Regional Programs

The NJTPA’s Congestion Management Process (CMP) systematically studies the region’s complex travel patterns and searches for suitable approaches for improving the transportation system's performance. While many aspects of performance are important, the CMP concentrates on accessibility to key destinations and the movement of persons and goods. The Accessibility and Mobility Strategy Synthesis, the most recent regional CMP analysis, identifies regional and local needs and strategies to address them.

Currently, the Accessibility and Mobility Strategy Synthesis is being updated in the Accessibility and Mobility Regional Reassessment, which began in May 2024 and will conclude in mid-2025. The Regional Reassessment is refreshing much of the Strategy Synthesis need and strategy identification with new approaches and leveraging new datasets. Its findings will be incorporated into the next Long Range Transportation Plan.

The CMP is multimodal, addressing the roadway network, rail and bus transit, ridesharing, walking, bicycling, other micromobility such as bike/scooter share services, and freight transportation. It particularly seeks to realize greater system reliability, provide travel options, and avoid the need for road expansions. In doing so, it considers broader goals such as protecting the environment, respecting the contexts of diverse communities in the region, and promoting equity with attention to disadvantaged or under-served populations.
 
Looking at accessibility as a core concept contributes to this holistic approach. The aim is for travelers’ desired destinations to be “within reach” in terms of reasonable time and cost, ensuring that the transportation network serves where people live, work, shop, and play. Having good accessibility also depends on how far destinations are from one another and whether households and businesses are located where the transportation system can serve them best.

Like many aspects of performance, different types of places may experience different accessibility and mobility needs. Land use, population density, employment, the nature of economic activities, street patterns, geographic barriers, and other traits also affect what improvement strategies are appropriate. For example, the CMP may highlight first/last-mile connections to transit stops more in suburban areas than in urban areas. Expanding opportunities for walking and other active transportation may be desired regionwide but would be approached differently in rural towns as compared to city streets.
 
The CMP operates throughout the various stages of the planning process. Policy elements in the Long Range Transportation Plan and Regional Capital Investment Strategy guide priorities for accessibility and mobility. Analysis is performed regionally through various studies. This includes the Accessibility and Mobility Strategy Synthesis (noted above), the recent Assessment of System Connectivity, and earlier efforts, along with other focused NJTPA and partner planning studies.

Identified CMP-related strategies in plans and studies are increasingly brought into the PRIME application for transportation professionals to use in developing projects. As the NJTPA reviews projects advancing toward implementation, looking at consistency with study findings helps to ensure a common approach to addressing the region’s planning goals. Methods for discerning the impacts of implemented projects can help to support progress and shape future approaches to improve transportation performance.

Further discussion of CMP elements can be found in an appendix to the NJTPA’s long range transportation plan, Plan 2050: Transporation, People, Opportunity.