News
2017-12-20 - 2017 Annual List of Obligated Projects
Federal funding of transportation projects in the region for 2017
“Obligated” projects are those that the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) or Federal Transit Administration (FTA) have committed to reimbursing a share of the cost of construction or implementation. Pursuant to Federal Regulations in CFR §450.332, Metropolitan Planning Organizations (MPO’s), as the entities responsible for maintaining the metropolitan transportation planning process, must make public an annual listing of projects for which federal transportation funds were obligated in the preceding fiscal year. These are generally projects that have been recently completed, are under construction, or are nearing construction, where federal transportation funds have been officially committed with a signed project agreement. The full report contains additional detail regarding these projects however some highlights include:
- $ 37.2 million dollars in Federal Highway funds committed in the RPC region in 31 contracts addressing bridge, roadway, bicycle, and pedestrian oriented projects.
- $ 15.9 Million in Federal Transit funds committed to COAST, CART, and UNH Wildcat Transit to support their operations and capital needs.
- $10.7 million obligated towards the replacement of the Sarah Mildred Long Bridge between Portsmouth, NH and Kittery, ME.
- $9.3 million obligated in the RPC region facilitating continued work on the I-93 expansion from Salem to Manchester.
- $2.4 million in previously programmed federal transportation funds freed for use in current and forthcoming projects around New Hampshire.
Notice is hereby given that, acting in its capacity as the MPO for its planning district, the Rockingham Planning Commission has published its 2017 Annual Listing of Obligated Projects and made it available to be viewed and downloaded on the RPC website, www.rpc-nh.org. For more information, contact David Walker, Transportation Program Manager, at Rockingham Planning Commission, 156 Water St., Exeter, NH 03833; 603-778-0885 or email at dwalker@rpc-nh.org.
The full report, as well as reports from previous years, can be found on the Annual List of Obligated Projects page of the website.
[Press Releases][Transportation]
2017-12-11 - 30 Day Comment Period and Hearing for 2017-2020 TIP Amendment #3
Notice of Comment Period and Public Hearing
2017-2020 TIP Amendment #3
The FY 2017-2020 Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) is a prioritized list of federal and state funded regional transportation projects developed by NH DOT and representatives from the communities of the Rockingham Planning Commission (RPC) region. The RPC announces its intent to amend the TIP to account for project changes and to maintain consistency with the State Transportation Improvement Program (STIP). To maintain consistency between the TIP and theLong Range Transportation Plan (LRTP), the project list of the LRTP will be updated in conjunction with the changes to the TIP. The project specific changes to the TIP and supporting documentation can be found on the TIP Amendment page of the Rockingham Planning Commission website at http://www.rpc-nh.org.
A 30-day public comment period for the Amendments begins Monday, December 11th, 2017 and concludes on Tuesday, January 9th, 2018. A public hearing to consider the changes and any received comments is scheduled for Wednesday January 10th, 2018, beginning at 7:00 PM at the Kingston Town Hall (163 Main Street). The Planning Commission will meet after the public hearing to adopt the changes to the TIP.
As of July 20, 2013, all of New Hampshire is unclassifiable/attainment for the 2008 8-Hour Ozone National Ambient Air Quality Standards (the 2008 ozone standard) and as of April 6, 2015, the 1997 8-Hour Ozone National Ambient Air Quality Standard (the 1997 ozone standard) is revoked for all purposes, including transportation conformity purposes in the Boston-Manchester-Portsmouth (SE) NH area.
Consistent with the RPC’s Public Participation Process, this notice and comment period is also intended to meet FTA requirements for public comment on the programs of transit projects put forward by NHDOT, UNH and the COAST and CART transit systems.
Copies of all documents are available at the RPC offices, on the website at http://www.rpc-nh.org, and will be sent to interested parties by request. Written comments will also be accepted through January 9th, 2017 and may be addressed to:
Rockingham Planning Commission
156 Water Street
Exeter, NH 03833
Email: transportation@rpc-nh.org with TIP/Plan amendments in the subject line
For more information contact David Walker at (603) 778-0885.
[Public Notices][Transportation]
2017-12-08 - Liberty Utility Granite Bridge Gas Pipeline Proposal
RPC will be monitoring this proposal and posting news and information on our Granite Bridge Pipeline Proposal page as it becomes available.
2017-12-07 - ADDITIONAL Public Hearings Set in Concord and Manchester on Proposed Toll Increase
Two more public hearings have been scheduled to gather public input on the proposal put forth by GACIT and NHDOT to accelerate and expand the Turnpike Capital Program through an increase in the toll rates.
The additional public hearings are scheduled for Tuesday, December 12, 2017 at 6:00 pm at the NH Department of Transportation, Room 114, 7 Hazen Drive, in Concord (directions) AND Wednesday, December 13, 2017 at 7:00 pm at Manchester City Hall, Aldermanic Chambers – 3rd Floor, at 1 City Hall Plaza, Manchester NH (directions). The proposal and the NHDOT press release are linked below. Also linked is the presentation from the December 4th hearing held in Portsmouth.
NHDOT Press Release
https://www.nh.gov/dot/media/nr2017/2017-12-06-public-hearing-manchester.htm
PROPOSAL FOR ACCELERATION AND EXPANSION OF TURNPIKE CAPITAL PROGRAM
https://www.nh.gov/dot/org/projectdevelopment/planning/typ/documents/GACITTollIncreaseProposal.pdf
PRESENTATION from the December 4th Hearing: Potential Toll Increase For Acceleration & Expansion of Turnpike Capital Program
https://www.nh.gov/dot/org/projectdevelopment/planning/typ/documents/proposedtollincrease.pdf
*****Any comments are due to NHDOT by 4:00 pm on Thursday, December 14, 2017 attention to William E. Watson P.E., 7 Hazen Drive, PO Box 483, Concord NH 03302-0483 or by e-mail to: bill.watson@dot.nh.gov.*****2017-11-29 - Toll Increase Proposal Public Meeting - 12/4 at Portsmouth Library at 6:00
Pursuant to RSA 228:99 and RSA 240, Executive Councilor Russell E. Prescott, and the NH Department of Transportation, on behalf of the Governor’s Advisory Commission on Intermodal Transportation (GACIT), which is composed of the five Executive Councilors and the Commissioner of the New Hampshire Department of Transportation announces that a Public Meeting will be held to review and receive input on a toll increase proposal for the NH Turnpike System.
The purpose of this meeting is to receive public comments/testimony on the toll proposal for the NH Turnpike Improvements to accelerate road and bridge work to enhance safety and reduce congestion projects in the Draft 2019-2028 Ten Year Plan. This proposal was requested from New Hampshire Department of Transportation (NHDOT) by Councilor Prescott as part of the GACIT Public Hearing process.
The meeting will be held in the Portsmouth Public Library Levenson Community Meeting Room, 175 Parrott Avenue in Portsmouth NH on Monday December 4, 2017, with doors opening at 5:30pm, hearing and presentation starting at 6:00pm, with discussion and public input lasting until no later than 8:30pm.
The toll proposal can be found on the Department’s Ten Year Plan Web Page at:
https://www.nh.gov/dot/org/projectdevelopment/planning/typ/documents/GACITTollIncreaseProposal.pdf
Written comments can also be submitted by letter or email and be addressed to, and must be received by 12:00pm on Tuesday, December 5, 2017:
William E. Watson, P.E.
Bill.Watson@dot.nh.gov
Bureau of Planning and Community Assistance
New Hampshire Department of Transportation
John O. Morton Building, 7 Hazen Drive
P.O. Box 483
Concord, NH 03302-0483
Any individuals needing assistance or auxiliary communication equipment due to sensory impairment or other disability, should contact Sharon Allaire, (603) 271-3344, NHDOT, P.O. Box 483, Concord, N.H. 03302-0483 - TDD access: Relay N.H. 1-800-735-2964.
The projects developed through the Ten Year Plan process will be administered according to the requirements of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and related statutes to ensure non-discrimination.
Executive Councilor Russell E. Prescott
Governor’s Advisory Commission on Intermodal Transportation (GACIT)
Dated at Concord, NH
this 28th day of November 2017
2017-11-28 - Update on GACIT Ten Year Transportation Plan Development Process
The Governor's Advisory Commission on Intermodal Transportation (GACIT) met on Wednesday November 22 to review public input gathered from 23 public hearings held around the state in September and October on the Draft 2019-2028 Ten Year Transportation Plan. At the meeting Executive Councilor Russell Prescott moved to amend the draft plan to include the revised project recommendations approved by the RPC MPO Policy Committee. These prioritized four relatively small, geographically distributed projects rather than the single large Route 1/101 intersection realignment project initially selected by NHDOT. The four projects included:
1) Shoulder and sidewalk improvements in New Castle and Rye on Routes 1A & 1B;
2) Signalization, turn lanes and realignment of the intersection of Route 108 and Bunker Hill Avenue in Stratham;
3) Signalization and intersection improvements of the intersection of Route 121/Depot Road/Derry Road in Hampstead; and
4) Capacity improvements on Route 1 in Seabrook between New Zealand Road and the Hampton Falls town line.
The GACIT members also discussed a proposed toll increase that would expedite a long list of capital projects on the turnpike system and free up federal funding for non-turnpike projects. Projects in the RPC region that would benefit include expansion of open road tolling in Hampton, the I95 Piscataqua River Bridge rehabilitation, and a new soundwall program that was a focus of comments at the Portsmouth GACIT hearing. The GACIT will meet twice more in December (12/6 and 12/20) to finalize their draft of the Ten Year Plan before sending it to the Governor for review in late December. Following review by the Governor the draft plan will go to the Legislature in the upcoming term. Final approval of the plan is anticipate in June 2018.
With questions contact Scott Bogle (sbogle@rpc-nh.org) or Dave Walker (dwalker@rpc-nh.org)
2017-11-27 - Local Update of Census Addresses Operation (LUCA) Webinar - 12/6
As part of the Local Update of Census Addresses Operation (LUCA), the US Census Bureau is hosting a webinar on 12/6 from 1-3 PM for communities to learn about participation in the LUCA program.The LUCA program provides the only opportunity for tribal, state, and local governments to review and comment on the U.S. Census Bureau's residential address list for their jurisdiction prior to the 2020 Census. Registration link: https://census.webex.com/census/k2/j.php?MTID=tf7836973544ffae116e2909712dcfffc
2017-11-27 - Transportation Project Viewer and Traffic Counts Now Available!
Transportation Project Viewer: RPC’s Transportation Project Viewer was recently released as part of the 2017 update to the Long Range Transportation Plan. This Viewer enhances the ability of communities and citizens to find projects in the region. This interactive web map and other transportation information can be found on the Long Range Transportation Plan webpage.
Traffic Counts: RPC’s traffic count program supports state and regional decision-making by providing annual traffic counts. RPC’s Traffic Count Viewer allows communities and citizens to view this historical information in a web map. This count data can be used to determine crash rates, find volume trends for various locations, and support project selection. The map can be found on the Maps and Data webpage.
2017-10-11 - 2017 Legislative Forum
RPC hosts an annual Legislative Forum on topics of interest to legislators, commissioners and municipal officials. The 2017 Forum, being held on November 8, will focus on water resource issues from the regional and local perspective, along with specific areas of concern. More details and registration information is available on the Legislative Forum page and below.
2017 Legislative Forum
Wednesday, November 8, 2017
6:00 - 9:00 PM
Unitil Headquarters
6 Liberty Lane West - Hampton, NH
Please RSVP by November 1, 2017 to Roxanne Rines or call 778-0885
2017-10-05 - 2016-2017 UPWP Performance Report Completed
The UPWP Performance Report summarizes the progress that the RPC has made in implementing both the broad goals and specific tasks outlined in the FY 2016 - 2017 Unified Planning Work Program (UPWP) covering the MPO region. It is submitted to comply with federal Metropolitan Planning Regulations and to provide communities, MPO Transportation Advisory Committee (TAC) and Policy Committee members, and the public a report of progress on transportation planning projects and initiatives that the MPO has undertaken for the region. Over the course of the 24 months of the UPWP, the MPO spent approximately 16,400 hours undertaking 129 of the 164 identified work tasks and products and approximately $1.16 million of Federal and Local funds. In conducting this work, the MPO expended a greater than budgeted number of personnel hours (101%) while spending only 99% of the funds available for the two years. Some highlights of the work undertaken include the following:
- Substantial Progress on a full update to the Long Range Transportation Plan (Expected adoption October, 2017)
- 5 TIP Amendments and 24 administrative adjustments
- Updated unified statewide project prioritization process and project selection criteria for the State Ten Year Plan
- 1000 hours in support of 16 Transportation Advisory Committee and 10 MPO Policy Committee meetings
- 600 Hours of Technical assistance 23 Technical Assistance Projects for MPO Communities and development impact review for 9 communities
- 1500 hours in support of transit planning and technical assistance regional transit providers.
- Over 5,000 Hours of mapping and data analysis work
- 1200 hours of stream crossing data collection in 12 MPO communities.
- 900 hours in support of regional bicycle and pedestrian planning
- 1400 Hours in natural resources coordination, livability, and climate change related work.
- Continued Regional Vulnerability Analysis for storm surge and sea level ris
The full report can be viewed on the UPWP Performance Reports page.
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