General Assembly Raised Bill No. 5455
February Session, 2010 LCO No. 1857
*01857_______TRA*
Referred to Committee on Transportation
Introduced by:
(TRA)
General Assembly
Raised Bill No. 5455
February Session, 2010
LCO No. 1857
*01857_______TRA*
Referred to Committee on Transportation
Introduced by:
(TRA)
AN ACT UPDATING THE MASTER TRANSPORTATION PLAN AND THE EXISTING TRANSPORTATION FACILITIES ASSESSMENT REPORT.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Assembly convened:
Section 1. Section 13b-15 of the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective from passage):
(a) The commissioner shall develop and revise biennially a comprehensive, [long-range,] master transportation plan designed to fulfill the present and future needs of the state and to assure the development and maintenance of an adequate, safe and efficient transportation system. In developing the plan, the commissioner shall [investigate and study all existing transportation facilities and services in the state and shall examine the feasibility of planning a long-term commercial transportation system, with the goal of coordinating all transportation services, including airports, seaports, rail, freight and transit systems] consider the department's statutory responsibilities, the guiding principles and transportation strategies adopted by the Governor and the General Assembly, the state's current conservation and development policies plan, the federally mandated factors specified in the current federal surface transportation authorization legislation, and the department's assessment of existing transportation facilities carried out under section 13b-16, as amended by this act. The commissioner shall also give [particular] consideration to: [reports] (1) Reports and studies [prepared under the auspices of the Connecticut interregional planning program] relating to the planning and development of the state; [and] (2) any existing reports, surveys, plans or studies relating to transportation prepared for or by any agency, board or commission of the state; and (3) regional long-range transportation plans prepared by regional planning organizations in this state.
(b) In such master transportation plan the commissioner shall: (1) Set forth the commissioner's recommendations for planning, engineering, acquisition of rights-of-way, construction and reconstruction and rehabilitation and modernization of transportation facilities; (2) consider, among other things, federal air quality standards, conservation and cost of energy supplies, present and projected travel volumes, reduction in travel volumes due to the implementation of transportation management programs, safety, maintenance costs and other sufficiency factors where appropriate, as well as long-range land use, environmental impact, energy impact and economic development patterns of the state; (3) indicate the order of priority of need for improvements within each mode of transportation, according to the commissioner's judgment; and (4) indicate the priorities for the next [two and five-year periods] five-year period, both by need and by fiscal capability, [in the area of public transportation] for each mode of transportation. The indication of such priorities [for public transportation] shall include an individual accounting of the amount and source of all funding for each potential program and an approximate timetable, including the starting and completion dates for each potential program.
(c) The commissioner shall, relative to the [Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century] current federal surface transportation authorization legislation: (1) Identify the funds to be received annually in the [following categories: Interstate construction, interstate maintenance, national highway system, bridge, surface transportation program, interstate transfer, congestion mitigation and air quality, metropolitan planning, special projects and any other category designation under the act] federal program funding categories; (2) identify the projects to be funded annually through each funding category; (3) identify the projects to be funded annually through each category continued or established by such legislation, as a result of the change in formulas and new flexibility allowed under the [Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century] current federal surface transportation authorization legislation; (4) identify which projects will require the expenditure of state funds to leverage federal funds; (5) identify the amount and percentage of state funds that must be expended for each project in order to leverage federal funds; (6) identify the amount of federal funds that may be expended annually to repair local bridges identified as being in poor condition; (7) identify the economic impact of the federal funds allocated to the state in terms of job creation or retention; (8) identify the mass transit projects to be funded; and (9) identify the manner in which the department intends to comply with the requirements of the Clean Air Act, as amended by P.L. 101-549, and how the department intends to expend any funds allocated to the department to achieve the goals of the act. [; and (10) identify with specificity the expenditures to be made from funds received in the congestion mitigation and air quality grant in relation to the needs identified by employers in their compliance plans submitted pursuant to substitute house bill 5659 of the February, 1992, regular session*.]
(d) In such plan the commissioner shall identify the amount of funds and projects to be undertaken pursuant to the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990.
(e) The plan shall be completed and submitted biennially to the Governor on or before January thirty-first of each odd-numbered year. The commissioner shall, biennially, on or before January thirty-first of each odd-numbered year, notify all members of the General Assembly of the availability of the plan. The commissioner shall send a written copy or electronic storage media of the plan to any member requesting the plan.
(f) In developing and revising the plan, the commissioner may: (1) Conduct public hearings; (2) consult and cooperate with officials and representatives of the federal government, neighboring states, interstate commissions and authorities, local agencies and authorities, interested corporations and other organizations concerning problems affecting transportation in the state; (3) request and receive from any agency or other unit of the government of the state or of any political subdivision of the state, or from any public authority, such assistance and data as may be necessary to enable the commissioner to carry out the commissioner's responsibilities under this section; (4) to the extent the commissioner may deem appropriate, make use of, and incorporate in the plan, any existing long-range transportation plan, survey or report developed by any public or private agency or person; and (5) employ consultants.
(g) Copies of the plan, as revised, shall be kept on file as a public record in the office of the commissioner.
Sec. 2. Section 13b-16 of the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective from passage):
(a) On or before September first [annually] in the even-numbered year of each biennium, the commissioner shall conduct and complete an [investigation and study] assessment of the several modes of transportation in the state, in which the commissioner shall evaluate the adequacy of the facilities and services connected with each such mode and shall determine the needs of the state transportation system. The commissioner shall [consult with the Connecticut Public Transportation Commission which shall advise the commissioner in matters pertaining to rail and motor carrier facilities and services] consider the plans and recommendations prepared by the various boards, councils and commissions that have statutory responsibilities pertaining to the various modes of transportation in Connecticut. The commissioner shall also consider reports, studies, findings and recommendations presented in reports, plans, surveys, and studies relating to transportation prepared for or by any state agency or for or by the state's regional planning organizations. The studies shall be used in the biennial revision of the department's comprehensive [long-range] master transportation plan.
(b) The commissioner may engage in experimental projects relating to any available or future mode of transportation, including but not limited to, high speed rail service, the development of heliports and any means of improving existing transportation facilities and services. The commissioner may be assisted by the [commission] boards, councils, commissions, state agencies and regional planning organizations referred to in subsection (a) of this section, in connection with any such project.
This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following sections:
Section 1 from passage 13b-15
Sec. 2 from passage 13b-16
This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following sections:
Section 1
from passage
13b-15
Sec. 2
from passage
13b-16
Statement of Purpose:
To update sections 13b-15 and 13b-16 of the general statutes to reflect changes in state and federal laws.
[Proposed deletions are enclosed in brackets. Proposed additions are indicated by underline, except that when the entire text of a bill or resolution or a section of a bill or resolution is new, it is not underlined.]