Four-year transportation improvement program tops $2.4 billion

Projects designed to slow the growth of congestion in the region

No one claims that the region’s congestion problems can be solved over the next few years. But public investment will help slow the growth of congestion and in some places may improve travel times.

Toward a goal of “congestion mitigation,” the Council last month approved a $2.4 billion regional Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) for 2007-2010 to acquire land and build new roads, maintain old ones, and fund transit projects. The TIP incorporates state, local and regional transportation enhancements and air quality improvement projects that include federal funding. Through a collaborative development process, projects listed in the TIP reflect the region’s priorities and help implement the region’s long-range transportation plan.

Highway improvements represent a major portion of the TIP. Pictured here is reconstruction of Highway 61 near the Wakota bridge. Photo: MnDOT - David R. Gonzalez

“The Transportation Improvement Program is vitally important to the region,” said Council Member Natalie Steffen, vice chair of the Council’s Transportation Committee. “It provides a thoughtful plan to address the issues we’ve identified, it coordinates and prioritizes them, and helps keep the region competitive in terms of the cost of moving people and products over our roads.

“There’s no silver bullet that will fix our problems overnight, but this plan keeps us moving in the right direction,” she said.

The annual document is prepared jointly by the Metropolitan Council and the Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT) and forwarded to the U.S. Department of Transportation.

Nearly $1 billion for new highway and transit projects

About $990 million in the updated plan will be directed to new projects, including projects selected by the Council’s Transportation Advisory Board (TAB) through its regional solicitation process. A few highlights:

In the north metro, $60 million for construction and start-up costs for the Northstar Commuter Rail.
In Brooklyn Park, $30 million for right-of-way acquisition and Phase 3 construction of Highway 610.
In Bloomington, $15 million to construct a new Hiawatha light-rail station at 34th Avenue and American Boulevard, and expand the park-and-ride facility at 28th Ave.
In St. Paul, $11 million in additional funding for reconstructing the Union Depot in St. Paul as a multi-modal transit hub.
In Forest Lake, $11 million to reconstruct the I-35 interchange at County Hwy. 2.
In Minneapolis, $9 million to construct sidewalks, bike lanes, landscaping, lighting and other amenities on Lowry Avenue between Wirth Parkway and Girard Ave. N.

TIP funding comes from a variety of sources. MnDOT allocates about 50 percent of funding for trunk highway projects and other road and bridge improvements. The Metropolitan Council allocates about 20 percent of funding toward a variety of transit improvements. And the TAB allocates another 20 percent for roads, transit and bicycle/pedestrian projects through its regional solicitation process.

The 2007-2010 TIP now includes projects earmarked for funding from the Federal Transportation Act (also knows as SAFETEA-LU). Federally earmarked projects account for about 11 percent of total funding in the program.

Overall, about 50 percent of funds in the new TIP will be used to expand the region’s highway and transit systems. About 25 percent will be spent on preserving and managing the existing systems. And about 25 percent will be spent on right-of-way acquisition, supplemental agreements and other enhancements.

The TAB is a 33-member body composed of locally elected officials, representatives of government agencies involved in transportation issues, citizen members and members who represent transit, freight and non-motorized transportation modes. The TAB advises the Council on transportation issues and helps develop the TIP and other plans and programs to meet the transportation needs of the seven-county metro area.

How are projects included in the TIP?

Learn more about the TIP planning and selection process.

Additional resources

Free copies of the 2007-2010 TIP are available at the Council’s Regional Data Center. Call (651) 602-1140 or TTY (651) 291-0904. The TIP is also available online.

Questions?

Send an e-mail to the Council’s TIP Coordinator Kevin Roggenbuck or call him at (651) 602-1728.