Congestion Management

With rising demand for transportation infrastructure, but limited space to build more, cities face the need to find alternative solutions to manage congestion.

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What if we can ...

Improve human health, safety, the environment and the economy by reducing congestion?

Develop congestion management solutions in cities by employing best practices from around the globe?

Manage congestion through pricing without building new roadway infrastructure?

Use technology and data collection to track and understand congestion issues?

Reduce congestion by developing transit-orientated communities and improving transit services?

The Reality

We cannot build our way out. Cities, urban areas and inter-urban links around the world are challenged by growing traffic congestion and a limited supply of roadway space, leading to a need to understand how to better manage demand for transportation.

One size does not fit all. Having shared concerns, needs and constraints does not necessarily mean congestion management solutions will look the same from city to city. Each city and situation is unique.

Where do we start. Community, government and existing infrastructure are among the many key factors that determine which approach will best meet the needs of residents, businesses and other key stakeholders.

A Simple Law of Physics

A simple law of (traffic) physics is that when traffic demand approaches the roadway capacity, the quality of service rapidly diminishes, and then when demand exceeds capacity, traffic flow breaks down completely.

The array of processes, tools and practices used to mitigate the resulting congestion is often referred to as congestion management – namely managing the situation in a manner as to avoid or minimize the negative impacts of congestion.A number of commonly used measures are described below.

They fall into three categories:

optimizing roadway uses
spreading traffic in time and space
adapting road infrastructure.1

¹_{World Road Association}

Our Approach

We know there is no single, one-size-fits-all solution. Each congestion management project requires a unique solution.

Continuum of WSP Congestion Management Services

WSP’s approach leverages existing experience with global congestion management models, combined with a local understanding of regional operational and policy considerations.

The scope of our mandate can involve either direct or indirect consideration of equity; technology, and education, achieving multiple stakeholder objectives such as improved safety, congestion and emissions reduction; positive revenue generation; and acceptance by the public, private business interests and multiple government agencies.

Integrated Transport Planning

Managed Lanes, Congestion Pricing and Tolling

Policy design and evaluation
Travel demand modelling and forecasting
Cost-benefit analysis
Economic impact assessment
Environmental review and permitting
Statistical analysis and reporting
Measurement and data collection design
Finance, revenue planning and forecasting
Enforcement of congestion pricing
Variable lane pricing (express toll lanes, HOT lanes)

Transit-oriented Development

Travel demand modelling
Traffic relief planning
Data analysis
Monitoring and measuring
Impact assessments
Quality of life analysis
New mobility strategies and scenario planning
Project piloting
Public interest and stakeholder facilitation
Public planning and policy initiatives

Intelligent Transportation Systems

Ramp metering
Signal phase timing
All electronic tolling
Automatic/connected vehicles
Traveller information services
Roadway/traffic management
Coordinated system management
System-wide conversion

Design

Program/project delivery
Preliminary design
Capacity building, needs assessment, risk allocation
Multimodal roadway/lane use/intersection design (BRT, auxiliary lanes, arterial managed lanes)
Innovative lane use/intersection design
Automated/connected vehicles, and related infrastructure

Our Services

WSP is uniquely positioned to provide the required expertise and services to tackle areas across congestion management. We offer our clients strategic, technical and operational guidance, leveraging our diverse global experience to find solutions tailored to their local context.

Leading Commitments

Emission Reduction

We specialize in solving complex problems such as reducing a city’s or region’s air pollution through the adoption of emerging electric propulsion technology.

Our proprietary simulation Battery Optimization Lifecycle Tool (BOLT), which analyzes heavy-duty fleet electrification and optimization, helps public and private transit fleet operators determine quickly and easily the routes best suited for conversion to electric buses.

WSP’s Zero Emission initiative includes work with policy makers, fleet operators, and various levels of government to achieve electric mobility through the adoption of zero-mission vehicles and bus fleets.

New Mobility

WSP works closely with key players across the world to better understand the potential impact of mobility on local environments. Our ground-breaking whitepaper New Mobility Now: a Practical Guide focuses on five themes we expect will to play a key role in the future of transport and in place-making: automated driving; connected vehicles, transport systems and networks; shared use; electric vehicles; and new business models.

With New Mobility, WSP demonstrates an understanding of how shared services, technology and new business models will affect price and travel behavior across a range of services. Our Scenario Planning Toolbox helps clients develop future-ready strategies—for New Mobility challenges, as well as transport, business planning, urban planning and sustainability efforts around the world.

Safety

We consider understanding the changing context of safety within new mobility as essential to our congestion management advisory expertise.

With ongoing advances in technologies and systems aimed at improving safety and efficiency, having a digital infrastructure in place has become a mission critical in deployment of well-developed congestion management solutions that take into account the safety of all road users, including pedestrians, cyclists, motorcyclists and road crews.

Vision Zero is a global concept that embraces a transformative mindset and approach to making all roads safe. WSP is advancing Vision Zero in communities throughout the world. Projects focus on action plans, audits, urban planning, speed management, and designing safe rural and urban roads and streets.

Future Ready

Future Ready is our program to see the future more clearly, and to work with clients to design for this future as well as for today’s needs.

Through Future Ready, WSP brings clarity and vision to complex challenges. We see the future more clearly through key trends in climate change, society, technology and resources, and challenge staff to work with our clients to advise on solutions that are both ready for today and for this future. Future Ready delivers peace of mind, lower lifecycle costs and resilience.

With the Future Ready program, our experts are able to help our clients prepare for future realities of self-driving cars, ubiquitous renewables, ultra-flexible places, more severe weather events and increasing loneliness, amongst many factors.

Projects

Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Metrolinx New Mobility

Metrolinx, an agency of the Government of Ontario, Canada, selected WSP to outline emerging trends in technology and society and their potential impact on transportation in the Toronto region.

Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia

Smith Street Motorway and Olsen Avenue Interchange

The Smith Street Motorway is the major east-west arterial road connecting the Pacific Motorway (M1) to the new Gold Coast Health and Knowledge Precinct in Parkwood and Olsen Avenue.

San Francisco, California, USA

Emerging Mobility Studies - San Francisco County Transportation Authority

New technologies are rapidly enabling innovations in transportation modes and services. In just a few years, these innovations have brought us ride-hail services, autonomous vehicles, bicycle-sharing systems, ride-pooling services and more. The impacts of these services on our transportation system have largely gone unmeasured.

Stockholm and Gothenburg, Götaland, Sweden

Congestion Charging Model in Sweden

Helping fund sustainable transportation modes and reduce gas emissions thanks to an efficient congestion charging program

Kuwait City, Kuwait

First Kuwait Ring Road

Improving access to downtown Kuwait City while reducing traffic congestion

Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Lower Simcoe Street Off Ramp

WSP reconfigures and upgrades Downtown Toronto’s Lower Simcoe Street (York-Bay-Yonge) Off Ramp.

Montréal, Canada

Autoroute 30 Toll Road

Two major bridges, 13 overpass bridges, 17 highway bridges, 11 interchanges, 90-meter-long tunnel, 14-lane toll plaza, and 42-km of new four-lane highway.

Dallas, Texas, USA

Dallas-Fort Worth Connector

The Texas Department of Transportation initiated the project to improve mobility along the State Highway (SH) 114/121 corridor in a safe and environmentally sensitive manner.

Dhaka, Dhaka District, Bangladesh

Dhaka By-Pass Road

Providing advisory services for the construction of a major highway in Bangladesh, as part of a Public-Private Partnership

Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada

Evergreen Line

The Evergreen Line, which links Burnaby, Port Moody and Coquitlam to Vancouver is expected to carry 70,000 passengers a day by 2021. It was constructed to improve the communities it serves, as well as benefit the region as a whole, the businesses within and the environment by decreasing commute time and reducing traffic congestion.

London, United Kingdom

Paddington Square, London

WSP developed the initial design by Renzo Piano Building Workshop to prioritize greater energy-efficiency and ensure emissions will decline as the electricity grid decarbonizes.

Projects

From post-industrial landscape to entertainment jewel in Buffalo, USA

The transformation of the Buffalo's Schoellkopf Aniline and Dye Company site into the Buffalo Color Park emphasizes the impact of brownfield projects and community-driven initiatives.