Minutes 10-03-2017 - Laserfiche WebLink

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9 The DCHC MPO, which is responsible for long-range transportation planning for Durham County and parts of Orange and Chatham counties, is updating its MTP. The MTP, which is required by Federal law, recommends major transportation projects, policies and strategies designed to maintain existing transportation systems and serve the region's future travel needs. The Plan must be fiscally constrained, which means that projected revenues must cover the anticipated costs. Projects must be in the 2045 MTP to receive any state and federal transportation funding through the State Transportation Improvement Program (STIP). Projects are drawn from the MTP and put forward to the State's prioritization process for inclusion in the STIP, which is a 10-year funding program. Alternatives Analysis An Alternative is a combination of a transportation network, which includes a set of highway, transit and other transportation improvements, and a land use scenario that depicts the distribution of population and employment for the year 2045. These Alternatives are then analyzed using the Triangle Regional Model (TRM) which forecasts future travel statistics based on assumptions concerning the highway network, transit service and other transportation facilities. It is very unlikely that one of the Alternatives in its entirety would be advanced as the Preferred Option. Most likely, the final MTP will be a combination of the various Alternatives. Due to the length and depth of the Alternatives Analysis, staff has prepared a presentation (Attachment 1) that summarizes some key areas of interest to Orange County. Greater detail on the Analysis and other process components can be found on the DCHC MPO website: http://www.dchcmpo.org/programs/transport/2045mtp.asp#tabs7 1 Attachment 2 is a list of Orange County (including municipal) major highway projects in the Alternatives Analysis. Any specific comments on the list are welcome at this time and may assist with the selection of highway projects to be included in the Preferred Option (draft 2045 Plan). The MPO staff has identified the projects least likely to be included in the draft 2045 Plan at the bottom of the first page and continuing to the second page of Attachment 2. In October, the MPO Board will decide on the list of projects to be included in the draft 2045 MTP that gets released for public comment. Transit, bicycle and pedestrian project lists are not yet available from the MPO. However, it is expected that the Orange County transit projects, which are to be funded through a combination of state, local, and federal funds, will be taken from the Orange County Transit Plan (2017). Orange Unified Transportation Board (OUTBoard) Comments The OUTBoard received a presentation from MPO staff at its September 20, 2017 meeting. Its comments are summarized in Attachment 3. Comments collected from the OUTBoard and any added by the Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) will be conveyed to the DCHC MPO Board, which also has a representative and alternate from the Orange County BOCC. MPO Next Steps The Alternatives Analysis has been released for public comment. Over the next few months, the DCHC MPO Board will use comments collected from the public and local governments to direct the development of a Preferred Option. The Preferred Option is the draft 2045 MTP which will be released in October 2017. The final 2045 MTP is scheduled to be adopted by the MPO Board in December 2017.