Sept. 26 AMATS Policy Committee meeting
Covered by Documenter Jennifer Conn (see her notes here)
Members adopted three key resolutions that help improve local transportation and safety at the September Akron Metropolitan Area Transportation Study (AMATS) Policy Committee meeting.
Mobility Planner Heather Davis Reidl said AMATS prepares a transportation planning work program annually. It serves as the basis for federal financial assistance for planning.
The AMATS coverage area includes Summit and Portage counties and a portion of Wayne County. More than 700,000 people live in this area.
At the end of each fiscal year, the Ohio Department of Transportation requires AMATS to review the previous year’s work program and compare the scope of work initially proposed to what was completed, which is a prerequisite for certification of the planning process.
Resolution 2024-17 summarizes the completion report and highlights 15 different products and activities completed during the fiscal year.
This report will be sent to ODOT and the U.S. Department of Transportation as proof that AMATS completed the year’s tasks.
The work was under budget, with $841,000 left to be used by the end of 2024.
Akron Metropolitan Area Transportation Study
• AMATS manages more than $15 million per year in federal transportation funding for projects and programs in a three-county region (Summit, Portage, and parts of Wayne County).
• Next meeting: Citizens Involvement Committee meets Dec. 5, Policy Committee meets Dec. 12. Both meetings are open to the public.
Aiming for 2% reduction in fatalities
AMATS also passed resolution 2024-18, which supports Ohio’s 2025 safety goals. Each target aims to reduce traffic accidents and serious injuries.
Safety is one of the seven key performance areas established by the U.S. Department of Transportation.
AMATS agrees in the resolution to follow ODOT’s safety targets for fatalities, serious injuries and crashes involving pedestrians or cyclists.
For 2025, ODOT is aiming for a 2% annual reduction in the following safety categories:
- Number of fatalities
- Fatality rate
- Number of serious injuries
- Serious injury rate
- Number of non-motorized fatalities and serious injuries
According to the resolution, AMATS will collaborate to use data to decide which projects to fund and how to improve road safety.
Transportation Planner Jeff Gardner said agencies like AMATS are required to use transportation data to make their investment and policy decisions.
AMATS has had funding policy guidelines in place that use safety data for project selections for decades. Gardner said this is the organization’s eighth year supporting ODOT’s safety goals.
Focus on air quality, traffic congestion
The final resolution discussed at the meeting focuses on air quality and traffic congestion.
Resolution 2024-19 supports ODOT’s performance targets for reducing congestion, improving air quality and enhancing transportation reliability across the region.
This includes monitoring how long people are stuck in traffic during rush hour and encouraging alternatives to driving alone, like carpooling or public transit.
Regarding congestion mitigation, AMATS assesses two key metrics. Peak Hour Excessive Delay (PHED) looks at the time drivers spend driving below the posted speed limit. Non-SOV (single occupancy vehicle) travel focuses on van transportation, public transit, telecommuting, biking and walking.
Current targets aim for a PHED of less than 21.0 hours annually per person and a 19% share of non-SOV travel by the end of the four-year period.
AMATS met its two-year targets in both of these focus areas in 2022-2023.
The adopted resolution says that AMATS is on track to meet its goals by 2026. Also, AMATS will continue to work with ODOT to prioritize projects that cut emissions and improve air quality.
A 280-page meeting packet details the three resolutions discussed during the meeting.
AMATS will hold its annual meeting on Friday, and the next regular planning meeting will be Dec. 12.
