TRANSIT ORIENTED DEVELOPMENT: READINESS TOOL

Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT), District Four

In support of efforts to advance multimodal transportation solutions in south Florida, the FDOT District 4 has a long history of promoting Transit Oriented Development (TOD). In 2011, we began working with FDOT on TOD initiatives including the development of A Framework for Transit Oriented Development guidebook and workshop training to aid local governments and public agencies in planning for and implementing transit and TOD.

Most recently, we helped create the TOD Readiness tool for use by local governments in evaluating the degree to which an existing or potential transit station area is "ready" for TOD.  The tool assesses 20 measures that reflect the full spectrum of TOD interests and helps planners develop strategies to increase readiness by understanding a station area's strengths and weaknesses. We also developed a user guide and a summary template for presenting assessment results.

To aid in continued TOD implementation efforts, we also facilitated a TOD working group on behalf of FDOT District 4. The working group met regularly to identify challenges and opportunities for implementing TOD in Southeast Florida. The working group also served as a means of information sharing and idea exchange among local government and public agencies.  Participants included MPOs, transit agencies, local governments, regional planning councils, and stakeholder organizations.