2008 Local Area Transportation Review (LATR) and Policy Area Mobility Review (PAMR) Guidelines
These guidelines are intended to ensure that development in Montgomery County is accompanied by appropriate and sufficient transportation facilities. They are used by the Planning Board and staff to estimate the impacts of development on the transportation network and determine effective ways to mitigate that impact.
In 1973, the County Council adopted an Adequate Public Facilities Ordinance and granted the Planning Board administrative oversight to ensure that adequate public facilities exist to accommodate growth. Since then, Montgomery County has considered the impacts of development on the transportation system, guided by the County Council’s Growth Policy, which is reviewed on every two years.
This document implements the County Council’s 2007 Growth Policy, which includes Local Area Transportation Review (LATR) to measure development impacts on local roads near the development site, and Policy Area Mobility Review (PAMR) to address impacts on a wider geographic scale.
PAMR is a refinement of the analysis approach introduced in the 2007 Growth Policy. It continues to examine policy areas, but measuring the capacity of both arterial roads and transit. Introducing transit into the analysis supports and measures the success of the County’s long-standing policy to focus growth at transit nodes including the Metro Station Policy Areas. The County’s multi-modal focus is further supported by the mitigation options in this publication that include enhancements to transit, pedestrian, and bicycle facilities.
These guidelines were developed based on standards and practices developed by the Institute of Transportation Engineers and the Transportation Research Board. Those best practices have been adapted to Montgomery County, based on research into local conditions.
2008 LATR/PAMR Documents
Cover (pdf, 227KB)
Table of Contents (pdf, 148KB)
Maps, Figures and Tables (pdf, 110KB)
Online chapter descriptions
- Introduction (pdf, 699KB)
How the guidelines are to be used by applicants, including a brief description of policy areas and each evaluation process, as well as an explanation of the criteria staff will use to determine if a traffic study must be submitted. - Criteria for Screening Cases for Local Area Transportation Review (pdf, 164KB)
The development size and character criteria that would subject a project to the Local Area Transportation Review as well as the exceptions to those guidelines. - Method and Preparation of Local Area Transportation Review Traffic Study (pdf, 173KB)
The criteria and analytical techniques an applicant should use in preparing their submittal. - Findings for Inadequate Facilities (pdf, 133KB)
The analysis and demand strategies staff use in determining whether transportation facilities are adequate to support a development project. - Procedures for Application in Central Business District and Metro Station Policy Areas (pdf, 126KB)
Additional traffic flow, safety, and mitigation criteria staff use to analyze projects in areas of dense development and those served by Metrorail transit. - Methods to Reduce Local Area Transportation Review and Policy Area Mobility Review Impact (pdf, 173KB)
The pedestrian, bicycle, transit, and other non-automobile facilities applicants can provide to mitigate the transportation impacts of their development projects. - Assigning Values to Traffic Study Factors (pdf, 224KB)
Assumptions used in traffic study calculations and “how to” description of the Critical Lane Volume Method for intersection analysis. - Policy Area Mobility Review (pdf, 179KB)
A description of the components of PAMR—arterial mobility and transit mobility—how they are measured and mitigation options.
The Appendices (Contain the formulas and rates used to measure traffic impacts as follows)
- Appendix A (pdf, 184KB)
Weekday Peak Hour Trip Generation Formulas and Rates for Local Area Transportation Review - Appendix B (pdf, 380KB)
Weekday Peak Hour Trips Generated by Land Uses for Local Area Transportation Review - Appendix C (pdf, 391KB)
Weekday Peak Hour Trip Generation Rates and Directional Splits for the Bethesda, Friendship Heights, and Silver Spring CBDs - Appendix D (pdf, 698KB)
Trip Distribution and Traffic Assignment Guidelines - Appendix E (pdf, 122KB)
Procedure Delegating Certain APF Findings to Staff at Time of Building Permit - Staff Acknowledgement (pdf, 154KB)
Previous LATR/PAMR Guidelines
Cover Letter to the 2007 Draft Guidelines (pdf, 74KB)
2007 Draft LATR and PAMR Guidelines (pdf, 879KB)
2004 Approved and Adopted LATR Guidelines (pdf, 1,482KB)
Electronic Submission of Traffic Counts - Procedures and File Format (pdf, 1,117KB)
Digital Traffic Count Template File (xls, 39.5KB)
Table of Intersection ID Numbers (xls, 125KB)
Map 1: LATR Standards by Policy Area (jpg, 309KB)
Map 2: PAMR Trip Mitigation Requirements by Policy Area (jpg, 289KB)
PAMR Mitigation Requirements
On November 13, 2007, the County Council approved PAMR mitigation requirements for each policy area effective for subdivision applications submitted after January 1, 2007 and established an annual review of PAMR. On May 15, 2008, the Planning Board approved updated PAMR mitigation requirements for each policy area for applications submitted after July 1, 2008.
Map of PAMR mitigation requirements for applications submitted January 1, 2007 through June 30, 2008
Map of PAMR mitigation requirements for applications submitted after July 1, 2008
Table of PAMR mitigation requirements
Links
- Growth Policy home page
The Growth Policy includes periodic updates with both a comprehensive review on a biennial schedule and specific interim studies. - 2008 Highway Mobility Report
The Policy Area Mobility Review mitigation percentages are updated on an annual basis. - Guidance on their preferences for applicant proposals for Non-Auto Facilities
Provided by The Department of Public Works and Transportation (DPWT).
Contact
Questions regarding these documents or the LATR process may be directed to:
Shahriar Etemadi, Transportation Planning
301-495-4525
Shahriar.Etemadi@mncppc-mc.org
Submissions of traffic counts for LATR or requests for traffic counts may be sent to MCP-trafficcounts@mncppc-mc.org
