MPO Executive Board

Bristol Urban Area Metropolitan Planning Organization November 9, 2017 Board Members Present: Bill Sorah - Bristol, Tennessee Councilman Kevin Wingard - Bristol, Virginia Ambre Torbett - Sullivan County, Tennessee Matt Bolick - Abingdon, Virginia Tim Estes - Washington County, Virginia Michelle Christian - Tennessee Department of Transportation Donny Necessary - Virginia Department of Transportation Members Absent: None Others Present: Rex Montgomery Jay Detrick Mike Mucha Molly Gale Megan Allphin Mike Russell Andy Alden David Richardson Cory Osborne Katie Schwing Cameron Parker Candace Gump Troy Ebert Matthew Cox Ashley Davies David Metzger John Dew Call to Order / Roll Call: A Quorum being present, Chairman Ambre Torbett called the meeting to order at 10:00 a.m., November 9, 2017, in the Ewell L. Easley Annex Building, Bristol, Tennessee. Approval of Minutes: Bill Sorah moved to adopt the minutes of August 10, 2017 as submitted; seconded by Donny Necessary; motion carried unanimously. Comments from the Public: None Old Business: None New Business: Item A: TDOT Project Priorities [Presented by Rex Montgomery] The Tennessee Department of Transportation annually develops a 3- year Work Program of infrastructure improvements. In reference to the upcoming 2019-2021 Work Program, two projects were identified in Tennessee’s IMPROVE Act related to the Bristol MPO. These include: 1) A connector route between US 11E near Bristol Motor Speedway and US 11W near Pinnacle Parkway, and 2) Interstate 81 ITS (Intelligent Transportation System) expansion between I-26 and the Virginia State Line. As part of the development of TDOT’s 2019-2021 Work Program, the State has requested the MPO to prioritize these projects for consideration. The potential alignment of the connector route of the connector route between Bristol Motor Speedway and the Pinnacle was discussed. It was noted this project would most likely be constructed in phases. There being no further discussion, Bill Sorah moved the project priorities for TDOT’s Work Program be recommended as listed, the connector road between 11-E and 11-W as the first priority followed by the ITS expansion; seconded by Michelle Christian; motion carried unanimously. Item B1: Amendment 3# to the FY 2017-2020 Transportation Improvement Program [Presented by Rex Montgomery] The Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) documents how federal funds will be expended for transportation projects within the MPO’s Metropolitan Planning Area. TIP Amendment #3 incorporates state-wide funding for the Virginia Rail Project Grouping. The project funding is associated with the Highway-Rail Grade Crossing Safety Program. Specific to the Bristol District is $90,000 for inventory activities and $50,000 for administration. The process for project selection was questioned. Donny Necessary (VDOT) explained that no specific projects are identified and this was set aside for projects as needed. Localities can apply for these funds through VDOT’s SmartPortal application process. There being no further questions, Donny Necessary moved to adopt Resolution 17-06, approving Amendment #3 to FY 2017-2020 TIP; seconded by Tim Estes; motion carried unanimously. Item B2: Amendment #4 to the FY 2017-2020 Transportation Improvement Program [Presented by Rex Montgomery] The City of Bristol, Tennessee has been awarded Transportation Alternatives grant funding by the Tennessee Department of Transportation. The funding will be utilized for sidewalk construction along Virginia Avenue from the public housing units on Virginia Avenue, south of Hazelwood Street, to the exiting sidewalk at Virginia Avenue and Maple Street. The grant award provides $501,153 in Federal funds for the project. When matched with $125,288 in local funding, a total project budget of $626,441 is programmed for the sidewalk improvements. Because the project utilizes Federal funding, the project is required to be programmed in the MPO’s Transportation Improvement Program (TIP). As such, TIP Amendment #4 incorporates the Virginia Avenue Transportation Alternatives Grant into the FY 2017-2020 TIP as a new project. Michelle Christian moved to adopt Resolution 17-07, approving Amendment #4 to FY 2017-2020 TIP; seconded by Bill Sorah; motion carried unanimously. Page 2 Item B2: Amendment #5 to the FY 2017-2020 Transportation Improvement Program [Presented by Rex Montgomery] The Federal Highway Administration Tennessee Division has informed all cities and counties with fifty employees or more they must have an updated Self-Evaluation and ADA Transition Plan in place by December 2019 in order to receive Federal Transportation Funds. The Self- Evaluation consists of a list of physical barriers in the jurisdiction’s facilities and rights-of-way that limit accessibility of individuals with disabilities. Based on the results of the Self-Evaluation, the ADA Transition Plan provides a budget and implementation schedule for removal of the identified barriers. The City of Bristol, Tennessee is seeking professional services to complete the ADA Transition Plan and has requested to utilize Surface Transportation Block Grant (STBG) funds for the plan development. MPO approval is required to amend the Transportation Improvement Program to allocate STBG funding for the project. Programmed funds include $64,000 STBG and $16,000 local match for a total project budget of $80,000. Discussion incurred on the ADA Transition Plan development and the role of the consultant. Bill Sorah indicated city staff will be providing a substantial amount of the field work and the consultant will be developing the cost estimates and writing the plan. Donny Necessary discussed VDOT’s self-assessment which was conducted several years ago. VDOT would be willing to provide technical assistance as needed. There being no further questions, Michelle Christian moved to adopt Resolution 17-08, approving Amendment #5 to FY 2017-2020 TIP; seconded by Bill Sorah; motion carried unanimously. Item C: Safety Performance Measure Targets [Presented by Rex Montgomery] A key feature of the Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century (MAP-21) was the establishment of a performance-based planning and programming. Federal regulations require the State DOT and MPOs to define targets in reference to Safety Performance Measures, Pavement and Bridge Performance Measures, and System Performance Measures. For Safety Performance Measures, numerical targets are defined by the State DOT for: 1) number of fatalities, 2) number of serious injuries, 3) fatality rate, 4) serious injury rate, and 5) number of non- motorized fatalities and serious injuries. Both the Tennessee Department of Transportation and Virginia Department of Transportation have submitted safety performance targets to the Federal Highway Administration as part of their Highway Safety Improvement Program Report. The safety performance targets identified by TDOT and VDOT were discussed. The MPO has 180 days after the State sets performance targets to either adopt the State’s performance targets or establish their own targets. Due to the technical and administrative requirements for the MPO to develop and maintain performance targets independent from the State DOT, it is recommended the Bristol MPO support the State DOT targets. Because the Bristol MPO is a multi-state MPO, separate performance targets will be submitted for each State DOT. Tim Estes moved to adopt Resolution 17-09, supporting the Safety Performance Targets identified by TDOT and VDOT; seconded by Councilman Wingard; motion carried unanimously. Page 3 Item D: Tennessee Transportation Alternatives Program Endorsement The City of Bristol Tennessee is requesting Transportation Alternatives Program funding from TDOT to install sidewalks, crosswalks, and ADA-compliant infrastructure along the west side of a one-mile project corridor of Bluff City Highway and Edgemont Avenue, which includes both Haynesfield Elementary School and Tennessee High School. The corridor begins at the intersection of Lavinder Lane and Bluff City Highway and extends north, through the intersection of Bluff City Highway and Edgemont Avenue, terminating at the existing sidewalk at the Tennessee High campus. The City of Bristol, Tennessee has requested MPO endorsement of the project for the Transportation Alternatives Program grant application. Donny Necessary moved to adopt Resolution 17-10, supporting the Bristol, Tennessee Transportation Alternatives grant application; seconded by Michelle Christian; motion carried unanimously. Item E: Virginia Highway Safety Improvement Program Grant Endorsement Both the Town of Abingdon and the City of Bristol, Virginia have requested MPO endorsement for Highway Safety Improvement Program (HSIP) grant applications. The HSIP application for Bristol, Virginia would construct sidewalks and related pedestrian infrastructure at five locations within the City, three of which are associated with schools. All of the locations have been observed to have high pedestrian traffic. Bill Sorah moved to adopt Resolution 17-11, supporting the Bristol, Virginia Highway Safety Improvement Program grant application; seconded by Councilman Wingard; motion carried unanimously. The Town of Abingdon, Virginia is requesting HSIP grant funds for sidewalk construction, including curb and gutter, on Clark Street from Whites Mill Road to Court Street, and sidewalk construction on East Main Street, east of Hillman Highway. The proposed East Main Street sidewalk would connect a gap between two existing sidewalks. Donny Necessary moved to adopt Resolution 17-12, supporting the Town of Abingdon Highway Safety Improvement Program grant application; seconded by Matt Bolick; motion carried unanimously. Other Matters of Mutual Interest: Item A: Virginia Tobacco Commission Grant Application Washington County, Virginia requested MPO endorsement for the Last-Mile Broadband Program funded by the Virginia Tobacco Commission. The County, in partnership with CenturyLink, is applying for Last-Mile funding to provide new fiber and broadband access for six unserved/underserved areas of the County. In response to questions on the funding, it was confirmed by Washington County that the County would be the recipient of the grant funds and not the private provider. Page 4 Bill Sorah moved to adopt Resolution 17-12, supporting the Washington County Last-Mile Broadband application to the Virginia Tobacco Commission; seconded by Donny Necessary; motion carried unanimously. Item B: District Three Public Transit Mike Mucha, with the Virginia Department of Rail and Public Transportation, provided a summary on the on-going coordination between District Three Transit, Bristol Virginia Transit, and the MPO on funding transit service for the Town of Abingdon. District Three currently provides transit service for Abingdon utilizing FTA Section 5311 rural funding. Now that Abingdon has been designated by the Census as part of the Bristol Tennessee-Virginia Urbanized Area, rural funding is no longer eligible for that service. The long term solution is for District Three to become a designated recipient for FTA Section 5307 urban funding. Until that eligibility process can be completed, DRPT is researching a stop-gap funding source to continue the service. Currently, Bristol Virginia Transit is the only recipient of FTA Section 5307 funding in the urbanized area. Item C: I-81 Corridor Coalition Andy Alden, Executive Director of the I-81 Coalition, provided a presentation on the Coalition’s objective to improve Safety and efficiency of commercial and personal travel along the interstate corridor. Travel statistics of the corridor were presented as well as discussion of on-going research projects and future challenges. Item D: 2018 MPO Meeting Dates February 8, 2018/10:00 AM May 10, 2018/10:00 AM August 9, 2018/10:00 AM November 8, 2018/10:00 AM Adjournment: There being no further business to discuss, the meeting was adjourned. Page 5