SMARTRAQ (Strategies for Metropolitan Atlanta’s Regional Transportation

SMARTRAQ (Strategies for Metropolitan Atlanta’s Regional Transportation and Air Quality), a five-year, $4.3-million investigation into the links between land use, transportation policy, air quality, and public health, has completed its first phase, an outreach program. The program solicited input from developers, public officials and lenders in the Atlanta region. Sessions were led by Gov. Roy Barnes, John Williams of Post Properties, and new urbanist financing expert Chris Leinberger. The insights gleaned from these sessions and additional research have been gathered in a synthesis report, “Trends, Implications & Strategies for Balanced Growth in the Atlanta Region.” In addition, project leader Larry Frank, collaborator Gregg Logan of Robert Charles Lesser & Co., and others have compiled the more detailed “Guidebook for Achieving Smart Growth,” which may be published in book form at a later date. SMARTRAQ’s other ongoing research projects include a travel survey of 8,000 households, which is intentionally sampled across different types of land-use patterns in order to get more accurate data, particularly from high-density, low-income areas, where researchers did extensive education to improve the survey participation.