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James River Association Transportation Technical Consultation - Richmond, VA

Image of the Virginia Capital Trail trailhead located adjacent to the River Education Center site.

U.S. DOT Volpe Center

Total Project Budget: $45,000 (~300 Volpe staff hours split between two employees plus travel for one (1) site visit)
Project Timeline: November 2023 – September 2024
Project Partners: National Park Service Chesapeake Gateways, U.S. DOT Volpe Center, James River Association
Project Deliverables: 1) Scope of Work document to prepare for the development of a Multimodal Connectivity Plan (pdf icon James River Multimodal Scope of Work); and 2) Funding Opportunities Memorandum (pdf icon Funding Opportunities Memorandum) to assist in finding sources that could fund the development of a Multimodal Connectivity Plan

Project Request and Purpose

National Park Service (NPS) Chesapeake Gateways (CHBA) partnered with the U.S. Department of Transportation’s (USDOT) Volpe Center (Volpe) to provide technical assistance to support the James River Association (JRA) in developing a scope of work for a Multimodal Connectivity Plan for JRA’s River Education Center (REC) site.

Project Purpose: To provide JRA with transportation technical assistance to study multimodal access to, from, and along its REC site to diversify transportation accessibility to the REC site and the James River from other parts of the city. The project focused on multimodal connections, including identifying potential funding sources for expanding multimodality, and preparing JRA and partners for the development of a Multimodal Connectivity Plan in the future that would complement the City’s Richmond Riverfront Plan, which calls for improved bike and pedestrian access to the James River.

Image from a bird's eye view of the newly constructed James A. Buzzard River Education Center located on the 0.85-acre site between Dock Street and the James River, proximate to Richmond's James River Park System in Richmond, VA.

U.S. DOT Volpe Center

Project Activities

The project team conducted a preliminary multimodal connectivity and funding analysis to prepare James River Association to produce a Multimodal Connectivity Plan that could augment the City’s transit planning, which included:
  • Facilitated, and conducted a two-day site visit to the REC site and critical destinations in Richmond’s downtown area to evaluate existing conditions of its transportation network, as well as to facilitate an in-person project partner engagement kickoff meeting (a second virtual project partner engagement kickoff meeting was conducted for those partners who could not attend the in-person meeting).
  • Drafted a Multimodal Connectivity Plan Scope of Work to move towards increasing connectivity between the REC site and the City of Richmond, as well as the greater region. This included an extensive existing conditions analysis structured into four scales: the site level, the city level, the county/regional level, and the inter-regional/statewide level. Each poses unique transportation implications for JRA and the City of Richmond. This document also includes a summary of transportation issues and opportunities, as well as the specific tasks that would need to be included in the future scoping of multimodal transportation projects.
  • Developed a Funding Opportunities Memorandum to identify Federal, state, local, and nonprofit programs that could financially assist future multimodal transportation planning and construction efforts.
The following key transportation challenges and opportunities for multimodal access were identified at the site:
Transportation Challenges Transportation Opportunities
  • Safety, accessibility, and visibility concerns due to a lack of bike/ped infrastructure (street crossings) along Dock Street
  • Inadequate parking at and surrounding the REC site to accommodate events during non-school hours
  • Limited connections to existing bike/ped paths and trails
  • Strategize streetscape improvements, specifically safety and pedestrian experience improvements, with the city
  • Construct multi-use trails to support active transportation modes and improve existing multi-use trails to enhance wayfinding
  • Create infrastructure to accommodate micromobility and micro transit services and encourage use of services
  • Increase water-based connections to lessen the reliance of land-based connections

  • Utilize shared parking opportunities at nearby sites to expand parking availability
A path with a bench and trees by it

U.S. DOT Volpe Center

Project Outcomes

The project addressed:
  • How to create an active and safe riverfront that is both equitable and accessible,
  • How to provide options to connect JRA’s REC site to Richmond’s downtown and various communities and tourism attractions within the Richmond area, and
  • How to scope and fund future transportation projects.

The documents produced for this project are intended to serve as planning tools. The Multimodal Connectivity Plan Scope of Work can be used by JRA to apply for grant funds to support the plan’s development or requests for proposals to develop it through a contractor. The eventual plan will cohesively connect the River Education Center with the surrounding Richmond community, through multimodal land and water-based options.

JRA and additional project partners are now well-positioned to apply for the funding documented in the Funding Opportunities Memorandum and can utilize detailed information from the scope of work. These documents provide context and will serve as guidance for ongoing efforts to provide multimodal transportation options as the REC site becomes more utilized within the community, specifically for JRA to develop a comprehensive plan for multimodal connections in Richmond and the surrounding area to its REC site.

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Chesapeake Bay

Last updated: July 23, 2025