goals. Plan objectives include the creation of residential housing, an increase in the

    sense of community and place, the elimination of conditions which are detrimental to health and s afety, the

    reduction of the neighborhoods isolation by creating safe and public linkages, and more.

    The City of Albany is trying to think holistically about new development and

    infrastructure opportunities in Park South as such, this review seeks to understand

    the proposed development as part of a greater neighborhood.

    KEY FINDINGSNelson\Nygaard reviewed the proposed plans dated January 27, 2014 and site plan from June 2, 2014,

    information provided by the City, CDTA, and the Albany Medical Center, and conducted field observations and

    counts in April and May 2014. The main findings are:

    Proposed Site

    The proposed parking ratios for the development site exceed national parking industry standards1. TheInstitute of Transportation Engineers (ITE)s standards are considered very conservative because theydo not

    account for development in mixed-use locations that experience lower parking demand, higher Internal

    Capture2,and natural shared parking3 effects.

    The proposed parking ratios for the development site also exceed the minimums proposed in the PSURP,resulting in 200 extra proposed spaces.

    Assuming conventional co-mingling of users within the proposed garage4, the staggered peak demand hoursof different uses (especially residential and medical office) would be for only 657 spaces. With a typical 10%

    search margin or reserve capacityof 66 spaces, the on-site supply could be only 800 spaces. With an

    improved TDM program and site amenities, that supply could reduce to only 640 spaces.

    Neighborhood Context

    Within a five-minute walk of the site, there are over 6,000 parking spaces (see Appendix B for more details) ,and at least 200 on-street and 600 off-street spaces remain available at the point of highest parking demand

    (11am on a weekday).

    1The most thoroughly research and accepted national standards are those promulgated by the Institute of Transportation Engineers in itsParking General Manual.

    2Internal capture is the rate at which an individual parker might also walk to another use on the same trip, i.e. visiting the coffee shop afterparking and before starting work, which requires only one parking space instead of two a 50% internal capture rate.3Absent any walking or internal capture, different uses have their peak demand at different times of day. When parking is sharedsuchas with street parking or large garagesthe peaks of different users stagger, so that the maximum accumulation of cars is lower than thesum of their individual peaks.

    4Except valet parking, which will have its own field and entrance into the garage.

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    The surrounding land uses are already utilizing fewer spaces than expected due to Internal Capture (observedas 28%). ITE suggests that there should be about 7,500 spaces for the area; at peak, about 6,000 are used

    (and nearly 7,700 are provided).

    Existing measures to reduce parking demand have been minimally used to date. Additional measures (asoutlined in Appendix D) and more coordinating advertizing might help reduce demand further, as has been

    documented in numerous case studies of similar medical centers around the United States (see Appendix F).

    TODAYS PARKING SYSTEMIn order to accurately estimate rates of Internal Capture and use of alternative

    modes for those who come to the Park South neighborhood, a five-minute walk

    radius6of the site was drawn, in which there are 7,686 spaces7.A majority of

    the on-street parking is unregulated; several streets are time-limited during the

    day on weekdays only; and there are meters along New Scotland Avenue near

    the Albany Medical Center. The majority of the off-street parking in the study area is devoted to either the Albany

    Medical Center or the Veterans Affairs Hospital.

    6A five-minute walk radius is a recognized method to understand a site context and immediate surroundings, representing a reasonablewalking distance (1/4 mile).

    7This includes AMCs remote lots in their South Campus, from which many main campus employees are shuttled daily. Including these facilitiesensures a complete picture of parking activity for the hospital. To be conservative, we assumed all employees parking there are shuttled tothe hospital when in fact many walk to South Campus buildings. As a result, hospital parking demand is somewhat overestimated.

    Parking

    Location

    Number

    of Spaces

    Percent

    of Total

    On-Street 1,175 15%

    Off-Street 6,511 85%

    Total 7,686 100%

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    Parking utilization counts indicate that:

    11:00 a.m. is much busier than 4:00 p.m. overall, particularly at the VA and AMC facilities AMC facilities closest to the hospital have the most availability The AMC remote lots have some capacity at all times On-street parking utilization is higher at 11:00 a.m. but remains busy at the northeastern edge of the study

    area after the hospital demand decreases; however, there is overall availability on-street

    Despite the Thursday morning No Parking restriction, many parkers still use those on-street segments Valet lots are underutilized

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    TODAYS TRANSPORTATION DEMAND MANAGEMENT (TDM) MEASURES

    Overall, there are some TDM measures in place in the Park South neighborhood:

    iPool2, managed by CDTC, offers a free carpool ridematching service.It includes Park and Ride, a Guaranteed Ride Home program, and

    vanpools of 5-15 people. To date, AMC has about 200 employees thathave registered on iPool2, and AMC is seeking more participants.

    AMC provides a shuttlethat serves its remote lots. Annual shuttleridership in 2013 was about 375,000 passengers.

    Outdoorbicycle racksare provided at AMC in a few locations andthere are secure indoor bike rooms for employees.

    The Capital District Transit Authority(CDTA) operates five bus routes that serve the Albany MedicalCenter/Park South area. Today, only two-percent of AMC employees ride the bus, though several hundred

    employees live within a short walk of a single-seat ride to the hospital suggesting additional TDM incentives

    can boost ridership. The AMC/Tri-City development will have a Universal Access Pass agreement providing

    reduced-cost transit options to tenants.

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    KEY RECOMMENDATIONS

    PARKING RECOMMENDATIONS

    The development provides more dedicated on-site parking than national guidelines

    would suggest are needed, and national guidelines estimate parking ratios based on

    single-use, suburban-type developments. Incorporating conservative reductions for

    Internal Capture and TDM would produce a greater gap. If future demand indeed is

    lower than the proposed supply, there is a great opportunity to accommodate the

    parking for other future uses at this site. Parking use should be monitored and

    flexibility to share spare supply ensured in the future.

    The developer should consider operational flexibility for their proposed supply, such as:

    Ensuring future nearby uses can utilize the garage, as anywhere from 100 to 250 spaces may be vacant at fulloccupancy, representing a great opportunity to add new development nearby without new parking

    Not restrict spaces by user group to manage the parking supply efficientlyDiscussion

    The table below shows parking ratios proposed by the developer (Site Parking Ratio), industry guidelines (ITE

    Parking Ratio), and the neighborhood plan (PSURP Parking Ratio).

    Use Size Site Parking Ratio ITE Parking Ratio PSURP Parking Ratio

    Mid to Low Rise Apartment 268 units 1.00 per unit 1.20 per unit 0.75 per unit

    Medical Office 135,000 SF 3.89 per ksf 3.20 per ksf 3.00 per ksf

    Retail 27,000 SF 2.00 per ksf 2.55 per ksf 2.00 ksf

    Valet Parking* 73 spacesTotal On-Site Parking 920 spaces 847 + 73 valet 822 + 73 valet 660 + 73 valet

    *From document titled Developer Parking Calculations2, December 20, 2013

    Parking Demand by Time of Day

    Using a peak period parking ratio per use essentially locks up that supply for the land use(s) throughout the

    course of an entire day. Instead, the team applied the methodology contained in Shared Parking by the Urban

    Land Institute (ULI), which accounts for the staggered peaks of actual time-of-day demand by use to show that

    if the developer managed parking in a shared environment where the parking supply would be open to all users

    of the site, regardless of parking purpose (medical, residential, retail) the estimated parking demand would be

    substantially lower than what is being provided. Using this model, peak demand is 657 parking spaces (plus valet),

    rather than the AMC/Tri-City estimate of 847 (plus valet), resulting in a needed on-site supply of about 800spaces about 120 less than proposed. This assumes no internal capture8.

    8Note that the observed Internal Capture rate for the five-minute walk study area only is 28%, which was calculated by comparingobserved demand to modeled demand. The Internal Capture rate for the five-minute walk boundary plus AMCs remote parking is 10%.This lower Internal Capture rate was used to conservatively calibrate the parking demand model, resulting in higher demand projections thanwould be found with the more locally-observed rate.

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    Parking Demand by Time of Day Using AMC/Tri-City Parking Ratios (No Internal Capture)

    Parking Demand by Time of Day plus Internal Capture and TDM

    Mixed-use, urban environments offer the opportunity to patronize multiple destinations with just one parking

    space. If the development has a TDM program (as recommended below), the parking demand would be about 515

    parking spaces (plus valet), which would translate to a supply of about 640 spaces about 280 less than

    proposed. This assumes a 20% internal capture rateand a 15% TDM program reduction.

    Parking Demand by Time of Day Using AMC/Tri-City Parking Ratios Plus 20% Internal Capture and 15% TDM

    847 spaces total

    762 spaces (10% reserve)

    105 spaces

    847 s aces total

    762 spaces (10% reserve)

    247 spaces

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    Parking and TDM Program Elements and Reductions

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    SITE AND GARAGE DESIGN RECOMMENDATIONS

    With minimal enhancements, the sitesdesign can be enhanced further to

    reflect urban conditions with improved pedestrian access and safetywhile minimizing the impact of the parking facilities.

    Key Site Design Recommendations:

    The sitesdesign could be further enhanced to reflect urban conditions:

    Some streetwall gaps are excessive and attempts should be made to minimize them to amaximum of 50 feet if possible

    Proposed curb cuts appear wide and should be no more than 20-feet wide for a two-way cut Sidewalks should be extended across driveways for a level pedestrian/ wheelchair crossing Curb extensions should be added at all intersection and mid-block on Dana The long block dimension is twice the ideal walk distance and opportunities to create mid-block connectivity should be explored A wider sidewalk should be built on Myrtle to off-set the lack of sidewalk on its south side Consider adding another floor of wrapped housing to screen the taller protruding garageKey Garage Design Recommendations:

    There are several ways to improve the current design of the garage:

    The single-loaded parking bay is inefficient, driving up the per-space cost of the garage Garage deck/ramp slopes should be verified to ensure they are shallow enough for safe walking Ensure that entry gates are far enough within the garage to avoid queues across the sidewalk Exiting drivers can have clear sightlines to crossing pedestrians with appropriate garage

    openings or setback

    Natural garage ventilation should be considered to substantially reduce cost if there issufficient gap between the garage and residential units

    Discussion

    Many elements of the built environment impact individualsdesires to walk between uses or

    consider commuting by alternatives to the automobile. Safety, security, directness, and comfort of

    sidewalks, crosswalks, intersections, bike facilities, and other non-auto facilities directly impact

    parking demand by enhancing or degrading opportunities for Internal Capture and mode shift.

    Certain treatments should be considered at the development site to further enhance walking and

    biking accommodation cost-effectively.

    The map on the next page summarizes the proposed site design recommendations. All

    improvements must be ADA compliant, particularly curb ramps and bus shelters.

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    Site Design Recommendations

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    Appendix A Methodological ApproachThe team took a two-pronged approach with its parking and TDM analysis: the first was

    examining the proposed development site; the second was examining the proposed site plus all

    land uses and infrastructure that exists within a five minute walk from the site boundary. In

    mixed-use, urban environments, development projects do not exist in isolation: they are impacted

    by the surrounding land uses, transportation systems, and other factors.

    PARKING DEMAND

    Park Souths walkable environment inherently allows for a shared parking environment,

    regardless of privately regulated facilities. Visitors can park once and visit multiple destinations;

    employees can park once for the day and walk to run errands; and residents can eat, shop, and

    work locally without using their car. Each land use does not need its own dedicated supply of

    parking, yet that is exactly what typical zoning codes indicate is needed. In addition, throughout

    the day, different uses have different peak demands: for example, a medical office may have a

    high demand until 5pm, and a restaurant may have a high demand only after 5pm.

    The medical area today already shares parking; for example, a student may park once and then

    walk to a rotation at the hospital, or a guest at the Hilton Hotel may park once at the hotel garage

    and then walk to the hospital. Whether formal or informal, shared parking opportunities use

    available parking resources more efficiently and can allow for additional development.

    To model the proposed development in the context of the Park South neighborhood,

    Nelson\Nygaard used an adapted shared parking model using inputs from the Urban Land

    Institute's (ULI) Shared Parking Manual (2nd Edition, 2005) and ITE's Parking Generation (4th

    Edition, 2010). In addition to calculating demand by time of day by specific uses, the Park South

    model tailored the shared parking model to account for internal capture, meaning that there are

    trips in the neighborhood that are made by patrons who, having already parked, travel between

    separate uses by foot and only use one parking space. The shared parking model also factored in

    TDM reductions, based on a recommended set of strategies outlined below.

    TRANSPORTATION DEMAND MANAGEMENT (TDM)

    Transportation demand management (TDM) measures are many and vary in complexity and cost,

    but all work collectively to change how, when, where, and why people travel. All TDM measures

    are designed to promote the use of alternative modescycling, walking, transit, and carpooling

    by giving employees, residents, and visitors incentives to reduce reliance on the single-occupant

    vehicle. TDM approaches can be an important, cost-effective solution to overall transportation

    challenges, both reducing vehicular impact and parking demand, while improving accessibility

    and sustainability of a development. The TDM approach includes a variety of strategies that work

    together to achieve a more sustainable system by making the most of the existing infrastructure.

    Nelson\Nygaard identified a series of demand management scenarios that would demonstrate the

    full range of potential for reducing the required amounts of parking associated with the AMC/Tri-

    City development program. Many of these TDM strategies are universal approaches and can be

    applied with specific program refinements. In addition, these programs are even more cost-

    effective and impactful when integrated into a larger district-wide TDM plan and program, such

    as the medical district and/or the Park South neighborhood.

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    Appendix B Existing Parking and TDMThis section provides data and analysis to understand the existing transportation and parking

    conditions in Albany Park South at the proposed development site.

    TODAYS PARKING SYSTEM

    The existing parking conditions data summarized in this section were collected in early May 2014.

    This includes:

    Parking InventoryA review of all parking spaces, public and private, by location andregulation.

    Parking Utilization Observed use of existing parking through the course of a typicalweekday. Includes utilization profiles of "core" areas, general and restricted access lots, and

    publicly and privately owned lots.

    Study AreaThis project is focused on the proposed development of two blocks bounded by New Scotland

    Avenue, Robin Street, Dana Avenue, and Myrtle Avenue. The team analyzed this site in context of

    its surroundingsa five-minute walk radius of the siteshown inFigure 1below.

    Figure 1 Study Area

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    Parking Inventory and Regulations

    A complete understanding of parking supply and regulations are the necessary base components

    to interpreting parking patterns and behaviors in the study area. The inventory includes all

    parking within the defined study area, excluding small private driveways. This inventory was

    compiled and used to create a complete parking database of all parking facilities in the study area.

    The database was geo-coded to spatially display the existing parking facilities (seeFigure 3),

    which remained as the base information that was used throughout the analysis.

    Within the five-minute walk radius, there are 6,248 parking spaces.However, because the Albany

    Medical Center and the VA Hospital are located within the five-minute walk radius, the team

    analyzed all parking spaces affiliated with the main Albany Medical Center and VA Hospital12. For

    the Medical Center, this included remote shuttle lots but excluded lots affiliated with separate

    buildings. This expanded the five-minute walk radius inventory to a total of 7,686 spaces,

    referred to in this analysis as the Study Area parking supply13.

    Figure 2 Parking Inventory OverviewStudy Area

    Parking LocationNumber of

    SpacesPercent of

    Total

    On-Street 1,175 15%

    Off-Street 6,511 85%

    Total 7,686

    12The inclusion of the VA parkingwhere employees have few off-site destinations that might capture trips internallyresults in a more conservative estimate for internal capture at the development site.

    13AMC parking supply includes a total of 5,287 spaces derived from field data for AMC and affiliated facilities:

    Eden Park Lot (E3): 53; Notre Dame Lot (E1): 175; Princeton Lot (E2): 425; 60 NS Garage (G1): 1,300; 40 NS Garage(G2): 1,550; Alzheimers Center (S5): 33; CDPC Garage (G3): 900; CMS Garage (G4): 385; 16 NS Lot (S2): 50;Center Building Lot (S8): 80; Myrtle Valet Lot (S7): 54; AMC Additional Valet (Myrtle Street at New Scotland Street):64; Physicians Pavilion (S1): 218

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    On-Street Parking

    Figure 3 includes all on-street regulations in the study area. A majority of the on-street parking is

    unregulated, particularly to the northwest. Although these streets are unregulated during the day,

    some have parking restrictions on Thursday mornings. A few on-street segments have overnight

    parking restrictions.

    To the southeast, on-street parking is time-limited during the day on weekdays only. Several of

    these spaces have parking restrictions one day per week in the morning (typically a Wednesday or

    a Thursday).

    Outside of the residential neighborhoods, there are meters along New Scotland Avenue near the

    Albany Medical Center. Metered parking consists of 2-hour, 10-hour, and 20-minute meters with

    varying rates. For an eight-hour stay, a motorist might pay anywhere from $6.00 to $10.00.

    Off-Street Parking

    The majority of the off-street parking in the study area is devoted to either the Albany Medical

    Center or the Veterans Affairs Hospital. Albany Medical Center provides parking for its employeesat multiple lots and garages, including several remote shuttle lots to the south. There are also

    multiple valet lots throughout the study area that the AMC uses for vehicle storage. The VA

    Hospital has parking adjacent to the building in two large lots.

    AMC permit parking rates (shown in terms of approximate daily parking cost) are shown in

    Figure 4;rates vary based on location from $0.48 per day to $2.38 per day.

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    Figure 3 Parking Inventory

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    Figure 4 Off-Street Parking Permit Rates (approximate Daily User Fee)

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    Parking Utilization

    Parking utilization counts provide a snapshot of typical parking use for a typical day in an area. To

    gather this data, the team counted parked cars in each on-street segment, lot, and garage at pre-

    determined time intervals. Land usage, regulation, price, and signage can drastically influencehow even adjoining parking assets are utilized. By compiling parking utilization spatially, one can

    begin to clearly identify patterns of high or low usage, the impact of regulations, and assess how

    much of the parking supply is actually utilized throughout a typical day.

    The consultant team conducted parking utilization counts on a Thursday14in early May. Data

    collectors captured weekday parking demand for the traditional daytime peak at 11:00 a.m. and

    after the shift change at 4:00 p.m.

    The analysis on the following pages show the parking utilization profiles for the two time points in

    the study area. They are displayed in a variety of sub-sets: the entire study area, particular blocks

    and lots, and core areas of demand. The red lines indicate functional capacity of parking15, i.e. a

    vacancy of 15-percent on-streetabout 1 out of 8 on-street spaces is availableand ninety-

    percent for off-street lotsa recognized national standard of when a parking facility isfunctionally full.

    Key Findings

    11:00 a.m. is much busier than 4:00 p.m. overall, particularly at the VA and AMC facilities The AMC remote lots have capacity at all times On-street parking utilization is higher at 11:00 a.m. but remains busy at the northeastern

    edge of the study area after the hospital demand decreases. However, there is overall capacity

    on-street

    Despite the Thursday morning No Parking restriction, many parkers still use those on-streetsegments

    14According to Visitor garage counts from 3/31/14 - 4/11/14 in 40 and 60 New Scotland, Thursdays represent atypical weekday for parking volume (Wednesdays are the highest visitor volumes and are 3.1% more busy than aThursday).

    15Best national parking management practice suggests that parking is functionally full at 85% on-street (about one ofevery seven spaces is available) and 90% off-street.

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    Figure 5 Parking Utilization - 11:00 a.m. Weekday

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    Figure 6 Parking Utilization4:00 p.m. Weekday

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    As shown inFigure 7,parking utilization is much higher at 11:00 a.m. than later in the day.

    However, there is still significant capacity overall. Even assuming that parking restrictions took

    500 spaces offline, there are still at least 1,200 available parking spaces. At 4:00 p.m., many of the

    large parking facilities have substantially more availability than during the day.

    The following charts show the five-minute walk boundary only; they exclude the remote lots.

    Figure 7 Study Area Parking Utilization

    Figure 8 andFigure 9 show parking utilization by on- and off-street. While the off-street parking

    capacity is well-used (approximately 80%) at 11:00 a.m., there are at least 600 empty spaces at

    peak before reaching functional 90% capacity. While up to 500 on-street spaces were offline

    during morning restrictions, dozens of cars remained in those spaces, and there was still

    significant availability on-street.

    Figure 8 On-Street Parking Utilization Figure 9 Off-Street Parking Utilization

    The metered spaces near the hospital are underutilized at both 11:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m., as

    shown inFigure 10.

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    Figure 10 Metered Parking Utilization

    This analysis indicates that although the AMC and the VA generate high parking demand, there is

    still capacity both on- and off-street.

    TODAYS TDM MEASURES

    Overall, there are already some TDM measures in place in the Park South neighborhood. The

    following summarizes these efforts, as well as the transit routes serving the area.

    iPool2

    iPool2, managed by CDTC, offers a free carpool ridematching service for anyone who lives or

    works in the Capital Region. In addition, iPool2 offers information about free Park and Rides, a

    Guaranteed Ride Home program (eligible for up to six uses per year), and vanpools of 5-15

    people.

    AMC has about 200 employees that have registered on iPool2, but the actual participation rate is

    unknown. AMC does not offer any incentives to use a carpool (e.g. premium parking spaces,

    discounted parking permit rates, guaranteed rides home, etc.), nor is the program well-advertised

    at this stage, but the hospital is committed to getting more employees to participate.

    Other TDM

    AMC provides a shuttle that serves its

    remote lots. Annual shuttle ridership in

    2013 was about 375,000 passengers. This

    service helps reduce driving demand to

    the hospitals front door, though users are

    still driving to the remote lot locations.

    Outdoor bicycle racks are provided at

    AMC in a few locations, though the

    quantity and quality of these racks is not

    notable. Few of these racks appear to be

    covered, but indoor secure bicycle storage

    rooms exist at AMC for employees.

    20 17

    22 25

    0%

    20%

    40%

    60%

    80%

    100%

    11:00 AM 4:00 PM

    Occupie d Vacant

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    CDTA Transit Service

    According to a 2008 AMC employee survey, 2% of employees took transit to work (99 employees

    out of 6,434 respondents). Today, the Capital District Transit Authority (CDTA) operates five bus

    routes that serve the Albany Medical Center/Park South area:

    #13-New Scotland Ave operates as a trunk route, running 7 days a week and most hours of theday

    #100-Mid-City Belt and #114-Madison/Washington are neighborhood routes, which run 6-7days a week

    734-Hackett Boulevard and 763-Schenectady/Albany via Route 20 are commuter routes,running weekdays only with limited mid-day service

    The base fare for all five routes is $1.50, with no free transfers between routes.

    Route 100 has the highest annual ridership of these routes with close to 700,000 passengers

    riding in a year. It operates as an in-town circulator with service every 30 minutes. This route

    serves a number of destinations beyond Albany Medical Center, including the Palace Theatre,

    Times Union Center Arena, Lincoln Park, Sage College, the VA Medical Center, and more.

    Route 13 has the second highest annual ridership, serving around 450,000 passengers a year,

    traveling between the riverfront and just outside the western border of the city. This route runs

    every 20 minutes through the morning and evening peak hours, but changes to 30 minute

    headways between 9am and 3pm. There are many destinations that lie along this route as well,

    including the New York State Capitol, St. Peters Hospital, the main branch of the Albany Public

    Library, the VA Medical Center, Singerlands Medical, and more.

    Route 114 carries nearly 300,000 passengers a year between the Rensselaer Rail Station and

    Crossgates Mall, running approximately every 35 minutes. This route also serves the New York

    State Library, Empire Center at the EGG, Washington Park, the State University of New York at

    Albany R.A.C.C., Empire State Plaza, and more.

    Routes 734 and 763 travel the farthest distances but have the lowest annual ridership of the five

    bus routes serving the Albany Medical Center/Park South area. As commuter routes, each of these

    services only run during the morning and evening peak hours, serving passengers commuting into

    town for the day and leaving town in the evenings. These services do not operate on the weekends.

    Route 734 also serves the New York State Capitol, Ohav Shalom, and Stonehenge Apartments.

    Route 763 serves the Guilderland Public Library, Washington Park, Stuyvesant Plaza, Twenty

    Mall, and Downtown Schenectady.

    Today's route characteristics are summarized below.

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    Figure 11 CDTA Characteristics that Serve AMC

    Route Name RouteClassification1

    AMC / ParkSouth

    Riders2

    (Daily)

    Route

    Ridership(Annual) MaxLoad3 %Capacity4

    13 New Scotland Avenue Trunk 92 450,933 49 111%

    100 Mid-City Belt Neighborhood 77 683,359 67 152%

    114 Madison / Washington Neighborhood 45 295,449 46 105%

    734 Hackett / Buckingham Commuter 13 30,922 9 20%

    763 Albany / Schenectady

    via Rt 20

    Commuter 15 71,859 34 77%

    1Classifications based on level of service and ability to attract ridership.

    Trunks = 7 days/week, high frequency, early AM to late night

    Neighborhoods = 6-7 days/week, 30 minute frequency

    Commuter = Weekdays only, 3-5 trips in the morning and evening with limited mid-day service

    2Current ridership for all stops from Madison & New Scotland to New Scotland & Holland

    3Maximum load during peak periods

    4 Capacity based on 39 seats + 5 standees

    The map below shows the relationship between CDTA transit service and AMC employee home

    locations. Several hundred employees live within a short walk of a single-seat ride to the hospital,

    however an AMC reports that it sells only about 45 bus passes per month through pre-tax payroll

    deduction or discounted cash purchase. This is a decrease from 125 employees that purchased a

    pass before the most recent transit fare increase.

    CDTA also offers a Guaranteed Ride Home program (iRide). Eligible participants must have a

    monthly Swiper card. Participants can use this service up to six days per calendar year or $300

    worth of rides. Rides must originate at work or school location.

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    Figure 12 Home Locations of AMC Employees with CDTA Overlays

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    Appendix C Parking AnalysisOFF-STREET PARKING MANAGEMENT

    This section demonstrates the expected parking demand generated by 1) the proposed site and 2)

    the proposed site in relation to the five-minute walk boundary.

    The Institute of Transportation Engineers (ITE) produces a periodic report titled Parking

    Generation, which is the prevailing national standard in determining parking demand for a

    development. ITE standards are based on parking demand studies submitted to ITE by a variety

    of parties, including public agencies, developers and consulting firms. A majority of the data

    contained in ITE is from single-use, suburban developments. The most recent Parking Generation

    manual available is the 4th edition (2010) and is a comparative starting point to determine

    baseline assumptions.

    Proposed Development

    The proposed development provides more dedicated on-site parking than national guidelines

    would suggest. As noted above, the national guidelines estimate parking ratios based on single-

    use, suburban-type developments. The development also proposes more parking than the Park

    South Renewal Plan parking minimums. This comparison is shown below inFigure 13.

    Figure 13 Proposed Development Parking Provided vs. ITE Standards

    Use Size Site Parking Ratio ITE Parking Ratio PSURP Parking Ratio

    Mid to Low Rise Apartment 268 units 1.00 per unit 1.20 per unit 0.75 per unit

    Medical Office 135,000 SF 3.89 per ksf 3.20 per ksf 3.00 per ksf

    Retail 27,000 SF 2.00 per ksf 2.55 per ksf 2.00 ksf

    Valet Parking* 73 spaces

    Total On-Site Parking 920 spaces 847 + 73 valet 822 + 73 valet 660 + 73 valet

    *From document titled Developer Parking Calculations2, December 20, 2013

    Using a peak period parking ratio like any inFigure 13 essentially locks up that supply for the land

    use(s) throughout the course of an entire day. This is visualized inFigure 14.Parking provided

    using the site ratios is shown in the left chart from 6 a.m. until midnight; ITE guidelines are

    shown in the right chart.

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    Figure 14 Site Parking Requirements Compared to ITE

    Site Ratios: Total 847 (plus valet) Spaces ITE Ratios: Total 822 (plus valet) Spaces

    Using the peak ratios suggested by the AMC/Tri-City development proposal, the team applied the

    methodology contained in Shared Parking by the Urban Land Institute (ULI), which accounts

    for the staggered peaks of actual time-of-day demand by use to show that if the developer

    managed parking in a shared environment where the parking supply would be open to all users

    of the site, regardless of parking purpose (medical, residential, retail) the estimated parking

    demand would be substantially lower than what is being provided.

    Below,Figure 15 shows what happens when these uses are shared peak demand is 657 parking

    spaces (plus valet), rather than the AMC/Tri-City estimate of 847 (plus valet). Assuming that the

    site should maintain a 10% reserve capacity, the resulting supply of this means that the site is

    providing about 120 extra parking spaces when parking is shared. This assumes that

    100% of employees and visitors are driving to the site and that there is no internal capture.Inother words, this estimate assumes that a person who works in the medical office uses one

    parking space for work and then uses another parking space at the on-site retail.

    Mixed-use, urban environments offer the opportunity to patronize multiple destinations with just

    one parking space.Figure 16below shows the impact of this mixed-use effect, which adjusts the

    parking by time of day with a standard 15% internal capturerate for complimentary land uses

    (retail with medical office and retail with residential). This analysis suggests that demand would

    be only 559 parking spaces (plus valet), which translates into a supply of 680 spaces with reserve

    capacity or about 240 spaces less than proposed.

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    Figure 15 Site Parking Demand using AMC/Tri-City Parking Ratios - Shared by Time of Day (no Internal

    Capture)

    Figure 16 Site Parking Demand using AMC/Tri-City Parking Ratios - Shared by Time of Day

    plus 15% Internal Capture

    Finally, the AMC/Tri-City proposed development is already providing some accommodations for

    transportation demand management, including Universal Transit Access passes for CDTA.

    847 spaces total

    762 spaces (10% reserve)

    847 spaces total

    762 spaces (10% reserve)

    105 spaces

    203 spaces

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    Assuming that the development implements this TDM program and others as recommended

    further below, the parking demand would be lower as shown below inFigure 17.This shows a

    demand of about 515 parking spaces (plus valet) for the site. With reserve capacity, this would

    translate to a supply of about 640 spaces, which is about 280 fewer spaces than being

    proposed. This model adjusts parking by time of day with a 20% internal capturerate forcomplimentary land uses and a 15% adjustment for TDM programs.

    Figure 17 Site Parking Demand using AMC/Tri-City Parking Ratios - Shared by Time of Day plus 20%

    Internal Capture and 15% TDM

    Proposed Development within Surrounding Context: Existing

    The proposed development will not function in isolation and will be part of a larger context. The

    site will be physically connected to the Albany Medical Center via a pedestrian skybridge, and the

    site will be within a short walk of many neighborhood destinations and amenities retail, a hotel,

    medical facilities, residences, and more. Unlike traditional suburban development where it is

    faster for one to drive around the block and re-park, the Park South neighborhood's fine-grain

    connected grid of sidewalks and on-street parking pricing suggest that most park once and walk

    to multiple destinations. For this reason, the team analyzed the five-minute walk boundary

    (Figure 1)to understand today's adjacent parking environment.

    The existing land uses within a five-minute walk boundary are categorized and shown below

    (Figure 18). The table below makes some assumptions about the site: the two blocks for the

    proposed development are 100% vacant; single-family homes have their own private driveways

    and are not included in this analysis; and the remainder of the land uses are 100% occupied.

    The land use data used in this analysis are from the City's assessorsdatabase, which may not

    accurately reflect true occupancy and vacancy conditions on the ground.

    847 s aces total

    762 spaces (10% reserve)

    247 spaces

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    Figure 18 ITE Parking Demand Rates for Study Area Land Uses

    Land Use SF or UnitsITE Parking Ratio

    (spaces per SF or unit) Parking Spaces

    Apartments608 units 1.2 730

    General Retail 25,887 sq ft 2.55 66

    Medical/Dental Office 279,094 sq ft 3.2 893

    Restaurant 3,952 sq ft 5.55 22

    Hotel 126 rooms 0.64 81

    Fast Food 4,000 sq ft 8.2 33

    College/University 800 students/faculty/staff 0.22 176

    Hospital 1,568 beds 3.47 5,441

    Government Office 4,232 4.15 18

    TOTAL 7,460

    According to national parking standard calculations, the needed number of parking spaces for

    this area of Park South is about 7,500 parking spaces. The five minute walking area has 6,248

    parking spaces, but when including the remote lots associated with the AMC and VA Hospital,

    there is a total of 7,686 parking spaces. This means that within a five-minute walk, the

    neighborhood has about 1,200 fewer spaces than expected (according to national suburban

    standards), but when including the hospitals remote parking lots, the site has more parking than

    ITE ratios would estimate.

    Figure 19 Study Area Parking Supply Compared to ITE

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    Similar to the proposed development, today's environment suggests that parking is shared among

    uses16.Figure 20 shows the estimated parking demand based on today's land uses, which

    estimates total parking demand at only about 6,000 parking spaces with a 10% internal capture

    rate.

    This indicates that based on the existing land uses, the study area with remote parking hassufficient supply to satisfy demand (based on ITE parking rates, not observation). Based on ITE

    rates (not observation), parking supply in the study area (not including remote parking) is not

    enough supply to accommodate today's demand with sufficient reserve capacity. This analysis

    assumes no TDM program adjustments.

    The actual parking demand (as observed in early May 2014) was used to calibrate the shared

    parking model, and the real demand is overlaid on the model results inFigure 21.This shows that

    in the study area including remote parking, there is more than 900 spaces available at peak, and

    within the five-minute walking boundary study area only, there is also about 900 spaces available.

    This indicates that there is some availability during the peak of a typical weekday, and there is

    substantial availability in late afternoon.

    Figure 20 Study Area - Shared by Time of Day plus 10% Internal Capture

    16This doesn't necessarily mean that parking regulations permit users to park in one location to visit others, but this is theway that parkers use the system today.

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    Figure 21 Study Area - Shared by Time of Day plus 10% Internal Capture - Compared to Observed

    Demand

    Proposed Development within Surrounding Context: Future (Build)

    This section explores the impact of the proposed development within the context of the study

    area.Figure 22 shows that adding the site to the existing land uses increases the expected parking

    supply from 7,686 parking spaces to about 8,400 parking spaces17.

    Assuming that the study area plus the proposed development benefits from 10% internal

    captureplus the effect of the TDM strategies presented in this report, assuming a conservative5%

    TDM program reductionrate, the parking demand would be about 6,500 parking spaces.

    Figure 23 shows this demand by use. When compared to the study area and remote parking

    supply, this indicates that about 1,100 parking spaces would be available at peak adding

    another 200 empty parking spaces to the 900 empty spaces at peak today.

    17Note that this number includes the loss of 118 spaces associated with surface parking currently on the site. It does notinclude the additional valet parking associated with the development.

    935 spaces

    918 spaces

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    ON-STREET PARKING MANAGEMENT

    The site is currently mostly surrounded by unregulated on-street parking, with the only

    exceptions being No Parking between 9 a.m. and noon for street cleaning on Wednesdays or

    Thursdays, plus 90-minute time-limits along New Scotland Ave. Parking is allowed on both sides

    of every surrounding street plus Morris Street, with the exception of Robin Street which has

    one-sided parking and Myrtle Avenue which has no parking in only the block adjacent to the

    site.

    These street regulations are generally appropriate for the uses on and near the site today, with

    residential uses having primarily unregulated parking out front and commercial uses having time-

    limited customer parking. However, the impact of on-street parking demand from the hospital is

    evident, as Morris Street and Dana Ave. are heavily parked upon, even though most of the

    adjacent residential structures are now vacant in anticipation of the proposed redevelopment.

    This demand to park on-street by hospital users is not expected to decline, especially since these

    spaces are free as compared to on- and off-street daily rates that range from $1.19/day to

    $10/day.

    The proposed use mix will add additional retail and medical office space to the site, in addition to

    replacement residential units. Current unregulated on-street parking will likely be in high

    demand from existing hospital users, new retail patrons, new medical office users, and many of

    the new residents. While on-site off-street supply is intended for all of the new users, existing on-

    street demand from the nearby hospital which has ample off-street supply demonstrates that

    other users will be attracted to the streets as well. This is exacerbated both by the front-door

    convenience of on-street spaces versus off-street facilities, as well as the free cost to park on-street

    versus garage pricing and permitting. A number of on-street regulatory approaches are

    recommended.

    Retail patrons typically seek the most convenient front-door parking for their short-term visits.

    New Scotland Ave. is already heavily utilized, so patrons of the new retail are likely to seek

    parking on Morris and Dana, as well as within the surface lots behind the proposed retail

    buildings. Given most retail employees will seek to park in the lots first, the first 5-10 parking

    stalls on both sides of Morris and Dana should be regulated similar to New Scotland Ave. likely

    with 90 minute time-limits. Myrtle has sufficient cross-section to add one side of on-street

    parking as well.

    With the increased retail demand in the area, the City may consider extending price parking

    which now occurs further west on New Scotland to this stretch of New Scotland Ave. to

    encourage sufficient parking availability for retail customers. On-street competition for the

    remaining unregulated spaces is likely to remain high, impacting the ability for residents to

    receive visitors, so limited time-limit zones may be appropriate near building entrances. It may

    also be appropriate to consider installing 10-hour meters similar to those found elsewhere near

    the hospital on Morris, Dana and other streets, as long as a system to accommodate localresidents is included. Many communities exempt cars with approved residential stickers, while

    others strictly use an on-street permitting system without meters. Many successful jurisdictions

    also sell an acceptable number of on-street permits to area employees, with net revenues

    dedicated to streetscape improvements along the residential streets to off-set the impact of

    commuters. While this may not be possible today in Albany, it is something to possibly explore in

    the future.

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    Meanwhile, valet parking into a garage is often not easily managed, with operators tempted to

    park vehicles in spaces that are more quickly accessed typically on-street or in surface lots. The

    proposal to include valet parking within the garage should be reconsidered. The operation might

    be able to take advantage of other nearby resources, especially the Center Building Lot at Morris

    & Robin. Alternatively, on-street spaces might be used permissibly with a permit system like thatsuggested above.

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    Appendix D TDM AnalysisIn addition to shared parking and the internal capture of trips that the AMC/Tri-City

    developments mix of uses offers, opportunities for further reducing parking and travel demand

    can be achieved through using transportation demand management (TDM) strategies. A suite of

    TDM strategies focused on offsetting the need or desire to commute by driving alone can be

    developed, reducing peak-hour traffic impacts and parking need.

    Using TDM at the proposed development would not be without precedent in Albany, although it

    might make important contributions by introducing new TDM approaches to the region. A more

    comprehensive set of measures would allow the City of Albany and its partner agencies to take a

    leading role in coordinating TDM between the many employers in the Park South area to leverage

    inherent savings on parking construction and road capacity. As TDM has emerged as a

    transportation policy approach, public agency involvement has grown from simply enforcing

    transportation-based regulations to proactively supporting and promoting TDM programs as a

    way for private developers and employers to meet regulatory requirements in a cost-effective way.

    Early research into employer-based TDM programs identified several recurring reasons why TDM

    programs were implemented, including: the need to comply with legal requirements and

    regulations especially those mitigating traffic impacts; to offer employee assistance and extend

    benefits; to satisfy economic considerations such as the need to provide more parking to meet

    new employee demand from business expansion; and to facilitate significant worksite relocation

    and consolidation. In many of these early examples studied, local governments or other public

    agencies only engaged in developer or employer actions insofar as they involved their regulatory

    and oversight authorityin other words, if TDM programs allowed a new development or

    worksite consolidation to lessen traffic impact to acceptable levels or meet a state-mandated

    commute reduction law, public agencies simply confirmed that their outcomes meant compliance

    with regulations.

    With TDM programs becoming more widespread as competing needs for transportationimprovement dollars increases, local governments and other public agencies have begun to

    develop the potential for TDM through more proactive guidance and administrative assistance.

    Albany may have an opportunity to take this kind of a leading role and increase the potential for

    TDM-based travel and parking demand reduction by leveraging the much larger combined

    employment base of the overall Park South district.

    It is conventional wisdom in the transportation industry that TDM programs are more effective

    when they are composed of multiple strategic approaches and actions, giving commuters and

    residents increased confidence in a more extensive array of travel options to serve their needs and

    allow them to forgo driving alone. Likewise, TDM programs also tend to have a greater overall

    effect on regional commuting patterns when they are applied and coordinated at larger scales.

    This not only allows economies of scale to be achieved, leveraging a larger travel market tonegotiate costlier travel enhancements, such as increases to transit service or investment in

    bicycle storage, but it also increases opportunities for more inexpensive TDM approaches, such as

    ridesharing and telecommuting, that rely on a critical mass of employees or residents.

    With this and the growing trend toward public agency guidance and assistance in mind, the City

    of Albany may wish to take a proactive position in helping to coordinate demand management

    strategies between the proposed AMC/Tri-City development and the existing AMC and Albany

    Stratton VA Hospital facilities. To help illustrate the potential increases in TDM-related commute

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    UNBUNDLING OF PARKING AND PARKING CASH-OUT

    PROGRAMS

    Separating the cost of parking from building cost is a strategy used to 1) increase housing

    affordability and housing choice, and 2) reveal the true cost of parking to employers and theiremployees, allowing greater transparency in making decisions on driving or using other forms of

    transportation for commuting. With awareness of the need to pay for parking every day or month

    as opposed to receiving it for free (or as a sunk cost assumed with a lease or property ownership),

    residents and employees are more likely to travel without a car. Studies have demonstrated that

    increasing the cost of parking is the single most effective strategy to encourage households to own

    fewer cars, and rely more on walking, cycling and transit; unbundling parking from leases is a way

    of instituting a tangible cost to parking.

    Common outcomes of residential unbundling include:

    providing a financial reward to households who decide to dispense with one of their cars helping to attract that market of households who wish to live in a walkable, transit-oriented

    neighborhood where it is possible to live well with only one car (or even no car) per household

    changing parking from a required purchase to an optional amenity, thus lowering the baselinecost of housing

    Unbundling for commercial uses allows businesses to reduce costs from not having to subsidize as

    much parking, as well as typically leading to reduced employee parking demand. Strategies

    include providing an option for commercial tenants to either minimize or not include the parking

    in a commercial space lease. Parking could be leased to tenants or employees separately, with

    employers having the option of changing their supply as needed or at least when the lease is

    renewed.

    The companion approach to unbundling parking is parking cash-out, where an employer with

    control over parking supply can essentially pay employees not to use parking. Because it often

    involves a fixed supply instead of the amount of parking that would be included in a lease

    arrangement, cash-outs are usually used in employment-based parking and not residential.

    Successful cash-out programs have been popular among employees for increased freedom of

    choice and the opportunity additional income, and surveys and studies have repeatedly found that

    users appreciate the fairness of the program. In addition, employers can offset the need for

    parking spaces, especially when they expand their employee base but do not or cannot provide

    additional parking.

    Effectiveness

    Basic (Proposed AMC/Tri-City Development only): 2-5 percent

    Advanced: (Combined Medical District): 5-10 percent

    Research on parking incentive programs such as unbundling and parking cash-out typically

    involves dynamics of parking pricing, which is generally agreed to be the single most effective and

    impactful factor in changing parking demand and reducing demand for parking and single

    occupant vehicle commuting. With this in mind, unbundling and cash-out programs can vary in

    effectiveness based on typical market pricing (and especially based on this as a factor of typical

    market wages).

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    A study surveying multiple employers in Southern California with expected workforce sizes

    similar to those expected at Park South (120 to 300 employees) reported vehicle trip reduction

    rates from 5 to 24 percent, with a decrease in the average share of drive-along commuters from 76

    percent to 67 percent (California Environmental Protection Agency, 1998). The study further

    notes that average commuter parking demand at the study sites decreased by 11 percent.As the most extensive reductions were in downtown Los Angeles, a high-density urban

    environment that is the center of a major regional transit system, we have used more conservative

    reduction estimates closer to the 5 to 10 percent that the study observed among smaller

    employers in less transit-rich areas. We use a greater figure of 5 to 10 percent for a larger area

    combining the Albany Medical Center and the Albany Stratton VA Hospital, as the more extensive

    parking at these locations, combined with longer distances to some parking lots, offers a greater

    potential for employees to take advantage of cash-out programs or forgo driving and parking if it

    were not assumed as part of their lease.

    UNIVERSAL ACCESS PASSES

    Reduced price passes have been shown to increase transit ridership and provide an incentive toreduce vehicle ownership. They offer a direct incentive to employees and residents to whom they

    are offered in that they reduce the out-of-pocket cost of transit use, but establishment of these

    programs also offers a source of revenue for transit agencies that can be used to enhance transit

    service, rider amenities, or both. In recent years, increasing numbers of transit agencies have

    teamed with local governments, employers, operators of multi-family residential complexes and

    even with entire residential neighborhoods to provide transit pass programs. The ability to

    purchase in bulk typically allows deep discounts on the price of individual passes; the universal

    enrollment on the basis that not all those offered the pass will actually use them regularly means

    that transit agencies may not need to greatly increase operating costs by increasing levels of

    transit service.

    Effectiveness

    Basic (Proposed AMC/Tri-City Development only): 4-8 percent

    Advanced: (Combined Medical District): 10-15 percent

    Studies have shown that reduced transit passes result in reductions from 4 to 22 percent in the

    overall share of commute trips made by private vehicle, with an average reduction of 11 percent.

    Many of these reductions have occurred in areas with very limited transit service.

    To select a recommended range of trip reduction, we used comparable sites/employers and

    estimated effectiveness, but also assumed an increase in potential ridership due to transit service

    improvements that the Park South and potentially combined Medical District agreements with

    the Capital District Transit Authority would allow.

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    Effectiveness

    Because GRH programs tend to be used only occasionally, we have not assigned them their own

    credit for offsetting demand to drive alone. However, it is worth noting that they are instrumental

    in building commuter confidence in TDM programs.

    A recent Nelson\Nygaard study evaluating the effectiveness of a regional GRH program in

    Alameda, California found that 95% of program participants felt that the GRH program did

    encourage non-SOV mode use. Another study found that 15-25% of program enrollees would

    otherwise drive to work if the GRH program did not exist.

    CAR SHARING

    Car-sharing programs allow people to have on-demand access to a shared fleet of vehicles on an

    as-needed basis. Usage charges are assessed at an hourly and/or mileage rate, in addition to a

    refundable deposit and/or a low annual membership fee. Car-sharing is similar to conventional

    car rental programs, although it is typically controlled through membership of an organization

    and based on fee structures that emphasize short-term rentals (a number of hours) over daily orweekly rentals. Reserving and accessing vehicles typically takes more of a self-service approach

    than conventional car rental, with phone- or web-based reservations made entirely by the user

    and access to the vehicles controlled by a smartcard, fob or other device that the user keeps

    between car uses.

    Car-sharing has sometimes been referred to as the missing link in the packageof alternatives to

    the private automobile. For example, vehicles available near a persons workplace or school can

    enable them to commute to work via transit or other means, knowing that theyll have a car-share

    vehicle available during the day only if needed for work or personal trips. It has proven successful

    in reducing both household vehicle ownership and the percentage of employees who drive alone

    because of the need to have a car for errands during the workday.

    Effectiveness

    Basic (Proposed AMC/Tri-City Development only): 1-2 percent

    Advanced: (Combined Medical District): 2-4 percent

    Industry research suggests that one car-share vehicle provided can reduce demand for 10 to 25

    vehicles, although this has focused on the number of vehicles in household ownership and not a

    number of vehicles accessing an employment site (and thus needing parking). In the San

    Francisco Bay Area, recent surveys have shown that more than half of car-share users have sold at

    least one vehicle since joining the City CarShare program in San Francisco.

    As it is difficult to equate household travel and car ownership characteristics with commuting, we

    have assumed conservative levels of effectiveness for this strategy. It is likely to be most effectivein the AMC/Tri-City developments residential component, as the proximity to employment and

    retail may help to offset the need for households to own a vehicle (or at least the same number of

    vehicles in the absence of car sharing). We estimate that one car-share vehicle will offset a need

    for five owned vehicles, resulting in four parking spaces not needed for every shared vehicle

    provided (assuming development parking will need to provided a dedicated space for the shared

    vehicle).

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    Effectiveness

    In the absence of more detailed ridership data, it is not practical to determine what share of

    ridership increases could be attributed solely to the AMC/Tri-City development or the Albany

    Medical Center. However, some transit service enhancements could be oriented more closely to

    the employment-based travel needs of the area, and as such we have estimated that these options

    could provide a greater reduction in vehicular trips, based on three options detailed below.

    Option 1: Use MOU-based contributions entirely on Route 13 bus operations in theafternoon peak/hospital shift change period

    Option 2: Use MOU-based contributions to fund bus shelters in the AMC area Option 3: A combination of the two allowing additional service and some improvement to

    shelters

    Based on the combined total of $70,000 that AMC and Tri-City have agreed to in their MOUs

    with CDTA, enhancements to service at current hourly service costs (approximately $95 per

    vehicle operating hour, according to 2012 National Transit Database information) could allowapproximately 730 additional service hours in a year, or roughly two per day assuming that this

    service would be applied throughout the year, including weekends and holidays. Operational

    enhancements in Option 1 described above would allow two additional buses to operate during a

    two hour peak period, assuming Route 13 has an overall running time of sixty minutes. Option 2

    would simply add additional bus service on Route 13 beyond its current service span during the

    day but would not increase frequencies in or around the peak.

    What may work to be most feasible is a compromise between these two, providing shelters at key

    locations and offering a service increase to help offset peak-period travel demand, expressed as

    Option 3 in the list above. We have assumed that this will use enough of the MOU-based funding

    to provide one additional bus in the shift-change peak period while using the balance to fund

    shelter enhancements.

    MONITORING AND EVALUATION

    To ensure benefits of TDM programs, an ongoing monitoring program should be conducted with

    the results shared with the City. As with other elements of the TDM program, this portion of the

    plan should be implemented upon project completion.

    The monitoring program should include:

    An initial employee survey to assist in determining the need for additional PTDM programs Refinements to PTDM activities and programs to promote the measures that have the

    greatest success

    An annual mode split and parking survey

    The City and the development should develop both quantitative and qualitative measures to be

    monitored and evaluated on an annual basis.

    TDM Costs and Relationship to Parking

    The primary TDM measures proposed in this plan do not carry significant capital or

    administrative costs and are simply matters of policy in how parking is managed. These costs also

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    do not assume the cost of entering into the Universal Pass program, which has already been

    assumed in the existing MOU with CDTA.

    These costs are offered as a comparison to the cost of providing parking, estimated at $25,000

    per space in initial cost calculations associated with the development application.

    Bicycle Storage:$15,000 - $20,000, assuming $15-20 per square foot in equipping a room and

    purchasing tools and other items for repair business. Also assumed are 15 SF per bicycle for

    storage space, 30 SF per bicycle for repair/servicing space, storage capacity for 50 bikes and

    repair/servicing capacity for 5 bikes.

    Bicycle Shower and Changing Facilities: $30,000 - $60,000, depending on regional

    construction costs (although costs associated with new construction are typically lower than those

    associated with retrofits). This assumes one accessible shower facility for the new medical office

    portion of the development.

    Informational Materials Costs: $2,500 to $5,000 for printing and design services for

    informational materials promoting TDM services.

    Other promotional and administrative costs (includes Guaranteed Ride Home):

    $20,000 - $30,000 per year. These types of costs are often based on a set number of guaranteed

    rides home per employee and other administrative costs. This assumes $20 per ride-home in a

    negotiated arrangement with a taxi company, 6 rides home per employee per year, 200 employees

    in the medical office space, and an additional amount under $5,000 for administrative assistance.

    With all of the measures implemented, approximately $50,000 to $90,000 in up-front capital

    costs, with an additional cost of $20,000 to $30,000 per year in guaranteed ride home programs

    and other administrative costs. At current construction cost estimates, this is two to four parking

    spaces, with an additional amount in TDM operating costs equal to between one and two parking

    spaces per year.

    A district-wide transportation demand management program is best coordinated through a

    Transportation Management Association (TMA) and a dedicated staff person, or a Transportation

    Demand Management Coordinator.

    TMA/mobility coordinators or ambassadors have been used to great success throughout the

    United States to help administer transportation demand management programs at specific

    businesses, developments, and districts/neighborhoods. The tailored individual perspective of an

    on-site, live resource greatly improves the efficiency of getting travelers to use non-SOV modes.

    One of the greatest cost benefits of a TMA Coordinator is the ability to appoint or assign this role

    to an assisting staff member, and incorporates the details of this position within their job

    responsibilities.

    TMA Coordinators administer and actively market demand management programs. They also

    serve as a facility-wide concierge, providing personalized information on transit routes andschedules, ridesharing information, bicycle routes and facilities, and other transportation options

    available to residents, employees and customers. The Coordinator also negotiates with transit

    agencies for low cost transit passes/universal access agreements.

    Typical charges of a TMA or Mobility Coordinator include:

    Providing information about monthly transit passes Marketing, including distribution of new employee/tenant orientation materials

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    Distribution of transportation news and commuter alerts Assisting with rideshare matching Providing Guaranteed Ride Home vouchers Audit and review corporate/building transportation needs Regularly evaluate/monitor program

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    Appendix E Site RecommendationsMany elements of the built environment impact individuals desire to walk between uses or

    consider commuting by alternatives to the automobile. Safety, security, directness, and comfort ofsidewalks, crosswalks, intersections, bike facilities, and other non-auto facilities directly impact

    parking demand by enhancing or degrading opportunities for internal capture and mode shift.

    The proposed design of the AMC/Tri-City development introduces very high quality elements into

    the Park South neighborhood, along with appropriate streetscape improvements designed to

    encourage a more walkable lifestyle in the district. However, certain treatments should be

    considered to further enhance walking and biking accommodation cost-effectively.

    SITE DESIGN

    A walkable and bikable environment gives people more transportation choices and improves

    quality of life. A well-designed network of streets and pedestrian ways is key to pedestrian

    accessibility, and includes streets, alleys, paths, midblock crossings and pedestrian pass-throughs.These amenities can alleviate traffic congestion. In particular, improving the walkability and

    pedestrian orientation of mixed-use neighborhoods encourages an increase in physical activity

    and health of users.

    Promoting bicycle and pedestrian transport modes can be accomplished through simple design

    changes, some of which can be implemented at no additional cost.

    Bicycle Accommodation

    Major east-west bicyclist routes extend through and adjacent to the site: Myrtle and Morris act as

    east-west connections from Lark Street to South Main Ave and South Manning. Morris and

    Myrtle should both be striped with sharrows through the site.

    The City of Albany should expect that no less than 50-percent of the residential units will have a

    bicycle, so 135 or more long-term secure and covered bicycle parking spaces should be provided

    on-site in well-lit areas, with additional short-term racks near public entries. All racks should be

    compliant with the latest standards of the Association of Pedestrian and Bicycle Professionals.

    Outdoor Covered Bicycle Parking Indoor Covered Bicycle Parking

    Outdoor Covered Bicycle Parking Indoor Covered Bicycle Parking

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    Northern Block Treatments

    Streetwall Gaps

    The design of the northern lot is primarily residential in nature, with some local-serving retail

    included in the ground floor of the six-story buildings facing New Scotland Avenue. The building

    architecture is generally very urban and reflective of the general size and massing of downtown

    residences in Albany. However, the building placement and driveway locations interrupt this

    otherwise walking-friendly character. The surface parking behind the New Scotland-facing

    building creates a 90-foot gap in the street wall of Morris. While the surface parking is a benefit to

    the retail operations, given that many retail patrons will simply be walking from other uses or

    parking on-street, the size of this lot may be negatively impacting the potential of the site

    especially with regard to residents walking easily on Morris to their local retailers and New

    Scotland Avenue. Gaps of 50-feet or less are more appropriate in urban environments to avoid a

    sense of insecurity and/or exposure. Single-loaded or parallel parking for the first 50-60 feet of

    the parking lot would allow the residential building to expand or move closer to the New Scotlandbuilding. At the very least, well-designed screening or landscaping, plaza space, a wider sidewalk,

    or all of the above would help.

    This gap is substantially worse on Dana, where a second curb cut for residential surface parking is

    placed northwest of the retail curb cut, producing a long 160-foot or greater gap between

    buildings. Screening and landscaping cannot overcome the impact of this distance on the walking

    environment, warranting consideration of a combined curb cut for both parking fields

    potentially with an internal break if separation of resident parking is desired. Meanwhile, Dana is

    again broken by a driveway to another residential lot further northwest.

    Curb Cut Widths

    The design of the curb cuts on this block suggests a very suburban orientation with each drivewaybeing at least 22-feet wide. While a wider 20-foot two-way driveway is not uncommon for urban

    retail, urban residential driveways can easily be 16-feet wide or less while maintaining two-way

    movement. Such dimensions are intended to keep vehicles moving cautiously when crossing the

    sidewalk, while reducing the distance that a pedestrian is exposed to vehicular conflict.

    Regardless of the width, all urban driveways should have urban curb cuts whereby the driveway

    quickly slopes to sidewalk elevation off of the street edge to ensure a level crossing of the driveway

    by pedestrians and particularly wheelchairs.

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    Curb Extensions

    Additionally, while the existing curb extension into Robin Street at Morris is maintained

    helping to buffer on-street parking and shorten the crossing distance no additional curb

    extensions are shown around the remainder of this block. Curb extensions are warranted at all

    corners of all four surrounding intersections where crossings exist today. Curb extensions areparticularly valuable at the new mid-block crossing of Dana this is proposed, as pedestrian

    visibility at an uncontrolled street crossing is essential for safety.

    Block Connectivity

    Finally, connectivity through this particularly long block i


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