HRTPO Board Action Summary | E Newsletter Articles | News | Hampton Roads Transportation Planning Organization

Added on February 22, 2018

by Kathlene Grauberger, Transportation Planner

to E Newsletter Articles

Action Summary

Hampton Roads Transportation Planning Organization Board Meeting

February 15, 2018

The Regional Board Room, 723 Woodlake Drive, Chesapeake, Virginia

1. Call to Order

The meeting was called to order by the Chair at 10:33 a.m.

2. Approval of Agenda

The HRTPO Board unanimously approved the agenda as written

3. Executive Director Report

Mr. Robert Crum provided a summary of current work activities of the HRTPO with particular note of the following:

• Construction was initiated the first week of February on improvements to I-64 within the Richmond MPO from the I-295 interchange to the Bottoms Bridge/Quinton interchange.

• While assisting the HRTAC with research on regional trends, staff noticed irregularities with the gasoline sales data for the Hampton Roads region. After meeting with both the Secretary of Transportation and the DMV Commissioner, HRTAC will take the lead on this item with plans for the DMV Commissioner to attend the April 19, 2018 HRTAC meeting to discuss the new auditing process.

Mr. Crum introduced Mr. Michael Kimbrel as the new HRTPO Deputy Executive Director.

SPECIAL PRESENTATION

Mr. Crum recognized Dr. Camelia Ravanbakht, who retired on January 31st, for her outstanding dedication and service to the HRPDC/HRTPO for the past 33 years. Remarks were also given by former HRTPO Executive Director Dwight Farmer and HRTPO Chair Tom Shepperd. Chair Shepperd presented Dr. Ravanbakht with a Resolution of Appreciation from the HRTPO Board.

WORKSHOP AGENDA

4. Commonwealth Transportation Board (CTB) Member Update

Mr. John Malbon introduced Mr. Stephen Johnsen, a new Rural At-Large member of the CTB. Mr. Malbon stated the CTB will hold its next meeting on February 20-21 in Richmond.

5. Virginia Department of Transportation Update

Mr. James Utterback stated that the February 2018 HRTAC Program Development Monthly Executive Report was included at the table as a handout. He made note of the following highlights:

• Construction for Phase 2 of the I-64/I-264 Interchange was awarded on December 6, 2017.

• A Notice to Proceed was issued in January for Segment 3 of the I-64 Peninsula Widening project

• A Notice to Proceed was issued in November for the I-64 Southside Widening and High-Rise Bridge project, with the Groundbreaking Ceremony held in December.

• A Request for Qualifications was released in December for the Hampton Roads Bridge Tunnel Expansion with the Request for Proposals expected in the Spring.

• The Scope of Phase 3 (Study-Only) of the I-64/I-264 Interchange will include the Northampton Boulevard and Indian River Road Interchanges on I-64.

• The I-64 express lanes, open since December, has moved 2 – 12 percent of vehicles out of the general purpose lanes.

6. Virginia Department of Rail and Public Transportation Update

Ms. Jennifer Mitchell reported that there are currently several bill before the General Assembly that could affect transit statewide. House Bill 1539 and Senate Bill 856 could have an impact by restructuring the statewide program by combining a number of programs, separating the WMATA from the statewide program, and requiring a prioritization process by 2019.

7. Virginia Port Authority Update

Ms. Cathie Vick reported that the Virginia National Gateway project in Portsmouth and the Norfolk International Terminal (NIT) project in Norfolk are underway. The Port has received the first six rail-mounted gantry cranes for the Gateway project that will go into service in mid-April. The North Gate is fully opened at NIT with the start of a reservation system on March 1st to mitigate the flow of trucks throughout the day. Two major milestones have been met for the deepening of the Harbor Channel: $20 million is currently in the Governor’s budget, and the Port has reached its agency decision milestone with the federal government completing its study of the Harbor deepening.

8. HRT and WATA Updates

Mr. William Harrell reported that HRT is actively involved in the legislative process during the General Assembly session, working closing with DRPT. He stated that it appears that the General Assembly will not address the transit capital cliff until next year’s session. He noted that HRT is in support of separating WMATA funding from the statewide program since The TIDE, although a young project, will need state of good repair funding further in the future, and with WMATA removed from the statewide program, it could open the door for other entities to utilize the extra pool of money. HRT is currently working with the area city managers and has requested a State study to review HRT’s routes and structure as each city supports a different level of service rather than a regional transit system.

Mr. Zach Trogdon reported that WATA has recently compiled its safety data for 2017 and its preventable accidents decreased immensely since bringing onboard a full time Safety and Training Coordinator 18 months ago. WATA, in conjunction with the City of Petersburg, is hosting a regional transit-based security summit March 13-14 in Petersburg. As of January, WATA’s Route 11 is six months into its operation and the Jamestown Route has increased its ridership.

9. Community Transportation Advisory Committee (CTAC) Update

Ms. Theresa Danaher reported that CTAC met in January and was briefed by HRT on the Core 20 Plan. She noted that CTAC also discussed the HRTPO’s legislative priorities, particularly the passenger rail priority. CTAC members were encouraged to contact their General Assembly legislators to support this item. She stated that CTAC plans to distribute the HRTPO’s updated Public Participation Plan to as many citizens as possible.

10. Military Liaisons Updates

There was no representative from Joint Langley Eustis.

Commander Ken Kostecki of the U.S. Coast Guard reported that the Coast Guard has a Virginia Harbor Safety Committee meeting on February 1st in the Virginia Port Authority Boardroom with Mr. James Utterback briefing the Committee on the Hampton Roads Bridge Tunnel Expansion.

Commander Susanne Weinrich of the U.S. Navy had no comments.

11. Status of Hampton Roads Passenger Rail: Jennifer Mitchell, DRPT

Ms. Jennifer Mitchell, DRPT Director, provided an overview to the Board on all Virginia Passenger Rail Service, including the Washington, D.C. to Richmond, VA (DC2VA) corridor and the Atlantic Gateway: Long Bridge rail improvements. Ms. Mitchell also discussed the various rail projects benefiting Hampton Roads and stated that 38 percent of all rail funding in the Six-Year Improvement Plan will have a positive impact on the region.

12. Hampton Roads Regional Priority Projects – Round 2: Dale Stith, HRTPO

Ms. Dale Stith, HRTPO Principal Transportation Planner, briefed the HRTPO Board on the status of the Round 2 Candidate Regional Priority Projects. She stated that staff has developed draft prioritization scores for some of the candidate projects; however, some scores could not be compiled as these candidate projects have on-going studies associated with them. Over the next two years, once these studies have been completed, and in conjunction with the receipt of critical financial information (ie: HRTB and SMART SCALE data), staff will be able to compile more definitive prioritization scores.

13. MAP 21/FAST Act Regional Performance Measures and Targets: Keith Nichols, HRTPO

Mr. Keith Nichols, HRTPO Principal Transportation Engineer, reported that each Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) must prepare and use a set of federally-established performance measures. Mr. Nichols provided the options set forth for setting an MPO’s safety targets and stated the Transportation Technical Advisory Committee (TTAC) recommended using the more-aggressive “Vision Zero” targets for Fatalities and Fatality Rate and recommended using the statewide safety targets for Serious Injuries, Serious Injury Rate, and Bike/Pedestrian Fatalities & Serious Injuries. He noted that the initial regional safety targets must be established by February 27, 2018.

This item was included in the meeting agenda for approval under Item #17-W.

MEETING AGENDA

14. Public Comment Period (limit 3 minutes per individual)

A Citizen from Portsmouth expressed concern regarding the lack of communication between the Portsmouth City Council, its staff, and the public.

15. Submitted Public Comments

There were no submitted public comments in the agenda packet.

16. Transcribed Public Comments From Previous HRTPO Meeting