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Home My WebLink About2007 03 12 Informational 101 Florida's Turnpike Enterprise COMMISSION AGENDA ITEM 101 INFORMATIONAL March 12, 2007 Meeting MGR DEPT Authorization REQUEST: Public Works Department providing the City Commission with information from Florida's Turnpike Enterprise regarding the toll on the Seminole Expressway (Toll Road 417) for trips between Winter Springs and Oviedo. PURPOSE: The purpose of this agenda item is to provide the City Commission with information from Florida's Turnpike Enterprise regarding the toll on the Seminole Expressway for trips between Winter Springs and Oviedo. CONSIDERATIONS: . Florida's Turnpike Enterprise is a separate business unit of the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) that is responsible for all operations on every FDOT-owned and operated toll road and bridge. This represents about 600 miles of roadway and 80 percent of all toll facilities in Florida. . Florida's Turnpike operates the northern 17 miles of Toll 417 as the Seminole Expressway, beginning at the Seminole County line and extending north to its terminus at Interstate 4 in Sanford. The Orlando-Orange County Expressway Authority (OOCEA) operates the middle section of Toll 417, from Milepost 6 in Orange County to Milepost 37.5 at the Seminole County line. This section is known as the Central Florida GreeneWay. The Turnpike also operates the southern end of Toll 417, from Milepost 1 at Interstate 4 to Milepost 6 in Orange County. This section of Toll 417 is known as the Southern Connector Extension, but it also referred to as the southern end of the Central Florida GreeneWay. . At several Commission meetings, most recently at the February 12, 2007 meeting, the Commission has expressed concerns about the fairness of the $0.75 toll being charged to drivers traveling between Winter Springs (SR 434) and Oviedo (Red Bug Lake Road). . Staff recently contacted Alison Stettner, Florida's Turnpike Enterprise Regional Planning Administrator, regarding the $0.75 toll charge. Ms. Stettner provided the following informati on: Informational Agenda Item 101 March 12,2007 Page 2 of 2 1. The Turnpike is designed for long trips and toll rates are set based on the average cost per mile for long trips (currently 12.5 cents per mile) 2. There is an inequity for shorter trips, such as the trip from 434 to Red Bug along the Seminole Expressway. 3. The capital cost to install equipment to correct this inequity between Winter Springs and Oviedo was recently estimated at $1.2 million, which would have to be covered by the cities. There is also an annual maintenance cost of$75,000 and an annual "lost revenue" cost of $1 00,000 that would have to be paid by the cities. In other words, the cities have to cover all capital costs plus lost Turnpike revenue. 4. Bonds issued to construct the Turnpike used revenue models based on the current tolling amount ($0.75 at the 434/417 toll plaza). This cannot be changed without having a compensating source of revenue. 5. In 2002, at the request of the Oviedo City Council, the Turnpike performed a year-long study examining the possibility of removing or reducing the toll for customers traveling between Winter Springs and Oviedo. The study included a toll rebate incentive program that reduced the toll at the SR 434 toll plaza to $0.31 (equal to $0.125 per mile x 2.5 miles) during the study period. A copy of this study is attached. The Turnpike's study concluded that a toll rebate on trips going between Oviedo and Winter Springs offered only a minimal reduction in trips through downtown Oviedo. The rebate did not change traffic patterns in the Oviedo area by drawing more trips to the Seminole Expressway. The Turnpike discontinued the toll rebate program on January 1,2003. 6. Within the next ten years, the Turnpike is expected to transition to 100% electronic tolling, which will remedy the current toll inequity by charging all vehicles based on their actual distance traveled. 7. Ms. Stettner said she would be glad to meet with the City to further discuss this issue. She also said the Executive Director of Florida's Turnpike Enterprise, James Ely, is available for a meeting. ATTACHMENTS: 1. Exhibit 1 - Seminole Expressway Toll Rebate Incentive Program (TRIP) Analysis and Results 2. Exhibit 2 - Letter from Florida's Turnpike to the City of Oviedo dated November 30,2006 COMMISSION ACTION: SEMINOLE EXPRESSWAY Traffic and Revenue Impacts of TRIP Analysis and Results BACKGROUND In 1994, the Turnpike opened the first 12 miles of the Seminole Expressway between AlomaAvenue and US 17/92. The remaining 6-mile segment known as the "Missing Link" connecting the northern end of the Seminole Expressway to 1-4 opened in phases during 2002. The opening of the Seminole Expressway in 1994 attracted many commuters from the local transportation network. The Turnpike conducted a traffic study in March 1995 to measure the impact of the opening of the Seminole Expressway on several local roads in Oviedo. Based on daily traffic counts collected before and after the opening of the new facility, all but one of the 18 count locations in Oviedo showed a decline in traffic. This finding suggested that the opening of the Seminole Expressway had a positive impact on reducing traffic congestion in Oviedo and other neighboring communities. In addition, a separate traffic survey conducted by the University of Central Florida (UCF) concluded that the Seminole Expressway had a positive impact in relieving some of the UCF traffic that normally uses SR 434 through downtown Oviedo. However, members of the Oviedo City Council remained concerned about the level of traffic in downtown Oviedo. They suggested that some of that traffic would otherwise have used the Seminole Expressway had the toll at SR 434 been eliminated or lowered. As such, the City Council asked the Turnpike to examine the possibility of removing, or at least reducing the toll for customers traveling between SR 434 and Red Bug Lake Road. The toll to travel this 2.5-mile segment is $0.75, or 30 cents per mile, much higher than the average rate of 12.5 cents per mile. The removal of tolls from any section of the Seminole Expressway constitutes a violation of the legal requirements described in the Florida Statutes and the Turnpike bond covenants. These requirements prohibit free usage of any Turnpike roadway by the general public. For this reason, it was not feasible for the Turnpike to explore this option further. However, the Turnpike made a commitment to the City Council to conduct a one-year pilot project of reduced toll at SR 434 (see Figure 1). During the study, which started on November 19,2001, the toll at SR 434 was reduced to 12.5 cents per mile (or $0.31 toll) for customers traveling between SR 434 and Red Bug Lake Road who pay tolls electronically. The use of an electronic toll collection system (ETC), which includes SunPass and E-Pass, allows the Turnpike to identify the entry and exit ramps of qualifying customers for proper credit of the rebate to their accounts. Figure 1 Project Location SUU lAke Josup rot! rla:.r.a Seminole Expressway ,-'.i::;"'~IP,f.RIl\ .R*J.1l1l8 l..u.:c !\<Xod Sl~m~uu-. 1-'" December 20, 2002 1 SEMINOLE EXPRESSWA Y The pilot project was named TRIP for Tolls Rebate Incentive Program. The Turnpike initiated several marketing efforts to promote the TRIP program in the region. These efforts included a press release and coverage from local television stations and newspapers, posted informational signs at the ramps, printed brochures, and targeted mailing to SunPass customers in the region. sua. ElECTlONI( TOll (OLlECTION The purpose of this report is to examine the traffic and revenue impacts of TRIP, and to determine the extent to which TRIP was successful in diverting traffic from downtown Oviedo to the Seminole Expressway. Other expectations from the study were to provide better transportation movement in the area for local and long distance travelers. DATA COLLECTION AND METHODOLOGY The Turnpike collected traffic and revenue information from a variety of sources throughout the one-year pilot project. These sources included a) automatic traffic counts at strategic locations in the area, b) license plate survey to measure the growth in traffic at the ramps, and c) electronic data from the field providing daily information about ETC usage and rebate. Automatic Traffic Counts This type of traffic counts was obtained from hoses placed across the lanes at 6 dispersed locations in the study area. Traffic counts at these locations was monitored at three distinct time periods during the last year. The first one was in September 2001, shortly before TRIP started. The second one was in December 2001, just after it started. The third count program was conducted in late September 2002, almost one year after TRIP started. Each count program reflected one full week of continuous traffic data obtained in hourly increments and converted to annual average daily traffic (AADT) for comparative purposes. License Plate Survey The purpose of the license plate survey was to determine the number of vehicles that use the Seminole Expressway between SR 434 and Red Bug Lake Road. The method consists of observing and recording the last three digits of a representative vehicle that passes a given location during the sampling period. A computer program then matches the three-digit sequence from one location with that of another location. Finally, the number of vehicles observed in the sample is extrapolated using daily traffic counts obtained for the locations in question. This method of data collection has been used for many years, and is considered very reliable for collecting origin and destination information with minimal or no disruption to traffic. December 20, 2002 2 SEMINOLE EXPRESSWAY The license plate survey was conducted in September 2002. Observations of license plates were made at the southbound on-ramp at SR 434 and the southbound off-ramp at Red Bug Lake Road during the morning and evening peak hours on a typical weekday. It should also be noted that a similar license plate survey was conducted in December 1999 at the same ramps to establish the base conditions before TRIP (an inflation factor of 9 percent representing the compounded annual normal growth in traffic at these ramps was used to project the number of vehicles through 2001 for comparative purposes). Field Data of ETe Trips and Rebate This information was provided daily by the electronic equipment on the northern ramps at Red Bug Lake Road and the southern ramps at SR 434. It included daily ETC trips made between these ramps, and the amount of rebate given to qualified ETC customers each day. Average monthly information was obtained from the detailed daily records, and was used to monitor the change in ETC usage and rebate over the one-year test period. RESULTS OF PILOT PROJECT This section highlights key results from TRIP, and shows the impact of this project on ETC usage and local traffic in the area. Graph 1 shows the average number of daily ETC trips (i.e., SunPass and E-Pass) made between SR 434 and Red Bug Lake Road each month. As reflected in the graph, ETC usage fluctuated between 450 and 730 daily trips, suggesting an average of approximately 600 daily trips over the course of the pilot project. This average is slightly higher than the average of 420 daily trips initially observed before TRIP started. Graph 1 Daily ETC Trips between Ramps eoo 708 734 .., ./U 625 l- f- - _595 525 541 534 525 - - I- - - f- - - 451 - ~ I- - - f- - - - ~ I- - - f- - - - I-- I- - - f- - - - l- I- - - ~ f- ~ - -+- 4- 4- -+- -+- -+- 4- -+- -+- -+- 700 600 500 400 300 200 100 Nov- Doo- Jan- Fob- Mar- Apr- May- Jun- Ju~ Aug- sep- al 01 02 02 02 02 02 02 02 02 02 Notes: Pilot project started on November 19, 2001. Similar to the growth in ETC usage, the amount of rebate also increased from $7,500 in December 2001, which was the first full month of implementation, to approximately $10,000 in October 2002 (see Graph 2). Overall, the results show that a total of approximately $100,000 in annual rebate was issued to qualified ETC customers during the pilot project. Graph 2 Monthly Rebate $12,000 $10,000 $8,000 $8,000 54,000 $2,000 $0 Nov- Qec. Ja>- Fe!>- Mar- ArK- . Mar- ....... JuI.. Aull- SeI>- Oct- 01 01 02 02 02 02 02 02 02 02 02 02 Total Annual Rebate = $100,000 December 20,2002 3 SEMINOLE EXPRESSWAY In terms of the impact of TRIP on total traffic at the ramps, the Turnpike initially observed an average of approximately 850 total vehicles making the trip each day between SR 434 and Red Bug Lake Road before the TRIP program started. As shown in Graph 3, only 420 out of these vehicles were ETC users, representing a participation rate of 50 percent. After one year, ETC participation on this short segment increased to 60 percent because of TRIP. Even though this increase seems significant, it only represents a few hundred vehicles. Graph 3 Impact of TRIP Before After Total daily traffic 850 1,000 ETC Traffic 420 600 Participation 50% 60% ~ r ~ ~ Red Bug Lake Rd. SR 434 Graph 4 shows the increase in traffic on the southern ramps at SR 434 before and after TRIP. The results indicate that approximately 7,700 daily vehicles used these ramps before the TRIP program started. These included vehicles that had destinations other than Red Bug Lake Road. After one year, total daily traffic at these ramps increased to 8,600 vehicles, representing an increase of approximately 12 percent. However, only less than two percent of this growth is attributed to TRIP, and the remaining 10 percent is attributed to normal growth at these ramps. Graph 4 SR 434 to/from South Ramps After Before .. .. ofTRlP.120(U%) rowth. 180 (10.0%) ------ Dally traffic Total = 7,700 Total = 8,600 Similarly, the increase in traffic on the northern ramps at Red Bug Lake Road before and after TRIP is shown in Graph 5. Approximately 6,000 daily vehicles used these ramps before the TRIP program started. They included vehicles that had destinations other than SR 434. After one year, total daily traffic at these ramps increased to 6,800 vehicles, representing an increase of approximately 13 percent. However, only two percent of this growth is attributed to TRIP, and the remaining 11 percent is attributed to normal growth at these ramps. Graph 5 Red Bug Lake Road to/from North Ramps After Before .. of TRIP .120 (2.0%) _ _ _ _ _ _ rowth. 880 (11.C)%) Dally 1raffIc Total = 6,000 Total = 6,800 Finally, the impact of TRIP on adjacent streets in the Oviedo area is shown in Graph 6. The numbers in this graph represent recent traffic from the last count program conducted in late September 2002, and the percent change from the prior year. As shown here, traffic along SR 434 in the Oviedo area declined by an average of one percent due to TRIP. On the other hand, traffic on the December 20, 2002 4 SEMINOLE EXPRESSWAY feeder roads to the Seminole Expressway at SR 434 and Red Bug Lake Road increased by less than one percent. cooperation with local officials. The Turnpike conducted several marketing efforts in the region to promote the program. However, the overall impact of TRIP was small. Specifically, only 1,000 daily vehicles today travel on the Seminole Expressway between SR 434 and Red Bug Lake Road, up from 850 a year ago. Almost 600 (or 60 percent) of these vehicles use SunPass or E-Pass. TRIP also reduced traffic in downtown Oviedo by less than 200 vehicles a day. This reduction in traffic is considered immaterial considering that more than 12,000 vehicles use the downtown area every day. In addition, the impact of TRIP on other adjacent streets around the Seminole Expressway was minimal. It can be concluded based on the results from the traffic analysis presented in this section that TRIP attracted less than 200 vehicles per day to the Seminole Expressway from downtown Oviedo. In addition, there was no evidence from these results that the pilot project improved the overall transportation movement in the area for local and long distance travelers. Graph 6 Impact on Adjacent Streets With such a small impact on traffic resulting from TRIP, it becomes less practical to continue the program given the financial investment of almost $400,000 made by the Turnpike to start and maintain the pilot project over the past year. As a result, we recommend that TRIP be discontinued effective January 1,2003. Despite the removal of TRIP, the Turnpike will continue its commitment to the region. The most immediate commitments will be realized by adding more SunPass lanes as participation increases on the Seminole Expressway, and by allocating additional marketing funds during 2003 to promote the use of SunPass. Finally, it should be noted that in the event that the City Council wants to continue the TRIP program, a secure source of funds from outside the Turnpike would be needed. These funds will cover the capital cost required to design and install software and permanent equipment. They will also cover an annual subsidy needed to pay for recurring maintenance expenses and to replace lost toll revenues each year. SUMMARY AND RECOMMENDATIONS Traffic on the Seminole Expressway has been steadily increasing since the first 12 miles of the facility opened in 1994. This growth is expected to continue with the recent opening of the "Missing Link". The TRIP program was instituted as a one-year pilot project in December 20, 2002 5 FLORIDA'S ENTRPRISE Operates the statewide Turnpike System as part of the Florida Department of Transportation JEB BUSH Governor Jost ABREU Secretary of Transportation JAMES L. ELY Executive Director Turnpike Headquarters: Mile Post 263, Bldg. 5315 Turkey Lake Service Plaza Ocoee, fL 34761 Mailing Address: P.O. Box 613069 Ocoee, fL 34761 Tel: 407.532.3999 www.lloridas!urnplke.com ,. "it,; November 20, 2006 Mr. Gerald J. Seeber City Manager City of Oviedo 400 Alexandria Boulevard Oviedo, Florida 32765 Re: Seminole Expressway Widening PD&E Study Dear Mr. Seeber: We received your letter dated Oct8ber 12, 2006 regarding the Seminole Expressway PD&E Study. Based upon a thorough review of the commitments outlined in the original PD&E Study completed in 1988, the Turnpike could not identify any obligation to construct any additional facilities including the north-south service road connecting the Red Bug Road Interchange to the SR 434 interchange identified in your letter. A service road such as this would need considerable right of way that would have substantial impacts to the ex!stingcommunity and would not be feasible. C,' . .,' ,',_':._.._ ',_,' ....c..' yourtetterrefererlcesa pilot project that the Turnpike uhdertookin order to reduce tolls at the, Red Bug Lake Road and SR434 interchanges to reduce congestion ""ithi9dovmtqvvn Qvi~.90' Du[ing the one-year pilot study, the discounted toll ryduc:~dJr.affic;In Qviedo by less then 200 vehicles per day. In orderto benefit and ~nhance.lev~Jiof ~ervi(;e, several hundred peak hour trips through downtown would geedto,b~,r~9uced. [)uring the study, a comprehensive puglic Qutreachcall1paign ""asirl1pl~.Il1entedandinclyded 1 ,000 direct mailings to SunPassownersin the regIqn,y,9,009 brqchLJres distributed, posted inforrTlational si~nsat the ramps, press r~lea~es"coverag~ from Ipcal television stations and newspapers. These efforts to involve and inform area residents did not result in a significant increase in participation in the pilot project. (rfJanua[Y 2003, the Tumpikeprovided the City with the opportqnityto permanently implement the tolLreduction program for these interchanges. Based on the analysis provided, the City would be responsible for those capital costs with installing the perm~me9tequipll1ent and provide an annual subsidy for maintenance and $1 OO,OOQannually to replace lost toll revenues. Since the implementation was both expensiv$and provided little benefit to the City, it was the Turnpike's understanding that the City did not want to implement a permanent toll reduction program. Florida's Turnpike System: Florida's Turnpike Mainline. Beeline West. Homestead Exl. Polk Pkwy. . Sawgrass Expwy. Seminole Expwy. . Southern Connector Exl. . Suncoast Pkwy. . Veterans Expwy. Mr. Gerald J. Seeber, City Manager City of Oviedo November 20, 2006 Page 2 of 2 Please find enclosed a copy of the Tolls Rebate Incentive Program Study completed in December 2002. If you have any additional questions, please contact Robert R. Fox, Planning Manager at (407) 264-3041. J mes L. Ely, D xecutive Director and Chief Executive Officer JLE/as Cc: Nancy A. Clements, Director for Planning & Production Robert R. Fox, Planning Manager Henry Pinzon, Project Manager Alison C. Stettner, Regional Planning Administrator