Beyond Coulee Vision 2040 a Performance-Based Approach to Moving People and Goods
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Beyond Coulee Vision 2040 A performance-based approach to moving people and goods Approved on La Crosse Area Planning Committee 2020 Metropolitan Transportation Plan September 16, 2020 Beyond Coulee Vision 2040 Approved on September 16, 2020 La Crosse Area Planning Committee Metropolitan Planning Organization for the La Crosse, WI-La Crescent, MN Urbanized Area Peter Fletcher, Director Jackie Eastwood, Transportation Planner www.lapc.org This document was prepared to meet the requirements of the Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century (MAP-21) Act and the Fixing America’s Surface Transportation (FAST) Act, and is consistent with U.S. Department of Transportation, Federal Highway Administration, and Federal Transit Administration Code of Federal Regulations, 23 CFR 450. Acknowledgements MPO staff would like to thank and recognize our Policy Board, committee members, and Federal and State partners for their assistance in updating this transportation plan. Policy Board Mike Poellinger, Chair Linda Seidel, Vice-Chair Mayor, City of La Crescent Chair, Town of Medary Patrick Barlow Roland Bogert President, Village of Holmen Chair, Town of Onalaska Timothy Candahl Kim Smith Chair, Town of Shelby Mayor, City of Onalaska Monica Kruse Tim Kabat Chair, La Crosse County Mayor, City of La Crosse Dennis Manthei Terry Schaller President, Village of West Salem Chair, Town of Campbell Advisory Committees Technical Advisory Committee (TAC) Committee on Transit and Active Transportation (CTAT) Federal and State Agency Representatives Jim Kuehn Bobbi Retzlaff WisDOT, Madison, WI FHWA, St. Paul, MN Francis Schelfhout Kurt Wayne WisDOT, La Crosse, WI MnDOT District 6, Rochester, MN Mary Forlenza Laurie Nagle FHWA, Madison, WI MnDOT District 6, Rochester, MN Evan Gross Anna Pierce FTA, Region 5, Chicago, IL MnDOT, St. Paul, MN Letter from LAPC Staff As we have been completing this transportation plan update these last several months, we have been and continue to be impacted by the COVID-19 global pandemic. It has impacted every aspect of personal and professional activities. The immediate impact was a significant reduction in motorized traffic as Stay-at-Home orders were issued, telecommuting replaced going to the office, restaurants closed to sit- down dining, and “non-essential” businesses temporarily closed their doors. Public transportation remained operational for essential workers, but fear of contracting COVID-19 and social distancing requirements resulted in severe drops in ridership. Federal assistance is replacing losses in local revenue to keep transit systems operational, but how long that will or can go on is unknown. One concern is if transit systems will recover ridership after the pandemic is over. As people sheltered at home, traditional shopping shifted to the internet, resulting in increased demand for freight delivery services. Traditional dine-out shifted to carry-out and delivery from establishments that already provided those services and curbside pick-up from many dine-in restaurants. Out of this challenging time a few positive impacts have occurred. Walking and biking replaced going to the health club (good for the environment, not so good for the health clubs). Air quality improved as driving was significantly curtailed. Many businesses are realizing they can operate effectively and efficiently through telecommuting. The few positive impacts, however, cannot overcome the devastating effects this pandemic has had on jobs, livelihoods, and lives. Businesses have closed permanently; former employees are unemployed and without an income; renters are on the edge of eviction; over 153,000 American (667,000 worldwide) lives lost. Historically, pandemics affecting the United States have been flu pandemics—the most recent being the 2009 H1N1 global flu pandemic. The first cases were detected in April 2009 and the pandemic declared over by the World Health Organization in August 2010. If history tells us anything, the COVID-19 pandemic is likely to be with us into 2021. Although we are still in the throes of the pandemic, we see businesses opening their doors again, restaurants providing sit-down and outdoor dining, and employees going back to work as policies for social distancing and the wearing of face masks serve to help protect workers and customers alike. Traffic is increasing, which, in this case, is a good sign that we are working our way back to normalcy. But we still need to follow the recommendations of our healthcare professionals to put an end to this pandemic. We are resilient and adaptive. We will recover. Document Contents I Document Contents Chapters Chapter 1: Metropolitan Transportation Plan Update .................................................................. 1 Metropolitan Transportation Planning Process ........................................................................ 1 Scope ....................................................................................................................................... 1 Performance-based Approach ...............................................................................................2 Coordination with the Statewide Transportation Planning Process .................................. 3 Development of Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) Architectures .......................... 3 Coordinated Public Transit-Human Services Transportation Plan ...................................... 3 Metropolitan Transportation Plan (MTP) ................................................................................. 4 2015 Metropolitan Transportation Plan: Coulee Vision 2040 ............................................... 4 2020 Metropolitan Transportation Plan: Beyond Coulee Vision 2040 .................................. 4 Chapter 2: Plan Process & Development ...................................................................................... 7 Coulee Vision 2040 ..................................................................................................................... 7 Coulee Vision 2050 Vision, Goals, and Guiding Principles ..................................................... 7 Coulee Region Transportation Study.................................................................................... 9 Beyond Coulee Vision 2040 ...................................................................................................... 10 Intermunicipal Boundary Agreements ................................................................................ 10 Coulee Region Transportation Study Continues .................................................................. 11 Other Considerations in Plan Development ........................................................................ 12 Chapter 3: Population and Economic Trends .............................................................................. 15 Population Trends ..................................................................................................................... 15 Total Population .................................................................................................................... 15 Population by Age ................................................................................................................. 19 Adult Student Population .................................................................................................... 20 Households ............................................................................................................................ 21 Economic Trends ...................................................................................................................... 24 Income Distribution and Poverty ........................................................................................ 24 Employment ......................................................................................................................... 26 September 16, 2020 II Beyond Coulee Vision 2040 Commuting Patterns............................................................................................................ 28 Chapter 4: Transportation Systems & Services ........................................................................... 31 Introduction .............................................................................................................................. 31 Highway Systems ...................................................................................................................... 31 Inventory ............................................................................................................................... 31 Highway Operations and Forecasts .................................................................................... 35 Freight Systems ........................................................................................................................ 43 Truck Freight Networks ....................................................................................................... 43 Rail Networks and Services ................................................................................................. 47 Waterway Facilities .............................................................................................................. 53 Air Cargo Facilities ................................................................................................................ 56 Interim National Multimodal Freight Network (NMFN) .................................................... 56