Transportation Alternatives Program (TAP)

Transportation Alternatives Program (TAP)

FY 2013-FY2014

-APPLICATION-

Background:

In July of 2012, Congress passed the Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act (MAP-21). MAP-21 establishes a new funding category called the “Transportation Alternatives Program” (TAP). The Transportation Alternatives Program was authorized under Section 1122 of MAP-21 (23 U.S.C. 213(b), 101(a)(29)). This single funding source serves to enhance the transportation system and combines funding for Transportation Enhancements, Recreational Trails and Safe Routes to School, all of which were previously funded separately under SAFETEA-LU.

The goal of TAP is to allocate resources to well-planned projects that provide and support alternate modes of transportation, enhance the transportation system through preservation of visual and cultural resources and improve the quality of life for members of the communities. TAP requires communities to coordinate efforts to develop and build safe, valuable and functional projects in a timely manner.

Under TAP, the Rockford Metropolitan Agency for Planning (RMAP) works jointly with IDOT, local governments, interest groups and citizens in enhancing the transportation system and building more livable communities. The Transportation Alternatives Program allows the opportunity for the public to become directly involved in transportation projects. Public participation is encouraged throughout the entire program planning, development and implementation process.

RMAP Region TAP Funding:

IDOT manages the Illinois Transportation Enhancement Program (ITEP) for small urban and non-urban areas throughout the State of Illinois. MAP-21 requires the State to have a competitive process to allow eligible entities to submit projects for funding; therefore the State may not suballocate the nonurban area funds by population to individual counties, cities, or other local government entities (23 U.S.C. 213(c)(4)(A)). The IDOT ITEP application period was open from May 20th, 2013- August 20th, 2013.

MAP-21 requires states to allocate TAP funds to urbanized areas with a population greater than 200,000. These areas are referred to as Transportation Management Areas (TMAs) and are represented by a Metropolitan Planning Organization. RMAP is the federally designated MPO for the Rockford Region.

Funds available to the RMAP Region total $620,432 for the combined FY 2013 and FY 2014 allotments.

Please note the following:

Ø  If you have submitted an application for TAP funding through IDOT’s ITEP, you may also submit an application for the same or a different project through the RMAP program.

Ø  Eligible project sponsors within the RMAP adjusted urbanized area (see attached map) are eligible for the IDOT ITEP funding; however, project sponsors cannot receive funding for the same project from both the IDOT ITEP and RMAP TAP.

Ø  Project sponsors are required to report any TAP funds you have received from any source as soon as possible to RMAP. These funds must be programed into the RMAP TIP.

Ø  TAP funds will provide reimbursement up to 80 percent for preliminary engineering, utility relocations, construction engineering and construction costs; and up to 50 percent for right-of-way and easement acquisition costs. The required 20 percent or 50 percent local match is the responsibility of the project sponsor.

Ø  This is a reimbursable program, which requires an interagency/joint funding agreement that details the project scope of work and cost participation. It is not a grant program.

Ø  Selection Criteria used to score RMAP TAP application is included in Appendix A.

Ø  Projects selected for RMAP TAP funding must have obtained substantial completion by September 30th, 2016

Ø  The application period for the RMAP TAP is October 1st, 2013 – January 31st, 2014

Ø  The deadline for applications is 4:30pm, January 31st, 2014

Eligible Project Sponsors:

Under 23 U.S.C. 213(c)(4)(B), the eligible entities to receive TAP funds are:

Ø  local governments;

Ø  regional transportation authorities;

Ø  transit agencies;

Ø  natural resource or public land agencies;

Ø  school districts, local education agencies, or schools;

Ø  tribal governments; and

Ø  any other local or regional governmental entity with responsibility for oversight of transportation or recreational trails (other than a metropolitan planning organization or a State agency) that the State determines to be eligible, consistent with the goals of subsection (c) of section 213 of title 23.

Although State agencies and MPOs with responsibility for oversight of transportation or recreational trails cannot sponsor a project, they can partner with an eligible project sponsor.

Nonprofits are not eligible to be a project sponsor but can partner with an eligible project sponsor.

Program Categories:

In order to be eligible for TAP funding, a project must demonstrate a relationship to surface transportation. The TAP projects must enhance the transportation system either by serving a transportation need or providing a transportation use or benefit.

Activities are not eligible if they are routine maintenance projects such as re-striping a trail, cleaning up debris or repairing broken curb or landscaping as a stand-alone project. Items such as sidewalk repair and curb cuts for the disabled (as a stand-alone project) are considered routine activities and therefore ineligible for the transportation alternatives program. Curb cuts as part of a larger improvement program (i.e. new bicycle or pedestrian facility) would be eligible.

Please be advised if your project involves sidewalk work you most likely will be required to update the facility to meet current ADA Accessibility Standards. That would include, but not be limited to, curb cuts and handicapped ramps at intersections and corrective measures to fix cross slopes that exceed the ADA standards. In this example, curb cuts for the disabled would be eligible since they are required as a part of the overall project.

Using the Federal Transportation Alternatives Program (TAP) guidelines as defined under MAP-21, RMAP is accepting project applications for TAP funding in the following categories/sub-categories:

1. Provision of on-road and off-road facilities for pedestrians, bicycles and other non-motorized forms of transportation.

2. Landscaping and other scenic beautification as a part of the construction of a Federal-Aid highway project under (23 USC § 319 (a)) or in conjunction with a TAP funded project.

3. Conversion and use of abandoned railroad corridors for trails for pedestrians, bicyclists, or other non-motorized transportation users.

4. Community improvement activities including:

a) Historic preservation and rehabilitation of historic transportation facilities.

b) Vegetation management practices in transportation rights-of-way to improve roadway safety,

prevent against invasive species and provide erosion control.

c) Archaeological activities relating to impacts from implementation of a transportation project eligible

under Title 23 USC.

5. Any environmental mitigation activities, relating to pollution prevention and pollution abatement activities

and mitigation to:

a)  Address storm water management, control, and water pollution prevention or abatement related to highway construction or due to highway runoff, including activities described in sections 133(b)(11), 328(a) and 329 of Title 23; or

b)  Reduce vehicle-caused wildlife mortality or to restore and maintain connectivity among terrestrial or

aquatic habitats.

6. Construction of turnouts, overlooks and viewing areas.

7. Planning, design or constructing boulevards and other roadways largely in the right-of-way of former Interstate System routes or other Divided Highways.

The following categories that were previously eligible under the ITEP program have been eliminated under MAP-21:

Ø  Scenic or historic highway programs (including the provision of tourist and welcome center facilities)

Ø  Provision of safety and educational activities for pedestrians and bicyclists

Ø  Acquisition of scenic easements and scenic or historic sites

Ø  Establishment of transportation museums

Ø  Landscape and scenic beautification (includes streetscape projects) as a stand-alone project is no longer eligible: Landscaping must be done in conjunction with a Federal-Aid funded highway improvement project as defined under 23 U.S.C. 319. In other words, landscaping must be a component of a larger improvement project in order to qualify for TAP funding.

Please forward a completed electronic copy (PDF or Word file) and two (2) printed applications to:

Rockford Metropolitan Agency for Planning

313 North Main Street

Rockford, Illinois 61101

Telephone: 815-964-7627

Application submittal deadline is 4:30pm, January 31st, 2014.

-Application begins on the next page-

4.  Project Limits:

5.  Project Map: please attach map (if applicable) to completed application

6.  Was this project submitted for funding consideration through the most recent Illinois

Department of Transportation (IDOT) ITEP solicitation (May 20th, 2013- August 20th, 2013)?

If yes, what was the ITEP number?

Was a copy of the submitted IDOT ITEP application forwarded to RMAP?

7.  Transportation Alternatives Funds Requested:

8.  What is the amount of the local matching funds?

9.  What type of local matching funds would be used?

10.  Implementation Readiness / Phases Completed: (check all that apply)

11.  Project Budget:

12.  Project Narrative:

(Please describe the regional and local significance of the project as well as its consistency with the RMAP Bicycle/Pedestrian Plan, LRTP and Greenway Plan. Additionally, describe project access to the RMTD Fixed Route System and how this project originates from planning work conducted by the projects sponsor(s)).

13.  How does this project promote active transportation and livable community principles?

14.  Describe how this project provides connectivity to existing regional & local transportation systems, etc.

15.  Has there been public participation activities to date on the proposed project and what has been done to obtain public and community support?

Resources:

RMAP 2040 Long Range Transportation Plan

RMAP Bicycle and Pedestrian Plan

RMAP Greenway Plan

IDOT Illinois Transportation Enhancement Program

IDOT Bicycling Information

Illinois Department of Natural Resources

Illinois Secretary of State, Bicycle Rules of the Road

Federal Highway Administration Transportation Alternatives Program

Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices (MUTCD), Part 9-Traffic Control for Bicycle Facilities, (2009)

*AASHTO Guide for the Planning, Design, and Operation of Pedestrian Facilities (July 2004)

*AASHTO Guide for the Development of Bicycle Facilities (2012)

*AASHTO: A Policy on Geometric Design of Highway and Streets [commonly referred to as “The Green Book”] (2011)

*National Association of City Transportation Officials (NACTO) Urban Bikeway Design Guide (2012)

*ITE Guide Designing Walkable Urban Thoroughfares: A Context Sensitive Approach (2010)

*Available for review at the RMAP offices

Please contact RMAP with any questions regarding this application.

Rockford Metropolitan Agency for Planning

313 North Main Street

Rockford, Illinois 61101

Telephone: 815-964-7627

Website: www.rmapil.org

Appendix A

TRANSPORTATION ALTERNATIVES (TAP) ELIGIBILITY UNDER MAP-21

There is no requirement for TAP projects to be located along Federal-aid highways. SRTS projects must be within approximately two miles of a school for kindergarten through eighth grade as specified in SAFETEA-LU Section 1404.

1. Transportation Alternatives as defined in 23 U.S.C. 101(a)(29) (MAP-21 1103):

·  Construction, planning, and design of on-road and off-road trail facilities for pedestrians, bicyclists, and other non-motorized forms of transportation, including sidewalks, bicycle infrastructure, pedestrian and bicycle signals, traffic calming techniques, lighting and other safety-related infrastructure, and transportation projects to achieve compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990.

·  Construction, planning, and design of infrastructure-related projects and systems that will provide safe routes for non-drivers, including children, older adults, and individuals with disabilities to access daily needs.

·  Conversion and use of abandoned railroad corridors for trails for pedestrians, bicyclists, or other non-motorized transportation users.

·  Construction of turnouts, overlooks, and viewing areas.

·  Community improvement activities, including (i) inventory, control, or removal of outdoor advertising; (ii) historic preservation & rehabilitation of historic transportation facilities; (iii) vegetation management practices in transportation rights-of-way to improve roadway safety, prevent against invasive species, and provide erosion control; and (iv) archaeological activities relating to impacts from implementation of a transportation project eligible under title 23.

·  Any environmental mitigation activity, including pollution prevention and pollution abatement activities and mitigation to ( i) address stormwater management, control, and water pollution prevention or abatement related to highway construction or due to highway runoff, including activities described in sections 133(b)(11), 328(a), and 329 of title 23; or (ii) reduce vehicle-caused wildlife mortality or to restore and maintain connectivity among terrestrial or aquatic habitats.

2. The recreational trails program under section 206 of title 23.

3. The safe routes to school program under section 1404 of the SAFETEA-LU:

·  Infrastructure-related projects.-planning, design, and construction of infrastructure-related projects on any public road or any bicycle or pedestrian pathway or trail in the vicinity of schools that will substantially improve the ability of students to walk and bicycle to school, including sidewalk improvements, traffic calming and speed reduction improvements, pedestrian and bicycle crossing improvements, on-street bicycle facilities, off-street bicycle and pedestrian facilities, secure bicycle parking facilities, and traffic diversion improvements in the vicinity of schools.

·  Noninfrastructure-related activities to encourage walking and bicycling to school, including public awareness campaigns and outreach to press and community leaders, traffic education and enforcement in the vicinity of schools, student sessions on bicycle and pedestrian safety, health, and environment, and funding for training, volunteers, and managers of safe routes to school programs.