The document summarizes the National TOD Database, which is a tool created by the Center for Transit-Oriented Development to provide data on over 4,600 transit stations across the United States. The database compiles demographic, economic, and transportation data from various sources to allow analysis and comparison of neighborhoods around transit stations. It is intended to help promote sustainable development, transit planning, and research on the benefits of transit-oriented development. The document outlines the features and capabilities of the database for analyzing individual stations and transit systems.

1. National TOD
Database
National Housing Conference
Partners in Innovation Conference
Denver CO July 27 2010
Scott Bernstein, Center for Neighborhood Technology
&
Sasha Forbes, Reconnecting America

2. What is the H+T Affordability Index?
–A tool to measure the 2 largest household costs –
housing and transportation – by neighborhood.
–Prepared for all 161,000 neighborhoods (Census
Block Groups) in 337 regions of the US w/80% of US
population
H+T Affordability Index Equation
H+T Index = (Housing Costs + Transportation Costs)
Income

3. The Meaning of Drive ‗til You Qualify—
Transport Costs Can Approach or Exceed
Housing Costs for Working Households
% Income
10-15 miles out
Miles

4. Why a TOD Database?
• Revealing the value of transit requires
data from many sources
• Needed a tool that allows you to quickly
warehouse data for the purpose of
creating new knowledge and
understandings
• Existing networks weren‘t dedicated to
producing the tool

5. Got Transit?
History - CTOD Database
• Initially funded by FTA
(2005) then HUD then by
FTA/HUD/Surdna
• Tool to measure & project
transit demand
• Identifies existing &
potential TOD Markets &
their benefits
• Goal: Accelerate practice
& commitment to high
performance TOD
Realizing the Potential: Expanding Housing
Opportunities Near Transit
by Center for Transit-Oriented Development
for FTA and HUD

6. CTOD TOD Database--Updated
(Total = 4,610 Transit Stations)
Includes:
• Heavy Rail
• Rail Rapid Transit
• Light Rail
• Trolley
• Streetcar
• Bus Rapid Transit Source: 2003 National Transit Atlas Database,
• Monorail Transit Agencies, Federal Transit Administration,
• Skyway CNT (Stations as of December, 2007)

7. Spans 3,572 Existing Stations
Across 9 Service Types
Existing Stations by Service Type
SKYWAY
Monorail
Cable Car
Service Type
People Mover
BRT Stations
Light Rail
Trolley/StreetCar
Commuter Rail
RRT
0 200 400 600 800 1000 1200 1400 1600
Stations

8. Building the Database
Methodology
• Created using the 2003
National Transit Atlas
Database (NTAD)
• Contacted transit agencies
for updated route & station
GIS files
• Types of data collected:
– 2000 Census demographics
– LED & CTPP Employment &
Business Type Statistics
– Housing and Transportation
(H+TSM) Affordability Index

9. Data at a Neighborhood Level
• GIS used to
proportionally assign the
data
• Drilling down to the
neighborhood using
census tracts, block
groups and blocks
Census Boundaries don‘t align
perfectly with Transit Zones,
particularly Census Tracts
Census Blocks allow us
Census Block to really focus on the
Groups offer detailed characteristics of
finer detail a neighborhood

10. User Friendly Features
• One Stop Shop - Over 40,000
characteristics for 4,610 stations
• Data on 3 levels:
Barrio Logan, San Diego, CA
– Transit Zone (1/2 mile radius
buffer around each station)
– Aggregate of Transit Zones
(accounts for overlap between
Transit Zones)
– Transit Region
• Presented in standard and custom
report formats
• Displayed on a map-based
website
• Can be downloaded in Microsoft
Word table or Excel spreadsheet

11. Data from Census 2000
• Summary File 1
– Housing units, Fruitvale Transit Village,
occupancy status, Oakland
tenure, household size,
race/ethnicity, gender
• Summary File 3
– Income, median value of
owner occupied housing,
gross rent, vacancy
status, vehicle
ownership, mode to
work, travel time to work
• Census Transportation
Planning Package
(CTPP)
– Place of residence/work,
and origin/destination

12. Longitudinal Employment-
Household Data (LED)
• Joint effort – US Census and Bureau of Transportation
Statistics
• 2002 – 08 data reported by household and workplace for
most states
• Quarterly workforce indicators
– Average earnings, number of establishments, job
creation/destruction, new hires
• Residence area characteristics
– Count of workers by sector, quarterly earnings, worker
age, median distance traveled to work
• Workplace area characteristics
– Count of jobs by sector, worker age, and monthly
earnings

13. Housing +Transportation
Affordability Index
http://htaindex.org
• 41 Characteristics
for each Census
Block Group
• 161,000 Block
Groups in all 337
Metro Areas
• Same Underlying
Geography as the
TOD Database

14. Preview—
The National TOD Database
Fruitvale Transit Village, Oakland, CA

15. Metro Denver Example

16. Clicking on Denver Pulls Up a View of Region
Highlighting Existing Fixed Guideway in Orange
and Proposed in Purple

17. Reports Portal Provides Shortcut to Census SF1 and
3, CTPP, LED + HTA Index, 40,000 measurements for
each transit stop

18. Existing System View Shows Current and Approved
RTD Lines w/Half-mile Buffers, Can Also Select
Quarter-Mile

19. View Shows Eventual Build-Out for All Existing
& Proposed Lines

20. Selecting Population Density, Report for All
Stations Generated as Either a Table…

21. As a List…

22. Or You Can Decide to Download as a
Spreadsheet…

23. Shown Here as a Word/Excel Spreadsheet

24. Selecting a Station Generates a Popup
Window…

25. For This Station at 18th & Stout Showing
Population, Net & Gross Density, Block Size

26. And Switching from Data to Streetview
Gives a 360 Degree Scroll

27. Same View for Union Station…

28. Or for Pepsi Center/Elitch Gardens

29. And Again With Streetview

30. Contrasting These Denver Stations with Planned East
Corridor Station Toward Airport: Low Density, Little
Urban Form—Near Montbello, Green Valley Ranch,
Foreclosure Hot-Spots

31. As Shown by the Streetview

32. Switching to HT View at the North Metro
162d Avenue Stop—H+T over 70% for AMI

33. Good Value Creation Potential But Will Take
Some Work to Reduce H+T To Affordability

34. System Easily Shows Structure of Existing and
Proposed Systems for Benchmarking--Chicago

35. San Juan PR

36. Charlotte NC

37. Portland OR

38. LA & Southland CA

39. Greater Metro NYC

40. New Orleans LA

41. Tucson AZ Modern Streetcar

42. Will Meet Phoenix LRT If Sun Corridor Rail
Connects the Two

43. SF Bay Area

44. Washington DC Meets Northern VA &
Baltimore MD

45. Which Continues to Pursue Expansion

46. Cleveland GRTA Hosting Leadership Development
on Regional Economic Strategy

47. Extensive Coverage in Metro Philadelphia

48. Sound Transit Connects Seattle Tacoma
and Cascadia Region

49. Using the Tool to Sort Station Areas by
Place Type

50. Generate Standard Reports
• Residential densities
• Journey to work
• Where workers live by occupation
• Auto and non-auto commute to work by
industry
• Vehicles per worker for households under
poverty status
Or create custom reports of your choosing!

51. Using the Database to Promote
Sustainable & Livable Communities
• Planners and Developers interested
in identifying underutilized TOD
markets for residential, commercial
and economic development
• Transit agencies interested in the
joint development potential of their
real estate holdings Pearl District, Portland, OR
• Transportation planners interested in
origin and destination commute
patterns within a specific transit zone
or corridor
• MPOs/Regional Councils preparing
consolidated land use and
transportation plans looking to identify
priority development areas
• Researchers working at local and/or Portland, OR
national level on transit access issues
related to affordable housing,
minority, low-income, elderly, or
disabled persons

52. Developing Strategic TOD Plans for
Deploying Underutilized Assets

53. Helping Justify Reduced Parking
in TOD Areas—Housing
For People Not Cars

54. Identifying Strong & Weak
Local Retail Market Potential

55. The Downeaster as a Model for Continued and
Enhanced Regional Cooperation and Strategy
• Serves a largely rural
corridor NE from Boston
through NH to Portland ME
(the other)
• Needed a focus on
community benefits to get
public & private buy-in
• Resulted in support from
community leaders,
investors, Gov. Baldacci,
legislature & USDOT

56. Boston – Portland
CBSA
•288 Stations in 2000
•10 in Downeaster Corridor
•Expansion to Freeport, Brunswick
•396,000 HHs in 2000, 16% of total
•Will grow to 752,000 or 24% in 2030
•Growth of 356,000 almost ½
of Projected Regional Growth
•Only NY, LA, Bay Area & Chicago
Will See More TOD HHs
•Corridor to NE is a chain of rural
cities
•Extension two stops to Freeport &
Brunswick will link to Maine Eastern
RR to Rockland

57. Portland Old Orchard Bch
Saco-Biddeford
Wells
Wells
Dover
Examined each station area’s
Demographics, housing,
Commercial, economics
Durham
Haverhill
Woburn
Boston
Exeter

58. Downeaster Expansion Benefits Study in 2008
Projected by 2030-
• Cumulative • $2.4 B in annual
construction of $7.2B resident and visitor
• Const/rehab of 42k hu purchasing power
+ 6.8M sf commercial • $75 M in annual new
• Over 17,000 jobs state and local tax
• $244 million in annual revenue
transport cost savings • Affordable housing
required by State law
Broke ground last month!
Will be completed Fall 2012

59. Putting the TOD Database
to Work
• New map-based
website
• Limited to CTOD
partners & FTA
currently
• Beta-test just
completed-thank you!
• Working on
strategy
to release to wider
audience in
4-6 weeks

60. Coming Soon to a
Station Near You
• Release to limited audience – advisory review
team representing different stakeholders
• Collect & synthesize feedback
• Make system improvements & enhance
applications—EG, Include updated Census 2010
(in 2012) and ACS 2005-2009 data this winter
• Dissemination
– Create users guide & users group
– Develop a ―train the trainer‖ curriculum
– Prepare & implement a marketing plan

61. Thank You! CTOD Contacts for the
National TOD Database Are:
Nadine Fogarty
nfogarty@strategiceconomics.com
Maria Choca Urban
maria@cnt.org
Abby Thorne-Lyman
athorne@reconnectingamerica.org