Transportation Planning

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Rockland County and the MTA

Rockland County residents are the least served members of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA), as evidenced by the well-documented $40+ million value gap each year between what Rockland pays to the MTA and what it receives in return. MTA’s own recent analysis shows the gap is even greater.

The County of Rockland has conducted several Cost-Benefit studies to determine the benefits associated with the County's membership in the MTA. In addition, the County references MTA's own analyses in ongoing efforts to determine the value Rockland County receives.

County of Rockland MTA Value Gap Analysis Final Report (February 2012)

MTA Budget Division County-by-County Cost Benefit Analysis (March 2008)

The Rockland County Planning, Public Transportation, and Highway Departments work together with the Office of the County Executive, the County Legislature, local municipalities, the New York State Department of Transportation (NYSDOT), the New York State Thruway Authority, and MTA Metro-North Railroad to formulate transportation policy to improve Rockland County's multi-modal transportation network.

On a regional level, Rockland County works with Westchester and Putnam Counties, the New York State Department of Transportation (NYSDOT), the New York State Thruway Authority, and the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) to create a Transportation Improvement Plan (TIP) for the Mid-Hudson South region. The TIP lists all federally funded transportation projects for the region.

Rockland County is an active part of the New York Metropolitan Transportation Council (NYMTC), our area's Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) responsible for coordinating and administering federal funding for eligible transportation planning and construction projects. The NYMTC region includes Rockland, Westchester, Putnam, Nassau and Suffolk Counties and New York City.

Rockland County also participates in a number of federally mandated transportation planning programs, including the long-range Regional Transportation Plan (RTP).

Public participation in the transportation planning process is achieved through outreach via press and media, and through public forums as arranged by the Planning, Public Transportation and Highway Departments, Office of the County Executive, the County Legislature, and public forums sponsored by regional transportation agencies.

Learn more about getting involved in the NYMTC Regional Transportation Planning Process.

Major Regional Transportation Projects

Major regional transportation projects in which Rockland County has participated:

Transportation Planning Projects

Transportation planning projects that Rockland County has lead or is leading include:

Rockland County Railroad Crossing Safety & Quiet Zone Project

Rockland County is the lead agency to establish Quiet Zones at grade crossings along 23 miles of the CSX West Shore (River) Line in Rockland County under the Federal Railroad Administration Rule Part IV, Department of Transportation Federal Railroad Administration 49 CFR Parts 222 and 229 Use of Locomotive Horns at Highway-Rail Grade Crossings Final Rule. A quiet zone is a section of a rail line that contains one or more consecutive railroad crossings at which locomotive horns are not routinely sounded. The FRA established its Final Rule on the Use of Locomotive Horns at Highway-Rail Grade Crossings in 2006, which allows for Quiet Zones to be established under certain circumstances after supplemental safety measures are put into place.

The project is working to establish the required supplemental safety measures (SSMs) at the highway-rail grade crossings between Andre Avenue in Orangetown and Railroad Avenue in Haverstraw (Phase I). Phase II of the project involves six private crossings to the North.

The project is currently progressing with its Right-of-Way Acquisition phase to secure the small additional parcels needed to construct the necessary supplemental safety measures such as 4-quadrant gates.

Ongoing and future project actions/activities include the following:

Establish construction agreement with CSX
Continue to provide advanced funding to CSX (Railroad Force Account) for construction work
Create Highway Construction plans for outside of CSX ROW
Create the Utilities Review Plan
Create the PS&E (Plans, Specifications & Estimates) highway construction documents
Continuing NYSDOT/CSX review and approval of Construction Plans, Specifications and Estimates
Issue the construction bid for highway work, begin Construction and Construction Inspection Phases
Submit Completed Quiet Zone Application to FRA/CSX/NYSDOT
Final Quiet Zone Implementation

New York Metropolitan Transportation Council (NYMTC)

Since the 1970's, Federal transportation legislation has mandated that all urbanized areas with a population over 50,000 must have a designated Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) in order to qualify for Federal transportation funding. Created in 1982 as the MPO for New York City, Long Island and the lower Hudson Valley, the New York Metropolitan Transportation Council (NYMTC) provides a collaborative planning forum to address transportation-related issues from a regional perspective; undertakes studies for transportation improvements; forecasts future conditions and needs; pools the resources and expertise of its member agencies to plan for transportation and development in the region; and makes decisions on the use of Federal transportation funds.

The NYMTC planning area covers 2,440 square miles and a population of 12.4 million, which was approximately 64% of New York State's population based on 2010 Census counts.

Transportation Planning Products

NYMTC's work program is developed annually. It defines the priorities in the planning area and describes all transportation-related activities anticipated within a given program year. The work program also indicates which of these planning activities will receive federal funding. Its successful completion each year enables federal funding assistance to undertake planning activities by NYMTC's staff and its members.

Transportation Demand Management (TDM) and The 511NY Rideshare Program

The goal of Rockland's Transportation Demand Management (TDM) and 511NY's Rideshare Program (866-692-6668) is to improve mobility and access, reduce congestion and air pollution, and increase safety. These programs work to reduce drive alone travel by promoting walking, bicycling, carpooling, van pooling, public transportation, and other alternatives. The County works cooperatively with citizens, businesses, and institutions throughout Rockland and neighboring counties of Westchester, Orange, and Bergen.

If you are a business, employee, or resident interested in finding out more about transportation options, please contact 511NY Rideshare at 866-692-6668 or the County's Transportation Demand Management office at 845-364-2142.

General transportation information including bus and train schedules can be obtained by calling the Rockland Transit Information Center at 845-364-3333.

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