HPMPO Transportation Advisory Committee (TAC)

Attachment 1 MINUTES TRANSPORTATION ADVISORY COMMITTEE March 24, 2015 TAC MEMBERS PRESENT: Jim Myers –Lexington Neal Grimes – Thomasville Larry Warlick – Archdale Fred McClure – Davidson County Larry Ward – Denton Keith Volz – Jamestown Darrell Frye – Randolph County Bill Marley – FHWA Cheryl McQueary – NCDOT Board Division 7 TCC MEMBERS PRESENT: Greg Venable, Guy Cornman, Hemal Shah, Bryan Fulbright, Chuck George, Roger Jones, Jesse Day, Zeb Holden, Scott Rhine, Pat Ivey, Mike Mills, Chuck Smith, Diane Hampton, Jay Dale, Jeff Loflin, Lorelei Elkins, Darius Sturdivant, Heidi Galanti, and Carrie Spencer. OTHERS PRESENT: John Hanes (Transportation Planning), Vickie Embry (COHP Transportation), Cynthia Davis (High Point), Randy McCaslin (High Point), Leigh Gill (Citizen), Senanu Ashiabor (Intermodal Logistics Consulting Inc.), Ross Lackey (Citizen) RECORDING SECRETARY: Marianne Janiszewski, City of High Point Item 1: Reading of the Ethics Statement. Neal Grimes read the Ethics Awareness and Conflict of Interest Reminder. No one had any conflicts. Neal Grimes also reminded all TAC members that they must annually file the Statement of Economic Interest and Real Estate Disclosure Form with the State Ethics Commission. The deadline is on or before April 15, 2015. Item 2: Public Comment Period Neal opened up the public comment period. Leigh Gill, a private citizen from Walburg spoke in opposition to the chosen route for NC 109. Ross Lackey, a citizen from High Point stated that he and many other citizens do not see the need for the design of 55 MPH roads that lead from the city center to the suburbs. They would like to see available resources and energy be directed towards complete streets and intermodal transportation. He would like to see more sidewalks and bike lanes in the transportation design for High Point. There were no other speakers so Neal closed the public comment period. Neal stated that we still do not have a representative from Guilford or Forsyth County. 1 Attachment 1 ACTION ITEMS Item 3: Consideration of the January 27, 2015 TAC meeting minutes. There was no change to the minutes. Motion by: Jim Myers Seconded: Larry Warlick Vote: For: Unanimous Against: None Item 4: Consideration of amendments to the 2012-2018 Metropolitan Transportation Improvement Program (MTIP). Hi-tran TIP Project # TA-5670 has been listed in the State Transportation Improvement Program for several years as an unfunded project. In February 2015, NCDOT notified Hi-tran that they were being awarded $5.6 million in Federal funding to replace buses. In order to submit a grant application to the Federal Transit Administration (FTA), the project must be shown in the STIP as funded. The amendment request will go to the NCDOT Board of Transportation as a handout in April and for action in May. Hi-tran should be able to submit the grant application to FTA in July. The funding identified for PART is operations subsidy for the continuation of the Amtrak Connector. It is being programmed as FY15 to accommodate the deadline of funding lapse, but will be utilized for the period beginning July 1, 2015. Motion by: Larry Warlick Seconded: Jim Myers Vote: For: Unanimous Against: None Item 5: Public Hearing for the 2015-2016 Unified Planning Work Program (UPWP). As part of the process for approval, the Draft 2015-2016 UPWP must include a minimum 30 day public review and comment period followed by a public hearing held at a regularly scheduled TAC meeting. The public hearing notice was advertised in local 2 Attachment 1 papers, cable access television and on the HPMPO website. Neal Grimes opened up the Public Hearing. No one spoke. Neal closed the Public Hearing. Item 6: Consideration of the Certification of the High Point MPO Transportation Planning Process. Every year, prior to adoption of the Unified Planning Work Program, the MPO is required to certify its planning process and its compliance with various federal regulations including the Clean Air Act, the Civil Rights Act, the Americans with Disabilities Act, and the federal transportation authorizing legislation. The certification states that the MPO is in compliance with all federal requirements and is carrying out its planning process in the appropriate manner. The resolution is a necessary prerequisite for adoption of the UPWP. Motion by: Jim Myers Seconded: Larry Warlick Vote: For: Unanimous Against: None Item 7: Consideration of the 2015-2016 UPWP. The UPWP is the MPO’s annual budget and work plan. It lists the planning tasks that staff expects to perform and the work products that we expect to produce during the fiscal year. Our fiscal year runs from July 1st through June 30th of next year. The work program consists of three major divisions: surveillance of change, long-range planning, and administration. Each major division includes several line items under which the MPO can perform work. Included are updates to the LRTP and some funding for special studies. Staff is going to try to develop a bicycle plan for the MPO. Each line item includes explanatory text describing the customary work items for the line item, the rationale for performing the work, how much money we plan to spend on the line item and the work products that the MPO expects to produce during the upcoming year. The UPWP also includes a series of tables showing the sources of the funds used, the amount of federal funds used, the amount of the local match, and total expenditures for each line item from each funding source. The public will had at least thirty (30) days to review and comment on the UPWP. The public review period began on Monday February 2, 2015 and ended on Friday March 6, 2015. No comments were received during the public comment period. The draft was sent to NCDOT Transportation Planning Branch and Hemal made some comments and changes. Greg will send out the approved version. Motion by: Darrell Frye 3 Attachment 1 Seconded: Fred McClure Vote: For: Unanimous Against: None Item 8: A Proclamation Establishing Stand Up for Transportation Day. National Day of Advocacy Focuses on Transportation Infrastructure Funding The American Public Transportation Association (APTA) is making plans for a nationwide Stand Up for Transportation Day on Thursday, April 9, and is seeking a broad coalition of partners to participate in these events around the country. This is an opportunity to call attention to the importance of infrastructure investment and the need for a long-term surface transportation authorization bill. MAP-21, which is the federal surface transportation legislation, expires on May 31. APTA is encouraging local organizations and advocates who support public transit and highway investment to participate in these events, which are being held while Congress is on recess. So far, more than 90 events have been organized. The High Point city Council passed this proclamation at their last meeting. Hi tran, Greensboro, Winston Salem and PART all have events going on. The organizations also will be undertaking media and social media activities around the day and the need for more investment. "Stand Up for Transportation Day is a single day when all transportation organizations and their coalition partners unite in common purpose with a unified message," said APTA Chair Phillip Washington, who serves as general manager and chief executive officer of Denver’s Regional Transportation District. "It's time to set aside partisanship and once again act in the best interest of our country to repair, strengthen and build transportation infrastructure.” Motion by: Jim Myers Seconded: Fred McClure Vote: For: Unanimous Against: None Item 9: Consideration of the High Point Urban Area MPO 2040 Metropolitan Transportation Plan (MTIP) project list. The Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act (MAP-21) requires that all urbanized areas develop a long-range multi-modal Metropolitan Transportation Plan and update their plans on a regular basis. The Plan shall be reviewed and updated at least 4 Attachment 1 every four (4) years to confirm its validity and its consistency with current and forecasted transportation and land use conditions and trends. For MPOs that are in air quality maintenance areas, any major revisions to the MTP and/or the Metropolitan Transportation Improvement Program (MTIP) trigger an update of the Air Quality Conformity Determination Report (AQCDR) that must be jointly approved by the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), the Federal Transit Administration (FTA), and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). With the release of the draft Fiscal Years 2016-2025 State Transportation Improvement Program (STIP), an update of the MTP will be necessary to insure that the projects programmed in the draft Fiscal Year 2016- 2025 STIP and MTIP are modeled within the correct plan horizon years and remain a subset of the MTP. The 2040 MTP will include an updated fiscally constrained highway project list with planned road improvements placed in the time horizons 2021, 2030 and 2040 that will be used for air quality conformity determination analysis. CMAQ projects need to be included as well. The TAC will need to approve the fiscally constrained street and highway project list in March to complete air quality modeling for the 2040 MTP, Fiscal Year 2016-2025 MTIP and AQCD Report this spring. The State has come out with a draft State Transportation Improvement Program which has and air quality component to it the MPO’s decided to update the MTIP and the TIP process at the same time. Chuck Smith asked about the Jamestown Bypass being in the 2030 horizon year. Greg stated that that is when the project is expected to be finished, construction is expected to start construction in 2015. Motion by: Keith Volz Seconded: Cheryl McQueary Vote: For: Unanimous Against: None Information Items: Item 10: Presentation on the State Transportation Improvement Program (STIP) impact. A representative from each Division gave a presentation on the results of the draft TIP. Item 11: MPO 101. Bill Marley from the FHWA gave a presentation on the role of the MPO in the planning process. 5 Attachment 1 AGENCY REPORTS Item 12: NCDOT Board of Transportation Report. Cheryl McQueary reported that there is a Public Hearing on the projects for Division 7 on Thursday, March 26, from 4 pm to 7 pm at the Division Office. There is a large interactive map that will be available for the citizens. Copies of the Governor’s 25 year plan will be available, as well as the 2015-2016 State map. Cheryl spoke about funding of Transportation in North Carolina. There are two bills in the General Assembly, Senate Bill 20 and House Bill 40. There are two different approaches to funding transportation but the key point in both bills has to do with gas tax and how the price is set. The good news is the gas price has been running low which is good for citizens, but the challenge is that our State as does almost every other state runs on gas tax to fund all of the transportation projects. In our state we reset the gas tax twice a year. Because the gas price has been low the next reset will drop our rate such that we will lose 330 billion dollar’s worth of transportation funding. There is no way we will get to anything on NC 109 in a very long time. The Board of Transportation at the last meeting spoke about the impact of this. There is currently a committee meeting of House and Senate Members to try and get those two pieces of legislation to come together. The Senate Bill arbitrarily takes 550 positions at DOT and gets rid of them. The House Bill does not have that number in it. She asked that members send a letter to the General Assembly Members on the funding of the gas tax. DOT’s Chief Financial Officer has a very good 30 minute presentation that talks about Transportation funding. There is also a 10 minute presentation that talks about the impact of Senate Bill 20 and House Bill 40. Cheryl stated that she would like to bring these presentations to the next TAC meeting. Several members asked about showing the presentations at their meetings. Cheryl is going to get with Greg about a possible webinar. Anyone can also go on the NCDOT Board Meeting website and stream the meetings. Item 13: Division Engineer’s Reports. Division 7 Mike Mills reported that the installation of pedestrian improvements on N. Main St. at Lexington Ave. is in the design phase. It has a let date of August 1, 2015 with an estimated completion date of December 30, 2015. The High Point Signal System Project is under design with a let date of October 20, 2015. The traffic signal revisions on Main St. and English, Kivett, High, Commerce, Green, Russell, and S. College is 90% complete and is estimated to be completed in April, 2015. The plans for the traffic signal revisions on Kivett at Dillon/Triangle Lake are currently under review. The High Point Rd. road widening project is 61% complete. The Skeet Club Rd. Project is technically under construction all though the contractor has not started any work due to utility relocation. The I-74/US 311 and NC 68 interchange improvements let date is in January, 2019. Division has had public meetings and gathered the comments and are now looking at coming back to the public with the plans. The intersection improvements at Groomtown Rd. and NC 62 are under contract and work is supposed to start in March, 2015. There are three active bridge projects. 6 Attachment 1 Division 8 Darious Sturdivant reported that project U-5770, interchange improvements on S. Main St. in Archdale, feasibility study is in progress. The draft report is due in the Summer, 2015 and the final report is due in the Fall, 2015. The I-85 shoulder drain project is expected to be complete in May, 2015. The North bound side that has already been laid is faulty and will be repaired. The Main St. at Balfour Dr. project in Archdale is scheduled to be let in April, 2015. The I-85 median guardrail project is scheduled to begin in March, 2015. The utility relocation on Braxton Rd bridge replacement is in progress and work is scheduled to begin in May, 2015. Division 9 Diane Hampton invited everyone to their open meeting on April 21, from 4pm to 7pm at the Piedmont Triad Regional Council in Kernersville. Diane reported that there are several rail projects that are finishing up. The projects C-4901 A, NCRR/NS Mainline Bowers to Lake Railroad Roadbed, C-4901 B, Grade separation on Upper Lake Rd. over Hamby Creek, and C-4901 C grade separation on Turner Rd. over Hamby Creek are almost complete. Project R-4750, pavement rehabilitation, bridge preservation, upgrade to interstate standards on US 29 from I-85 to south of Salisbury Rd., and the bridges over Swearing Creek on US 29/70 have a revised completion date of November 30, 2015. Project B-3159, replace bridge over US 29/70-85 Bus. loop in Lexington let date is October, 2015. The U-5757, widen NC 8 in Lexington is scheduled to be let in FY 2019. Item 10: Triad Air Awareness. Lorelei Elkins reminded everyone that the air pollution season starts April 1. There will be some ride to work activities in May. The comment period for the new ground level ozone standard is closed and the EPA will come out with new standards in December. Item 13: NCDOT Transportation Planning Branch Report. Hemal Shah reported that Greg sent out a copy of the inventory table for the Comprehensive Transportation Plan. Thomasville has sent in their comments and she is encouraging others to do so. Item 14: Hi tran Report No one was present. Item 15: PART Report Scott Rhine stated that the Triad Commute Challenge Kick-off Event is Saturday, March 28 in Winston-Salem. April 9 has been designated Stand Up 4 Transportation (SU4T) Day to bring together transportation organizations across the nation to bring attention to the vital need for adequate transportation funding. The Conformity Determination Report will be documented in front of the TAC in June. They will be released for public comment at that time. The results of the freight study that was completed this year will be incorporated into the MTIP next phase. Item 16: Other Business 7 Attachment 1 Greg announced that a Bicycle Traffic Skills 101 class will take place on May 8 at the Allen J. Recreation Center in High Point. Jesse Day encouraged everyone to attend. A bike helmet is necessary. Greg introduced John Hanes, the new Transportation Planner for the MPO. He comes to us from the Department of Commerce Winston Salem office. The next meeting will be Tuesday, April 28. There was no other business. The meeting was adjourned. 8