SECTION 16.101. Transportation Improvement Program (TIP)

(a) Requirements. Title 23 U.S.C. §134 and 23 C.F.R. Part 450, require the metropolitan transportation planning process to include the development of a transportation improvement program (TIP) for the metropolitan planning area, containing a list of projects that have been approved for development in the near term. The list must be prioritized by project within each funding category as described in §16.105(b) of this subchapter (relating to Unified Transportation Program (UTP)). The TIP shall be designed such that once implemented, it makes progress toward achieving the required federal performance targets. The TIP shall include, to the maximum extent practicable, a description of the anticipated effect of the TIP toward achieving those performance targets and a demonstration of the link between the investment priorities to those performance targets. An approved TIP is then included in the statewide transportation improvement program (STIP) which contains a listing of projects for all areas of the state that are likely to be implemented in that identified four-year period.

(b) Development of transportation improvement program (TIP). The MPO designated for a metropolitan planning area, in cooperation with the department and public transportation operators as defined by 23 C.F.R. Part 450, shall develop a TIP and financial plan in accordance with federal requirements. The department will provide an MPO with estimates of available federal and state funds to be used in developing the financial plan in accordance with §16.152 of this chapter (relating to Cash Flow Forecast). The TIP shall cover the metropolitan planning area and shall be approved and amended in accordance with subsection (h) of this section. The TIP shall be updated and approved in accordance with federal regulations and, in the discretion of the department in consultation with the metropolitan planning organizations, may be updated more frequently than every four years.

(c) Grouping of projects. Projects that are not considered by the department and the MPO to be of appropriate scale for individual identification in a given program year may be grouped by function, geographic area, or work type (e.g., minor rehabilitation, preventive maintenance). In nonattainment and maintenance areas, classification must be consistent with the exempt project classifications contained in the EPA conformity regulations.

(d) Projects excluded. The following projects may be excluded from the TIP by agreement between the department and the MPO:

(1) safety projects funded under 23 U.S.C. §402 (highway safety programs) and emergency relief projects, except those involving substantial functional, location, and capacity changes;

(2) planning and research activities, except those activities funded with National Highway System or Surface Transportation Program funds other than those used for major investment studies; and

(3) projects under 23 U.S.C. §104(b)(1), (b)(4), and §144 that are for resurfacing, restoration, rehabilitation, reconstruction, or highway safety improvement, and which will not alter the functional traffic capacity or capability of the facility being improved.

(e) Consistency and conformity.

(1) Relationship to the metropolitan transportation plan (MTP). A project in the TIP must be consistent with the MTP.

(2) Relationship to the statewide long-range transportation plan (SLRTP). A project in the TIP must be consistent with the SLRTP developed under federal law and §16.54 of this chapter (relating to Statewide Long-Range Transportation Plan (SLRTP)).

(3) Relationship to the Clean Air Act and State Implementation Plan. In nonattainment and maintenance areas, a project selected for the TIP must conform to the Clean Air Act (CAA) and the state implementation plan (SIP).

(4) Conformity requirements. The MPO in each urbanized nonattainment and maintenance area will be responsible for preparation of the conformity determination requirements of the CAA and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) conformity regulations. The department will be responsible for preparation of the conformity determination requirements in nonattainment and maintenance areas outside of metropolitan planning areas.

(f) Format. The department, in cooperation with the MPOs, will develop a uniform TIP format to produce a uniform statewide transportation improvement program (STIP). The department in consultation with the MPOs may make modifications to the format. The MPOs shall submit electronic copies of their TIPs to the department in this format.

(g) Financial plan. A financial plan that demonstrates consistency with funding reasonably expected to be available during the relevant period shall be developed for TIPs by the MPO in cooperation with the department and public transportation operators. Fiscal constraint must be demonstrated and maintained by year.

(h) Transportation improvement program (TIP) approval. The MPO and the governor shall approve the TIP and any amendments. If the governor delegates this authority to the commission, the commission, or if further delegated, the executive director, will approve transportation improvement programs if the executive director finds the TIP has met all federal requirements and the requirements of this subchapter, including satisfaction of the project selection criteria developed for the department's unified transportation program, as set forth in §16.105(d) of this subchapter.

(i) Management. As a management tool for monitoring progress in implementation of the metropolitan transportation plan, the TIP shall identify the criteria and process for prioritizing implementation of transportation plan elements for inclusion in the TIP and any changes in priorities from previous TIPs in accordance with the factors specified in federal regulations and §16.105(d) of this subchapter.

(j) Updating. The frequency and cycle for updating the TIP must be compatible with the statewide transportation improvement program (STIP) development process established by the department and described in §16.103 of this subchapter (relating to Statewide Transportation Improvement Program (STIP)).

(k) Modification.

(1) Amendments. The transportation improvement program (TIP) may be amended consistent with the procedures established in this section for its development and approval with the following stipulations.

(A) An amendment to the TIP is required in attainment areas if there is a change:

(i) adding or deleting a federally funded project in the TIP;

(ii) in the scope of work of a federally funded project;

(iii) in the phase of work (such as the addition of preliminary engineering, construction, or right of way) of a federally funded project;

(iv) in the TIP year if the MPO's project selection procedure does not provide for selecting projects from the second, third, or fourth year; or

(v) in funding sources or funding availability that forces the addition or deletion of federally funded projects.

(B) An amendment to the TIP is required in nonattainment areas if there is a change:

(i) adding or deleting a project in the TIP;

(ii) in a project's design concept or scope of work;

(iii) in the phase of work (such as the addition of preliminary engineering, construction, or right of way) of a project;

(iv) in the TIP year if the MPO's project selection procedure does not provide for selecting projects from the second, third, or fourth year;

(v) adding Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality funding to a previously approved project; or

(vi) in funding from non-federal funding to any combination of federal funding or federal and state funding, or where the change in funding sources or funding availability forces the addition or deletion of federally funded projects or regionally significant state funded projects.

(C) An amendment to the transportation improvement program (TIP) is not required if there is a change:

(i) in funding sources, except as provided in this subsection;

(ii) in the cost estimate of a project where, unless federal law or regulation specifies a different cost estimate percentage and condition relating to waiver of the amendment requirement for a particular type of project, such change is not greater than 50 percent of the approved federal cost estimate and the revised cost estimate is less than $1,500,000, and the change in the cost estimate is not caused by a change in the project work scope or limits;

(iii) in the letting date or funding date of a project unless, in nonattainment areas, the change affects conformity;

(iv) in the control section job (CSJ) number of a project unless the change also affects other characteristics of the project or funding that do require an amendment as provided in this subsection; or

(v) that is administrative and does not require public review and comment, redemonstration of fiscal constraint, or a conformity determination.

(2) Conformity requirements. In nonattainment and maintenance areas for transportation related pollutants, a conformity determination must be made on any new or amended TIPs (unless the amendment consists entirely of projects exempt under subsection (c) of this section) in accordance with CAA requirements and the EPA conformity regulations.

(l) Transportation improvement program (TIP) relationship to statewide transportation improvement program (STIP). After approval, the TIP will be included without modification in the STIP except that in nonattainment and maintenance areas, the FHWA and the FTA must make a conformity determination before inclusion. The department will notify the MPO and appropriate federal agencies when a TIP has been included in the STIP.

(m) TIP public participation. Each MPO will develop a public participation process covering the development of a TIP in accordance with federal regulations. The MPOs shall also use the same procedures in amending the TIP.

(n) Project selection procedures. Under federal regulations, project selection from an approved transportation improvement program (TIP) varies depending on whether a project selected for implementation is located in a transportation management area and what type of federal funding is involved.

(1) General. Project selection procedures must be developed for each metropolitan area and for state projects that lie outside of metropolitan planning areas. The MPOs shall coordinate project selection criteria relating to statewide transportation goals with the department for the purpose of achieving consistent, common goals, particularly with respect to mobility projects using a mix of several funding sources.

(A) Project agreement. The first year of both the TIP and the statewide transportation improvement program (STIP) constitute an agreed to list of projects for project selection purposes. Project selection may be revised if the apportioned funds, including the highway obligation ceiling and transit appropriations, are significantly more or less than the authorized funds. In such cases, and if requested by the MPO, the department, or the transit operator, a revised agreed to list of projects for project selection purposes may be developed.

(B) Eligibility. Only projects included in the federally approved STIP will be eligible for funding with Title 23 U.S. Code or Federal Transit Act (49 U.S.C. §5307 et seq.) funds.

(2) Project selection in non-transportation management areas. In an area not designated as a transportation management area, the commission or the affected public transportation operator as defined by 23 C.F.R. Part 450, as applicable, in cooperation with the MPO, will select projects to be implemented using federal funds from the approved TIP. Federal lands highways program projects shall be selected in accordance with 23 U.S.C. §204.

(3) Project selection in transportation management areas (TMAs). In an area designated as a TMA, an MPO, in consultation with the department and public transportation operators as defined by 23 C.F.R. Part 450, shall select from the approved TIP and in accordance with the priorities of the approved TIP, all Title 23 U.S. Code and Federal Transit Act (49 U.S.C. §5307 et seq.) funded projects, except projects on the National Highway System and projects funded under the bridge, interstate maintenance, safety, and federal lands highways programs. The commission, in cooperation with the MPO, will select projects on the National Highway System and projects funded under the bridge, interstate maintenance, and safety programs. Federal lands highways program projects shall be selected in accordance with 23 U.S.C. §204.

Source Note: The provisions of this §16.101 adopted to be effective January 1, 2011, 35 TexReg 8388; amended to be effective November 15, 2012, 37 TexReg 8981; amended to be effective September 1, 2018, 43 TexReg 5240; amended to be effective February 16, 2022, 47 TexReg 660