[Code of Federal Regulations] [Title 23, Volume 1] [Revised as of April 1, 2004] From the U.S. Government Printing Office via GPO Access [CITE: 23CFR450.324] [Page 110-113] TITLE 23--HIGHWAYS CHAPTER I--FEDERAL HIGHWAY ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION PART 450_PLANNING ASSISTANCE AND STANDARDS--Table of Contents Subpart C_Metropolitan Transportation Planning and Programming Sec. 450.324 Transportation improvement program: General. (a) The metropolitan transportation planning process shall include development of a transportation improvement program (TIP) for the metropolitan planning area by the MPO in cooperation with the State and public transit operators. (b) The TIP must be updated at least every two years and approved by the MPO and the Governor. The frequency and cycle for updating the TIP must be compatible with the STIP development and approval process. Since the TIP becomes part of the STIP, the TIP lapses when the FHWA and FTA approval for the STIP lapses. In the case of extenuating circumstances, FHWA and FTA will consider and take appropriate action on requests to extend the STIP approval period for all or part of the STIP in accordance with Sec. 450.220(d). Although metropolitan TIPs, unlike statewide TIPs, do not need to be approved by the FHWA or the FTA, copies of any new or amended TIPs must be provided to each agency. Additionally, in nonattainment and maintenance areas for transportation related pollutants, the FHWA and the FTA, as well as the MPO, must make a conformity determination on any new or amended TIPs (unless the amendment consists entirely of exempt projects) in accordance with the Clean Air Act requirements and the EPA conformity regulations (40 CFR part 51). [[Page 111]] (c) There must be reasonable opportunity for public comment in accordance with the requirements of Sec. 450.316(b)(1) and, in nonattainment TMAs, an opportunity for at least one formal public meeting during the TIP development process. This public meeting may be combined with the public meeting required under Sec. 450.322(c). The proposed TIP shall be published or otherwise made readily available for review and comment. Similarly, the approved TIP shall be published or otherwise made readily available for information purposes. (d) The TIP shall cover a period of not less than 3 years, but may cover a longer period if it identifies priorities and financial information for the additional years. The TIP must include a priority list of projects to be carried out in the first three years. As a minimum, the priority list shall group the projects that are to be undertaken in each of the years, i.e., year 1, year 2, year 3. In nonattainment and maintenance areas, the TIP shall give priority to eligible TCMs identified in the approved SIP in accordance with the U.S. EPA conformity regulation (40 CFR part 51) and shall provide for their timely implementation. (e) The TIP shall be financially constrained by year and include a financial plan that demonstrates which projects can be implemented using current revenue sources and which projects are to be implemented using proposed revenue sources (while the existing transportation system is being adequately operated and maintained). The financial plan shall be developed by the MPO in cooperation with the State and the transit operator. The State and the transit operator must provide MPOs with estimates of available Federal and State funds which the MPOs shall utilize in developing financial plans. It is expected that the State would develop this information as part of the STIP development process and that the estimates would be refined through this process. Only projects for which construction and operating funds can reasonably be expected to be available may be included. In the case of new funding sources, strategies for ensuring their availability shall be identified. In developing the financial analysis, the MPO shall take into account all projects and strategies funded under title 23, U.S.C., and the Federal Transit Act, other Federal funds, local sources, State assistance, and private participation. In nonattainment and maintenance areas, projects included for the first two years of the current TIP shall be limited to those for which funds are available or committed. (f) The TIP shall include: (1) All transportation projects, or identified phases of a project, (including pedestrian walkways, bicycle transportation facilities and transportation enhancement projects) within the metropolitan planning area proposed for funding under title 23, U.S.C., (including Federal Lands Highway projects) and the Federal Transit Act, excluding safety projects funded under 23 U.S.C. 402, emergency relief projects (except those involving substantial functional, locational and capacity changes), and planning and research activities (except those funded with NHS, STP, and/or MA funds). Planning and research activities funded with NHS, STP and/or MA funds, other than those used for major investment studies, may be excluded from the TIP by agreement of the State and the MPO; (2) Only projects that are consistent with the transportation plan; (3) All regionally significant transportation projects for which an FHWA or the FTA approval is required whether or not the projects are to be funded with title 23, U.S.C., or Federal Transit Act funds, e.g., addition of an interchange to the Interstate System with State, local, and/or private funds, demonstration projects not funded under title 23, U.S.C., or the Federal Transit Act, etc.; (4) For informational purposes and air quality analysis in nonattainment and maintenance areas, all regionally significant transportation projects proposed to be funded with Federal funds, including intermodal facilities, not covered in paragraphs (f)(1) or (f)(3) of this section; and (5) For informational purposes and air quality analysis in nonattainment and maintenance areas, all regionally significant projects to be funded with non-Federal funds. [[Page 112]] (g) With respect to each project under paragraph (f) of this section the TIP shall include: (1) Sufficient descriptive material (i.e., type of work, termini, length, etc.) to identify the project or phase; (2) Estimated total cost; (3) The amount of Federal funds proposed to be obligated during each program year; (4) Proposed source of Federal and non-Federal funds; (5) Identification of the recipient/subrecipient and State and local agencies responsible for carrying out the project; (6) In nonattainment and maintenance areas, identification of those projects which are identified as TCMs in the applicable SIP; and (7) In areas with Americans with Disabilities Act required Paratransit and key station plans, identification of those projects which will implement the plans. (h) In nonattainment and maintenance areas, projects included shall be specified in sufficient detail (design concept and scope) to permit air quality analysis in accordance with the U.S. EPA conformity requirements (40 CFR part 51). (i) Projects proposed for FHWA and/or FTA funding that are not considered by the State and MPO to be of appropriate scale for individual identification in a given program year may be grouped by function, geographic area, and work type using applicable classifications under 23 CFR 771.117 (c) and (d). In nonattainment and maintenance areas, classifications must be consistent with the exempt project classifications contained in the U.S. EPA conformity requirements (40 CFR part 51). (j) Projects utilizing Federal funds that have been allocated to the area pursuant to 23 U.S.C. 133(d)(3)(E) shall be identified. (k) The total Federal share of projects included in the TIP proposed for funding under section 9 of the Federal Transit Act (49 U.S.C. app. 1607a) may not exceed section 9 authorized funding levels available to the area for the program year. (l) Procedures or agreements that distribute suballocated Surface Transportation Program or section 9 funds to individual jurisdictions or modes within the metropolitan area by predetermined percentages or formulas are inconsistent with the legislative provisions that require MPOs in cooperation with the State and transit operators to develop a prioritized and financially constrained TIP and shall not be used unless they can be clearly shown to be based on considerations required to be addressed as part of the planning process. (m) For the purpose of including Federal Transit Act section 3 funded projects in a TIP the following approach shall be followed: (1) The total Federal share of projects included in the first year of the TIP shall not exceed levels of funding committed to the area; and (2) The total Federal share of projects included in the second, third and/or subsequent years of the TIP may not exceed levels of funding committed, or reasonably expected to be available, to the area. (n) As a management tool for monitoring progress in implementing the transportation plan, the TIP shall: (1) Identify the criteria and process for prioritizing implementation of transportation plan elements (including intermodal trade-offs) for inclusion in the TIP and any changes in priorities from previous TIPs; (2) List major projects from the previous TIP that were implemented and identify any significant delays in the planned implementation of major projects; (3) In nonattainment and maintenance areas, describe the progress in implementing any required TCMs, including the reasons for any significant delays in the planned implementation and strategies for ensuring their advancement at the earliest possible time; and (4) In nonattainment and maintenance areas, include a list of all projects found to conform in a previous TIP and are now part of the base case for the purpose of air quality conformity analyses. Projects shall be included in this list until construction or acquisition has been fully authorized, except when a three-year period has [[Page 113]] elapsed subsequent to the NEPA approval without any major action taking place to advance the project. (o) In order to maintain or establish operations, in the absence of an approved metropolitan TIP, the FTA and/or the FHWA Administrators, as appropriate, may approve operating assistance.