2045 Fargo-Moorhead Metropolitan Transportation Plan
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Fargo-Moorhead Metropolitan Council of Government SOURCE: Historical and Cultural Society of Clay County 2045 Fargo-Moorhead Metropolitan Transportation Plan September, 2019 2045 Fargo-Moorhead Transportation Plan Acronyms ACS: American Community Survey NPMRDS: National Performance Management Research Data Set ATAC: Advanced Traffic Analysis Center NWI: National Wetlands Inventory CAV: Connected and Autonomous Vehicles O&M: Operations and Maintenance CE: Categorical Exclusions PCI: Pavement Condition Index CFR: Code of Federal Regulations PHED: peak hour excessive delay CIP: Capital Improvement Program PM: Performance Measure CMP: Congestion Management Process NDDOT: North Dakota Department of Transportation CPG: Consolidated Planning Grant RTP: Recreational Trails Program DTA: Dynamic Traffic Assignment SOV: Single-Occupant Travel EA: Environmental Assessments SHPO: State Historic Preservation Office E+C: Existing-plus-committed STBG or STBGP: Surface Transportation Block Grant Program EIS: Environmental Impact Statements STBG-TA: Surface Transportation Block Grant Program funding for EJ: Environmental Justice transportation alternatives FAST Act: Fixing America’s Surface Transportation (FAST) Act STSAC: Surface Transportation Security Advisory Committee (STSAC) FHWA: Federal Highway Administration TA: Transportation Alternatives Program FTA: Federal Transit Administration TAZ: Transportation analysis zone HSIP: Highway Safety Improvement Program TDM: Travel Demand Management or Travel Demand Model LOS: Level of Service TIM: Traffic Incident Management LOTTR: Level of Travel Time Reliability TIP: Transportation Improvement Program LWCF: Land and Water Conservation Fund TMA: Transportation Management Area MaaS: Mobility-as-a-service TMC: Transportation Management Center MAP-21: Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act TNC: Transportation Network Company (MAP-21) TSMO: Transportation System Management and Operations Metro COG: Fargo-Moorhead Metropolitan Council TTC: Transportation Technical Committee of Governments TTTR: Truck Travel Time Reliability MVMT: Million Vehicle Miles Traveled USACE: United States Corps of Engineers MnDOT: Minnesota Department of Transportation USFWS: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service MPA: Metropolitan Planning Area UZA: Urbanized Area MPO: Metropolitan Planning Organization V2I: Vehicle-to-Infrastructure MSA: Metropolitan Statistical Area V2V: Vehicle-to-Vehicle MTP: Metropolitan Transportation Plan VHT: Vehicle Hours Traveled NDSU: North Dakota State University VMT: Vehicle Miles Traveled NHPP: National Highway Performance Program NHS: National Highway System 2045 Fargo-Moorhead Transportation Plan The preparation of this document was funded in part by the United States Department of Transportation with funding administered through the North Dakota Department of Transportation, the Federal Highway Administration, and the Federal Transit Administration. Additional funding was provided by the Minnesota Department of Transportation and through local contributions from the governments of Fargo, West Fargo, Horace, and Cass County in North Dakota; and Moorhead, Dilworth, and Clay County in Minnesota. The United States Government and the States of North Dakota and Minnesota assume no liability for the contents or use thereof. This document does not constitute a standard, specification, or regulation. The United States Government, the States of North Dakota and Minnesota, and the Fargo-Moorhead Metropolitan Council of Governments do not endorse products or manufacturers. Trade or manufacturers’ names may appear herein only because they are considered essential to the objective of this document. The contents of this document reflect the views of the authors, who are responsible for the facts and the accuracy of the data presented herein. The contents do not necessarily reflect the policies of the state and federal Departments of Transportation. 2045 Fargo-Moorhead Transportation Plan Table of Contents Chapter 1: Plan Overview 01 Chapter 2: Regional Trends 04 Chapter 3: Plan Engagement 08 Chapter 4: System Performance 17 Chapter 5: Future Trends & Needs 44 SOURCE: Historical and Cultural Society of Clay County Chapter 6: Transportation Goals & Objectives 51 Chapter 7: Emerging Transportation Trends & Technology 55 Chapter 8: Congestion Management 64 Chapter 9: Financial 81 Chapter 10: Potential Strategies and Priorities 96 Chapter 11: MTP Policies 100 Chapter 12: Future Transportation System 105 Chapter 13: Safety, Security, & Environmental Overview 133 Chapter 14: Consistency with Federal Planning Goals 144 Table of Contents 2045 Fargo-Moorhead Transportation Plan Plan Overview The 2045 Fargo-Moorhead Metropolitan Transportation Plan has been a collaborative effort of the Fargo-Moorhead Metropolitan Council of Governments and its member jurisdictions. The metropolitan transportation plan is called Metro Grow and is founded on performance assessments of the multimodal transportation system, has been shaped by the broad and multifaceted cross-section of input from across the community, and is constrained by the anticipated amount of transportation funding that will be available between today and 2045. Chapter 1: Plan Overview 01 2045 Fargo-Moorhead Transportation Plan What is Metro COG? FIGURE 1.1: GEOGRAPHIC BOUNDARY FOR THE METRO COG PLANNING AREA The Fargo-Moorhead Metropolitan Council of Governments (Metro COG) is the Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) for the Fargo-Moorhead area. An MPO is a transportation policy-making organization made up of representatives from local government and transportation authorities. The Federal Surface Transportation Assistance Act of 1973 required that urban areas with a population greater than 50,000 form an MPO. The basis of MPOs’ creation was to employ a comprehensive, cooperative, and continuing planning process for transportation expenditures in a region. Federal funding for transportation projects and programs is channeled through this planning process. Metro COG was formed in 1963, to create a comprehensive growth plan and traffic study for the cities of the region. Over time, the mission of Metro COG has evolved to address the transportation planning requirements of the region, in coordination with the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT), and North Dakota Department of Transportation (NDDOT). ° Fargo - 7 members The geographic boundary for the Metro COG planning area is shown in FIGURE 1.1 ° Moorhead - 3 members Metro COG serves a bi-state area with a planning area that covers 14 townships in Cass ° West Fargo - 2 members County, North Dakota and 16 townships in Clay County, Minnesota. There are seven (7) ° Dilworth - 1 member member jurisdictions and six (6) associate jurisdictions. ° Clay County - 1 member Member jurisdictions include: Associate jurisdictions are: ° Cass County - 1 member • Cass County • Barnesville ° One Vacancy • Clay County • Casselton • Fargo • Glyndon •T he second is the Transportation Technical Committee (TTC). The TTC advises the • Moorhead • Harwood Policy Board on technical matters related to transportation planning in the region. • West Fargo • Hawley The committee is made up of planning and engineering from local jurisdictions, • Horace • Mapleton transit agencies, and representatives from MATBUS, MnDOT and NDDOT. • Dilworth Metro COG also operates four committees: Additional member agencies include the FHWA, MnDOT, and NDDOT. •M etropolitan Bicycle and Pedestrian Committee • Traffic Operations Working Group Metro COG is governed by of two committees: • GIS Committee •T he first is thePolicy Board. The Policy Board is the executive body of Metro COG. •F reight Advisory Committee. The Policy Board is Metro COG’s decision-making arm comprised of 16 voting members who represent the metropolitan planning area. The Policy Board consists Metro COG staff also participate in two other regional committees: of at least three-quarters elected officials, and each jurisdiction’s voting power is •M etro Area Transit Coordinating Board based on its approximate share of the area’s population. The current representation •C ass Clay Food Commission from each jurisdiction is: Chapter 1: Plan Overview 02 2045 Fargo-Moorhead Transportation Plan The performance-based approach applied by Metro COG and carried through into What is a Metropolitan Transportation this document has established a link between regional vision and Federal performance requirements, system data and evaluation, policy, and investment decisions. This top- Plan? down approach to performance-based planning provides a regional vision that reflects locally-established priorities, that are consistent with Federal transportation goals, tied The metropolitan transportation plan (MTP) is a document that all MPOs are required to to performance measures and project prioritization metrics. This performance-based update every five years. The plan is required to have at least a 20-year planning horizon, approach allows Metro COG to continually monitor progress towards its transportation and should support the Federal metropolitan transportation planning factors: vision, and identify the actions, policies, and projects that will best promote regional 1. Support the economic vitality of the metropolitan area, especially by enabling global performance goals. competitiveness, productivity, and efficiency 2. Increase the safety of the transportation system for motorized and non-motorized users More on the goals, objectives, and performance