A Corridor of Statewide Significance (CoSS) is set of roadways, rail lines, and other facilities to support interregional travel within and outside the state. There are twelve designated CoSS in Virginia. The Commonwealth Transportation Board (CTB) is responsible for the designation and study of these multimodal corridors per the Code of Virginia, section § 33.2-353.

CoSS are described in further detail on the VTrans Travel Markets page. Please utilize InteractVTrans MapExplorer to view or download CoSS Components.

Regional Networks (RNs) refer to the major economic regions of the state and are based on the designated Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) areas in Virginia. MPOs are regions with a population greater than 50,000 in an urbanized area. The RNs encompass the MPO areas and include the whole county boundaries of any county that is only partly included as part of the MPO boundary.

RNs are described in further detail on the VTrans Travel Markets page. Please utilize InteractVTrans MapExplorer to view or download VTrans Regional Networks.

Activity Centers are defined as “areas of regional importance that have a high density of economic and social activity” and are associated with the Regional Networks (RNs). Activity Centers have been identified through stakeholder input. Please utilize InteractVTrans MapExplorer to view or download VTrans Activity Centers.

For the purposes of VTrans, Activity Centers are defined as areas of regional importance that have a high density of economic and social activity. The number and type of jobs within the Activity Centers was analyzed, and jobs were divided into three industry clusters:

• Freight-Dependent: An area where the majority of activity output is dependent on freight transportation;
• Local-Serving: An Activity Center that primarily serves the local population; and
• Knowledge-Based: An Activity Center that relies on skilled labor and serves a broader market than Virginia.

Activity Centers were then assigned to the cluster that matched the plurality of jobs in that Center. For example, an Activity Center with 20% freight-dependent, 60% local-serving, and 20% knowledge-based jobs would be assigned as a Local-Serving Activity Center. Please utilize InteractVTrans MapExplorer to view or download VTrans Activity Centers.

The Urban Development Area (UDA) Travel Market includes two types of growth areas:

1. Growth Areas developed pursuant to the Code of Virginia § 15.2-2223.1: The designation of these growth areas is voluntary, and any City, County, or incorporated Town with its zoning authority may choose to designate one or more UDAs. UDAs must incorporate principles of traditional neighborhood design (TND), which include, but are not limited to:

• pedestrian-friendly road design,

• interconnection of new local streets with existing local streets and roads,

• connectivity of road and pedestrian networks,

• preservation of natural areas,

• mixed-use neighborhoods, including mixed housing types, with affordable housing to meet the projected family income distributions of future residential growth,

• reduction of front and side yard building setbacks, and

• reduction of subdivision street widths and turning radii at subdivision street intersections.

2. Industrial and Economic Development Areas (IDEAs): Locally-identified industrial and economic development sites submitted to the Virginia Economic Development Partnership for the Virginia Business Ready Site Program (VBRSP) and with readiness tier 3 or higher are identified as the VTrans IDEA sites under the UDA Travel Market. Local sites are assigned a level of “business readiness” according to the following tiering categories:

• Tier 1: Raw land with interested seller

• Tier 2: Site controlled and marketed for development

• Tier 3: Zoned industrial/commercial, due diligence complete

• Tier 4: Certified as “infrastructure ready”

• Tier 5: “Shovel Ready” – permits in place

UDAs are described in further detail on the VTrans Travel Markets page. Please utilize InteractVTrans MapExplorer to view or download UDA Growth Areas or Industrial Growth Areas layers/datasets.

Urban Development Areas (UDAs) are designated by Virginia localities (Counties, Cities, and Towns that have their own zoning authority) through an amendment to their Comprehensive Plan. This Fact Sheet includes steps for designation of these areas.

Readiness status is determined and updated by the Virginia Economic Development Partnership (VEDP) as they receive new information. If you would like to update the Readiness status or some other information for an IEDA, please reach out to VEDP.