CHAPTER VIII TRANSPORTATION GENERAL The Transportation Plan, included within the 1972 Official Area-Wide Comprehensive Plan and the 1981, 1986, 1991 and 1996 Plan Updates, herein incorporated, is part of the larger eight-county 2030 Regional Transportation Plan adopted by the Ohio- Kentucky-Indiana Regional Council of Governments (OKI) in September 2001. Since the 1986 Update, OKI serves eight counties, with Ohio County in Indiana no longer participating in the regional program. The Transportation Plan includes recommendations concerning highways, mass transit, water, rail, pedestrian, bicycle, and air facilities. The NKAPC will continue to coordinate this Update and all future efforts with the OKI 2030 Regional Transportation Plan. The initial portion of this section of the Plan will focus on the OKI 2030 Regional Transportation Plan, followed by Plan recommendations for the Northern Kentucky/Kenton County area. The recommendations incorporate the top five priority issues raised at the two initial public hearings, held in Independence and Covington. OKI REGIONAL TRANSPORTATION PLAN Since the adoption of the last Comprehensive Plan Update in 1996, OKI, in accordance with the Federal Interstate Surface Transportation Efficiency Act (ISTEA) of 1991 and the 1998 Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century (TEA-21), adopted the regional 2030 Regional Transportation Plan for the tri-state region of southwest Ohio, Northern Kentucky, and southeastern Indiana. OKI’s 2030 Regional Transportation Plan was adopted in September 2001, and continues the requirements of the Federal Highway Administration and Clean Air Act that call for the mitigation of congestion, air pollution, and other environmental, social and financial issues. In June 1998, Congress passed the Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century (TEA- 21). TEA-21 continued and reinforced the emphasis on public involvement during the planning and development of transportation improvements. TEA-21 also added representatives of transit users and freight suppliers to the list of entities given an opportunity to comment on transportation plans and programs. These acts give state and local officials tools for adapting the transportation system to meet the Clean Air Act Amendments (CAAA) requirements, including increased funding, flexibility to mix project types (e.g., transit, bicycle), and metropolitan and statewide planning requirements. Under TEA-21, one source of funding is the Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality Improvement Program (CMAQ). The CMAQ program funds transportation projects or programs that will contribute to attainment or maintenance of the national ambient air quality standards for ozone and carbon monoxide. The CAAA are described in further detail below. Under the Clean Air Act Amendments (CAAA) of 1990, air quality attainment became a central objective of transportation policy, planning and program development. Within 2001 AREA-WIDE COMPREHENSIVE PLAN 8-1 TRANSPORTATION the OKI region, air quality plans were required to specify transportation control measures (TCM) to help meet ozone standards by late 1996. The OKI region became an air quality attainment area in 2000, however, transportation projects must continue to be consistent with air quality goals and the long-range transportation plan must ultimately conform to the air quality plan. The CAAA of 1990 is complemented by the ISTEA, passed in 1991 and TEA-21 in 1998. Those acts provide metropolitan areas with the funding and flexibility to help improve air quality through improving the transportation system. The OKI 2030 Regional Transportation Plan, in addition to enhancing mobility, must also insure that the growth of future travel does not reverse the air quality improvements required by this Act. Because of the new requirements placed on transportation planning for the OKI region (the CAAA and the ISTEA legislation), the OKI 2030 Regional Transportation Plan must continue to take into consideration the following issues: • Travel demand management is to be applied to balance the need for new transportation facilities with demand (e.g., alternatives to driving alone are to be promoted in order to reduce the need for expanding transportation facilities); • Transportation demand is to be accommodated by a multi-modal system that includes, in addition to highways, transit, ride-share programs, and bicycling and pedestrian facilities; • Transportation projects that involve capacity expansion will not be permitted to advance in planning unless they are in conformity with provisions in the air quality plan; • Congestion is to be mitigated; and • Plan recommendations must be accompanied by a financial plan to clarify funding availability and implementation responsibilities. These federal acts on air quality in the OKI region continue the need for transportation planning because federal funding for roadway construction or expansion will only be available for those projects that accompany improvements in air quality. In addition, the OKI 2030 Regional Transportation Plan lays the groundwork for increasing travel by transit and other drive-alone alternatives, for using roadways more efficiently, and for balancing travel supply and demand. Based on ISTEA and TEA-21, the forum for transportation decision-making on a regional basis is the Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO). The OKI has been the designated MPO for the metropolitan region since 1965. The NKAPC is a contributing and funding member of OKI. The Transportation Plan Element of the 2001 Plan Update, as contained herein, is consistent with the 2030 OKI Regional Transportation Plan (September 2001), as updated. 2001 AREA-WIDE COMPREHENSIVE PLAN 8-2 TRANSPORTATION The Goals of the 2030 OKI Regional Transportation Plan are as follows: z Improve mobility for people and goods z Protect environmental quality z Develop new transportation funding sources and strategies z Improve travel safety z Provide transportation opportunities in an equitable manner z Strengthen the connection between land use and transportation planning The OKI 2030 Regional Transportation Plan identifies Highway Capacity Projects (projects for which funding is allocated and are thus considered “committed” for implementation) in the FY 2002- 2005 Transportation Improvement Program in Northern Kentucky/Kenton County, as follows: Facility Location Description KY 16 I-275 to KY 1501 Widen to 3 lanes KY 17 Pelly Road to KY 16 Widen to 5 lanes KY 1303 Autumn Road to Richardson Road Widen to 5 lanes KY 1303 Lindenwood Drive to Autumn Road Widen to 5 lanes KY 1303 Dudley Pike to Lindenwood Drive Widen to 5 lanes New Bridge Over Ohio River New bridge New Dolwick to Erlanger- Crescent Springs Construct new connector Connector Road Recommended Highway Capacity Projects in the 2030 Regional Transportation Plan are those projects identified as needed but not financially constrained, meaning there is not expected to be available funding for them. These are considered to be projects with merit and will remain available for future consideration, but should not be considered as part of the OKI Plan until funding becomes available. The projects identified as Recommended Highway Capacity Projects are as follows: Facility Location Description KY 1072 I-75 to Henry Clay Avenue Add 1 lane I-75 Brent Spence Over Ohio River Replace with new 10 lane bridge Bridge KY 1501 KY 16 to KY 17 New 3-lane facility S of existing KY1501 I-75 KY 1072 to Brent Spence Add 2 lanes Bridge KY 1303 Dudley Road to US 25 Add bike lanes & add 2 lanes north of I-275 KY 1303 KY 536 to Richardson Add 1 lane & bike lanes KY 16 KY 17 in Nicholson to Hands Add 1 lane Pike KY 8 4th Street Bridge over Licking Add 3 lanes River KY 8 4th St. (Main Street to I-75) Modify alignment, add approach 2001 AREA-WIDE COMPREHENSIVE PLAN 8-3 TRANSPORTATION lane to I-75 KY 536 Boone County to KY 17 Add 1 to 3 lanes KY 536 KY 17 to KY 16 Add 3 lanes KY 536 KY 16 to KY 177 2-lane facility on new alignment KY 1072 North of I-275 New 2-lane connector Most of the projects identified as deficiencies in the 2030 Regional Transportation Plan are identified in the Six-Year KTC Transportation Plan, or are proposed for improvement in this Plan Update. In the section regarding bicycle and pedestrian travel, the OKI 2030 Regional Transportation Plan emphasizes the need to give priority funding to those projects that promote bicycle and pedestrian travel to reduce vehicular trips. The Northern Kentucky Area Planning Commission previously completed the Kenton County Bicycle Plan in 1999 and a part of the Kenton County Pedestrian Plan in 2001. The 1990 Clean Air Act Amendments places emphasis on the adoption and implementation of 'transportation control measures' (TCMs). A number of TCMs are identified in the Act, including expanded public transit, high-occupancy vehicle lanes, employer-based transportation management plans, trip reduction ordinances, programs to provide high occupancy shared-ride services, limiting sections of metropolitan areas to pedestrian or non-motorized vehicle use, providing secure bicycle storage and bicycle lanes, and the construction of paths exclusively for the use of pedestrians and non-motorized vehicles, all of which are included in the OKI Plan. The TCMs in the OKI 2030 Regional Transportation Plan are consistent with the Transportation Systems Management (TSM) approach included in the previous Comprehensive Plan Update. This approach places emphasis on making the most effective use of existing transportation corridors and