Planning study guidance

Find the guidance and tools to conduct and document a planning study.

Current guidance

It is highly recommended that all WSDOT planning studies follow the same signature review process detailed in the memo. The M2 Team provides subject matter expert review in a predictable and effective manner.
However, Proviso funded studies often have their own rules and regulations as well as specific directions from the Legislature.
There are also extra steps to this process if the planning study is a Planning and Environmental Linkages (PEL) study.

Explore active transportation-related considerations to develop a quality planning study.

Use this guidance to inform planning study recommendations in the context of statewide needs, priorities, and future system performance.

Use this guidance to include transportation-efficient land use considerations in your plan or study.

Consider priority design issues in the planning phase to reduce or redirect efforts during scoping and design.

Use this guidance to incorporate environmental considerations into planning studies.

Use this guidance to incorporate freight consideration in the planning study development.

Avoid maintenance issues down the road by including this guidance in your planning process.

Use this guidance to clarify your planning study recommendations in a way that WSDOT can support from a priority and programming perspective.

Use this guidance to include public transportation considerations in the process of developing planning studies.

Consideration of safety performance should be a part of the conversation throughout plan development (continuing through programming and design).

Discover how incorporating transportation operations tools into your planning studies will benefit the project through its lifecycle.

Excessive speed was a top cause of work zone collisions in 2024.

Work zones need our undivided attention.

96% of people hurt in work zones are drivers, their passengers or passing pedestrians, not just our road crews.