Transportation Reauthorization Updates

The U.S. House of Representatives Transportation and Infrastructure Committee released its transportation reauthorization bill, the American Energy and Infrastructure Jobs Act (AEIJA), which was marked up in committee on Thursday, February 2. AEIJA would provide $260 billion over 4.5 years to highway, transit, safety, and other transportation programs.  On February 3, three committees in the House and U.S Senate marked up approved bills related to transportation reauthorization, including the financing components of AEIJA.  The House reauthorization bill would rely in part on revenues from expanded domestic energy production and a $40 billion transfer from general revenues.  In related news, the U.S. Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee released its transit reauthorization bill, which will later be combined with the larger Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century (MAP-21) bill. The Senate Banking bill was also marked up this Thursday, February 2. The release of the Senate transit bill comes shortly after the Federal Transit Administration issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking to reform the New Starts grant program.

U.S. EPA ruling on air quality

Transportation Enhancement Program Announcement

The Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT) announced it is seeking proposals for the 2012 Illinois Transportation Enhancement Program (ITEP). Approximately $50 million is available for projects. The application form and guidelines will be available at www.dot.il.gov/opp/itep.html starting February 1, 2012, with proposals accepted through May 29, 2012.

Energy Impact Illinois featured on DOE policy blog

As part of the Energy Impact Illinois (EI2) alliance's mission, a current series of video webisodes feature "The Energy Bills" in an informative yet entertaining look at how residents of northeastern Illinois can save energy and money by improving their home's efficiency. The second such video is highlighted at the policy blog of the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) , which provided a $25 million grant to the CMAP-led alliance of utility companies, government agencies, and citizen advocacy groups working together to create a long-term market for improving the energy efficiency of the region's buildings.

Deadline extended to February 3 for comment on U.S. EPA air quality attainment ruling

Our region faces harm to its air quality and a significant loss of federal transportation funding if the U.S. EPA follows through on its intention to ignore current, certified 2011 data and rule that northeastern Illinois is "in attainment" with the agency's 2008 guidelines for air quality.  CMAP urges you to contact U.S. EPA and members of Congress, calling on the federal regulators to consider the up-to-date 2011 data, which clearly indicate our region has actually not attained the 2008 air standards.  The U.S. EPA comment period ends on January 19, 2012. See a December 20 notice in the Federal Register (marked as "40 CFR Part 81"), which includes details of how to make your views known.  Commenters may want to adapt this sample letter.  See the letter submitted by CMAP and read more in a CMAP Policy Update.

Comment on amendments to Transportation Improvement Program

The CMAP Transportation Committee has released a conformity amendment to the FFY 2010-2015 Transportation Improvement Program (TIP). This amendment is open to public comment for 30 days, from January 20 to February 20, 2012. Conformity analysis is part of the transportation modeling process that evaluates the impact of projects on air quality. On-road vehicle emissions are reviewed in certain years (currently 2016, 2020, 2030 and 2040) to determine that the region will reach national air quality goals. Please review the cover memo and list of conformity amendments.  Comments mailed to CMAP,  ATTN TIP amendments, 233 South Wacker Drive, Suite 800, Chicago, IL 60606, or submitted by e-mail or phone (312-454-0400).

Millennium Reserve open space project is announced

The Millennium Reserve project's recently announced Calumet Core phase aims to restore 15,000 acres of open space in Chicago and south suburban Cook County.  Important aspects are funded by the CMAQ program, including more than $10 million for a continuous bikeway from the Chicago lakefront to Joliet.  At the event, CMAP executive director Randy Blankenhorn described the project's importance regarding GO TO 2040 priorities for quality of life, the environment, health, mobility, economic development, and more. 

Apps for Metro Chicago announces Grand Challenge winners

The Apps for Metro Chicago contest has concluded with the announcement of winners in its Grand Challenge round.  The 20 finalists included tools that let residents find parking spots, discover bicycle trails, track bus and train arrivals, and a number of other non-transportation apps. Among the finalists was What's Driving Costing You?, an app that leverages MetroPulse data.

Policy analysis of federal MAP-21 highway reauthorization bill

CMAP has posted a thorough analysis of the Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century (MAP-21) highway reauthorization bill in a two-part series on our Policy Updates blog. Using the five transportation reauthorization principles CMAP published two years ago, our blog series highlights CMAP's concerns and overall position on MAP-21, which has been passed by the U.S. Senate Environment and Public Works Committee. 

CMAP allocates $411 million for 115 projects to reduce congestion, improve air quality

The CMAP Board and MPO Policy committee voted on October 12, 2011, to approve the FY2012-16 Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality (CMAQ) program of 115 projects to improve transit, roads, bicycle, and pedestrian facilities.  The $411 million in federal transportation funds are being targeted to support the GO TO 2040 comprehensive regional plan's goals for reducing congestion and improving air quality.  Read more in the CMAP press release,  with related materials that include lists of projects by county. 

Local comprehensive planning featured in new GO TO 2040 video

CMAP has released "Planning Locally for Livability," which highlights the benefits of municipalities' planning comprehensively.  The video focuses on plans in development by Blue Island, Campton Hills, and Park Forest with support from the CMAP Local Technical Assistance (LTA) program.

Federal, state grants of $7 million benefit west Cook housing

In December 2011, the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity awarded $4.2 million to the West Cook County Housing Collaborative, a CMAP-supported effort of Bellwood, Berwyn, Forest Park, Maywood, and Oak Park. The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development will also provide $2.9 million to create or update the communities' comprehensive plans. 

Public comments sought for Union Station plan

The City of Chicago Department of Transportation (CDOT) has created a website for its Union Station Master Plan.  In development for the past year, the plan is led by the Chicago Department of Transportation in collaboration with partners such as Amtrak and Metra.  At an open house on December 15, 2011, experts presented ideas intended to help the station accommodate "more trains, people, and traffic on nearby streets."  Read more in a story by Jon Hilkevitch of the Chicago Tribune.

Interactive web walking tour of the Loop

WTTW has created an interactive web page to  accompany Geoffrey Baer's latest special, "Chicago's Loop: A New Walking Tour."  The  program traces "the history of downtown Chicago's rise, fall, and rebirth."  Among the tour stops is a segment about Willis (formerly Sears) Tower, which is home to the CMAP offices.  In case you missed it, be sure also to see Geoffrey's "Biking the Boulevards."

Energy Impact Illinois web tools help consumers reduce home energy consumption and costs

Energy Impact Illinois (EI2) has launched a personalized energy calculator and financial resources for Chicago area homeowners to help them make energy efficient improvements to their homes. The tools, located at TheEnergyBills.org, will educate homeowners on their current energy usage, provide information on how to make smart energy efficiency investments and connect them with financial resources to make those investments a reality.

MetroPulse iPhone app offers free, on-the-go regional data

A free MetroPulse iPhone app allows users to view quality-of-life indicator data about the region's counties, municipalities, and Chicago community areas.  Read more in this press release.  MetroPulse was created by the Regional Indicators Project, a partnership of CMAP and The Chicago Community Trust.