ODOT Public Involvement Process

Public Involvement is seeking input from the public regarding programs and plans. It is giving the public an opportunity to review and comment on draft proposals and contribute to and actively participate in the decision making process. The Department of Transportation is committed to providing early and continuing opportunities for full public access to the transportation decision making process.

The Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: a Legacy for Users (SAFETEA-LU) of 2005 requires a documented public involvement process which provides opportunities for public review and comment at key decision points. The process shall:

• Establish early and continuous public involvement opportunities that provide timely information about transportation issues and decision making processes to citizens, affected public agencies, representatives of public transportation employees, freight shippers, private providers of transportation, representatives of users of public transportation, representatives of users of pedestrian walkways and bicycle transportation facilities, representatives of the disabled, providers of freight transportation services, and other interested parties; • Provide reasonable public access to technical and policy information used in the development of the long range statewide transportation plan and the Statewide Transportation Improvement Program (STIP); • Provide adequate public notice of public involvement activities and time for public review and comment at key decision points, including but not limited to a reasonable opportunity to comment on the proposed long range statewide transportation plan and STIP; • To the maximum extent practical, ensure that public meetings are held at convenient and accessible locations and times; • To the maximum extent practical, use visualization techniques to describe the proposed long range statewide transportation plan and supporting studies; • To the maximum extent practical, make public information available in electronically accessible format and means, such as the World Wide Web, as appropriate to afford reasonable opportunity for consideration of public information; • Demonstrate explicit consideration and response to public input during the development of the long range statewide transportation plan and STIP; • Include a process for seeking out and considering the needs of those traditionally underserved by existing transportation systems, such as low-income and minority households, who may face challenges accessing employment and other services; • Provide for the periodic review of the effectiveness of the public involvement process to ensure that the process provides full and open access to all interested parties and revise the process, as appropriate; and • Provide for public comment on existing and proposed processes for public involvement in the development of the long range statewide transportation plan and STIP. At a minimum, the state shall allow 45 calendar days for public review and written comment before the procedures and any major revisions to existing procedures are adopted. The state shall provide copies of the approved public involvement process document(s) to the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) and Federal Transit Administration (FTA) for informational purposes.

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The first bullet lists specific transportation stakeholders who must be given the opportunity to participate. In addition, ODOT maintains a mailing list of interested parties, from previous public involvement opportunities, who will also be notified.

The two key products of the statewide transportation planning process are ACCESS OHIO 2006- 2030, Ohio’s statewide long range transportation plan, and the Statewide Transportation Improvement Program (STIP). The extent of the public involvement efforts for a particular product/process/study is based upon the overall impact statewide.

ACCESS OHIO Public Involvement Process

Ohio’s statewide transportation plan is known as ACCESS OHIO 2006-2030. It is Ohio’s long range, multi-modal transportation plan. The plan establishes ODOT’s framework for investment in Ohio’s transportation system for at least a twenty (20) year time frame. ACCESS OHIO considers all modes of Ohio’s transportation system and their interconnectivity and addresses the future needs of Ohio’s airports, bicycle and pedestrian facilities, highways and bridges, water ports and inter-modal connectors, public transit, and railroads. The recommended policies, and performance measures established in the plan create a vision for a transportation future that meets Ohio’s expectations for a safe, efficient, and balanced transportation system.

The plan is developed with the full involvement of Ohio’s transportation providers, local and regional government agencies, including Ohio’s seventeen Metropolitan Planning Organizations (MPOs), numerous public interest groups, and Ohio’s citizens. The policy and strategy recommendations in ACCESS OHIO and the financially constrained list of projects, which may be included, are intended to achieve the performance based goals and objectives outlined in the plan.

ACCESS OHIO advocates the preservation of Ohio’s existing infrastructure, while encouraging resource allocation and transportation project selection based on cost effectiveness. It supports a long term, life cycle cost approach to investments and considers customer perceptions and expectations.

The procedures used for the ACCESS OHIO public involvement are:

Phase 1 Early in the update process, ODOT will seek public and stakeholder input into the transportation system vision and goals for the future. A statewide or regional customer survey may be used. A survey may be posted on ODOT’s website. A mailing may be used to notify interested parties, previously identified from other transportation public involvement activities, that ODOT is seeking input. Other public involvement activities may also be used. The results of this input will be incorporated into the vision, goals, and strategies of the plan as it is developed.

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Phase 2 When a draft document is available, ODOT will seek public and stakeholder review and comment by releasing copies of the draft to the Ohio MPOs, local governments (county engineers and major cities), stakeholders, and agencies responsible for transportation. Copies will be available to the general public upon request. The draft document will also be posted on the ODOT web page with the opportunity to submit comments.

A series of outreach sessions will be held throughout the state to present the draft and seek comments. Sessions will be advertised locally and will be posted on the ODOT web page. Notice of these public meetings will include these procedures:

• Two weeks prior to the meeting, Central Office Communications will issue a press release to all of the media outlets in the region; • District offices will make announcements through local media outlets, hang posters at local venues, and notify county Human Service agencies and other local agencies; • MPOs in the region will be requested to publicize the meeting through their committees to their local government members; and • Meeting information will also be posted on the ODOT, District, and MPO web pages.

Additional special stakeholder outreach sessions may be scheduled by request. The group requesting the special session will be responsible for the advertising.

A 1-800 phone line may be established to receive messages and comments on ACCESS OHIO.

Phase 3 The draft document will be revised to address comments received and other editorial corrections. The final ACCESS OHIO will be distributed to the FHWA and FTA; ODOT District offices; the Ohio MPOs; and other stakeholders. Paper and electronic copies will be available upon request.

If the final ACCESS OHIO differs significantly from the draft version, ODOT will provide an additional opportunity for public review and comment on the revised plan prior to official acceptance by ODOT Executive Management.

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Statewide Transportation Improvement Program (STIP)

The STIP is an overview of Ohio’s transportation program covering a four year period. It includes details on federal and state requirements and regulations. The STIP has two main purposes. First, it presents the fiscally balanced, multimodal transportation program for the next four years, for the state of Ohio, including projects funded with federal and state resources. Second, it serves as the reference document required for use by FHWA and FTA in approving the use of federal funds for transportation projects in Ohio.

Ohio’s Transportation Plan, ACCESS OHIO, as referenced above, identifies goals and objectives for the transportation program for 2004-2030. The STIP is the vehicle for implementing Ohio’s goals for its transportation system.

Ohio has seventeen Metropolitan Planning Organizations (MPOs) which cover transportation planning for the twenty major metropolitan areas in the state whose area population is over 50,000. These MPOs are required by federal law and are designated by the state for conducting planning in these areas. Each MPO develops a Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) for their area, in cooperation with their regional partners, to implement their regional Transportation Plan. These TIPs are incorporated by reference into the STIP.

The non-MPO or rural areas of Ohio are also covered in the STIP. ODOT develops the STIP for the rural areas in cooperation with the local government officials through the rural consultation process. The ODOT District offices work together with the rural local officials to address needs and concerns for the transportation system.

By federal regulation, the STIP must include a list of projects to be implemented consistent with ACCESS OHIO; be fiscally constrained; cover at least four years; provide for input from the public; and meet air quality conformity regulations.

The major source of funding for Ohio’s transportation programs is the federal government. Federal funds are provided under multi-year federal authorization acts. The current federal authorization for transportation, SAFETEA-LU, expires September 30, 2009. State funds to match the federal funds and to finance other projects are provided by the state motor fuel tax and the Ohio General Assembly. Every two years the General Assembly adopts a budget for the ODOT. Local governments provide funds to match the federal and state resources for some local projects.

The procedures used for the STIP public involvement are:

- In the spring of each odd numbered year, ODOT will hold a two week public review and comment period for the draft STIP. - ODOT will place classified advertisements in the largest daily in each of Ohio’s eighty-eight counties announcing the availability of the draft STIP for public review and comment. Advertisements will also be placed in other or newsletters with circulations serving minority populations or other target audiences. A listing of the publications in which the advertisements will appear is attached.

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- Copies of the draft STIP will be available for review at the ODOT Central Office in Columbus, the twelve ODOT District offices, and the seventeen Ohio MPOs. A listing of the addresses of these offices is attached. A copy will also be posted on ODOT’s website. Copies of the STIP or portions for specific geographic regions of the State will be mailed to individuals or agencies upon request. A list of parties requesting this information will be maintained for use in subsequent years. - Written comments on the draft STIP will be submitted to the Office of Systems Planning and Program Management. ODOT will provide written responses to all comments. ODOT will also provide reasonable access for public review of the technical and policy information use in developing the program and projects. - In Ohio’s Urbanized Areas, with agreement of the areas’ MPOs, the STIP public involvement process will be coordinated with the MPO’s public involvement activities conducted as part of the MPOs’ Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) development process. ODOT representatives will attend public meetings/open houses associated with the MPOs’ TIP public involvement activities. - The ODOT District offices will hold at least one public meeting/open house, during the two week public review period, to solicit public input on the draft STIP for the non- urbanized areas of the State. The District offices will develop and maintain a district-wide mailing list of members of the general public, environmental interest groups, and public and private agencies for use in announcing STIP public involvement activities. - Comments generated in the draft STIP review process will be evaluated and the results will be reflected in the final STIP. The final STIP will contain an appendix summarizing the comments and ODOT’s responses to the comments. - The final STIP is scheduled for submittal to the FHWA/FTA in mid-May. As the final STIP is developed, if it becomes apparent that there are significant differences from the draft STIP, ODOT will make the document available for another two week public review, prior to submittal to the FHWA/FTA. - ODOT will provide opportunities for public review of any major amendments to the STIP. Major amendments are defined as a change in design concept or scope of a project on a major transportation corridor; which will affect the STIP fiscal constraint; or which will affect the air quality conformity determination. - ODOT will review the effectiveness of this STIP Public Involvement Process on a biennial basis.

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Project Specific Public Involvement

ODOT conducts extensive public involvement activities throughout the project development process. A series of public involvement meetings are routinely held as individual projects are initiated and advanced toward construction. ODOT encourages members of the general public and public and private agencies to become actively engaged in all phases of the transportation project development process.

Project Development Process (PDP)

Every Major (as defined by the PDP) project must have a documented public involvement plan (PIP). The project manager is responsible for developing and implementing the PIP. Often on Major Projects, a separate ODOT staff person or consulting firm may be designated and responsible for developing, managing, and implementing the PDP related communication and PIP activities.

The PIP outlines the strategy and responsibilities for informing and involving stakeholders during the planning phase and all the steps of the PDP. Detailed discussion of how to develop and implement a PIP is presented in ODOT’s Public Involvement Guide.

PIP development should begin during the “kick-off” meeting and should evolve as the stakeholders have an opportunity to comment and contribute ideas to it. Technically, the PIP continues through construction and may need to be revised to address changing public and stakeholder concerns and needs.

The PIP can include a mix of informational meetings, newsletters, web pages, special events, educational handouts and booths at local events, or more formal meetings. The magnitude of the project should be the guide to the extensiveness of the PIP. In general, the PIP should:

• Define and describe public involvement actions, activities, and publications to be conducted in each step in the PDP.

• Define the strategy to engage and solicit information, ideas, and opinions from stakeholders (for example, the stakeholders’ definition of the problem and idea of an acceptable solution).

• Explain how stakeholders’ ideas and opinions will be incorporated into the PDP decision making process.

• Identify the actions and approaches to inform stakeholders about the problem being studied, planning process, potential project alternatives under evaluation, justification for eliminating alternatives, and recommendations.

• Identify responsibilities for managing and implementing the actions, responses, the timing and funding for the public involvement activities.

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• Clarify how, where, and who will implement and document the activities, actions and materials used during the process.

The PIP should be flexible. It should be dynamic enough to adjust to concerns and interests of stakeholders, yet detailed enough to provide stakeholders with communication details such as how, when and where to expect to hear project status reports and be involved. The PIP will likely be made up of a variety of public involvement approaches, activities and forms. No single approach or activity will work to involve all stakeholders, nor will any single action neutralize all sources of opposition. Mixing and matching approaches is recommended. For more information on developing a PIP, see ODOT’s Planning Process Manual and ODOT’s Public Involvement Guide.

ODOT’s PDP also defines two lower categories of projects, Minor and Minimal. The public involvement for these projects is determined by the complexity and the impacts of the project. A PIP is not required for these projects, but some public involvement is required for all projects. The specific public involvement activities that are needed will be determined by the project manager. The activities range from notification sent to residents in the immediate vicinity of a Minimal project to a series of public meetings for a complex Minor project.

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List of Newspapers which carried STIP Public Involvement Legal Notices

Adams County The People’s Defender - West Union Allen County Lima News Ashland County The Ashland Times Gazette Ashtabula County Ashtabula Star Beacon Athens County The Athens Messenger Auglaize County St. Marys Evening Leader - Belmont County Leader - Martins Ferry Brown County News Democrat - Georgetown Butler County Middletown Journal Carroll County The Review - Alliance Champaign County Clark County Springfield News & Sun Clermont County The Clermont Sun Clinton County - Wilmington Columbiana County The Morning Journal - Lisbon Coshocton County Crawford County Telegram Forum - Bucyrus Cuyahoga County Call and Post - Cleveland (Minority) The Plain Dealer Darke County - Greenville Defiance County The Crescent News - Defiance Delaware County

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Erie County Sandusky Register Fairfield County Eagle Gazette - Lancaster Fayette County - Washington Court House Franklin County Call and Post - Columbus (Minority) The Minority Communicator News Fulton County Fulton County Expositor Gallia County Gallipolis Daily Tribune Geauga County The Geauga County Maple Leaf Greene County Guernsey County The Daily Jeffersonian - Cambridge Hamilton County Call and Post - Cincinnati (Minority) Cincinnati Post Hancock County The Courier - Findlay Hardin County The Kenton Times Harrison County Harrison News Herald Henry County Northwest Signal - Napoleon Highland County Times Gazette - Hillsboro Hocking County Logan Daily News Holmes County The Holmes County Hub Huron County Norwalk Reflector Jackson County Times Journal - Jackson Jefferson County Intelligencer Morning Paper - Steubenville Knox County Mount Vernon News

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Lake County The Plain Dealer - Cleveland Lawrence County Ironton Tribune Licking County - Newark Logan County Bellefontaine Examiner Lorain County The Chronicle Telegram - Elyria Lucas County La Prensa Toledo Blade Madison County - London Mahoning County Buckeye Review - Youngstown Vindicator Square - Youngstown Marion County Medina County Medina County Gazette Meigs County Pomeroy Daily Sentinel Mercer County The Daily Standard - Celina Miami County Monroe County Monroe County Beacon Montgomery County Morgan County Morgan County Herald - McConnelsville Morrow County Morrow County Independent Muskingum County - Zanesville Noble County Journal & Noble County Leader Ottawa County The News Herald - Port Clinton Paulding County The Paulding County Progress Perry County Perry County Tribune

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Pickaway County The Circleville Herald Pike County Pike County News Watchman - Waverly Portage County The Record Courier - Ravenna Preble County Register-Herald - Eaton Putnam County Putnam County Sentinel - Ottawa Richland County News Journal - Mansfield Ross County Sandusky County Fremont News Messenger Scioto County The Portsmouth Times Seneca County The Advertiser Tribune - Tiffin Shelby County Stark County The Review - Alliance Summit County Call and Post - Akron (Minority) Trumbull County Tribune Chronicle - Warren Tuscarawas County The Times Reporter - New Philadelphia Union County Marysville Journal-Tribune Van Wert County Times Bulletin - Van Wert Vinton County Wellston Telegram Warren County The Western Star - Lebanon Washington County Marietta Times Wayne County The - Wooster Williams County The Bryan Times

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Wood County Daily Sentinel-Tribune - Bowling Green Wyandot County Daily Chief Union - Upper Sandusky

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Ohio's Designated MPOs

Akron Metropolitan Area Mid-Ohio Regional Planning Transportation Study (AMATS) Commission (MORPC) 146 South High Street 285 East Main Street Citicenter Bldg., Rm. 806 Columbus, Ohio 43215 Akron, Ohio 44308-1423 Contact: Robert Lawler Contact: Ken Hanson Phone: (614) 228-2663 Phone: (330) 375-2436 FAX: (614) 621-2401 FAX: (330) 375-2275

Stark County Area Miami Valley Regional Planning Transportation Study (SCATS) Commission (MVRPC) 201 Third St. N.E., Suite 201 1 South Main Street, Suite 260 Canton, Ohio 44702-1231 Dayton, Ohio 45402 Contact: Paul Jaeger Contact: Donald Spang Phone: (330) 451-7389 Phone: (937) 223-6323 FAX: (330) 451-7990 FAX: (937) 223-9750

Ohio-Kentucky-Indiana Regional Huntington-Ironton Area Council of Governments (OKI) Transportation Study (HIATS) 720 Pete Rose Way, Suite 420 720 4th Ave., PO Box 939 Cincinnati, Ohio 45202 Huntington, WV 25712 Contact: Bob Koehler Contact: Saleem Salameh Phone: (513) 621-6300 Phone: (304) 523-7434 Fax: (513) 621-9325 FAX: (304) 529-7229

Northeast Ohio Areawide Lima Area Transportation Coordinating Agency (NOACA) Coordinating Committee (TCC) 1299 Superior Avenue 130 West North Street Cleveland, Ohio 44114-3204 Lima, Ohio 45801 Contact: John Hosek Contact: Thomas Mazur Phone: (216) 241-2414 Phone: (419) 228-1836 FAX: (216) 621-3024 FAX: (419) 228-3891

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Ohio's Designated MPOs

Mansfield Area Transportation Coordinating Committee (TCC) Brooke-Hancock-Jefferson 35 North Park Street Transportation Study (BHJTS) Mansfield, Ohio 44902 124 North Fourth Street, Second Floor Contact: John Adams Steubenville, Ohio 43952 Phone: (419) 774-5684 Contact: Michael Paprocki FAX: (419) 774-5685 Phone: (740) 282-3685 FAX: (740) 282-1821 Licking County Area Transportation Study (LCATS) 20 South Second Street Toledo Metropolitan Area Newark, Ohio 43055 Council of Gov'ts (TMACOG) Contact: Sandra Mapel 300 Central Union Terminal Phone: (740) 670-5190 P. O. Box 9508 FAX: (740) 670-5197 Toledo, Ohio 43697-9508 Contact: David Dysard Wood-Washington-Wirt Interstate Phone: (419) 241-9155 Planning Commission (WWW) FAX: (419) 241-9116 531 Market Street, PO Box 247 Parkersburg, West Virginia 26101 Contact: Randy Durst Bel-O-Mar Transportation Phone: (304) 422-4993 Study (BOMTS) FAX: (304) 422-4998 105 Bridge Street, PO Box 2086 Wheeling, West Virginia 26003 Erie Regional Planning Commission Contact: Robert Muransky (ERPC) Phone: (304) 242-1800 2900 Columbus Avenue FAX: (304) 242-2437 Sandusky, Ohio 44870 Contact: Alex MacNicol Phone: (419) 627-7792 Eastgate Regional Council of FAX: (419) 627-6670 Governments (Eastgate) 5121 Mahoning Avenue Clark County - Springfield Trans. Youngstown, Ohio 44515 Coordinating Committee (TCC) Contact: John Getchey 76 East High Street Phone: (330) 779-3800 Springfield, Ohio 45502 FAX: (330) 779-3838 Contact: Thea Walsh Phone: (937) 324-7751 FAX: (937) 328-3940

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Ohio Department of Transportation Districts and Deputy Directors

District One Tim Burkepile 1885 N. McCullough St. Lima, OH 45801 Phone: (419) 222-9055 Fax: (419) 224-7461 Counties: Allen, Defiance, Hancock, Hardin, Paulding, Putnam, Van Wert, Wyandot

District Two

317 East Poe Road Bowling Green, OH 43402 Phone: (419) 353-8131 Fax: (419) 353-1468 Counties: Fulton, Henry, Lucas, Ottawa, Sandusky, Seneca, Williams, Wood

District Three

906 North Clark Street Ashland, OH 44805-1989 Phone: (419) 281-0513 Fax: (419) 281-0874 Counties: Ashland, Crawford, Erie, Huron, Lorain, Medina, Richland, Wayne

District Four

2088 South Arlington Road Akron, Ohio 44306 Phone: (330) 603-1054 Fax: (330) 786-2232 Counties: Ashtabula, Mahoning, Portage, Stark, Summit, Trumbull

District Five Don Barber 9600 Jacksontown Road, SE P. O. Box 306 Jacksontown, Ohio 43030 Phone: (740) 323-4400 Fax: (740) 323-3470 Counties: Coshocton, Fairfield, Guernsey, Knox, Licking, Muskingum, Perry

District Six

400 East William Street Delaware, Ohio 43015 Phone: (740) 363-1251 Fax: (740) 369-1483

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Counties: Delaware, Fayette, Franklin, Madison, Marion, Morrow, Pickaway, Union

District Seven

1001 St. Mary's Avenue P. O. Box 969 Sidney, Ohio 45365-0969 Phone: (937) 492-1141 Fax: (937) 497-9734 Counties: Auglaize, Champaign, Clark, Darke, Logan, Mercer, Miami, Montgomery, Shelby

District Eight Hans Jindal 505 SR 741, P.O. Box 272 Lebanon, Ohio 45036-0272 Phone: (513) 932-3030 Fax: (513) 932-7651 Counties: Preble, Butler, Clermont, Clinton, Greene, Hamilton, Warren

District Nine Jim Brushart 650 Eastern Avenue P. O. Box 467 Chillicothe, Ohio 45601 Phone: (740) 773-2691 FAX: (740) 775-4889 Counties: Adams, Brown, Highland, Jackson, Lawrence, Pike, Ross, Scioto

District Ten Larry Woodford 338 Muskingum Drive Marietta, Ohio 45750 Phone: (740) 373-0212 Fax: (740) 373-3953 Counties: Athens, Gallia, Hocking, Meigs, Monroe, Morgan, Noble, Vinton, Washington

District Eleven

2201 Reiser Ave. SE P. O. Box 351 New Philadelphia, Ohio 44663 Phone: (330) 339-6633 Fax: (330) 308-3942 Counties: Belmont, Carroll, Columbiana, Harrison, Holmes, Jefferson, Tuscarawas District Twelve

5500 Transportation Boulevard Garfield Hts, Ohio 44125-5396 Phone: (216) 581-2100 Fax: (216) 587-1730 Counties: Cuyahoga, Geauga, Lake

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