Mission Statement

The mission of the Department of Transportation's (DOT) General Fund supported programs 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 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 recommended FY24 Operating Budget for the Department of Transportation is $61,180,870, an increase of $5,034,142 or 8.97 percent from the FY23 Approved Budget of $56,146,728. Personnel Costs comprise 48.34 percent of the budget for 461 full-time position(s) and four part-time position(s), and a total of 283.78 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 51.66 percent of the FY24 budget.

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

County Priority Outcomes

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

• Thriving Youth and Families
• A Greener County
• Easier Commutes
• Safe Neighborhoods
• Effective, Sustainable Government

Program 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 FY23 estimates reflect funding based on the FY23 approved budget. The FY24 and FY25 figures are performance targets based on the FY24 recommended budget and funding for comparable service levels in FY25.

Initiatives

• Plant 1,200 street trees along roads and sidewalks that are adjacent to private residences and other locations to increase canopy coverage. The Chesapeake Bay Trust (CBT) Urban Trees Grant Program awarded the Department of Transportation (MCDOT) a grant for $362,740 to increase tree canopy in urban and underserved areas of the County. An initial amount of $148,233 was received in FY23 and a second installment for $148,233 will be received in FY24.

• Increase the number of condition inspections of short span highway bridge/culvert and pedestrian structures in Montgomery County. The condition inspection provides information on the current condition of the bridge structures and is fundamental in establishing the structural integrity and serviceability of a bridge. Deterioration of components or the adequacy of the structure, including the approaches and traffic safety features, can only be determined by a thorough condition inspection. The inspection program of short span structures enables the Department to be proactive in repairing or replacing smaller structures before they result in more costly repairs and public safety issues.

• Install a public safety fence atop the Wayne Avenue Garage in Silver Spring to restrict access to rooftops of nearby businesses.

Innovations and Productivity Improvements

• Completed Infrastructure Safety Analysis and developed recommendations for infrastructure/roadway improvements at ten (10) locations where the highest number of school bus monitoring program citations were issued. The analysis would determine if infrastructure improvements that address pedestrian and operational safety, while enhancing or maintaining the safety of children who are boarding and disembarking school buses are necessary or appropriate. These improvements may include additional or modified signage and pavement markings, geometric modifications such as curb realignments and median installations, or the need to add traffic signals or pedestrian hybrid beacons.
• Increase the number of traffic signals evaluated per year in the Traffic Signal Optimization Program to reduce vehicle delays and traffic congestion resulting from inadequate signal timing. This will enable the County to advance a four to six-year traffic signal review cycle, which is near the industry standard of three to five years, and move away from a 12 to 14-year review cycle. MCDOT is on target to review and replace 50 traffic signals this fiscal year.
• Increase Bikeshare maintenance to extend the life of stations by replacing obsolete ecoboards. Ecoboards serve as the operational intelligence of each Bikeshare station.

Program Descriptions

  Transportation Services General 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...

  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 is...

  Transportation Policy, Planning, and Project Development

This program formulates transportation and related environmental policy and provides leadership in developing a capital improvements program that achieves policy goals. In addition, this program provides coordination with regional entities to ensure compliance with environmental requirements and reviews developer plans to ensure that transportation infrastructure constructed by the private sector...

  Community/Transportation Safety

This program provides engineering studies and investigations that evaluate pedestrian and traffic operations and safety deficiencies, and includes the need for alternative pedestrian crossing signalization or beaconing; parking conflicts; streetlighting conditions, upgrades, and maintenance; traffic signing and pavement marking needs; and sight distance deficiencies on neighborhood streets, arterial roads, and...

  Transportation Infrastructure Construction & Maintenance

This program provides an effective and efficient transportation system, ensuring the safe and convenient movement of persons, bicycles, and vehicles throughout Montgomery County. The primary focus of this program is to proactively identify and address infrastructure within the County right-of-way that is in need of maintenance and to utilize industry...

  Non-Roadway Right of Way Maintenance

Elements supported under this program provide positive value to the quality of life for residents and visitors through ‘green infrastructure' maintenance activities located in the County right-of-way.Through scheduled maintenance and emergency response to hazardous conditions, priority activities associated with non-roadway maintenance include efforts to ensure the safety of all pedestrians,...

  Transportation Management, Operations and Emergency/Storm Response

This program supports the Department's mission to provide an effective and efficient transportation system to ensure the safe and convenient movement of persons, bicycles, and vehicles throughout the County through daily traffic management operations and response to emergency events such as winter snow storms, severe wind/rain storms, natural disasters, and...