Spotlight On: Valerie Neilson, Executive Director, Palm Beach Transportation Planning Agency

Spotlight On: Valerie Neilson, Executive Director, Palm Beach Transportation Planning Agency

2022-10-06T12:54:00-04:00October 6th, 2022|Palm Beach, Spotlight On, Transportation|

2 min read September 2022 The Palm Beach Transportation Planning Agency is shaping the vision for what transportation will look like in the next 25 years. In an interview with Invest:, Executive Director Valerie Neilson said the TPA is bringing the community together on a shared vision of creating a safe, efficient and connected transportation system for all.

What is the vision of the Palm Beach TPA?

Our vision is a safe, efficient and connected multimodal transportation system. We have a governing board of twenty-one locally elected officials that collaboratively plan, prioritize and fund the transportation system in Palm Beach County. Although we don’t own or operate any transportation facilities or services, we work closely with the Florida Department of Transportation, our local government agencies and transportation partners to plan, prioritize and fund transportation projects over the next five years with state and federal funds. The focus is on improving safety for users of all ages and abilities to be able to access schools, healthcare services and places they live, work and play.

In the past, the focus has been primarily on moving automobiles. More recently this focus has shifted to balancing transportation modes in the existing system so people of all ages and abilities have choices in how they move. We’re engaged with the economic development community, the school district, and regional transportation partners to align efforts toward a more efficient transportation system and car optional future. Mode shift is key to the success of our urbanized area. Shifting single-occupancy vehicle trips to other modes, such as walking, bicycling, and taking transit helps improve the transportation system for everyone, including drivers, primarily by reducing congestion. 

How is that vision connected to the future?

As we continue to grow, we are prioritizing funding for transportation capital investments, including transit vehicles, roadway modifications, and technology improvements to improve efficiency and provide an enhanced transit system with more frequent, dedicated service that’s reliable and an equal or better experience than driving a car. This is something the community and future businesses consider: what transportation options are there to move around, especially with unpredictable fuel prices.

We are seeing increasing demand from people wanting to live in a walkable city and a location where they can go outside and spend time in public spaces, especially with more people working from home. They still want to get outside and be in an environment where they can walk around and interact with others. 

How do you plan for that future? 

We are working closely with Broward and Miami-Dade counties in our urbanized area. There are 6.4 million people living in South Florida and it is estimated we will grow to 7.5 million people by 2045. We will soon be kicking off a regional long-range transportation plan update that we will work on together as a region in developing. We will also be starting on an update to our own Long Range Transportation Plan for Palm Beach County that is updated every five years to collaboratively plan where we will grow and what our transportation needs and desires will be over the next 25 years. These efforts will take about two years. 

To that end, we want as much participation from the public and private sectors in the development of the plan so we collectively work on this vision to determine our priorities and try to get people thinking about our future transportation system needs and desires.

Are you studying the experiences of other cities when doing your long-term plans?

Yes. An example is Phoenix, which has implemented a premium transit system, including light rail and bus rapid transit. They faced challenges and pushbacks; however, the benefits were huge. It cost approximately $2 billion to implement their first light rail line, but 10 years later a report showed that it resulted in $12 billion worth of economic development investments in the corridor after implementation. It also resulted in a 487% increase in ridership, 25% increase in graduation rates, creation of jobs and affordable housing units, as well as benefits to the environment and the community’s quality-of-life. 

Another example is Austin. In 2020, voters passed a $7.1 billion proposition to fund an enhanced transit system. One of the lessons learned from this effort was that people have a higher expectation of transit service than what is currently offered. For us in Palm Beach County, that means moving beyond the standard bus service to something like a light rail, bus rapid transit, and or limited stop and more frequent service on key regional corridors along with on-demand local circulators and mobility options. 

What is the agency’s approach to enhancing the safety of the community?

We are encouraging our local municipalities to adopt Complete Streets policies and Vision Zero Resolutions to advance safety initiatives. Vision Zero is an international movement to eliminate traffic-related death and serious injuries. We understand minor crashes may happen, but more severe crashes should not. This strategy is highly collaborative and requires engineers, enforcement, emergency response, educators, and elected officials to work together to accomplish results. 

Safety is a priority at the federal, state, and local levels. There are grants available for local municipalities geared toward improving transportation safety in communities, including the Safe Streets and Roads for All Grant Program and the Reconnecting Communities Grant Program.  In addition, the TPA offers grants for Complete Streets improvements. We encourage everyone to get involved in the transportation planning process to help shape your community and learn more at: www.PalmBeachTPA.org

For more information, visit: 

www.PalmBeachTPA.org

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