Role of transit service providers in land development

Presently, many transit agencies in the United States are experiencing declining ridership and increasing dependence on government subsidies for operating costs. Encouraging transit agencies to invest in land development is one concept that has been proposed to mitigate the negative effects of decreased ridership and increased dependence on subsidies. This research aims to explore the practice of transit agencies investing and participating in land development. By means of an online survey among government planning agencies, land developers, and transit agencies, data was collected and analyzed to reveal trends regarding investment in land development, participation in land development, and the influence of government policies on transit's decision to invest. The analysis showed some trends that are consistent with the findings of the literature review. Those trends are the relationships between transit agency participation in land development and policies such as parking, initial funding, communication between stakeholders, recognition of the benefits of involvement, and the availability of land developer expertise. However, no clear trend was identified regarding the relationship between zoning policies and transit agency involvement in land development and the relationship between trip reduction ordinances and transit agency involvement in land development. Attitudes towards and awareness of the practice of transit investing and participating in land development were also identified. This study itself is helpful in identifying barriers that need to be overcome in order for transit agencies to reap the benefits from investing and participating in land development. Future research, perhaps with a larger study, will be able to confirm or deny these trends. A more detailed feasibility study is definitely proposed for future research, as is a study that takes into account user opinions on the practice of transit investing and participating in land development. (Published By University of Alabama Libraries