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 Ohio 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. Ohio Department of Transportation Page 1 Public Involvement Process January 2007 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. Ohio Department of Transportation Page 2 Public Involvement Process January 2007 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. Ohio Department of Transportation Page 3 Public Involvement Process January 2007 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