Transportation — including how to improve the experience for pedestrians, bicyclists and transit users — will be the subject of the Mayor and Council’s Thursday, June 10 special meeting, as discussion of the Rockville 2040 Comprehensive Plan draft continues.
Rockville’s comprehensive plan sets visions and goals for the future of the city, with practical policies and actions to achieve those goals.
The transportation element of the draft plan states that Rockville’s transportation system “will provide … multiple options for moving about the city via a variety of modes and paths.” The plan also envisions enhancing connections to the broader region, managing traffic and congestion, and continuing to transition to a more walkable community, while emphasizing safety through a commitment to Vision Zero.
“Working to reduce the number of trips made in vehicles during a transition to more walkable urban forms is important to achieving a number of safety and sustainability goals,” the plan states.
The draft plan includes numerous policies, such as improving access to transit services, such as buses and trains, reducing congestion, creating safer streets for pedestrians and bicyclists, and building better connections in and between the city’s neighborhoods.
(See the transportation element on page 55 of the draft plan: https://www.rockvillemd.gov/DocumentCenter/View/40921/Comprehensive-Plan-Elements—PC-Approved-Draft?bidId=#page=20.)
At their Monday, June 7 meeting, the Mayor and Council will discuss two planning areas that encompass Town Center (planning area 1) and Hungerford, New Mark Commons and Lynfield (planning area 3). The draft comprehensive plan is based on feedback gathered throughout the Rockville 2040 process, which included numerous listening sessions, citywide forums, open houses and other meetings, as well as analysis and discussion by the Planning Commission and city staff.