Project Development

1
Project Development

• TTP220
• S. Handy
• 5/12/08

2
Project Development
Planning
Long-range plan
Problem identification
Initial project concept
TIP
Project development
Design
Right-of-Way
Construction
3
Source http//www.fhwa.dot.gov/environment/flex/c
h01.htm
4
Important Topics

• Environmental Review
• Context-Sensitive Design

5
Source http//www.paturnpike.com/MonFaySB/pdf/10s
tep.pdf
6
Environmental Review

• National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of 1970
• Council of Environmental Quality (CEQ)
  regulations in 1978
• Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) regulations
  in 1987

7
Purpose

• In general established a mandate for Federal
  agencies to consider the potential environmental
  consequences of their proposals, document the
  analysis, and make this information available to
  the public for comment prior to implementation.
• For FHWA .an approach to balanced
  transportation decision-making that takes into
  account the potential impacts on the human and
  natural environment and the public's need for
  safe and efficient transportation.

8
Players

• Lead Agency Federal agency responsible for
  federal action, e.g. FHWA
• Coordinating Agencies Agencies with special
  expertise (e.g. Fish and Wildlife Service) or
  jurisdiction by law (e.g. US Corps of Engineers)
• Participating Agencies federal, state, local
  agencies and tribal nations w/ interest in
  project
• Implementing Agency Agency responsible for
  project itself, e.g. Caltrans

9
Processing Options

• Categorical Exclusion (CE) no significant
  impacts
• Environmental Assessment (EA) if uncertain
  impacts, initial study
• Finding of no significant impacts leads to FONSI
• Finding of significant impacts leads to EIS
• Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) if
  significant impacts likely, full study

10
Significant impacts ?

• Impacts can be considered in the context of
  society as a whole, the affected region, or
  locality. In the case of a site-specific action,
  significance would usually depend on the effects
  in the locale rather than in the world as a
  whole. Both short- and long-term effects are
  relevant.
• For example, filling one acre of a one
  hundred-acre wetland probably could be considered
  not significant, but filling one acre of a
  two-acre wetland may be considered, under certain
  circumstances, a significant impact. The
  intensity is the same, but the context is
  different.

Source http//www.environment.fhwa.dot.gov/projde
v/tdmpdo.asp
11
EIS Process

• Notice of Intent issued by regional FHWA office
• Scoping to identify issues, ensure early
  coordination
• Draft EIS prepared more in a minute
• Draft EIS distributed and public hearing held
• Comments and responses to comments incorporated
  into EIS
• Final EIS prepared
• identifies and describes preferred alternative
  and basis for decision
• approved by FHWA and Record of Decision (ROD)
  issued

Source http//www.environment.fhwa.dot.gov/projde
v/tdmpdo.asp
12
EIS Contents

• Project purpose and need clear and specific,
  e.g. transportation demand, safety, legislative
  direction, urban transportation plan consistency
• Alternative section reasonable alternatives to
  achieve purpose and need, how selected, clear
  basis for choice among the options
• Must include no build
• Must include transportation system management
  (TSM)
• Must rigorously explore and objectively evaluate
  all reasonable alternatives" for meeting
  purpose and need
• Affected environment section
• Environmental consequences section

Source http//www.environment.fhwa.dot.gov/projde
v/tdmpdo.asp
13
Outcome

• Selection of preferred alternative balances
  needs and purpose with impacts
• Mitigation avoid, minimize, rehabilitate,
  restore, compensate, etc., more specifically.

14
Mitigation

• Avoidance
• Minimizing impacts by limiting the scope of the
  action
• Rehabilitating or restoring the affected
  environment
• Compensating for the impact by replacing or
  providing substitute resources
• Innovative designs to minimize harm
• Identification of opportunities to contribute to
  a healthier, more attractive environment through
  improved mitigation and enhancement

Source http//www.environment.fhwa.dot.gov/projde
v/tdmpdo.asp
15
Section 4f

• It is hereby declared to be the national policy
  that special effort should be made to preserve
  the natural beauty of the countryside and public
  park and recreation lands, wildlife and waterfowl
  refuges, and historic sites. the Secretary shall
  not approve any program or project which
  requires the use of any publicly owned land from
  a public park, recreation area, or wildlife and
  waterfowl refuge or any land from an historic
  site unless (1) there is no feasible and prudent
  alternative to the use of such land, and (2) such
  program includes all possible planning to
  minimize harm to such park, recreational area,
  wildlife and waterfowl refuge, or historic site
  resulting from such use 23 U.S.C. 138

Source http//www.environment.fhwa.dot.gov/projde
v/4fpolicy.asppurpose
16
Alternative may be rejected as prudent and
feasible if

• It does not meet the project purpose and need,
• It involves extraordinary operational or safety
  problems,
• There are unique problems or truly unusual
  factors present with it,
• It results in unacceptable and severe adverse
  social, economic or other environmental impacts,
• It would cause extraordinary community
  disruption,
• It has additional construction costs of an
  extraordinary magnitude, or
• There is an accumulation of factors that
  collectively, rather than individually, have
  adverse impacts that present unique problems or
  reach extraordinary magnitudes.

Source http//www.environment.fhwa.dot.gov/projde
v/4fpolicy.asppurpose
17
Grand Prairie Example
18
(No Transcript)
19
(No Transcript)
20
(No Transcript)
21
(No Transcript)
22
(No Transcript)
23
(No Transcript)
24
(No Transcript)
25
(No Transcript)
26
(No Transcript)
27
(No Transcript)
28
(No Transcript)
29
(No Transcript)
30
My analysis
By careful attention to design and detail, the
facility would blend into the urban backdrop
against which it is viewed SH161 EIS
31
My analysis
32
Environmental Streamlining

• Environmental Streamlining and Stewardship
  requires transportation agencies to work together
  with natural, cultural, and historic resource
  agencies to establish realistic timeframes for
  the environmental review of transportation
  projects. These agencies then need to work
  cooperatively to adhere to those timeframes,
  while they are protecting and enhancing the
  environment. The efficient and effective
  coordination of multiple environmental reviews,
  analyses, and permitting actions is essential to
  meeting the Environmental Streamlining and
  Stewardship mandates for highway and transit
  projects under SAFETEA-LU.

Source http//www.environment.fhwa.dot.gov/strmln
g/index.asp
33
SAFETEA-LU Environmental Provisions

• Environmental review process that includes a new
  category of "participating agencies" for Federal,
  state, local agencies and tribal nations that
  have an interest in the project.
• Purpose and Need and Range of Alternatives for a
  project are established after an opportunity by
  the participating agencies and the public for
  involvement.
• The lead agency must establish coordination plan
  for agency and public participation and comment.
• A 180-day statute of limitations for lawsuits
  challenging Federal agency approvals is provided,
  but it will require a new step of publishing a
  notice of environmental decisions in the Federal
  Register.
• State assumption of responsibilities for CEs and
  a project delivery pilot program for assumption
  of USDOT environmental responsibilities under
  NEPA and other environmental laws.
• A new Section 4(f) determination of a de minimis
  impact finding for section 4(f) resources.

Source http//www.environment.fhwa.dot.gov/strmln
g/index.asp
34
FHWA's Vital Few Environmental Goal

• FHWA's Vital Few Environmental Goal is
  Stewardship and Streamlining. Environmental
  Streamlining drives us to improve project
  delivery without compromising environmental
  protection. Environmental Stewardship helps
  demonstrate that we are mindful of the natural
  and human environment while addressing mobility
  and safety needs of the public. FHWA promotes
  actions that show we are responsible stewards of
  the environment.

http//www.environment.fhwa.dot.gov/strmlng/es4vit
alfew.asp
35
FHWA's Vital Few Environmental Goal

• The Vital Few Environmental Streamlining and
  Stewardship goal (Environment VFG) sets
  expectations, measures, and methods for advancing
  an improved and efficient environmental review
  process and for demonstrating environmental
  stewardship. The success of this goal is focused
  on improving processes that influence outcomes.

http//www.environment.fhwa.dot.gov/strmlng/es4vit
alfew.asp
36
Context-Sensitive Design
37
The Old Way
38
The New Way
39
Context-Sensitive Design

• a collaborative, interdisciplinary approach
  that involves all stakeholders to develop a
  transportation facility that fits its physical
  setting and preserves scenic, aesthetic,
  historic, and environmental resources, while
  maintaining safety and mobility. CSD is an
  approach that considers the total context within
  which a transportation improvement project will
  exist.

Source http//www.fhwa.dot.gov/csd/
40
Context-Sensitive Solutions

• a collaborative, interdisciplinary approach
  that involves all stakeholders to develop a
  transportation facility that fits its physical
  setting

Source http//www.contextsensitivesolutions.org/
41
Source http//www.fhwa.dot.gov/csd/basic.htm
http//www.fhwa.dot.gov/environment/flex/ch01.htm
42
Qualities of Excellence in Transportation Design

• The project satisfies the purpose and needs as
  agreed to by a full range of stakeholders.
• The project is a safe facility for both the user
  and the community.
• The project is in harmony with the community, and
  it preserves environmental, scenic, aesthetic,
  historic, and natural resource values of the
  area, i.e., exhibits context sensitive design.
• The project exceeds the expectations of both
  designers and stakeholders and achieves a level
  of excellence in people's minds.
• The project involves efficient and effective use
  of the resources (time, budget, community) of all
  involved parties.
• The project is designed and built with minimal
  disruption to the community.
• The project is seen as having added lasting value
  to the community.

Source http//www.fhwa.dot.gov/csd/qualities.htm
43
Characteristics of the Process Contributing to
Excellence

• Communication with all stakeholders is open,
  honest, early, and continuous.
• A multidisciplinary team is established early,
  with disciplines based on the needs of the
  specific project, and with the inclusion of the
  public.
• A full range of stakeholders is involved with
  transportation officials in the scoping phase.
  The purposes of the project are clearly defined,
  and consensus on the scope is forged before
  proceeding.
• The highway development process is tailored to
  meet the circumstances.
• A commitment to the process from top agency
  officials and local leaders is secured.
• The public involvement process, which includes
  informal meetings, is tailored to the project.
• The landscape, the community, and valued
  resources are understood before engineering
  design is started.
• A full range of tools for communication about
  project alternatives is used (e.g.,
  visualization).

Source http//www.fhwa.dot.gov/csd/qualities.htm
44
District 1 Presentation
Source http//www.dot.ca.gov/hq/oppd/context-solu
tion.pdf
45
Source http//www.dot.ca.gov/hq/oppd/context/main
-streets-flexibility-in-design.pdf
46
Source http//www.dot.ca.gov/hq/oppd/context/main
-streets-flexibility-in-design.pdf
47
Bulbout Cotati, California
http//www.contextsensitivesolutions.org/content/c
ase_studies/bulbout-cotati-ca/
48
Intersection Beverly Hills, California
http//www.contextsensitivesolutions.org/content/c
ase_studies/bulbout-cotati-ca/
49
Bicycle Facilities Davis, CA
http//www.contextsensitivesolutions.org/content/c
ase_studies/bulbout-cotati-ca/
50
I-35 and US183 Interchange, Austin, TX
51
Next Public Involvement