6 / 20
PAGE 5
The Greensboro Area Metropolitan Planning
Organization (MPO) and Greensboro’s Department
of Transportation (GDOT) and have been working
diligently with the NC Department of Transportation
(NCDOT) to secure funding for major area transportation
priorities. This involves making tough choices on which
projects to submit for a limited number of slots for
evaluation under the state’s Strategic Transportation
Investments prioritization process. The process
awards points based on needs-based criteria such as
congestion, safety, freight, and local priorities.
NCDOT is also working to finalize the 2018-2027
State Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) by
August. The TIP funds road, rail, bike, pedestrian, and
aviation projects across the state. The Greensboro MPO
submitted 48 projects for new state and federal funding
commitments. NCDOT proposes to support 25 of those
projects with funding between 2018 and 2027 at an
estimated cost of $155 million. This is new funding that
is being added to the existing lists of projects in the STIP,
for a total of nearly $900 million.
Next Round of Project Prioritization in theWorks
GDOT and the MPO are also gearing up for the next
round of project prioritization. The staff will analyze new
projects and old projects that have not yet made the cut
to submit for funding.
This time around, the City is thinking outside the box
in an effort to identify additional needed projects that
are not already on the identified needs list. This includes
combing through the data, coordinating with other
departments and stakeholder groups, and listening to
the community. The MPO is responsible for finalizing the
list of projects for submittal by September. Visit www.
greensboro-nc.gov/GDOT to track progress on that
process.
State Commits to Accelerate Key Projects
NCDOT announced in April that it has a cash balance
of more than $2 billion and is looking at accelerating
existing projects or funding additional projects to
reduce the cash balance to below $1 billion within 18
months. This could mean some MPO project schedules
could be accelerated or new projects may be added to
the STIP.
Currently only 78 percent of projects in the STIP are
completed on time. The state is also considering the
following strategies to increase the number of projects
delivered on time:
• Speeding up the environmental assessment
process and establishing new expectations for the
completion of planning activities.
• Implement more flexibility in terms of cash
management and ability to replace delayed
projects with ready to go projects.
• Shifting the number of projects managed by the
NCDOT division offices from 30 percent to 70
percent.
An estimated 100 more projects could be completed
on time by implementing these new strategies. In
Greensboro, NCDOT has already decided to accelerate
the right-of-way acquisition phase of the northern
section of the Urban Loop between Lawndale Drive
and US 29 to begin construction in 2018 rather than
2019. NCDOT has also decided to accelerate the full
reconstruction of the US 29 and Reedy Fork Parkway
Interchange from 2024 to 2020, eliminating the need
for a previously scheduled interim project in 2020 to
replace the existing bridge.
Agencies Propose Funding for Major Improvements
in the Greensboro Area
M E T R O P O L I T A N P L A N N I N G O R G A N I Z A T I O N