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HomeMy WebLinkAboutAgenda 06-04-2019 12-5 - Information Item - Memorandum RegardingOrange County’s Role in Transportation Decision Making Processes 1 PLANNING & INSPECTIONS DEPARTMENT Craig N. Benedict, AICP, Director Administration 131 W. Margaret Lane (919) 245-2575 Suite 201 (919) 644-3002 (FAX) ORANGE COUNTY P. O. Box 8181 www.orangecountync.gov NORTH CAROLINA Hillsborough, NC 27278 MEMORANDUM TO: Board of County Commissioners FROM: Nishith Trivedi, Orange County Transportation Planner CC: Craig Benedict, Orange County Planning Director Tom Altieri, Comprehensive Planning Supervisor DATE: June 4, 2019 SUBJECT: Orange County's Role in Transportation Decision Making Processes Attachment: Orange County's CTP/MTP/STIP This memorandum is to provide a general overview to the Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) on the role it plays in various transportation decision making processes. When Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century (MAP-21) and Fixing America's Surface Transportation Act (FAST Act) were signed into law, transportation planning, funding, and overall decision-making process became performance-based. States across the Country have established their own unique data driven procedures in an effort to assist the states in meeting national performance targets. This data driven process is required by the states to receive federal funding, including for Metropolitan and Rural Planning Organizations (MPO/RPO). In 2013, North Carolina General Assembly passed the Strategic Transportation Investment (STI) law and established a quantitative process for federal and state transportation funding, including the Strategic Prioritization of Transportation (SPOT). While the state and MPO/RPOs must continue to follow the original transportation decision- making process commonly known as the 3C principle (Continuing, Comprehensive and Cooperative) from the 1962 Federal Aid Highway Act, now they are to base their decisions on data driven information. Orange County plays an important role in shaping its transportation network as an active voting member in Durham-Chapel Hill-Carrboro Metropolitan Planning Organization (DCHC MPO), Burlington-Graham Metropolitan Planning Organization (BG MPO) and Triangle Area Rural Planning Organization (TARPO). Orange County identifies and advances projects through the MPO/RPOs Comprehensive Transportation Plan (CTP), Metropolitan Transportation Plan (MTP), and SPOT processes. A summary of each is provided below and in the attached diagrams. Orange County CTP • BOCC adopts local plans, the transportation elements of these plans are incorporated into the County's 3 CTPs (DCHC MPO, TARPO and BG MPO), such plans are: o Orange County Transit Plan and o Access Management Plans/Collector Street Plans o Small Area Plans and Comprehensive Plan 2 • The CTP is the County's overall multimodal transportation vision — without a planning horizon. • MPO/RPO and County staff presents CTP to BOCC for comments throughout the MPO/RPOs two year planning process. o CTPs are updated periodically and may be amended at any time. Orange County MTP • BOCC reviews and comments on the County's 2 MTPs (DCHC MPO and BG MPO) as they are presented at various stages of the planning process. o The MTP's are updated every four years and must be consistent with the STIP. • The MTP is a financially constrained multimodal plan with a 20 or 30 year horizon year for the County, split among DCHC MPO and BG MPO. o TARPO not required to have an MTP o The two MPOs use different Transportation Regional Models in evaluating their quantities based their respective decision making process and in accordance with state and federal law. ■ DCHC MPO uses the Triangle Regional Model (TRM) ■ BG MPO uses the Piedmont Triad Regional Model (PTRM) • Identifies specific projects in the CTP with their associated costs and determines which ones to pursue based on the MPOs limited financial resources. SPOT Processes • BOCC identifies and approves County Priorities to pursue in state's SPOT process for consideration in the state's Strategic Transportation Improvement Program (STIP), every other year. o County staff presents County Priority list for BOCC's consideration with Orange Unified Transportation Board's recommendations. ■ Approved County priorities not in the CTP/MTP are pursued by County staff through the MPO/RPO during future updates or amendment processes. o County also receives an update on the state's draft and adopted STIP at the completion of the process. • Updated every two years and processed through MPO/RPO's unique SPOT project selection process. o DCHC MPO submits only projects identified in the MTP. o TARPO does not require CTP consistency but does use geographic equity. o BG MPO requires that local jurisdictions filter their projects to a matrix before submitting to MPO for consideration. • MPO/RPO conducts public process and its policy boards approve a very limited number of projects for submission to NCDOT. The County plays important roles in each of these transportation decision making processes. MPOs and RPOs also go through extensive public participation in accordance with their Public Involvement Plans to ensure transparency throughout the process. County staff is also actively involved in a regional corridor studies for US 15/501 in Chapel Hill, by attending public meetings and providing comments as the study is brought before the BOCC. Orange County's role in the transportation decision making process occurs through the MPO/RPO, consistent with the 3C principle (Continuing, Comprehensive and Cooperative), state, and federal law. 2 3 Transportation planning staff will continue to keep the BOCC apprised of these processes. Feel free to contact staff with any questions. 3 Info Item Oran a County's CTP MTP STIP4 x.x g Comprehensive State required for MPOs and RPOs only, Multimodal Vision Transportation Plan 20+ Year MPO Federally required for MPOs only, Metropolitan Must be fiscal constraint Transportation Plan NCDOT Prioritization- SPOT* 4STIP* - a year process 1 �ransportati mprovemen Funded projects, ogra r fSTI Includes MPO's TIPS plus rural projects year mmitt Federal Approval of first 4 years veto mental SPOT — Strategic Prioritization of Transportation STIP — State Transportation Improvement Program 5 Orange County"s CTP MTP STIP DCHC MPO, BG MPO and �DCHC MPO and BG MPO BOCC approved County TARPO only Transportation Priorities *Updated periodically *Updated every 4 years for SPOT *Amended on as needed bases -Amended on as needed bases -Every other year County's Transportation County's Financially DCHC MPO, BG MPO and Vision constrained version of CTP TARPO individualized SPOT project selection process Orange County locally adopted Plan(s) Data driven using Triangle *Access Management Plan Regional Model and *County Transit Plan Piedmont Triad Regional -Small Area/Comprehensive Plan Model CTP — Comprehensive Transportation Plan MTP — Metropolitan Transportation Plan