Agenda - 09-05-2017-12-5 - Orange County Process to Submit STIP Projects to MPOs RPOs

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INFORMATION ITEM PLANNING & INSPECTIONS DEPARTMENT Craig N. Benedict, AICP, Director Administration 131 W. Margaret Lane (919) 245-2575 " Suite 201 (919) 644-3002 (FAX) ORAN En P. O. Box 8181 www.orangecountync.gov NORT1 t (.::AROI lea Hillsborough, NC 27278 MEMORANDUM TO: Craig Benedict, Orange County Planning Director FROM: Max Bushell, Orange County Transportation Planner Tom Altieri, Comprehensive Planning Supervisor DATE: June 26, 2017 (Updated August 24, 2017) SUBJECT: Orange County Process to Submit STIP Projects to MPOs/RPOs This memorandum is in response to some questions from Town of Carrboro and Orange County elected officials regarding a concept for a roundabout project at the intersection of Old NC 86 and Homestead Road/Dairyland Road (aka Calvander). This memorandum will provide greater detail about the process for generating project lists and explain the genesis of this particular project. Each Metropolitan and Rural Planning Organization (MPO/RPO) works in conjunction with its member jurisdictions (staff and elected officials) to create a project list to submit to the North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT) Strategic Transportation Prioritization (SPOT) process. The SPOT process occurs every two-years. In Orange County, the Durham Chapel Hill Carrboro MPO (DCHC MPO), the Burlington-Graham MPO (B-G MPO), and the Triangle Area RPO (TARPO) each issue a call for projects from member jurisdictions. Through the MPO/RPO process, the lists from each jurisdiction are refined to create an MPO/RPO-wide list of projects to submit to the SPOT process. Each jurisdiction is required to submit projects within the bounds of the schedule determined by each MPO/RPO as well as by NCDOT. Orange County follows a process to generate project lists for submission to the DCHC MPO for possible inclusion in the final MPO-wide list of projects submitted to NCDOT for consideration in the scoring (SPOT) process. Later, with the benefit of scores, additional coordination among the MPO and member jurisdictions, takes place to revisit priorities and assign local input points. Overall, the primary goal of this process is to ensure that the MPO submits competitive and viable projects, consistent with local priorities and with consideration to geographic equity. This process, which is repeated every two-years, includes a series of key elements, outlined below. • Staff reviews previous project submissions and prepares a draft list of projects for consideration through the process. Since the process is repeated every two years, the lists submitted to each MPO/RPO will often be similar to lists from previous years. • This preliminary project list is presented to the Orange Unified Transportation Board (OUTBoard) for consideration and approval.