Mission Statement

The mission of the Department of Transportation (DOT) programs supported by the General Fund is to provide an effective and efficient transportation system to ensure the safe and convenient movement of persons and vehicles on County roads; to plan, design, and coordinate development and construction of transportation and pedestrian routes to maintain the County's transportation infrastructure; to operate and maintain the traffic signal system and road network in a safe and efficient manner; and to develop and implement transportation policies to maximize efficient service delivery. The General Fund supports programs in the Division of Traffic Engineering and Operations, the Division of Parking Management, the Division of Highway Maintenance, the Division of Transportation Engineering, the Division of Transit Services, and the Director's Office.

Budget Overview

The total approved FY19 Operating Budget for the Department of Transportation is $52,018,803, a decrease of $3,915,701 or 7.00 percent from the FY18 Approved Budget of $55,934,504. Personnel Costs comprise 50.10 percent of the budget for 457 full-time position(s) and eight part-time position(s), and a total of 283.30 FTEs. Total FTEs may include seasonal or temporary positions and may also reflect workforce charged to or from other departments or funds. Operating Expenses account for the remaining 49.90 percent of the FY19 budget.

In addition, this department's Capital Improvements Program (CIP) requires Current Revenue funding.

Linkage to County Result Areas

While this program area supports all eight of the County Result Areas, the following are emphasized:

• An Effective and Efficient Transportation Network
• Healthy and Sustainable Neighborhoods
• A Responsive, Accountable County Government
• Safe Streets and Secure Neighborhoods
• Vital Living for All of Our Residents

Department Performance Measures

Performance measures for this department are included below (where applicable), with multi-program measures displayed at the front of this section and program-specific measures shown with the relevant program. The FY18 estimates reflect funding based on the FY18 approved budget. The FY19 and FY20 figures are performance targets based on the FY19 approved budget and funding for comparable service levels in FY20.

Accomplishments

• Resurfaced 303 lane miles between the Residential Resurfacing, Depot Patching and Paving, Permanent Patching, Slurry Seal budgets - one of the highest totals in Division of Highway Services' history and conducted eight projects along Rural and Rustic Roads. Over the course of this 10-year program, DOT has repaired/replaced 2,731 lane miles of roadway.
  

• Completed major bridge and/or storm drain improvement projects along Zion Road, Kingstead Road, Wildcat Road, Bel Pre Road, Sunflower Road, Connecticut Avenue, and Serpentine Way.

• The Neighborhood Rehabilitation Roads Project completed approximately 22 miles of Sidewalk repair and over 21 miles of Curb and Gutter repair.
• Tree Maintenance Section crews and arborists conducted 40,637 Service Requests, pruned 10,983 hazardous trees, removed 3,323 trees and 1,604 stumps, and planted 1,759 trees. In addition, DOT responded to 376 foliage work orders, removed 76 hornet nests and handled 338 unique tree damage claims.
• Responded to eight storm events totaling seven inches of snow accumulation and treated 5,200 lane miles of roadway.
• Repaired 8,400 streetlight outages and replaced 451 knocked down streetlights.
• Installed 288 streetlights primarily in the Olney Town Center, along Bonifant Road, the Bethesda Trolley Trail, and Metropolitan Branch Trail.
• The Signing and Marking Unit fabricated and installed 8,689 traffic and street name signs, installed 813 crosswalks and 844 stop bars, and installed 3,257 linear feet of guardrail and 49 end sections.

• Repaired/restored 150 vehicle sensors at intersections, retimed 102 traffic signals to implement new pedestrian crossing timing and vehicle clearance timing standards, rebuilt 3 traffic signals, and upgraded 10 county owned signals to accommodate ADA and APS pedestrian access. In addition, replaced equipment at 60 Uninterrupted Power Supply locations.
  

• Deployed Adaptive Traffic Control pilot at 10 locations along Montrose Road / Pkwy

• Installed the first four Rectangular Rapid Flashing Beacon's (RRFB) on the Bel Pre Road corridor and on Westlake Drive with four additional locations under design.

• Completed the design for separated bike lanes on both sides of Spring Street from 1^st Avenue to Wayne Avenue in Silver Spring.
  

• Completed 23,768 linear feet of sidewalk.
• Completed biennial inspections of 178 bridges and renovations for 28 bridges.

Initiatives

• Began a Passive Crosswalk Lighting Initiative along the Bel Pre Road corridor with five crosswalk locations being enhanced with motion response lighting.
• Installing High-intensity Activated Crosswalk beacons (HAWK) to further improve pedestrian safety.

Innovations and Productivity Improvements

• Highway Services used 56,000 tons of recycled asphalt on resurfacing projects. These efforts not only help save money on materials, but they are also good for the environment. Additionally, all leaves collected during the leafing season are turned into compost, sold to local hardware and lawn care stores, and the profits are reinvested in the program.
• The survey unit utilized lidar (light radar) technology to capture virtual 3-D topography that reduced field work and increased field safety. The lidar process decreased the amount of time for survey completion. The technology has been utilized for projects and by the Division of Parking.

Program Descriptions

  Automation

The Automation Program provides staffing, material, and support to develop and maintain information systems in support of the Department's business operations. This includes the purchase and maintenance of IT equipment, service and support for major business systems, strategic visioning and analysis for planned IT investments, and day-to-day end use support....

  Bike Share

This program administers and operates the BikeShare program in the County. The purpose of this program is to develop additional options for short trips, promote the use of transit and contribute to a more pedestrian and bicycle-friendly atmosphere. This includes managing the County system, implementation and operations, and coordinating with...

  Bridge Maintenance

This program provides for the basic maintenance of bridges and box culverts along County-maintained roadways, including removal of debris under and around bridges; wall and abutment repainting; trimming trees and mowing banks around bridge approaches; and guardrail repair. Minor asphalt repairs and resurfacing of bridges and bridge approaches are also...

  Transportation Engineering and Management Services

This program oversees a portion of the transportation programs, monitors and evaluates standards, investigates complaints, and implements strategies to maximize cost savings. This program is also responsible for the personnel, budget, and finance functions of several divisions in the Department of Transportation, providing essential services to the Department and serving...

  Parking Outside the Parking Districts

This program administers, operates, and maintains the parking program outside the Parking Districts. Included in this program are residential permit parking and peak hour traffic enforcement. The residential permit parking program is responsible for the sale of parking permits and parking enforcement in these areas. Participation in the program...

  Resurfacing

This program provides for the contracted pavement surface treatment of the County's residential and rural roadway infrastructure....

  Roadway and Related Maintenance

Roadway maintenance includes hot mix asphalt road patching (temporary and permanent roadway repairs, skin patching, and crack sealing); shoulder maintenance; and storm drain maintenance, including erosion repairs, roadway ditch and channel repairs, cleaning enclosed storm drains, and repair and/or replacement of drainage pipes. Related activities include: mowing; roadside vegetation clearing...

  Snow Removal/Wind/Rain Storms

This program includes the removal of storm debris within right-of-ways and snow from County roadways. This includes plowing and applying salt and sand; equipment preparation and cleanup from snow storms; and wind and rain storm cleanup. Efforts to improve the County's snow removal operation have included public snow plow mapping...

  Streetlighting

This program includes investigation of citizen requests for new or upgraded streetlights; design or review of plans for streetlight installations on existing roads, bikeways and pedestrian facilities, and projects that are included in the CIP; coordination and inspection of streetlight installations and maintenance by utility companies; maintenance of all County-owned...

  Traffic Planning

This program provides for traffic engineering and safety review of road construction projects in the CIP; review of master plans, preliminary development plans, and road geometric standards from a pedestrian, bicycle, and traffic engineering and safety standpoint. The program also includes studies to identify small scale projects to improve...

  Traffic and Pedestrian Safety

This program provides for engineering studies to evaluate and address concerns about pedestrian and traffic safety and parking issues on neighborhood streets, arterial, and major roadways. Data on speed, vehicular and pedestrian volumes, geometric conditions and collision records are collected and analyzed. Plans are developed to enhance neighborhood and...

  Traffic Sign and Marking

This program provides for engineering investigations of citizen complaints about traffic signs, street names, pavement markings (centerline, lane lines, edge lines, crosswalks, raised pavement markers, etc.) and inadequate visibility at intersections. It also includes design, review, and field inspection of traffic control plans for CIP road projects and for permit...

  Traffic Signals & Advanced Transportation Mgmt System

This program provides for the general engineering and maintenance activities associated with the design, construction, and maintenance of traffic signals, the Advanced Transportation Management System (ATMS), and the communication infrastructure that supports these programs and the County's fiber optic network. Included in this program are proactive and reactive maintenance of...

  Transportation Community Outreach

The Transportation Community Outreach program's objective is to inform County residents of DOT's services, programs, and procedures; enhance their understanding of the Department's organization and responsibilities; enhance their ability to contact directly the appropriate DOT office; and provide feedback so DOT can improve its services. Staff works with the Public...

  Property Acquisition

This program is responsible for acquiring land for transportation capital projects and includes land acquisitions for other departments on an as-needed basis. This program administers the abandonment of rights-of-ways which have been or currently are in public use....

  Transportation Planning

The Transportation Engineering Planning Unit manages the Facility Planning, Bicycle and Pedestrian Priority Area and the Annual Bikeways programs. Prior to a capital project being funded for design and construction, it must first undergo Facility Planning. The planning process examines multi-modal transportation improvements that are in compliance with area master...

  Transportation Design

This program provides for the development of engineering construction plans and specifications for all transportation-related projects in the County's Capital Improvements Program (CIP). This includes the planning, surveying, and designing of roads, bridges, traffic improvements, pedestrian, bicycle and mass transit facilities, and storm drains; as well as the inventory, inspection,...

  Transportation Construction

This program provides overall construction administration and inspection of the Department's transportation CIP projects. This includes preparing and awarding construction contracts, monitoring construction expenditures and schedules, processing contract payments, providing construction inspection, and inspecting and testing materials used in capital projects. It measures and controls the quality of manufactured construction...

  Traffic Management and Operations

The Traffic Management and Operations program provides for the daily operations of the County's transportation management program that includes operations of the Transportation Management Center (TMC), the computerized traffic signal system, and multi-agency incident management response and special event traffic management. This program also provides hardware and software for the...

  Transportation Policy

This program provides for the integration of all transportation plans, projects, and programs to ensure Department-wide coordination and consistency. The program provides a strategic planning framework for the identification and prioritization of new County and State capital operating transportation projects and programs. The program advocates and explains the County's transportation...

  Tree Maintenance

The operating budget portion of the Tree Maintenance program provides for emergency tree maintenance services in the public rights-of-way. The program provides priority area-wide emergency tree and stump removal and pruning to ensure the safety of pedestrians and cyclists, minimize damage to property, and provide adequate road clearance and sign,...

  Vacuum Leaf Collection

The Vacuum Leaf Collection program provides two vacuum leaf collections to the residents in the Leaf Vacuuming District during the late fall/winter months. Vacuum leaf collection is an enhanced service which complements homeowner responsibilities related to the collection of the high volume of leaves generated in this part of the...

  Administration

The Director's Office provides overall leadership for the Department, including policy development, planning, accountability, service integration, customer service, and the formation of partnerships. It also handles administration of the day-to-day operations of the Department, including direct service delivery, budget and fiscal management oversight (capital and operating), training, contract management, logistics...