MPO

Transportation Planning | The Role of the MPO | The TIP Process | Transportation Agencies

Transportation Planning

Transportation planning is essential to the continued growth of any community. Transportation promotes and facilitates the movement of people, goods and services keeping a community active and economically viable. Identifying funds to cover the cost of transportation improvements and the environmental impacts that must be taken into consideration before making them, make the transportation planning process a lengthy one. It is common for several years to pass between the identification and the implementation of a given transportation project, especially if environmental concerns are part of the project.

A significant element of the transportation planning process is the participation by members of the public in the development of the plan.

The Role of the MPO
A Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) is an agency created by federal law to provide local input for urban transportation planning and allocating federal transportation funds to cities with populations of greater than 50,000.

The MPO's mission is to provide comprehensive, coordinated and continuous ("3C") transportation planning for the safe and efficient movement of people and goods consistent with the region's overall economic, social and environmental goals.

Special emphasis is placed on providing equal access to a variety of transportation choices and effective public involvement in the transportation planning process.

There are over 300 MPOs across the country. Most MPOs are part of a city, county or area council of governments. The San Antonio-Bexar County MPO, however, is an independent agency.

MPOs were first required by the Federal Highway Act of 1962 to provide a "3C" transportation planning process by local, state and federal officials. In 1963, the City of San Antonio, Bexar County and the Texas Department of Transportation agreed to establish the San Antonio-Bexar County Urban Transportation Study (SABCUTS).

In 1977, the Governor of Texas designated the SABCUTS Steering Committee as the official MPO for the urbanized area of Bexar County. In 1978, VIA Metropolitan Transit Authority joined the agreement and the MPO designation continues to this day.

There are four standing committees that operate under the auspices of the San Antonio-Bexar County MPO:

Transportation Steering Committee (TSC) is the San Antonio-Bexar County MPO's policy body or board of directors.
Technical Advisory Committee (TAC) is responsible for technical review of the planning activities and the Transportation Improvement Program of the MPO.
Bicycle Mobility Task Force (BMTF) advises the MPO Transportation Steering Committee on bicycling issues for the metropolitan area.
Pedestrian Mobility Task Force (PMTF) advises the MPO Transportation Steering Committee on pedestrian issues for the metropolitan area.

The TIP Program and Process
The Transportation Improvements Program (TIP) is the MPO’s three-year short-range list of prioritized transportation improvement projects. These projects generally fall into six categories:

Capacity improvement projects (adding lanes)
Preservation projects (road reconstruction without adding lanes)
Operational/safety projects
Bicycle projects
Pedestrian projects
Transit projects.

As part of the urban transportation planning process, the TIP addresses federal regulations administered by the United States Department of Transportation. It is required, as a condition of the receipt of federal capital or operating assistance, to maintain the transportation system covered by the continuing, cooperative and comprehensive transportation planning process. Essentially, the TIP is developed to ensure the implementation of the Metropolitan Transportation Plan in an orderly manner.

Approximately thirty percent of our regional road network is eligible for federal aid. That thirty percent, however, carries the vast majority of our daily vehicle miles traveled. Local residential streets do not generally qualify for MPO funding.

The development of the TIP does not end the planning process. Once the TIP is prepared, the process must continue so that the following year's projects and programs can be selected and coordinated. The
continuing process is designed to ensure coordination with existing regional plans and programs to avoid duplication and planning inconsistencies.

The construction and improvement of roadways and transportation facilities proposed in the TIP will have a positive impact on mobility throughout an urbanized area. Some improvements will affect conditions only within the area in which they are located, yet the impact of others will extend far beyond their immediate locations. These transportation improvement projects can be expected to decrease accidents, reduce congestion, lower maintenance and operating costs, reduce air pollution, conserve energy, and help maintain a high level transportation system beneficial to the entire area.

An integral part of the TIP process is public involvement. The San Antonio-Bexar County MPO has used a wide range of outreach techniques to communicate its intentions and invite people to meetings so they can have their say in the transportation planning process. The MPO sought and received the grant that made this CD-ROM possible because it was interested in enhancing its efforts to reach out to historically underserved communities in San Antonio and Bexar County. (Click here for more information on the TIP process and the MPO.)

Transportation Agencies
Transportation agencies representing the federal, state, county and municipal governments participate in the MPO's transportation planning process. All of them are represented on the MPO's Transportation Steering Committee.