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Long-range plans - A transportation plan, often referred to as a metropolitan transportation plan,
covering no less than a 20 year planning horizon that includes strategies/actions for developing an
integrated multimodal transportation system to address current and futures transportation demand.
Short-range plans - A short-term (updated every four years) program of transportation projects, generally called the Transportation Improvement Program, that will be funded with all federal funds expected to flow to the region; the projects contained in the TIP are intended to be drawn from, and consistent with, the long-range transportation plan. The Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality (CMAQ) Improvement Program - A program jointly administered by the FHWA and FTA, provides funding for areas that do not (“nonattainment”) or have not (“maintenance”) met the National Ambient Air Quality Standards. The formula for distribution of funds considers an area’s population by county and the severity of its ozone and carbon monoxide problems within the area, with greater weight given to areas that are both carbon monoxide and ozone nonattainment/maintenance areas. The Surface Transportation Program (STP) - A program that provides flexible funding that may be used by states and localities for projects on any Federal-aid highway, including the national highway system, bridge projects on any public road, transit capital projects, and intra-city and inter-city bus terminals and facilities. MPOs in TMAs have the ability to select STP funded projects in consultation with the state; in other MPOs and rural areas the STP projects are selected by the state in cooperation with the MPO or local government. The federally defined planning factors are the goals MPOs shall consider when developing transportation plans and programs. More specifically, federal statute states that the metropolitan planning process should provide for consideration of projects and strategies that will accomplish the following: 1. Support the economic vitality of the metropolitan area, especially by enabling global competitiveness, productivity, and efficiency. 2. Increase the safety of the transportation system for motorized and nonmotorized users. 3. Increase the security of the transportation system for motorized and nonmotorized users. 4. Increase the accessibility and mobility of people and for freight. 5. Protect and enhance the environment, promote energy conservation, improve the quality of life, and promote consistency between transportation improvements and state and local planned growth and economic development patterns. 6. Enhance the integration and connectivity of the transportation system, across and between modes, for people and freight. 7. Promote efficient system management and operation. 8. Emphasize the preservation of the existing transportation system. Benefit-cost analysis is a process that attempts to quantify and monetize benefits and costs accruing to society from an investment and can be used to identify investment alternatives with the greatest net benefit to the locality, region, or nation. |
Questionnaire Programming Language - Version 5.0
U.S. Government Accountability Office
| Full Report: GAO-09-868 |