Title
FY2018-27 TIP Update (30 minutes)
Aaron Cain, LPA Staff
Narrative
On June 22, 2017 NCDOT awarded CMAQ grants to DCHC MPO (see attached letter, revised July 31, 2017). All projects that were submitted and approved by the MPO were awarded their full funding request. In addition, the FY2018-27 Draft State Transportation Improvement Plan (STIP) was released on June 28, 2017. Several projects that were previously unfunded are now funded in the STIP (no DCHC projects were removed), which was approved by the State Board of Transportation last week. These projects are shown in the attached document.
The CMAQ and STIP projects, plus the STBDGA projects that have been reviewed by the MPO TC and Board, will form the Transportation Improvement Plan (TIP). On August 1, 2017, NCDOT notified LPA staff that the deadline for approval of the TIP has been pushed back to November 15, 2017. This will allow LPA staff to further develop the TIP for TC and Board review. Per the DCHC MPO Public Involvement Plan, the Draft TIP must be published for a 21-day public comment period prior to adoption by the MPO Board. LPA staff will ask the Board to release the Draft TIP for public review and comment at its October meeting and hold a public hearing at the November meeting, prior to adoption by the Board.
There are three carryover projects in the Draft STIP that the TC recommended removing from the TIP and scoring in the upcoming SPOT 5.0 process:
I-5702A - Managed lanes on I-40 from US-15/501 to the Durham Freeway;
I-5702B - Managed lanes on I-40 from the Durham Freeway to Wade Avenue; and
P-5710 - Grade separation of the Norfolk Southern line at Blackwell and Mangum streets.
Division 5 staff has concurred with not scoring P-5710 in SPOT 5.0. However, there is concern from NCDOT and CAMPO staff (whose concurrence is required for the removal of I-5702B) regarding the removal of the managed lanes projects. While equity concerns and issues with funding higher priority projects within the I-40 corridor are acknowledged, there is a desire to allow the Regional Toll Study that is underway to continue, as well as planning and environmental studies, which will provide additional information about these projects. Therefore, LPA staff has conferred with NCDOT and CAMPO staff and the parties have agreed that should the managed lanes projects remain in the TIP and scored in SPOT 5.0, once the scoring for SPOT 5.0 is released in spring 2018, LPA staff can work with NCDOT to program the managed lanes projects in such a way that other projects are potentially not unduly affected by the corridor cap and may be programmed.
Recommendation
TC Recommendation: The TC recommended that the three projects listed above not be included in the FY2018-27 TIP and not be scored in SPOT 5.0. However, further discussion with NCDOT and CAMPO staff have resulted in a substitute proposal by staff to keep projects I-5702A and I-5702B in the upcoming FY2018-27 and rescore those projects for SPOT 5.0 with further discussion on the programming of those projects for the FY2020-29 STIP that could allow for other projects in the I-40 corridor to have access to funding.
Board Action
Board Action: Not include project P-5710 in the FY2018-27 TIP and not have the project scored for SPOT 5.0. For projects I-5702A and I-5702B, either remove the projects from consideration in SPOT 5.0 and not include them in the FY2018-27 TIP, or allow them to be scored in SPOT 5.0 with the understanding that LPA staff will work with NCDOT during the development of the FY2020-29 STIP to address the corridor cap and funding of other priority projects.