3rd Annual Border to Border Transportation Conference To Be Held in El Paso

The 3rd Annual Border to Border Transportation Conference has been scheduled for November 16-18, 2010 at the El Paso Convention Center, and it is being hosted by the El Paso MPO.  It is being coordinated and organized by both the El Paso MPO and the Hidalgo County MPO.  Below you will find the Call for Papers and Registration form for the conference.

Call for Papers
Registration Form

"Planning for Sustainable Transportation in the 21st Century" Workshop

A workshop on sustainability will be held at the NCTCOG offices in Arlington on March 23, 2010.  The announcement and agenda can be found at the links below.

Workshop Announcement
Final Agenda

Interagency Partnership on Sustainable Communities  (Livability Initiative)

Earlier this year, DOT, HUD, and EPA announced an interagency Partnership for Sustainable Communities to help improve access to affordable housing, provide more transportation options, and lower transportation costs while protecting the environment in communities nationwide.  The DOT Press release and a link to a recent Center for Transportation and Environment (CTE) webcast that discussed the interagency partnership are provided below. 

Press Release
Webcast

Climate Change and Transportation - Questions and Answers

FHWA's Office of Environment and Planning has a transportation and global climate change website with frequently asked questions and best management practices on the subject.  Follow the link below for more information.

Transportation and Global Climate Change website

"Funding the Future" Report Available

A draft committee report on "Funding the Future" is available at the link below. It is the product of a project by TEMPO and TxDOT to produce an estimate of expected conventional revenues through 2035, and quantification of possible revenue enhancements.

Report

Context Sensitive Solutions Report Published

NCHRP report No. 642 Quantifying the Benefits of Context Sensitive Solutions has been published. This report presents guidelines for quantifying the benefits of applying the principles of Context Sensitive Solutions (CSS) to transportation projects. The report will be of immediate interest to the staff of state and municipal agencies with responsibility for planning, programming, developing, and operating transportation projects of all types and sizes.

Report

Examples of Current STIP Formats (State of Texas)

The presentation below provides examples of STIP formats currently used by MPOs throughout Texas.

STIP formats

Listing of Texas MPOs

A draft listing of the Metropolitan Planning Organizations In Texas is available below.  These are the results of a survey conducted in August 2008.  Information for each MPO includes: Metropolitan Area, MPO Region, MPO Name, Designated MPO, Fiscal Agent, Policy Board, and Technical Committee.

Texas MPOs

Eligible uses of MPO PL funds for legal services

The following letter, written by FHWA/FTA for the San Antonio MPO in November 2008, provides guidance on eligible uses of MPO PL funds for legal services; a similar letter was written to the CAMPO (Austin MPO) last year.  This guidance may be helpful to all 25 MPOs and TxDOT district offices.

Letter regarding the use of MPO PL funds for legal services

Using Visualization Techniques to Communicate Transportation Planning Data

A TMIP webinar on Data Visualization Techniques was held on November 13, 2008.  A recording of the session is available on the following page.

Website - TMIP Webinar

Projects of National and Regional Significance

The Federal Highway Administration has released its final rule on Projects of National and Regional Significance (PNRS) Evaluation and Rating. You may retrieve a copy of the final rule at: http://edocket.access.gpo.gov/2008/pdf/E8-25382.pdf

The PNRS program was established under Section 1301 of SAFETEA-LU to provide grants to States for critical, high-cost transportation infrastructure facilities that address critical national economic and transportation needs.  This rule establishes the required evaluation and rating guidelines for proposed projects.  Under this rule, a proposed project would be eligible for funding under the PNRS Program only if the project meets the eligibility requirements. Additionally, projects would be evaluated and rated as “highly recommended,” “recommended,” or “not recommended” based on the results of preliminary engineering, the project justification criteria, and the degree of non-Federal financial commitment.

On Friday, November 7 from 1pm to 2:30pm ET, the Federal Highway Administration Office of Freight Management and Operations held a special session of Talking Freight to discuss this final rule. Video and audio ecordings, a transcript, and slides of the session are available at: http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/freightplanning/talking.htm.

New Guidance Document on MPO Public Participation Available

The FHWA Resource Center recently developed a guidance document on MPO public participation.   The "Public Involvement / Public Participation Transportation Planning Process Resource Guide" has been developed to briefly review key issues in public involvement, summarize key requirements, and highlight a variety of notable practices, tools, and techniques.

Public Participation Guide

TMIP Special Report No. 288 "Metropolitan Travel Forecasting: Current Practice and Future Direction"

The National Academy of Sciences Special Report 288 was published in August 2008.  Based on interviews at five MPOs, the report analyzes how travel demand models and the resulting travel forecasts have been used in the regional planning process, and how the travel demand models are used to address emerging issues.  Links to the report and a cover letter from FHWA are given below.

Cover letter
Report

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