Greater Hickory MPO Frequently Asked Questions

What is a Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO)?

Metropolitan Planning Organizations are part of a federal process to conduct local transportation planning in urbanized areas. The federal government requires urbanized areas to establish a planning process that is Comprehensive, Continuing, and Cooperative (the three Cs of transportation planning).The MPO process is required in urbanized areas over 50,000 in population in order to receive federal funding for transportation.

The MPO process is a partnership between local and state government to make decisions about transportation planning in urbanized areas and to meet planning requirements established by federal authorizing legislation for transportation funding.

 

What are the major functions of an MPO?

MPOs conduct transportation planning in cooperation with state and federal government. Cooperatively, the MPO works with North Carolina DOT to develop transportation plans, travel models, thoroughfare plans, transit plans, bicycle and pedestrian plans. Also, the MPO works with the state on funding issues for transportation improvements, on project planning issues, and on issues such as environmental impacts and air quality. The MPO also works with local governments to coordinate land use and transportation planning.

 

What are some of the products of MPO planning?

Long Range Transportation Plan – A document that presents a 25 year plan for transportation improvements in the area.

Planning Work Program – An annual program of planning activities and programmed expenditures of federal planning funds.

Priority Needs List – A listing of local priorities for transportation improvements that is submitted to the state of North Carolina for their consideration in development of the Transportation Improvement Program (TIP).

Metropolitan Transportation Improvement Program (MTIP) – The local transportation improvement program that must be in agreement with the State Transportation Improvement Program (STIP). The TIP process involves mutual adoption by the MPO and the state.

 

How are MPOs established?

MPOs are established in every urbanized area in the country with a population of over 50,000. Urbanized areas are defined every ten years by the U.S. Census. In North Carolina MPOs are designated by the Governor. MPOs are established by a Memorandum of Understanding that is signed by all participating local governments and by the State of North Carolina.

 

How many MPOs are there in North Carolina?

There are 17 MPOs in North Carolina. They are:

Asheville, Burlington, Cabarrus/South Rowan, Capital Area (Raleigh/Wake County), DCHC (Durham -Chapel Hill – Carrboro), Fayetteville, Gastonia, Goldsboro, Greensboro, Greenville, High Point, Jacksonville, Mecklenburg/Union (Charlotte), Rocky Mount, Unifour (Hickory), Wilmington, Winston-Salem.

 

Which local governments are included in the MPO?

The municipalities of Brookford, Cajah’s Mountain, Catawba, Cedar Rock, Claremont, Connelly Springs, Conover, Drexel, Gamewell, Glen Alpine, Granite Falls, Hickory, Hildebran, Hudson, Lenoir, Long View, Maiden, Morganton, Newton, Rhodhiss, Rutherford College, Sawmills and Valdese; and the Counties of Alexander, Burke, Caldwell, and Catawba.

 

Who makes decisions for the MPO?

All decisions of the MPO are made by the Transportation Advisory Committee (TAC) with recommendations from the Technical Coordinating Committee (TCC). The membership and voting structures of these committees will be established through a new Memorandum of Understanding between all of the participating governments.

TAC – The policy-making body made up of elected officials from each of the member governments, and the Board of Transportation.

TCC – Staff level committee that provides recommendations to the TAC regarding transportation decisions.

 

Who provides the staff for the MPO?

The Lead Planning Agency for the Unifour MPO is Western Piedmont Council of Governments.

 

What are the functions of the Lead Planning Agency?

The Lead Planning Agency provides staff for the TAC and TCC and administers the MPO. The staff coordinates the development of the Long Range Transportation Plan, the Planning Work Program, the Local Transportation Improvement Program, and the Priority Needs List. The Lead Planning Agency also coordinates with NCDOT, the Federal Highway Administration and transit service providers.

 

How is the MPO funded?

Federal planning funds are provided to the MPO to conduct transportation planning activities. The Lead Planning Agency administers the federal planning funds that are provided to the MPO. The TAC approves a Planning Work Program that details how these federal funds are to be spent.

 

How much money does the MPO get every year?

Planning funds in North Carolina are divided among the seventeen MPOs in the state based on population of the urban area (1/2) and equal distribution (1/2). These funds must be spent on approved transportation planning activities.

 

How are the planning funds spent?

Every year, the TCC and TAC approve a document called the Planning Work Program that details specific planning tasks that will be accomplished during the year. Some of the planning money is spent on MPO administration, and some of the money is used to hire consultants to conduct special studies.

 

Why is it important for local governments to participate in the MPO process?

The MPO process is federally mandated in urban areas. The federal government sets the rules regarding which areas will be included in an MPO. The MPO will be making transportation decisions for these areas. The MPO process is the opportunity to have a voice in transportation planning that affects the urbanized areas.

In the state of North Carolina, almost every area of the state is now participating in either an MPO or an RPO (Rural Planning Organization). This means that the model of transportation planning in our state is changing. Every municipality and county in North Carolina will work with the state on transportation planning issues through either an MPO or an RPO.

 

How can we be sure that the MPO process is fair?

As a part of the MPO expansion, the MPO will revise the agreement for the MPO known as the Memorandum of Understanding. The MOU will address issues such as voting membership and voting procedures.  
In addition, the MPO process must be set up to provide for local input on issues that involve local areas. The expanded MPO may rely on sub-committees or local transportation advisory groups to inform the MPO process.

 

RPO Frequently Asked Questions

What is a Rural Planning Organization (RPO)?

The establishment of Rural Transportation Planning Organizations (RPOs) is similar in concept to the urban Metropolitan Transportation Planning Organizations (MPOs). The RPOs provide rural areas the opportunity to work in partnership with the North Carolina Department of Transportation toward development of sound, short-range and long-range transportation planning for rural areas.

In 1998 Congress recognized the transportation needs of the rural areas and presented similar opportunities afforded the urban areas as part of the statewide planning provisions of the Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century (TEA-21). TEA-21 calls for enhanced consultation with rural local officials and encourages states to use existing regional development organizations to facilitate the participation of elected officials.

Locally based rural transportation planning gives communities the opportunity to make transportation investment decisions that enhance economic and community development goals. Metropolitan Planning Organizations (MPOs) have the federal authority to implement their plans, but the Rural Planning Organizations (RPOs) are voluntary in North Carolina and have been given authority by the state.

 

What are the major functions of an RPO?

Rural Transportation Planning Organizations have four core functions:

Developing, in cooperation with the Department, long-range local and regional multimodal transportation plans.

Providing a forum for public participation in the transportation planning process.

Developing and prioritizing suggestions for transportation projects the organization believes should be included in the State's Transportation Improvement Program.

Providing transportation-related information to local governments and other interested organizations and persons.

 

What are some of the products of RPO planning?

Planning Work Program – An annual program of planning activities and programmed expenditures of federal planning funds.

Priority Needs List – A listing of local priorities for transportation improvements that is submitted to the state of North Carolina for their consideration in development of the Transportation Improvement Program (TIP).

 

How were RPOs established?

The 1997-98 Session of the North Carolina General Assembly ratified the Board of Transportation Reform Bill (House Bill 1304) mandating the Board, with the assistance of the Secretary and the NCDOT to develop a plan to establish Rural Planning Organizations (RPOs) as a counterpart to the existing MPOs. The purpose of these RPOs is to give the rural areas of the state a voice in transportation issues that they have lacked in the past.

The 1999 Session of the North Carolina General Assembly ratified Senate Bill 1195, an act to authorize the Department of Transportation, in cooperation with local elected officials, to establish rural transportation planning organizations to plan rural transportation systems and to advise the department on rural transportation policy.

 

How many RPOs are there in North Carolina?

There are 20 RPOs in North Carolina. They are:

Mid-Carolina RPO: (Chartered 09/26/01)
Bladen, Cumberland, Harnett, & Sampson Counties

Unifour RPO: (Chartered 10/09/01)
Alexander, Burke, Caldwell, & Catawba Counties

Cape Fear RPO: (Chartered 10/24/01)
Brunswick, Columbus, & Pender Counties

Kerr-Tar RPO: (Chartered 11/15/01)
Franklin, Granville, Person, Vance, & Warren Counties

Albemarle RPO: (Chartered11/28/01)
Camden, Chowan, Currituck, Dare, Gates, Hyde, Pasquotank, Perquimans, Tyrrell, & Washington Counties

Southwestern RPO: (Chartered 12/19/01)
Cherokee, Clay, Graham, Jackson, Macon & Swain Counties

Isothermal RPO: (Chartered 02/19/02)
McDowell, Polk, & Rutherford Counties

High Country RPO: (Chartered 02/19/02)
Alleghany, Ashe, Avery, Mitchell, Watauga, Wilkes, & Yancey Counties

Northwest Piedmont RPO: (Chartered 02/19/02)
Davie, Stokes, Surry, & Yadkin Counties

Lake Norman RPO: (Chartered 02/20/02)
Cleveland, Gaston, Iredell, & Lincoln Counties

Lumber River RPO: (Chartered 03/21/02)
Hoke, Richmond, Robeson, & Scotland, Counties

Mid-East RPO: (Chartered 05/21/02)
Beaufort, Pitt, & Martin Counties

Piedmont Triad RPO: (Chartered 05/21/02)
Caswell, Davidson, Montgomery, Randolph, & Rockingham Counties

Peanut Belt RPO: (Chartered 06/13/02)
Bertie, Halifax, Hertford, & Northampton Counties

Eastern Carolina RPO: (Chartered 06/13/02)
Duplin, Greene, Lenoir, & Wayne Counties

Down East RPO: (Chartered 07/17/02)
Carteret, Craven, Jones, Onslow, & Pamlico Counties

Rocky River RPO: (Chartered 09/18/02)
Anson, Stanly, & Union Counties

Triangle Area RPO: (Chartered 09/20/02)
Chatham, Lee, Moore, & Orange Counties

Upper Coastal Plain RPO: (Chartered 09/25/02)
Edgecombe, Johnston, Nash, & Wilson Counties

Land of Sky RPO: (Chartered 01/15/03)
Buncombe, Haywood, Madison & Transylvania Counties

 

Which local governments are included in the Unifour RPO?

The Town of Taylorsville and the Counties of Alexander, Burke, Caldwell, and Catawba.

 

Who makes decisions for the RPO?

All decisions of the RPO are made by the Rural Transportation Advisory Committee (RTAC) with recommendations from the Rural Technical Coordinating Committee (RTCC). The membership and voting structures of these committees was established through a Memorandum of Understanding between all of the participating governments.

RTAC – The policy-making body made up of elected officials from each of the member governments, and the Board of Transportation.

RTCC – Staff level committee that provides recommendations to the RTAC regarding transportation decisions.

 

Who provides the staff for the RPO?

The Lead Planning Agency for the Unifour RPO is Western Piedmont Council of Governments.

 

What are the functions of the Lead Planning Agency?

The Lead Planning Agency provides staff for the RTAC and RTCC and administers the RPO. The staff coordinates the development of the Planning and the Priority Needs List. The Lead Planning Agency also coordinates with NCDOT, the Federal Highway Administration and transit service providers.  

 

How is the RPO funded?

State funds are provided to the RPO to conduct transportation planning activities. The Lead Planning Agency administers the planning funds that are provided to the RPO. The RTAC approves a Planning Work Program that details how these state funds are to be spent.

 

How much money does the RPO get every year?

Funding amounts for RPOs vary across the state according to a several factors, but the average is slightly more than $100,000 per year. Funding provisions require local contributions to be 20%, and the remaining 80% of total eligible costs is provided by state funds. These funds are spent on approved transportation planning activities.

 

How are the planning funds spent?

Every year, the RTCC and RTAC approve a document called the Planning Work Program that details specific planning tasks that will be accomplished during the year.

 

Why is it important for local governments to participate in the RPO process?

The RPO will be making transportation decisions for these areas. The RPO process is the opportunity to have a voice in transportation planning that affects the non-urbanized areas.

In the state of North Carolina, almost every area of the state except for one county is now participating in either an RPO or an MPO (Metropolitan Planning Organization). This means that the model of transportation planning in our state is changing. Every municipality and county in North Carolina will work with the state on transportation planning issues through either an RPO or an MPO.

 

How can we be sure that the RPO process is fair?

The RPO has an agreement known as the Memorandum of Understanding. The MOU addresses issues such as voting membership and voting procedures.

In addition, the RPO process is set up to provide for local input on issues that involve local areas. The RPO may rely on sub-committees or local transportation advisory groups to inform the RPO process.

 

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