The Commitment Takes Shape - The 1980's |
 The hotly
debated decision not to build I-95 in the western portion of Mercer County led to rapid growth on Route 1,
which created the need to manage growth and traffic. Anticipating the new function Route 1 would play, the New Jersey Department of
Transportation announced plans for a major improvement project on the roadway. But business and government leaders recognized that
simply building new and bigger roads was not the only answer. They foresaw the need to manage the additional demand on the transportation
system by establishing carpools, shuttles, flexible work schedules and improved transit schedules.
In 1981, a study conducted by MSM Regional Council recommended forming a public/private partnership to address these transportation concerns. As a result, the Greater Princeton Transportation Management Association was formed in 1984 as an independent, non-profit organization. Initial funding was provided through a federal grant, with additional support coming from corporate leaders. The organization's mission was to develop and implement programs to manage the demand on an increasingly overburdened transportation system. Its first task was garnering support from corporations. Consequently, the association's early years were spent educating businesses, government and the public on the benefits of managing transportation demands and also soliciting support for the new TMA. Attracting support from companies such as Merrill Lynch, Bristol-Myers Squibb, ETC, Mobil and Princeton University, the TMA soon began to achieve the critical mass necessary to affect change. Some of our first tasks were to help develop a parking management program at the Princeton Junction Station, to establish vanpools from the station and to help set up a rideshare program at Educational Testing Service (ETS).
Traditional urban-based transit systems were no longer sufficient to meet the growing numbers of suburban commuters. In an effort to solve this pressing need, the TMA led a coalition to recommend service improvements to New Jersey Transit. As a result of all of our collective efforts, the New Jersey Department of Transportation recognized the value of TMA's and began to provide contractual financial support in 1987. We built a strong public/private partnership and momentum that would carry us into the decade of the 1990s.
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Shortly
after, we became best known for our efforts to promote a new transportation management concept - Flextime.
Flextime quickly became policy at FMC and Mobil. At the same time, new residential development was placing pressure on the
transportation system. Major developers such as Belle Meade Development Corporation turned to the TMA for help in developing a
transportation plan. Taking the issue further, the Greater Princeton TMA developed an award winning manual to help municipalities
prepare traffic management plans.
