The Mercer County Master Plan establishes a long-term framework to guide growth, transportation, and conservation across the county. Designed to shape the next twenty years of development, the plan builds on the concept of sustainable development, meeting the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own. The plan’s approach recognizes that economic vitality, environmental quality, and transportation systems are deeply interconnected and must be balanced to ensure a thriving, resilient Mercer County.

At the heart of the plan is the Three-Systems Framework, which focuses on the county’s Economy, Transportation, and Environment as interdependent systems that influence the quality of life for all residents. Through this integrated lens, the plan promotes compact, walkable, and mixed-use centers; directs growth toward transit corridors; and encourages development patterns that reduce stormwater runoff and preserve open space. The County’s goals include creating a balance between jobs and housing, improving access to public transit, enhancing safety and capacity on roadways, and strengthening greenway networks that connect communities and natural resources.

The Regional Action Planning (RAP) process guided the creation of this framework through a collaborative public dialogue involving residents, municipal representatives, and stakeholders. This process encouraged shared decision-making, coordinated local and regional priorities, and grounded policy choices in data and factual analysis. Between 2006 and 2007, a series of public meetings helped identify the county’s assets, assess growth opportunities, and develop measurable goals for progress. These measures include the jobs-to-housing ratio, housing affordability index, transit accessibility, and impervious cover; all key indicators for tracking sustainable growth.

Together, the Master Plan and its Mobility Element provide a blueprint for achieving balanced growth in Mercer County supporting economic opportunity, promoting accessible and multimodal transportation, and protecting the county’s environmental heritage. By aligning development with sustainability principles, Mercer County continues to advance a vision of connected, equitable, and livable communities for current and future generations.

At its core, the Mobility Master Plan creates a plan for development of County Highways and outlines the County’s Access Management regulations as they relate to each County Highway’s functional classification and access levels. The plan assigns a “Desirable Typical Segment” (DTS) for each County Highway segment which outlines its access level and ultimate right-of-way requirements. Each DTS outlines the desired design speed, number of travel lanes and turn lanes, shoulders, border areas and ultimate right-of-way. This information and associated charts can be found within the plan itself.

In 2016, this plan was amended to remove Mercer County’s former Transportation Development District (TDD). The 2016 Amended Mobility Master Plan Element and associated maps removed references to the TDD throughout the Plan and now reflect the TDD no longer exists. In 2020, the County adopted the Bicycle Master Plan Element which is a sub-element of the Mobility Master Plan. More information on the Bicycle Master Plan Element can be found here: https://www.mercercounty.org/departments/planning/master-plan-and-studies/2020-mercer-county-bicycle-plan-element-copy

Information: For further information, please contact: 

Matthew Lawson, Assistant Director of Planning, Mercer County 

mlawson@mercercounty.org