CAMPO 2035 PLAN
CAMPO 2035 Plan
The Capital Area Metropolitan Planning Organization (CAMPO), which was established in 1973, is the Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) for Williamson, Travis, and Hays counties. The purpose of CAMPO is to coordinate regional transportation planning with counties, cities, the transit authority and other transportation providers in the Central Texas region, and the Texas Department of Transportation to approve the use of federal transportation funds within the region.
The Capital Area Metropolitan Planning Organization (CAMPO) is required to have a 20 year long-range plan that is updated every five years. The current 2030 Plan is now being updated and a 2035 Plan is due to federal authorities by June 2010.
When the CAMPO Transportation Policy Board Members adopted the CAMPO 2030 Plan in June 2005, they directed staff to explore alternative future growth patterns in 2035 that would improve transportation and regional quality of life and would integrate the information from the Envision Central Texas (ECT) 2003 survey of various growth scenarios and subsequent planning efforts.
The CAMPO Technical Advisory Committee appointed a Growth Subcommittee in 2006 consisting of experts from the public and private sectors, and CAMPO began meeting regularly with this group to get feedback and input into this process. In May 2006, CAMPO staff solicited ideas and comments from city and county planning staff on local plans for growth through a series of round table meetings held throughout the five-county region. On August 23, 2006, the subcommittee released a draft CAMPO 2035 Regional Growth Concept. In early September 2006, CAMPO staff solicited feedback from the public and other stakeholders on the draft Regional Growth Concept through workshops and a survey.
2009 Update
On Monday, February 9, 2009, CAMPO launched its planning process to establish a regional framework for local transportation planning decisions, called "People, Planning and Preparing for the Future: Your 25 Year Transportation Plan." CAMPO's planning team sought public input to create a regional plan. Residents in Travis, Williamson, and Hays as well as Bastrop and Caldwell counties were asked to participate in a number of ways, including an online survey, a newspaper insert, and a series of public workshops.
The first round of public workshops, which were held in February and March 2009 in Austin, San Marcos, Round Rock, and Bastrop, focused on transportation needs. Residents were asked about their own transportation challenges and participated in an interactive mapping activity that allowed them to graphically pinpoint their suggestions regarding these challenges. This first round of public input resulted in three transportation concepts for the region. Those concepts are: the No Build Concept, the Trend Concept and the Centers Concept.
Below are the short descriptions of the three concepts from the CAMPO report .
No Build Concept
The No Build Concept assumes that growth trends continue in the region and current committed projects are built, but that no investments are made to add capacity to the transportation system between 2010 and 2035. Under this concept, all available funding would be invested in additional operations and maintenance activities.
Trend Concept
The Trend Concept assumes that the density, location, and mix of future development will be driven by a continuation of current policies and market trends. The concept also assumes that projects currently in the investment pipeline will be built. Under the Trend Concept, the remaining funding is invested to continue to build out the region’s freeway system and to expand state highways and arterial roadways.
Centers Concept
The Centers Concept assumes that the region establishes policies and incentives to accommodate new growth into multiple high-density, mixed-use centers around the region. The concept assumes that some of the projects currently in the investment pipeline do not move forward during the next 25 years. Under the Centers Concept, the available funding is invested to expand the region’s public transit system (including buses and rail), to implement a network of high capacity roadway lanes, and to build new arterials serving the mixed-use centers.
As a part of the public involvement, a survey was conducted on three transportation concepts. RECA members were urged to contribute their input by responding to a 3 Concepts Survey online. This survey closed on Thursday, October 15, 2009.
According to Senator Kirk Watson, the Board Chair of CAMPO, "These concepts are only a starting point for a long overdue discussion about the transportation priorities in Central Texas. We are running out of money for roads, rail, and other badly needed projects, so broad public participation is absolutely vital to setting priorities and creating a transportation plan that our region needs and wants."
After conducting its second round of public involvement in Fall 2009, the CAMPO Transportation Policy Board directed staff on January 20, 2010 to develop policy language for the federally-mandated 2035 transportation plan supporting development of high density, mixed-use activity centers in the locations shown on the CAMPO Centers map. The policy should address the fact that, based on demographic assumptions in the 2035 plan, CAMPO should work with local jurisdictions to accommodate 31 percent of regional population and 38 percent of regional jobs in these activity centers.
On Monday, March 8, 2010, CAMPO released the draft plan to the public for comment. The plan includes a list of priority projects that serve as a guide for transportation investments and planning resources. The projects are organized into three categories: roadway projects; public transportation projects; and other projects (such as bicycle, pedestrian, freight, or safety programs).
CAMPO staff and their public involvement consultants held open houses in each of the following five cities: Austin, Bastrop, Lockhart, San Marcos, and Round Rock. There were also a public hearings on the draft plan on Monday, April 12, 2010 and Monday, May 10, 2010. At the April 12th meeting, CAMPO Chair Judge Sam Biscoe assigned a subcommittee to work on revising the policy regarding CAMPO’s oversight of financing toll road operations. The subcommittee was chaired by Austin City Council Member Sheryl Cole and consisted of Cedar Park Mayor Bob Lemon, TxDOT Austin District engineer Carlos Lopez, Travis county Commissioner Sarah Eckhardt, and Williamson County Commissioner Cynthia Long. That subcommittee met on Monday, April 26, 2010 and its amendment to TR-4 was released to the public on Monday, May 3, 2010. RECA, the Chamber, and the Home Builders Association of Greater Austin are requesting that TR-4 be deleted from the policies. Click here to read RECA's position on all of the policies.
The final CAMPO 2035 Plan was adopted by a 17-2 vote on Monday, May 24, 2010. Former Sunset Valley Mayor Jeff Mills and Travis County Commissioner Karen Huber voted against the plan.
