HOV LANE CONVERSION - MINNESOTA: HOT Lanes on I-394 Twin CitiesKen Buckeye ,
Minnesota Department of Transportation 11/20/2003
URL: http://www.dot.state.mn.us/information/mnpass/
This project originated from the Minnesota Project Development Outreach and Education Study. The state will implement MnPass, which will convert the I-394 high occupancy vehicle lanes into pay-per-use, high occupancy toll (HOT) lanes that will allow single occupancy drivers to get out of traffic and speed up their commute. The lanes will also remain open to high occupancy use at no charge.
MnPass, Minnesota's first HOT lane project, would affect existing car pool lanes on I-394 from Highway 101 to I-94. Drivers of single occupancy vehicles, currently restricted from using I-394's high occupant vehicle lanes, could choose to use the MnPass lanes by paying a fee. MnPass could be a reality as early as January 2005. The project will be developed and completed through a public/private partnership involving the state of Minnesota and service vendor Wilbur Smith Associates. The private firm will fund 25 percent of the project's estimated $8 to $10 million price tag.
In mid-November Mn/DOT officials and Wilbur Smith Associates will begin negotiating the operating details of the system - including the price per use, access, hours of operation and enforcement. The administration will make a final decision about the MnPass operational plan by early 2004.
To supplement and support work already done in thinking about monitoring and evaluation for Minnesota's I-394 Express Lanes project, this document includes summaries of a sample of monitoring and evaluation plans from other value pricing projects, as well as a summary of a section on project evaluation included in the National Academy of Science's Curbing Gridlock, the initial nationwide study of congestion pricing completed in 1994. The intent of this document is not to be original, but merely to pull together these sources of information for consideration by those who are charged with developing of Minnesota's monitoring and evaluation plan. Of course, some of these summaries refer to projects that are quite different from the project being considered in Minnesota (e.g., bridge pricing, area wide pricing), yet they may help stimulate thinking about elements of a monitoring and evaluation plan that might be appropriate for Minnesota. The final section of these "Notes" presents some concluding thoughts on monitoring and evaluation.
The Hubert H. Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs at the University of Minnesota in cooperation with Cook Research & Consulting, Inc., hosted focus groups to determine support for HOV Buy-In capabilities on I-394.
Five focus groups, in total, were conducted. Three focus groups were held with solo drivers (SOVs) who travel I-394 (or an adjacent highway) into or beyond downtown Minneapolis during peak commuting hours to and from work. One focus group was held with carpoolers (HOVs) who travel the same route as above to and from work, and a fifth focus group was held with people who ride the bus to and from work, traveling I-394 into or beyond downtown Minneapolis. The groups were held in 2004 on February 23rd, March 1st and March 3rd.
The participants in the focus groups represented a general cross section of the population from the Twin Cities (mix of age, income, employment and gender) who commute from the western metro into or beyond downtown Minneapolis, during peak commuting hours and travel I-394 or an adjacent highway, such as Hwy 55 or Hwy 7. The participants were recruited (randomly) by telephone from the local areas, answered an advertisement that appeared in the StarTribune or a local newspaper or responded to a flyer that was distributed at the TAD garages. Qualified individuals were invited to come to a central location to discuss this topic.
The following documents are provided below:
1. The work plan for the outreach study (7 pages/52KB)
2. Monitoring and Evaluation Plan Review (23 pages/154KB)
3. MnPass Focus Group Report (22 pages/134KB)
4. MnPass Presentation 7-04 (21 pages/2.05MB)
5. MnPass System Study Final Report Executive Summary (24 pages/1221KB)
To download an attached document, right-click the link below or at the icon at bottom, then select "Save Target As..." or "Save Link As..." and select a destination for the file. To view an attached document in your browser, left-click the link or icon--this function is dependent upon browser configuration.
Download Minnesota Outreach proposal.pdf
Download I-394 Monitoring and Evaluation Plan.pdf
Download Focus Groups MnPassReport.pdf
Download MN-Pass Presentation 7-04.pdf
Download FR1_MnDOT_MnPass System Study_FINAL_execsummary1.pdf
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This page last updated on 02/01/2006 10:26:51 AM |
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