GVF turns 20

In 1990 the greater Philadelphia region was beginning to feel the growing pains of decades of suburban development. Traffic congestion was starting to affect the commute of the region’s workers and daily backups were becoming the norm. Before 1990, there was very little emphasis placed on workforce mobility, and there was a chasm between the highway builders and the highway users. All of that changed when the Greater Valley Forge Transportation Management Association was incorporated.
The Greater Valley Forge Transportation Management Association now known as GVF was the first of its kind in the state of Pennsylvania. Incorporated as a 501(c)4 non-profit transportation management association, the focus was placed on improving the commute of the region’s workers. GVF identified that the disconnect between the people building highways (PennDOT) and the primary user of the highway (You) would not improve on its own and that without fair representation during the project development process the region’s workers and employers would experience a slowdown in productivity. With that recognition, GVF began its mission to offer a forum in which the business community and municipal, county and state officials can collectively work on transportation issues affecting the Greater Valley Forge area.
GVF manifests the mission in a number of ways, some of which have had an effect on your commute whether you know it or not. We began operating commuter shuttles from regional rail stations to large employment sites, developing carpool incentive programs, and working with SEPTA to expand regional bus service. These programs were intended to remove cars from the road without taking commuters off the network. GVF understood that not every commuter will carpool or ride transit, so we worked with PennDOT and the Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission to identify strategic projects in the region that will have significant positive impacts for commuters. From this initiative came the reconstruction of US 202 in King of Prussia, the ongoing reconstruction of US 202 in Chester County, the reconstruction of PA 309 in eastern Montgomery County, and the recent reconstruction of the I-76 and I-476 Interchange. GVF contributed during the planning process for each of these projects but continued involvement during the construction phase by operating public information campaigns to educated commuters about the projects.
When GVF formed in 1990, we were the very first transportation management association in the state of Pennsylvania, and among the first in the United States. In the 20 years since our incorporation each of the counties in southeastern Pennsylvania supports similar associations. Funded partially from base grants provided by PennDOT and from membership dues, GVF has been at the forefront of the public private partnership trend. It is our connection in both the public realm and private industry that allows us to address the needs of the region.
In the past 20 years GVF has been an industry leader and we will continue to lead in during our next 20 years. We have evolved our offerings to focus on coalition building to build broad based support for projects of regional significance and impact. Along with specific projects, we are working with our corporate partners to address climate change issues and making positive impacts to our environment. We are active at the regional, state, and federal level on as an advocate for our region’s transportation needs. If you want to be involved with any of our activities, or want to learn how GVF can help your business, visit our website at www.gvftma.com. Thank you for the past 20 years, and we look forward to the next 20 years!