Hampton Roads Transportation PLANNING ORGANIZATION

DRAFT FY 2022 UNIFIED PLANNING WORK PROGRAM 

The Hampton Roads Transportation Planning Organization (HRTPO) has produced the Draft Unified Planning Work Program (UPWP) for fiscal year 2022, which begins on July 1, 2021. The UPWP describes transportation planning work to be performed for the Hampton Roads metropolitan planning area by the HRTPO, the local public transportation operators (Hampton Roads Transit, Williamsburg Area Transit Authority, and Suffolk Transit), and the Virginia Department of Transportation.  This public notice is to request public review and comment on the draft UPWP.

In addition to detailing the work associated with HRTPO core functions – the Long-Range Transportation Plan (LRTP), the Transportation Improvement Program (TIP), the Congestion Management Process (CMP), and Public Participation – federal regulations state that the UPWP for Metropolitan Planning Organizations designated as Transportation Management Areas (TMA) shall include a discussion of the planning priorities of the metropolitan planning area.  It is in the determination of these planning priorities that the HRTPO Board ensures its vision and goals are carried forward in the UPWP.  

Establishing clear direction from the HRTPO Board regarding its priorities allows HRTPO staff to ensure that limited resources (staff, funding) are properly allocated in the UPWP.  There are a number of emerging issues that will have a significant impact on metropolitan transportation planning, and the planning priorities for the Hampton Roads TMA will strive to address these issues.  For FY 2022, the planning priorities for the HRTPO include better integrating the following issues into HRTPO planning and programming:

• Scenario planning – provides a framework for stakeholders to make decisions that help achieve a shared vision for the future by analyzing various factors that can impact the way in which a region develops.  As part of the development of the 2045 Long-Range Transportation Plan, scenario planning is being used to consider plausible alternate futures and their potential impacts on the transportation system.  Each alternative scenario, developed through a collaborative regional stakeholder process, is comprised of various regional drivers and trends (transportation technology, economic, environmental, land use, etc.) that have the potential to affect growth, connectivity, mobility, resiliency, and other factors.  Comparing the alternatives and their trade-offs helps decision-makers identify projects that provide the most benefit to the region regardless of which future assumption is analyzed thereby highlighting smart investments for Hampton Roads.  Scenario Planning will also be applied to the development of the 2050 LRTP.

• Resilience of the Transportation System – refers to the capacity of a system to survive, adapt, and grow in the face of significant changes or events.  Such changes may be foreseen, such as the expected impacts of sea-level rise, or unforeseen, such as a catastrophic event.  It is important that regional transportation planning take resilience into account to help ensure that the transportation system has the capacity to overcome disruptions and keep people and goods moving.  The Fixing America’s Surface Transportation (FAST) Act added “take into consideration resilience needs” to the scope of the metropolitan planning process.

• Active Transportation – refers to any self-propelled, human-powered mode of transportation, such as walking and bicycling, and is an integral part of a multimodal transportation system.  Improvements to the active transportation system – the network of sidewalks, crosswalks, and bicycle facilities; as well as its connectivity to other modes like public transit – enable people to use non-motorized options to reach their destinations.

• The Congestion Management Process (CMP) Update – provides ongoing information and analysis on multimodal transportation system performance and on strategies to alleviate congestion and enhance mobility of people and goods.  The CMP – System Performance and Mitigation Report is updated in accordance with the schedule for the update of the Long-Range Transportation Plan (LRTP).  Given the schedule for the 2045 LRTP update, work on all phases of the CMP report update will be completed in FY 2022.

Williamsburg Area Transit Authority (WATA) and Suffolk Transit rely on the HRTPO’s public participation process to assist in satisfying their Program of Projects (POP) requirements identified in 49 U.S.C. §5307. The notice of public involvement activities for the HRTPO FY 2021-2024 Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) and time established (14 days) for public review and comment on the TIP will satisfy the POP requirements of the Section 5307 Program.

You may access the Draft FY 2022 UPWP by clicking on the following link HERE

You may also obtain a copy of the draft UPWP by contacting John Mihaly, Principal Transportation Planner, at the email address below or by phone at (757) 423-8300.   All interested parties are encouraged to review the Draft FY 2022 UPWP and send comments to Mr. Mihaly at jmihaly@hrtpo.org or by mail to 723 Woodlake Drive, Chesapeake, Virginia 23320.  The deadline for comments on this draft is April 21, 2021.