(a) Requirements. Title 23 U.S.C. §134 and 23
C.F.R. Part 450, require the metropolitan transportation planning
process to include the development of a transportation improvement
program (TIP) for the metropolitan planning area, containing a list
of projects that have been approved for development in the near term.
The list must be prioritized by project within each funding category
as described in §16.105(b) of this subchapter (relating to Unified
Transportation Program (UTP)). The TIP shall be designed such that
once implemented, it makes progress toward achieving the required
federal performance targets. The TIP shall include, to the maximum
extent practicable, a description of the anticipated effect of the
TIP toward achieving those performance targets and a demonstration
of the link between the investment priorities to those performance
targets. An approved TIP is then included in the statewide transportation
improvement program (STIP) which contains a listing of projects for
all areas of the state that are likely to be implemented in that identified
four-year period.
(b) Development of transportation improvement program
(TIP). The MPO designated for a metropolitan planning area, in cooperation
with the department and public transportation operators as defined
by 23 C.F.R. Part 450, shall develop a TIP and financial plan in accordance
with federal requirements. The department will provide an MPO with
estimates of available federal and state funds to be used in developing
the financial plan in accordance with §16.152 of this chapter
(relating to Cash Flow Forecast). The TIP shall cover the metropolitan
planning area and shall be approved and amended in accordance with
subsection (h) of this section. The TIP shall be updated and approved
in accordance with federal regulations and, in the discretion of the
department in consultation with the metropolitan planning organizations,
may be updated more frequently than every four years.
(c) Grouping of projects. Projects that are not considered
by the department and the MPO to be of appropriate scale for individual
identification in a given program year may be grouped by function,
geographic area, or work type (e.g., minor rehabilitation, preventive
maintenance). In nonattainment and maintenance areas, classification
must be consistent with the exempt project classifications contained
in the EPA conformity regulations.
(d) Projects excluded. The following projects may be
excluded from the TIP by agreement between the department and the
MPO:
(1) safety projects funded under 23 U.S.C. §402
(highway safety programs) and emergency relief projects, except those
involving substantial functional, location, and capacity changes;
(2) planning and research activities, except those
activities funded with National Highway System or Surface Transportation
Program funds other than those used for major investment studies;
and
(3) projects under 23 U.S.C. §104(b)(1), (b)(4),
and §144 that are for resurfacing, restoration, rehabilitation,
reconstruction, or highway safety improvement, and which will not
alter the functional traffic capacity or capability of the facility
being improved.
(e) Consistency and conformity.
(1) Relationship to the metropolitan transportation
plan (MTP). A project in the TIP must be consistent with the MTP.
(2) Relationship to the statewide long-range transportation
plan (SLRTP). A project in the TIP must be consistent with the SLRTP
developed under federal law and §16.54 of this chapter (relating
to Statewide Long-Range Transportation Plan (SLRTP)).
(3) Relationship to the Clean Air Act and State Implementation
Plan. In nonattainment and maintenance areas, a project selected for
the TIP must conform to the Clean Air Act (CAA) and the state implementation
plan (SIP).
(4) Conformity requirements. The MPO in each urbanized
nonattainment and maintenance area will be responsible for preparation
of the conformity determination requirements of the CAA and the Environmental
Protection Agency (EPA) conformity regulations. The department will
be responsible for preparation of the conformity determination requirements
in nonattainment and maintenance areas outside of metropolitan planning
areas.
(f) Format. The department, in cooperation with the
MPOs, will develop a uniform TIP format to produce a uniform statewide
transportation improvement program (STIP). The department in consultation
with the MPOs may make modifications to the format. The MPOs shall
submit electronic copies of their TIPs to the department in this format.
(g) Financial plan. A financial plan that demonstrates
consistency with funding reasonably expected to be available during
the relevant period shall be developed for TIPs by the MPO in cooperation
with the department and public transportation operators. Fiscal constraint
must be demonstrated and maintained by year.
(h) Transportation improvement program (TIP) approval.
The MPO and the governor shall approve the TIP and any amendments.
If the governor delegates this authority to the commission, the commission,
or if further delegated, the executive director, will approve transportation
improvement programs if the executive director finds the TIP has met
all federal requirements and the requirements of this subchapter,
including satisfaction of the project selection criteria developed
for the department's unified transportation program, as set forth
in §16.105(d) of this subchapter.
(i) Management. As a management tool for monitoring
progress in implementation of the metropolitan transportation plan,
the TIP shall identify the criteria and process for prioritizing implementation
of transportation plan elements for inclusion in the TIP and any changes
in priorities from previous TIPs in accordance with the factors specified
in federal regulations and §16.105(d) of this subchapter.
(j) Updating. The frequency and cycle for updating
the TIP must be compatible with the statewide transportation improvement
program (STIP) development process established by the department and
described in §16.103 of this subchapter (relating to Statewide
Transportation Improvement Program (STIP)).
(k) Modification.
(1) Amendments. The transportation improvement program
(TIP) may be amended consistent with the procedures established in
this section for its development and approval with the following stipulations.
(A) An amendment to the TIP is required in attainment
areas if there is a change:
(i) adding or deleting a federally funded project in
the TIP;
(ii) in the scope of work of a federally funded project;
(iii) in the phase of work (such as the addition of
preliminary engineering, construction, or right of way) of a federally
funded project;
(iv) in the TIP year if the MPO's project selection
procedure does not provide for selecting projects from the second,
third, or fourth year; or
(v) in funding sources or funding availability that
forces the addition or deletion of federally funded projects.
(B) An amendment to the TIP is required in nonattainment
areas if there is a change:
(i) adding or deleting a project in the TIP;
(ii) in a project's design concept or scope of work;
(iii) in the phase of work (such as the addition of
preliminary engineering, construction, or right of way) of a project;
(iv) in the TIP year if the MPO's project selection
procedure does not provide for selecting projects from the second,
third, or fourth year;
(v) adding Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality funding
to a previously approved project; or
(vi) in funding from non-federal funding to any combination
of federal funding or federal and state funding, or where the change
in funding sources or funding availability forces the addition or
deletion of federally funded projects or regionally significant state
funded projects.
(C) An amendment to the transportation improvement
program (TIP) is not required if there is a change:
(i) in funding sources, except as provided in this
subsection;
(ii) in the cost estimate of a project where, unless
federal law or regulation specifies a different cost estimate percentage
and condition relating to waiver of the amendment requirement for
a particular type of project, such change is not greater than 50 percent
of the approved federal cost estimate and the revised cost estimate
is less than $1,500,000, and the change in the cost estimate is not
caused by a change in the project work scope or limits;
(iii) in the letting date or funding date of a project
unless, in nonattainment areas, the change affects conformity;
(iv) in the control section job (CSJ) number of a project
unless the change also affects other characteristics of the project
or funding that do require an amendment as provided in this subsection;
or
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