On target, Vol. 5, no. 1 (Spring 1998)

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Georgia Department ofTransportation Office of Planning

Spring 1998 Vol. 5 No.1

The Office ofPlanning's update ofthe Statewide Transportation Improvement Program (STIP) for fiscal years 1999, 2000, and 2001 is underway. The STIP is a threeyear document containing federally-funded transportation projects and is updated on an annual basis.
Public involvement is a significicant part of the annual update. In April and May of this year, six public meetings were held throughout the state to gather public comment on the rural draft STIP. The Office of Planning mailed out over 1,000 invitations and placed announcements in local newspapers. The Regional Development Centers also invited local and elected officials, interested citizens, and local media to these meetings and the Department's District Offices met with local elected officials in each county to solicit their needs, comments and recommendations. Metropolitan Planning

Organizations (MPOs) around the state held public meetings to discuss the urban part ofthe STIP.
In July, the final Draft STIP that includes transportation projects for both rural and urban areas, will be made available for public comment at the Regional Development Centers, the Metropolitan Planning Organizations (MPO) and the DOT District Offices. This comment period will be announced in the legal ads of each county's local newspaper. 0
by Cindy Van Dyke e-mail: cindy.vandyke@dot.state.gaus
The draft rural STIP is now available on the internet at: www.dot.state.ga.us/ homeoffs/planning.www/drftstip/ district.htm

. TEA Programs III

The Transportation Enhancement Activities There are several types ofTEA projects:

.(TEA) program was established by the Inter-.

Bicycle and pedestrian facilities;

modal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act of.

Preservation of abandoned railway

1991, with the objective of enriching the trav-

corridors;

eling experience ofthe highway user by enhanc-.

Streetscape and landscaping;

ing the national transportation system. The.

Historic preservation;

TEA program, which is administered within. Georgia by the Office of Planning, provides. funding for projects that focus on cultural, natu-

Rehabilitate historic structures; and Archaeological planning.

ral, and scenic sites.

Last fall, the Office ofPlanning solicited for its

(continued on p. 2)

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(UTEA Progralns" continued)
latest round of TEA applications. For the first time, applications were available through e-mail and by download from the internet. In all, 144 TEA project applications totaling $98M were reviewed. Applications have been received by Planning's office managers and planners in preparation for evaluation by the TEA Advisory Panel. The TEA Advisory Panel consists ofprofessionals from the public and private sectors. The TEA panel will rank the applications before sending them to the State Transportation Board for final selection. Selected projects are scheduled to be announced in July and project sponsors will be notified ofthe results.0
by Megan Stanley e-mail: megan.stanley@dot.state.ga.us
To date, there are 149 TEA projects around the state in various stages of development. A number of these projects are complete and open to the public. Examples of completed projects are posted on the Office of Planning's internet website www.dot.state.ga.us/homeoffs/ pI annin g. www/planning/ planhome.htm under "TEA Virtual Tour."

The Federal Highway Administration pre-

sented several topics including: "Innovative

Financing" of transportation projects, "In-

telligent Transportation Systems (ITS) in

Small Urbanized Areas", and "Reauthoriza-

tion of the Intermodal Surface Transporta-

tion Efficiency Act (ISTEA)". Wanda

Seguin of the Georgia Scenic Byways

Project spoke about the Urban Scenic By-

ways program, for which further informa-

tion is available at the Office of Planning's

internet page:

www.dot.state.ga.us/

homeoffs/pl annin g. www/planning/

planhome.htm. Hal Wilson of GDOT In-

termodal Programs office provided an up-

date on the Intercity Rail Study, for which

information is also available on the internet

at:www.dot.state.ga.us/homeoffs/planningl

tranfact/rail.htm. Ron Methier from the

Georgia Environmental Protection Division

(Air Protection Branch) gave an update on

the ongoing challenges of the Atlanta Metro

area's efforts to comply with the federal

Clean Air Act Amendments. Representatives

from the Rome Transit Department and

Chatham Area Transit (Savannah) spoke

about the problems facing small and me-

dium-sized transit systems.

The Metropolitan Planning Organizations (MPOs) for the urbanized areas in Georgia held a workshop on February 19-20, 1998 in Rome. Representatives from all eleven Georgia MPOs, the Georgia Department of Transportation, several public transit agencies, the Federal Highway Administration, and the Federal Transit Administration participated in the workshop. These workshops are typically held twice each year and serve as a forum for sharing ideas and allow participants to learn from each other's experiences.
The workshop agenda was ambitious and included presentations from many agencies.

Several new federal programs were discussed. Troy Ayers from the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration presented the "Safe Communities" program, whose focus is to create communities that promote injury prevention activities at the local level by creating a community level task force to identify problems, educate citizens, and implement specific strategies. These strategies may include the development of programs to address issues such as Alcohol and Impaired Driving; Occupant Protection; Speed Management and Aggressive Driver Prevention; Pedestrian and Bike Safety; Motorcycle Safety; Roadway Safety; and Railroad Safety. More information about "Safe Communities" can be obtained from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration at their internet site: www.nhtsa.dot.gov/peopJe/outreach/ safecomm/pub/fedreg.txt .
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(JYrPO Workshop continued)
Another new federal program discussed was "Access to Jobs," which was developed in response to federal, state, and local welfare reform initiatives. "Access To Jobs" may require the planning and development of new and innovative public transportation services to ensure that participants have the mobility needed to reach employment opportunities. A report of several case studies for this initiative has been published and may be obtained from the Federal Transit Administration at their internet site: www.fta.dot.gov/ wtw/access-to-jobs-brochure.html D
by Brent Cook e-mail: brent.cook@dot.state.ga.us

assistance in: ~ Planning and Strategic Meetings; ~ Demographic and Market-Analysis
Community Surveys; ~ Business Retention and Expansion; ~ Listing ofBuildings on the "available
buildings" database; and ~ Assistance with grant programs of-
fered by the Department of Community Affairs, DOT, and DNR's Historic Preservation Division.
Public-Private partnerships form the foundation of the Program. The Georgia Department of Community Affairs administers the program in partnership with the Georgia Power Company. The Georgia Department ofTransportation is a program partner along with others such as the Georgia Municipal Association, the GeorgiaDepartment of Industry, Trade, and Tourism and the Municipal Electric Authority of Georgia.

In January ofthis year, Governor Zell Miller added Blue Ridge, Crawfordville, Darien, Dawson, Edison, Homerville, Metter, Monticello, Social Circle and Trenton to Georgia's Better Hometown Program. These cities join Blackshear, Blakely, Bremen, Greensboro and Manchester, which were designated last year. This program promotes self-help community development to revitalize small communities with a population between 1,000 and 5,000.
The program has many benefits for Georgia's towns. Better Hometown cities have access to technical and fiscal resources designed to stimulate economic revitalization, bring jobs, provide recognition, and bring an overall higher quality oflife totheir communities. Through a strategic planning and goal setting process, cities develop an ongoing commitment for improvement and economic revitalization of their downtown areas. Specifically, these benefits include

The Department ofTransportation realizes that transportation is important to small town revitalization, economic growth, and overall quality of life for residents. The Office of Planning is working with other program participants and BetterHometown communities to address transportation issues and define community development goals. In fact, 40% of Better Hometown designated communities have sent applications to the Office of Planning for funding through the Transportation Enhancement Program for sidewalk, landscaping, and bike/pedestrian types of improvements. [Also see this newsletter for further information on the Office ofPlanning's Transportation Enhancement (TEA) Program].
For more information about the Better Hometown program, please contact State Coordinator, Cindy Thilenius at (404) 6793101. e-mail: cthileni@dca.state.ga.us. 0

On Target is a quarterly publication ofthe GeorgiaDepartment ofTransportation.
Office ofPlanning No.2 Capitol Square, S.W. Atlanta, GA 30334-1002
(404) 656-5411 Fax: (404) 657-5228
Visit our recently updated web site at: www.dot.state.gauslhomeoffsl planning.www/planninglplanhome.htm

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TEA Contracts Executed so far in FY 1998:

County
Bibb

Description
Music Hall ofFarrle Pedestrian Plaza.

ChathaIn

Restoration ofthe Tybee Island Lighthouse.

Colquitt Hall McIntosh Mitchell Richmond Spalding Spalding Stephens Warren

Moultrie-Bike/Ped. Trail Lovver Meigs Rd. south to US 319 Bypass and to Airport. Gainesville BikePath
Sapelo Island - Restore Lighthouse.
Restore Mitchell Drug Store in Canrilla.
Pedestrian Way & Handicap Rarrlp at RivervvalkinAugusta.
Griffin Welcome Center.
Transportation Building & landscape in Griffin.
Streetscape in Toccoa.
Historic Preservation of City of Warrenton's GyrnnasiUlTI AuditoriUlTI.

Georgia Depa.rtrnent of Transportation Office of Planning No.2 Capitol Square, S.W. Atlanta, Georgia 30334-1002